類別

昆蟲與蜘蛛（昆蟲）

參賽者

陳鴻生

作品名稱

食蟲虻，牠是食蟲還是吸食蟲？ Is This Robber Fly Eating or Sucking Its Prey?

科學圖說 Scientific introduction

食蟲虻成蟲出現於春秋兩季，主要生活於低海拔、山區或公園，草叢、樹叢等環境均有牠的蹤跡。屬於肉食性昆蟲，有群聚現象，喜歡棲息於枝頭或葉梢，飛行技術高超。能瞬間起飛又迅速降落在枝頭上進食，是昆蟲世界的「黑幫殺手」。其喙短且強壯，用來刺穿獵物身體，並注入含有毒性和蛋白水解酶的唾液，使獵物內部麻痹，再透過長嘴吮吸體液，將獵物吸乾。成年食蟲虻並不挑食，抓得到的都會「吸食」殆盡，獵捕的昆蟲種類五花八門，甚至體型比牠大的昆蟲也慘遭毒手。活動模式易受溫度和天候影響，若溫度下降或即將變天，牠會變得敏感不易靠近。透過超微距鏡觀察，就會發現在「黑幫殺手」的外衣下，牠的肢體動作也有可愛逗趣的一面。

Robber flies emerge in spring and fall. They are mostly found among underbrush and groves in lowlands. They prefer to rest on the ends of branches or the tips of leaves, and have superb flying skills. They are able to take off swiftly and land on the tip of a branch. Adult robber flies are not picky; they feed on whatever insects they can find regardless of size. They have a short but strong proboscis, which is used to stab prey and inject toxic saliva containing proteolytic enzymes. They then suck the fluid from the prey until it is dry. They show clustering behavior, but their activity is modulated by the weather. If temperature drops markedly, they become sensitive and not easy to approach. Through a super macro lens, we can observe the movements of this insect.