Biology and morphology of the shoot fly (Diptera: Lonchaeidae)

The aim of this study was to determine biological and morphological patterns of the male shoot fly, Neosilba perezi(Diptera: Lonchaeidae). Under laboratory conditions, the incubation period of eggs took two days, on average (viability of eggs: 55.5%). Bred on an artificial diet, based on cassava flour, the mean time of development of the newly hatched larvae to pupa formation occurred in 15 days, and the average pupal period took 23 days. Finally, the biological cycle, from egg to adult, lasted approximately 40 days. The eggs are white colored, have an elliptical form and are about 960 ± 5.30 µm long and 290 ± 1.30 µm large in the central region; the vermiform larvae, third instar, are milky white and are ± 10 mm long (3rd instar).