FLIES

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Flies are in the order Diptera, coming from the greek words 'di' meaning 'two', and 'ptera' meaning wings. This characteristic differentiates this group from most other insect species. Although mostly two-wings, some species of flies have developed  an additional pair of club-shaped wings which are positioned beneath the membranous inner-portion of the forewing. This adaption has enabled some flies to perform superior aerial movement and agility; The family most adept at using this adaption are hoverflies, Syrphidae. Flies follow a complete metamorphosis with distinct egg, larval, pupal and adult stages. In some of the more specialised species, adults may give birth to live young. There are even some parasitic species where the female produces pupae, skipping the egg and larval stages, to speed up the lifecycle and align with the behaviour of the host animal. In most species, the final larval stage pupates forming a puparium. Some adults utilise an organ on the front of the head called the ptilinum, which is an extendable sac used to pierce the puparium case. The species covered below are all found in Myanmar and have a wide range of histories and habitats, from the blowflies that develop in rotting vegetable and animal matter, to the scuttle flies that have purely aquatic larvae.