Parasites
65 species with this diet
African Bat Bug
Afrocimex constrictus
A cimicid ectoparasite found on bats in East African caves. It is notable for its unusual mating system involving trauma...
American Cuckoo Wasp
Chrysis angolensis
A metallic green and blue cuckoo wasp found across sub-Saharan Africa. It parasitizes mud-nesting wasps and bees on rock...
American Wasp Xenid
Xenos peckii
A parasite of paper wasps in eastern North America, commonly found in Polistes fuscatus colonies. It dramatically alters...
Ant Cricket
Myrmecophilus acervorum
A minute, wingless cricket that lives inside ant nests as a social parasite. It is oval-shaped and moves quickly among i...
Ant Strepsipteran
Myrmecolax incautus
A remarkable strepsipteran that parasitizes ants. Males parasitize ants while females parasitize crickets or grasshopper...
Arctic Louse Fly
Ornithomya fringillina
A flattened, wingless or short-winged parasitic fly that lives among the feathers of Arctic birds. Its laterally flatten...
Asian Xenid
Xenos oxyodontes
A strepsipteran parasite of Ropalidia paper wasps in tropical Asia. It modifies host wasp social behavior and colony dyn...
Atemeles Ant Guest Beetle
Lomechusoides strumosus
A parasitic rove beetle that lives in ant nests, switching between Formica and Myrmica host species seasonally. Its larv...
Bat Fly
Penicillidia conspicua
A bizarre wingless fly that lives exclusively as an ectoparasite on bats. It has lost its wings entirely and scurries th...
Bee Moth
Aphomia sociella
A robust pinkish-brown moth whose larvae are nest parasites of bumblebees and wasps. Females enter bee nests at night to...
Bee Stylops
Stylops pacificus
A strepsipteran parasite of Andrena bees in western North America. Males emerge as tiny winged adults that live for only...
Bee-fly Strepsipteran
Stylops ater
A dark-bodied strepsipteran that parasitizes Andrena mining bees in Europe. The triungulins actively seek out host bee l...
Blood Bee
Sphecodes monilicornis
A cleptoparasitic bee with a bright red abdomen and black head that attacks the nests of furrow bees. Females enter host...
Bot Fly
Dermatobia hominis
Parasitic fly whose larvae develop under the skin of mammals including humans. Female captures a mosquito and glues eggs...
Bristly Tachinid
Epalpus signifer
A bristly gray parasitic fly found across North America. It parasitizes a wide range of caterpillars including armyworms...
Caterpillar Tachinid
Lydella thompsoni
A small gray parasitic fly that attacks European corn borer larvae. It was introduced to North America as a biological c...
Checkered Beetle
Trichodes apiarius
A brightly colored red and blue beetle often found on flowers. Its larvae are parasites of solitary bee nests....
Cluster Fly
Pollenia rudis
A medium-sized, dark gray fly with golden-brown hairs on the thorax. In autumn, it gathers in large clusters inside buil...
Common Jezebel
Delias eucharis
A medium butterfly with white uppersides and brilliantly colored red and yellow patterned undersides visible in flight. ...
Cricket Strepsipteran
Caenocholax fenyesi
An unusual strepsipteran whose males parasitize ants while females parasitize crickets. This dual-host system is unique ...
Cuckoo Bumblebee
Bombus vestalis
A social parasite that invades buff-tailed bumblebee nests, kills the queen and enslaves the workers....
Cylindrical Tachinid
Cylindromyia brassicaria
A slender, wasp-like parasitic fly with a narrow cylindrical abdomen. Parasitizes shieldbugs by laying eggs directly ont...
Deer Bot Fly
Cephenemyia stimulator
A parasitic fly that deposits larvae in the nostrils of roe deer. The larvae develop in the pharyngeal region before bei...
Elephant Stomach Bot Fly
Cobboldia elephantis
A rare bot fly whose larvae develop in the stomachs of Asian elephants. Females lay eggs around the mouth of the elephan...
European Stylops
Stylops melittae
A twisted-wing parasite of mining bees in the genus Andrena. Males are free-flying while females remain permanently embe...
Fire-tailed Cuckoo Wasp
Chrysis viridula
A metallic green cuckoo wasp with a distinctive red-gold abdomen tipped with four small teeth. It parasitizes the nests ...
Globular Tachinid
Gymnosoma rotundatum
A distinctive round-bodied parasitic fly colored bright orange-red with black markings. Parasitizes shieldbugs. One of t...
Gold-tailed Ruby Wasp
Chrysis fulgida
A dazzling metallic wasp with a bright green head and thorax and a golden-red abdomen. It is a brood parasite of potter ...
Golden Tachinid Fly
Archytas marmoratus
A large bristly parasitic fly with golden-brown hairs found across the Americas. It parasitizes armyworm and cutworm cat...
Golden-belted Tachinid
Ectophasia crassipennis
A colorful parasitic fly with golden-yellow markings and dark wing patches. Parasitizes shieldbugs and stink bugs. Often...
Gypsy Moth Tachinid
Compsilura concinnata
A parasitic fly introduced to North America from Europe to control gypsy moths. It has an extremely broad host range att...
Halictid Bee Strepsipteran
Halictophagus silwoodensis
A tiny strepsipteran parasite of leafhoppers described from Silwood Park in England. Males have the characteristic twist...
Halictid Stylops
Stylops nassonowi
A twisted-wing parasite that targets sweat bees in the family Halictidae. Parasitized bees show altered behavior and sup...
Hornet Strepsipteran
Xenos myrapetrus
A large strepsipteran parasite of hornets and social wasps in tropical Africa. Males have distinctive fan-shaped hindwin...
Japanese Beetle Tachinid
Istocheta aldrichi
A parasitic fly introduced from Japan to North America specifically for Japanese beetle control. Females lay eggs on the...
Leafhopper Strepsipteran
Halictophagus calcaratus
A tiny strepsipteran that parasitizes leafhoppers in the family Cicadellidae. The first-instar larvae are among the smal...
Lesser Cattle Grub
Hypoderma lineatum
A hairy, bee-like fly slightly smaller than H. bovis, whose larvae also parasitize cattle. Unlike H. bovis, its larvae m...
Macropis Cuckoo Bee
Epeoloides coecutiens
A rare cleptoparasitic bee that targets nests of Macropis oil-collecting bees. It was once thought extinct in North Amer...
Mitchell's Diurnal Moth
Pollanisus viridipulverulenta
A small, metallic blue-green day-flying moth with a slow, fluttery flight. It is common in heathlands and open forests w...
Myiasis-Causing Flesh Fly
Wohlfahrtia vigil
A large flesh fly found in North America that causes obligate dermal myiasis in small animals including rabbits, mink, a...
Nest Rove Beetle
Quedius ochripennis
A medium-sized rove beetle with pale brownish elytra, specializing in bird and mammal nests. It exploits the rich invert...
New Caledonian Imperial Pigeon Louse
Columbicola extinctus
A chewing louse that was endemic to the now-extinct New Caledonian lorikeet. This species represents the coextinction ph...
Northern Bumblebee
Bombus hyperboreus
A very large, heavily furred bumblebee with orange and black coloring. It is a social parasite that takes over colonies ...
Oceanic Field Cricket
Teleogryllus oceanicus
A widespread Pacific cricket found from Australia to Hawaii with a loud, clear chirp. Some Hawaiian populations have rap...
Old World Screwworm
Chrysomya bezziana
An obligate wound parasite of mammals found across Africa and Asia. Larvae invade wounds and feed on living tissue causi...
Painted Jezebel
Delias hyparete
A brightly colored butterfly with white uppersides and strikingly colorful undersides featuring red, yellow, and black p...
Parnopes Cuckoo Wasp
Parnopes grandior
A large and robust cuckoo wasp with a metallic green thorax and brilliant red abdomen. It exclusively parasitizes beewol...
Planthopper Strepsipteran
Halictophagus australensis
An Australian strepsipteran parasite of delphacid planthoppers. It alters the host's reproductive development and morpho...
Poultry Bug
Haematosiphon inodorus
A cimicid ectoparasite of poultry native to North America that is closely related to bed bugs. Heavy infestations can ca...
Sand Wasp Strepsipteran
Paraxenos lugubris
A strepsipteran parasite of sand wasps in the genus Bembix. It is found in sandy coastal areas where its host wasps nest...
Sharp-tailed Bee
Coelioxys conoidea
A cleptoparasitic bee with a sharply pointed abdomen used to pierce the cell walls of leafcutter bee nests. Females lay ...
Sheep Nose Bot Fly
Oestrus ovis
A parasitic fly that shoots live larvae into the nostrils of sheep and goats while in flight. Larvae develop inside the ...
Silverfish Strepsipteran
Mengenilla chobauti
A primitive strepsipteran that parasitizes silverfish and firebrats. Unlike most strepsipterans, the adult female is fre...
South American Cuckoo Bee
Exaerete frontalis
A large metallic blue-green cleptoparasitic orchid bee that lays its eggs in the nests of other orchid bees. Its mandibl...
Squirrel Flea
Orchopeas howardi
A common ectoparasite of eastern gray squirrels and flying squirrels in North America. It is found in squirrel nests and...
Stink Bug Tachinid
Trichopoda pennipes
A distinctive parasitic fly with a flattened orange abdomen and feathery legs. It attacks stink bugs and squash bugs in ...
Sweat Bee Stylops
Stylops nevinsoni
A strepsipteran endoparasite of Andrena bees in the British Isles. Parasitized bees emerge earlier than unparasitized in...
Tropical Bat Fly
Cyclopodia horsfieldi
A bizarre wingless bat fly with extremely long spider-like legs and a flattened body. It is a specialist parasite of fru...
Twisted-Wing Delphacid Parasite
Elenchus japonicus
A tiny parasitoid of rice planthoppers, important in Asian rice agroecosystems. Males are free-flying with twisted wings...
Twisted-Wing Honeybee Parasite
Stylops ovinae
A tiny endoparasite of Andrena bees whose females are permanently embedded in the host's abdomen. Males live only a few ...
Twisted-Winged Parasitoid
Elenchus tenuicornis
A minute strepsipteran that parasitizes planthoppers of the family Delphacidae. Males have fan-shaped hind wings and ras...
Variable Cuckoo Bumble Bee
Bombus variabilis
A rare social parasite bumble bee that takes over colonies of other Bombus species in North America. Queens invade host ...
Vestal Cuckoo Bumblebee
Psithyrus vestalis
A brood parasitic bumblebee that takes over colonies of the Buff-tailed Bumblebee. The female kills or subdues the host ...
Violet Cuckoo Wasp
Chrysis rutilans
A stunning cuckoo wasp with violet, purple, and green metallic hues across its body. It parasitizes mud-nesting wasps in...
Wasp Twisted-Wing Parasite
Xenos vesparum
An endoparasite of paper wasps where females spend their entire life inside the wasp host. Parasitized wasps are castrat...