Stats

Lifespan

A few weeks

Size

Large

Diet

Omnivore

Activity

Diurnal

Social

Solitary

Biome

Tropical savanna

Range

Sub-Saharan Africa

Movement

Flight

Breeding

Egg-laying

Defense

Speed

Status

Rare

About

A shimmering metallic blowfly native to sub-Saharan Africa, recognisable by its brilliant blue-green thorax edged with pale margins. Like other blowflies in its genus, its larvae play a key role as decomposers — and are used in forensic entomology to estimate time of death at crime scenes.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   egg

   A small egg is laid on or near the larval food source and hatches within days or weeks.
2. 2.
   juvenile

   An immature insect feeds and molts, growing through successive instars.
3. 3.
   subadult

   A near-adult insect has wing buds or near-mature form, one molt away from full size.
4. 4.
   adult

   Fully grown, with full wings and adult coloration.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Diptera

Family

Calliphoridae

Genus

Chrysomya

Species

Chrysomya marginalis