Chrysomya rufifacies
| Chrysomya rufifacies | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Diptera |
| Family: | Calliphoridae |
| Genus: | Chrysomya |
| Species: | C. rufifacies |
| Binomial name | |
|
Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart, 1842) |
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Chrysomya rufifacies is a species belonging to the blow fly family, Calliphoridae, and is most significant in the field of forensic entomology due to its use in establishing or altering post mortem intervals. The common name for the species is the hairy maggot blow fly, and it belongs to the genus Chrysomya, which is commonly referred to as the Old World screwworms. This genus includes other species such as Chrysomya putoria and Chrysomya bezziana, which are agents of myiasis. C. rufifacies prefers very warm weather and has a relatively short lifecycle. It is widely distributed geographically and prefers to colonize large carcasses over small ones. The species commonly has a greenish metallic appearance and is important medically, economically, and forensically.
Chrysomya rufifacies was first described by the French entomologist Macquart. Its specific epithet is derived from the Latin words rufus 'reddish' and facies 'face'. Some taxonomists believe C. rufifacies is conspecific with Chrysomya albiceps due to biological, ecological, distributional, and morphological similarities. The larvae of both species are very difficult to distinguish, and only a minor difference exists between the imagos. A prostigmatic bristle is said to be present in C. albiceps and absent in C. rufifacies, but it is not present in all C. albicepes or it is very reduced, so this character is unreliable. The status of C. rufifacies is not completely clear, and its relation to C. albiceps has not been fully determined.
The hairy maggot blow fly can be readily identified by examining for a shiny metallic blue-green color, a pale genal dilation, and a vestiture of the anterior thoracic spiracle that is pale in color. The mature adult is about 6–12 millimetres (0.24–0.47 in) in length.
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