Diptera in Nests of the Fieldfare Turdus pilaris in Moscow City

Abstract

The composition of dipterans inhabiting fieldfare nests in a big city was studied for the first time, based on material collected soon after chick fledging. Larvae of 21 species belonging to 14 families were found, including saprophages, necrophages, and predators (Scatopsidae, Ceratopogonidae, Phoridae, Chloropidae, Anthomyiidae, etc.), and also Protocalliphora azurea (Fallén, 1816) (Calliphoridae) and Neottiophilum praeustum (Meigen, 1826) (Neottiophilidae) known as bloodsucking ectoparasites of nestlings. Larvae of P. azurea (up to 121 per nest) were found in both early (April–May) and late (May–June) nests. Larvae of N. praeustum (up to 299 per nest) were recorded only in late nests. The two species occurred both separately and jointly in one nest, with N. praeustum dominating numerically. The seasonal differences in the development of these two parasitic species may account for their high abundance in such ephemeral habitats. Larvae of Trypocalliphora braueri (Hendel, 1901), a subcutaneous parasite of nestlings of many bird species, were not found in the fieldfare nests. A key to the larvae of the three fly species parasitizing nestlings in European Russia is given.