What does the “CC” fly look like: photo and description of the winged threat from Africa
The tsetse fly is a seemingly harmless insect, but it can no doubt be ranked among the indestructible enemies of mankind. Its bite can easily kill a person, and farmers are afraid to develop agricultural plots near its habitat.
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Origin of the species and description of the tsetse fly
Tsetse is considered one of the most ancient types of insects. Fossil flies have been found in fossil beds in Colorado, laid down about 34 million years ago. Tsetse means "fly" in the Tswana and Bantu languages.
Appearance and structural features of the insect
Where does the tsetse fly live?
Modern tsetse flies live exclusively on the African continent.
What does the tsetse fly eat?
The pest feeds exclusively on blood. Its victims are wild, livestock and humans. In search of food, it flies short distances when it is attracted by a warm-blooded animal. Most often, large artiodactyl animals - antelopes, buffaloes, as well as hares, monitor lizards, crocodiles, and various birds become its victims.
An insect is able to drink a liquid equal to its own weight; in the process of feeding, its belly expands significantly.
Reproduction and life cycle of the tsetse fly
Unlike most insects, African flies do not lay eggs, but carry them in a special bag. Pests mate only once, the larvae also develop one at a time. While in the womb, they feed on the secretions of a special gland.
For intrauterine development of the larva, the female requires up to 3 meals. Even a slight lack of nutrients leads to miscarriage. The larva develops in the mother's body for 1-2 weeks, after which it is born, and the female continues to give birth to the larva at approximately 9-day intervals until the end of her life. During her life, the female gives birth to 8-10 young individuals.
After birth, after a few hours, the larva penetrates the soil, where it pupates. This stage of development lasts for 3-4 weeks.
Most of the tsetse life cycle is the adult state. Within 12-14 days, the young fly matures, and then mates and, if it is a female, lays its first larva. Adults live for about 6-7 months.
Social structure and lifestyle of the tsetse fly
The main types of tsetse flies
The pest species are classified into 3 groups.
What is dangerous tsetse fly
Tsetse is considered one of the most dangerous insects in the world. It carries deadly viral diseases - revolver and trypanosomiasis. The causative agent of diseases are protozoa, which enter the body of a fly in the process of feeding on the blood of an infected animal.
In the stomach of a fly, parasites multiply, and when bitten, they are transmitted to the victim along with the saliva of the insect.
Nagan disease in animals
Animals are susceptible to this disease, most often cattle, horses and pigs are infected. You can protect the farm if you vaccinate animals against trypanosomiasis, but not every cattle breeder has the opportunity to vaccinate several hundred heads. To avoid tsetse attacks on livestock, it is recommended to graze at night.
The symptoms of infection are:
- an increase in the number of miscarriages;
- general exhaustion, decreased performance;
- swelling in the dewlap, limbs and genitals;
- watery discharge from the eyes and nose;
- fever;
- decrease in the quality and quantity of milk and meat.
About 3 million pets die from revolvers every year.
Sleeping sickness
The causative agent of sleeping sickness is trypasonoma - it is a tortuous, single-celled organism, 20-30 microns in size. Sleeping sickness can only be contracted through an insect bite.
The disease mainly affects the human nervous and immune systems.
After a bite, a pronounced swelling with a diameter of 1-2 cm is formed at the site of the wound, with pressure on which pain is felt. A little later, chancres form on the hands and feet of a person, outwardly resembling boils. After a few weeks, they heal and scars form in their place.
Other symptoms of sleeping sickness:
- muscle and joint pain;
- fever and fever;
- insomnia, confusion;
- numbness of the limbs, impaired coordination.
Types of sleeping sickness
There are 2 types of trypanosomiasis: African and Latin American. In turn, African is divided into 2 types.
| Type of disease | Symptoms |
|---|---|
| West African (Gambian) sleeping sickness | Its vector is Glossina palpalis. The disease is characterized by a long course, occurs in 2 periods. The first is characterized by a latent course, without acute symptoms. Most often, a person experiences a headache, a slight fever, and small rashes appear on the skin. The latent course leads to the fact that the disease becomes chronic, in which the symptoms appear more acutely, the nervous system begins to collapse. This is manifested in pronounced trembling of the limbs, in severe cases, paralysis occurs, the patient cannot fight drowsiness, and mental disorders occur. The duration of this stage of the disease is 7-8 months. |
| Eastern (Rheodesian) form | It is characterized by a rapid course and acute symptoms. As a rule, death occurs after 6 months. The causative agent affects the human heart and brain. The carrier of the disease is Glossina morsitan. |
Sleeping sickness treatment
The disease is successfully treated only in the first stagewhen the nervous system is not affected. To do this, use special drugs, the action of which is aimed at the destruction of the pathogen - pentamidine and suramin. Treatment of the disease in the second stage difficult, for this they use potent drugs that exhibit pronounced side effects - increased blood pressure, arrhythmia, nausea and vomiting.
The complexity of treatment is due to the ability of the parasite-causative agent to constantly mutate and develop resistance to the active components of the drugs.
Tsetse fly control methods
Over the years, various techniques have been used to control the tsetse fly.
| Scorched earth | To exterminate the pest, they destroyed all the livestock, the blood of which he fed. At first, this method showed high efficiency, but later it turned out that the event was useless: tsetse fed on the blood of small animals, reptiles and birds. |
| Deforestation | The method is similar to the previous one: people tried to deprive the insect of its usual living conditions in the hope that the population would begin to die out. However, over time it became apparent that the method did more harm than good. |
| The use of chemicals. | Pesticides and insecticides were sprayed over the habitats of tsetse with the help of aircraft. These activities did not bring the expected result. |
| Traps | For the manufacture of traps, a dark skin of cattle or fabric saturated with the smells of animals is used - urine or artificially created, imitating breathing. The method helps to reduce the tsetse population, but this way you cannot exterminate everyone. Such baits can be used to protect the population and animals, it is advisable to place them around settlements and plantations. |
| Male sterilization | Males are sterilized with radiation and then released into the natural environment. After mating, females are unable to lay fertilized eggs, resulting in a population decline. The method has shown particularly high efficiency in Zanzibar. However, the absence of a water barrier with other states led to the fact that healthy males fell into the territory and the flies bred again. Currently, this method is considered the most effective, but only in those regions that are surrounded by water. |
Scientists believe that the complex use of the last 3 methods will help to destroy the pest population, but this requires a lot of time.
Natural enemies of the tsetse fly in nature
In nature, Tsetse has no natural enemies. Some species of birds may use their food, but not on a permanent basis, but rather in the absence of other food. The main enemy of the fly is a person who seeks to destroy it for obvious reasons.
Population and species status of the tsetse fly
The area of the habitat of the parasite is about 10 million km2. This is the so-called green desert. Most often, fertile soils are located in this area, which cannot be used only because of the presence of tsetse flies on them.
Most of the states in which tsetse lives are below the poverty line, and the standard of living in these countries is considered the lowest in the world. For several decades, the joint program has been developing pest control methods, but all developed methods have only relative effectiveness.
Interesting facts about the tsetse fly and its bites
Tsetse is a terrible insect that mankind cannot get rid of for several centuries, and even modern developments cannot help in solving this issue. There are several interesting facts associated with the insect and its bites that will be useful to know:
- Some people believe that the insect should not be destroyed. For example, wildlife advocate, Bernhard Grzimek, believes that the tsetse fly protects untouched nature from the encroachment of civilization.
- Flies never attack zebras, because their black and white color ripples in their eyes, but they often attack a car engine, mistaking it for a warm-blooded animal.
- About 30 people die every year in Africa because of Tsetse.
- The pest flies absolutely silently, which is why it was nicknamed the “silent threat”.