Larval development of the carrion-breeding flesh fly, Sarcophaga (Liosarcophaga) tibialis Macquart (Diptera: Sarcophagidae), at constant temperatures

Abstract

Larvae of Sarcophaga (Liosarcophaga) tibialis Macquart were raised on chicken liver under six different constant temperatures. Maximum survival indicated an optimal developmental temperature of near 20°C, while trends in mortality, larval length and larval mass implied that the thermal window for successful development lay between 15°C and 30°C. Using a recently described method to estimate a simple thermal summation model, it was found that the timing of the end of the feeding phase could be estimated by a developmental zero (D0) of 5.2°C (S.E. = 1.21) and a thermal summation constant (K) of 106.4 d°C (S.E. = 8.31) and of the end of the wandering phase by D0 = 4.1°C (S.E. = 0.39) and K = 126.7 d°C (S.E. = 3.28). Published development times at constant temperatures were compiled for 19 other species of flesh flies, and the developmental constants were calculated for six species for which sufficient data were accumulated.