Wednesday 6 June 2012

Mystery larvae

Fiona McGillivray sent us this great photo of a larvae she found in the sand at Ardnave. This was her description:


The nearest I can pin it down to is a type of wireworm but it is not like any others I have come across, it is more snake like in behaviour than a worm, very mobile, particularly in warm conditions, seeks out the dark/cover of the sand or roots it is near.  It does appear to have a head (black and triangular), c.18 segments but it also seems to be just as sensitive and mobile from the other end too. It was living in the sand, not dung.  This one was about 30mm long, the other I saw before was smaller.


Thanks for the photo, Fiona. If anyone knows what it is, please let us know!
Becky



1 comment:

  1. Just came here from WAB (Sofija)!
    I'm pretty sure this is a Diptera larva. Therevidae have that kind of worm-like look and they are found in sandy soils. Do you have a pic of the head? :)

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