Botfly

High school (ages 12+)
Animals & Nature

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/botfly

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the scientific name?Family Oestridae
2. What is the global distribution?Cosmopolitan, found on all continents except Antarctica
3. How do botfly eggs get onto a host?The female botfly puts her eggs on other insects that bite animals, like mosquitoes. When those insects land on a warm animal, the eggs hatch and the tiny larvae jump onto the animal.
4. Where do botfly larvae live inside the host?The larvae live under the skin or inside parts of the animal, such as the nose or eyes, depending on the species. They stay in a special spot called a warble, which is a little bump that lets them breathe.

Obligate Parasitism: A form of parasitism where the parasite cannot complete its life cycle without a host.
Phoretic: A symbiotic relationship where one organism carries another for transport.
Instar: The developmental stage of an arthropod between molts.
Pupation: The process by which an insect larva transforms into a pupa.