Beneficial insects are our helpers. Tahini, tahini flies, tahini insects How to distinguish tahini flies from other insects

FLIES: “FLIES BITE HARDER BEFORE RAIN” This is not always true, but insects are less of a nuisance in wet weather, when it is more difficult to fly. When it's hot, people sweat and therefore become a more appetizing target. These two reasons plus an increase in body odor when lowering

All those who believe that flies are useless creatures are very mistaken. Tahina flies are very useful, especially for garden and vegetable crops. Their larvae are natural enemies of many insects, causing significant damage agriculture.

They were nicknamed hedgehogs for the many hard bristles covering their entire body. In general, their appearance differs little from appearance ordinary flies. In total, the tahini fly family includes more than 8,200 species. Depending on the species, their body length varies from 3 millimeters to 2 centimeters. The abdomen consists of 4 rings.

These flies love sunny, but not hot weather. At this time, tahini can most often be seen on plant flowers, where they feed on pollen and nectar. But not all species show their main activity during daylight hours.

According to the method of infecting other insects with their larvae, all hedgehog flies can be divided into 3 groups:

1. The former lay their eggs on the leaves of plants, where sawfly caterpillars, butterfly caterpillars and other insect pests crawl nearby. Their eggs are so small that caterpillars eating a leaf may not even notice them.
2. The latter specialize in soil insects and lay their eggs in the ground, where the larvae that hatch after some time begin independent searches its future food supply (adult insects or their larvae).
3. Still others lay eggs directly IN or ON the insect's body.

Very rare, but viviparous species of these flies are also found. Most often, in one caterpillar prey there are larvae of only one type of fly, and even then only a few - no more than 2-3 individuals.

Thus, by regulating the number of insect pests, tachines are of great benefit. They are especially good for combating the Colorado potato beetle, gypsy moths, chafers, bedbugs, butterflies and other pests.

All those who believe that flies are useless creatures are very mistaken. Tahina flies are very useful, especially for garden and vegetable crops. Their larvae are natural enemies of many insects that cause significant damage to agriculture.

They were nicknamed hedgehogs for the many hard bristles covering their entire body. In general, their appearance differs little from the appearance of ordinary flies. In total, the tahini fly family includes more than 8,200 species. Depending on the species, their body length varies from 3 millimeters to 2 centimeters. The abdomen consists of 4 rings.

Photo by Stephen Cresswell

These flies love sunny, but not hot weather. At this time, tahini can most often be seen on plant flowers, where they feed on pollen and nectar. But not all species show their main activity during daylight hours.

Tahina flies or hedge flies (Latin Tachinidae)


Photo by Marlin

According to the method of infecting other insects with their larvae, all hedgehog flies can be divided into 3 groups:

The former lay their eggs on the leaves of plants, where sawfly caterpillars, butterfly caterpillars and other insect pests crawl nearby. Their eggs are so small that caterpillars eating a leaf may not even notice them.
The latter specialize in soil insects and lay their eggs in the ground, where the larvae that hatch after some time begin an independent search for their future food supply (adult insects or their larvae).
Still others lay eggs directly IN or ON the insect's body.

Tahina flies or hedge flies (Latin Tachinidae)


Photo by Leslie Butler

Very rare, but viviparous species of these flies are also found. Most often, in one caterpillar victim there are larvae of only one type of fly, and even then only a few - no more than 2-3 individuals.

Tahina flies or hedge flies (Latin Tachinidae)


Photo by JYoung

Thus, by regulating the number of insect pests, tachines are of great benefit. They are especially good for combating the Colorado potato beetle, gypsy moths, chafers, bedbugs, butterflies and other pests.

Irina Leonidovna Ermolaeva, a specialist in plant protection from pests and diseases, tells the story.

In our gardens there are not only visible enemies, but also friends. These are various predatory beetles, ground beetles, hoverflies, ladybugs, ants and spiders, which, by feeding, invisibly help us by destroying pests on different stages development.

To attract beneficial insects and to stimulate their active work, nectar plants should be sown, i.e. plants that attract such helpers. These are phacelia, mustard, buckwheat, carrot seeds, onions, etc. Moreover, it is necessary to create a flower-nectar conveyor - sow them in different terms in the aisles or in empty spaces.

Tahina fly

One of the many beneficial insects is the tahina fly. The range of pests it destroys is simply huge, and its efficiency is high. Suffice it to say that the number of silkworms, sawflies, leaf rollers, moths, and tahini moths is kept under constant control. The survival and accumulation of these flies is facilitated by the presence of flowering carrots, parsnips, honey and other umbelliferous crops.

The body of tahine flies is usually covered with strong bristles, and therefore they are also called hedge flies. The family of tahina flies includes about 5 thousand species.

Tachin flies find their hosts in different ways. Some types of flies lay their very small eggs on the surface of a leaf, where the caterpillar feeds. Caterpillars, eating a leaf, swallow eggs, then larvae appear inside the caterpillar, which feed on the body of the host insect, which leads to its death. Other species lay eggs directly into the body of the host insect. And finally, there are species of tachinas, the larvae of which find a host themselves and gnaw into his body.

Tahini flies lay a large number of eggs, and therefore one fly can destroy many caterpillars.

Ants and spiders

Ants and spiders do a great job of killing pests. You can sow coriander and anise next to cabbage. When sown at the same time, they bloom from May to September. Their flowers feed many beneficial insects and do not attract butterflies, whose caterpillars damage cabbage.

Ants are orderlies. They build their homes in and above the soil and are of great benefit. Numerous ant passages make the soil looser, and this improves breathing conditions for plant roots. While getting food for themselves, ants bring a huge number of insect pests and their larvae into the passages and chambers of the anthill: the inhabitants of just one anthill destroy on average up to 20 million garden pests per year. But it is worth monitoring the increase in the number of ants, this can lead to oppression of the garden, and because of the favorite delicacy of ants, which is secreted by aphids, they also contribute to the settlement of aphid colonies. Here you need to think about whether it is worth leaving ants in your areas or not.

Spiders. A significant part of the prey of spiders of the families of jumping spiders (Salticidae), funnel-web spiders (Agelenidae), wolf spiders (Licosidae), and side-walking spiders (Thomisidae) consists of such dangerous pests, like a harmful turtle, Colorado potato beetle, meadow moth, different kinds moths, many dipterans.

Attention! I would like to warn you that beneficial insects, like pests, overwinter in the bark, leaves, and soil garden plot. And in the summer, you shouldn’t catch all the insects you see in the garden, because you can leave the garden without defenders - beneficial insects, which are called entomophages.

ladybugs

Everyone knows what it looks like ladybug, but not everyone is aware of the benefits it brings. She is prolific and lays eggs in small groups of 30, the eggs are yellow, similar to the eggs of the Colorado potato beetle and hawthorn butterfly.

An adult beetle eats 100–200 aphids per day; the larvae are ten times more voracious than mites, whiteflies (Aleyrodidae) and scale insects (Coccoidea).

Ladybugs will be attracted to our garden by plants of the Asteraceae family: daisies, tansy, or yarrow.

Ladybug larva

Ground beetles

These workers can be seen in the process of digging or loosening the soil. These are nocturnal predators that hunt insects living in the soil: pupae of fire butterflies, moths, larvae of click beetles (wireworms), and gall midges. Destroy slugs and caterpillars. The menu of one ground beetle per day is about one hundred moth larvae, 5 adult moth caterpillars and 5–6 weevil larvae. And the larvae are much more voracious than adults; they sit in dug holes and grab insects crawling by.

To have more ground beetles in the garden, take care of soil fertility. Those. apply in spring and autumn organic fertilizers, humus, etc.

Lacewing

This is a gentle and slender insect. The color is soft green. Adult insects feed on flower nectar, aphid honeydew, pollen, as well as the mites and aphids themselves, destroying up to 4,000 individuals per day. The larvae suck spider mites and aphids. The lacewing prefers cool, shady places covered with fern thickets for breeding.

Ktyri flies

The two-centimeter black fly cannot be confused with any other fly. Powerful paws armed with bristles and suckers. A strong proboscis, pointed at the end, protrudes from the flattened head. They can pierce even such a strong shell as beetles have.

Ktyri, destroying a lot of harmful insects, bring undoubted benefits. Their menu includes beetles, flies, flies, leafhoppers, butterflies and even caterpillars. Not only adult insects are useful, but also larvae that live in the soil and destroy the larvae of click beetles, beetles and darkling beetles, locust eggs and caterpillars that gnaw at the cutworm.

Interesting. The largest birds reach 5 centimeters. You should not touch the birds with your hands - their bite is as painful as a bee sting.

Such flies are attracted to plants from the aster family - goldenrod, chamomile, daisies, as well as various types of mint - catnip, peppermint and spearmint.

Trichogramma

This is an egg eater, the mass reproduction of which has already been put on an industrial basis. Trichogramma females lay their eggs in the eggs of many pests - codling moth, yellow and pale-legged gooseberry sawfly, meadow moth, cabbage cutworm, cabbage whitefly and others.

Since these insects are very small, they take nectar from small open flowers such as anise and dill. Plants of the celery family provide a good shelter for them.

From the above it follows that the more nurse plants you have in your garden, the fewer problems you will have with pests. These plants can be placed along the edges of the garden or border areas with vegetables. Plant species should be selected so that they bloom for a long time, replacing each other. Marigolds, alyssum, tansy, chamomile, and daisies are suitable for this. Savory, lavender, hyssop, basil, rosemary, and oregano bloom for a long time.

We can name many more beneficial insects - our helpers. But their number is still less than that of pests. Birds, frogs and toads, dragonflies, spiders - many animals help keep your garden pest-free and healthy. But they themselves do not have protection from chemicals.

Chemical treatments primarily destroy beneficial insects, since for a number of reasons they are more sensitive to chemicals and, in addition, their numbers are much smaller. Against the background of an abundant food supply and the absence of natural enemies, the pests remaining after treatment begin to multiply intensively. First of all, this applies to sucking pests - aphids and mites, which produce several generations during the growing season.

This information is for chemistry lovers and for those who consider it necessary to destroy everything that flies, crawls, and jumps around the site.