It's an ant! It's a spider. No—it's BATFLY! A blind, wingless species of fly that lives on and with New Zealand short-tailed bats in strange symbiotic relationship. Similar animals infesting bats in South America and elsewhere are blood-sucking parasites—the vampire's vampire—but the New Zealand version is a vegetarian coprophage specialising in the management of bat guano.
This is a really good read about one of my favourite weird animal facts!
Typically, these archaic New Zealanders behave in ways the rest-of the-world team thinks truly weird.
Shots fired!
But seriously, this was a neat read. A species of fly that can’t fly, similar to bat flies in other countries except our one doesn’t eat the bat, it eats their poo instead!
Reminds me of that old joke.
What do you call a fly without wings?
Mystacinobia zelandica
.
Shots fired!
But seriously, this was a neat read. A species of fly that can’t fly, similar to bat flies in other countries except our one doesn’t eat the bat, it eats their poo instead!
Yeah it was cool eh, I loved all the stuff about the tree and how there are always pregnant bat riders to make sure the species continues.