Dear Steemit Friends

This kind of fly resembles to normal mosquitos, and most of us would probably think this kind is mosquito that live in the wild. Sure, I thought so, but, after I looked up some sources, I found out that this little creature is Long Legged Fly or Asian Long legged Fly, its scientific name is Condylostylus. Most of the species are metalic green and blue or bronze. If we see carefully, this species that belong to Order Diptera (true flies) and the family Dolichopodidae, a very large and diverse group. In general, flies in this family are small, slightly more than 1/8'' to almost 3/8'' (about 4-9 mm) in length. The bodies are slender and often beautifully colored with green, blue, metallic gold or silver. The long legged flies are fast, jumping movement that makes difficult to catch by predator.

There is over 6500 described species and 200 genera of this little guy and he is found in all zoogeographic regions. Here in the United States there is about 1300 species and 57 genera. The larvae is white and looks a lot like a maggot. Its front end is creeping and it’s back end is truncated. The pupae has a long pair of dorsal prothoracic respiratory horns and a pair of frontofacial sutures. When the final instar spins a cocoon it incapsulates soil particles and pieces of debris from the earth into it’s little package. You have to wonder what the does by design.source

Males are known for their wide array of secondary sexual characteristics which have been invaluable features for recognizing species. Male secondary sexual characteristics often include modifications of the antennae, palps, wings and, typically, the legs . The male has conspicuous genitalia at the end of the abdomen and cuplike structures on his legs, which cover the female’s eyes during mating.Those long legs are no accident, especially on the males. They seem to play an important role in elaborate, unique courtship rituals in which the gentlemen show off their limbs to the ladies. Many species perform highly stylized and complicated mating dances. The elongated larvae have almost no external head structure and are found in mud, decaying vegetation, and water and under bark embryos. source

Where Do They Live

Preferred habitats for Dolichopus spp. include lightly shaded areas near swamps, streams, meadows and woodlands. We easily find them flying and walking around on top of leaf.

However this typical the long legged fly can be also found in wet areas. Many species like to be under trees and other vertical surfaces. The larvae of course will be in soil that is moist, leafs, moss, mud, under bark, tree hole debris plant tissue, decaying seaweed, sap wounds ad algal mats. And then there are the species that we find ourselves most familiar with, the flies likes a drier climate and grasslands or urban gardens.

What Does He Eat?

The long legged fly eats soft-bodied invertebrates.He will eat nectar from flowers of needed for a carbohydrate source. So remember to have a source of small flowers close by for all of your beneficials Adult flies thrips, aphids, a variety of other small insects and, of course, spider mites (which by the way, are not insects, but belong to the spider family).
source

The Beneficial of Plants and Their Existence

Many plants and flowers attract the insect which then infected with their prey, but the plants are also a place where the insect laid eggs and dine on the nectar and pollen of their favorite plants. Obviously, there are certain pest that cause the problem that we need some research what plants will attract the predatory beneficial insect that assist us in combating our problem.

The benefical insects to follow are what I consider the "good beneficials;" since they prey specifically on pests. So, if you see any one of them in your garden, you know they are there in a beneficial capacity. There is another group of beneficial predators that are considered "Generalists" meaning they will take out another beneficial bug just as readily as a pest. These are still beneficial insects and, typically, the good out-weighs the bad. Although being non-discriminate, some, such as a butterfly gardener, might not find them to be beneficial to their needs. There are also parasitic wasps that seek out larvae on which to lay their eggs. The larvae could be butterfly caterpillars just as easily as cutworms. source

The Long-legged flies belong to family Dolichopodidae thag include those little, bright metallic green flies you see darting over leaves in the wet spots; but they also live in the drier climate and grasslands or urban gardens. The distinction of this family is almost as staggering as the Syrphidae, Bombyliidae, and other fly families that are more alike.

[1]https://ediblesanmarcos.wordpress.com

[2]http://www.cirrusimage.com/flies_longlegged.htm

[3]https://garden.org/ideas/view/wildflowers/117/Welcoming-Beneficial-Insects-to-the-Garden/

Best regards @abduhawab