Leptoconops kerteszi
{{Short description|Species of insect}}
{{Speciesbox
| image =
| image_caption =
| genus = Leptoconops
| species = kerteszi
| synonyms = *Holoconops kerteszi Kieffer, 1908
}}
Leptoconops kerteszi, common name Bodega black gnat, is a species of biting midges belonging to the family Ceratopogonidae. They feed on multiple species and can be found in places such as the United States, Egypt, and Tunisia.
Description
The species appears black when viewed by the naked eye, but it appears brown when under a microscope. The head and thorax are dark brown while the abdomen is a lighter brown. Its wings are transparent, but they appear to be white when light reflects off their surface while they are folded on their back. Females are {{convert|2.5|to|3|mm|2|abbr=on}} long and the males are {{convert|3.5|to|4|mm|abbr=on}} long with a lighter brown than the females. It can be found in places such as the United States, Egypt, and Tunisia. The common name comes from Bodega Bay in California which is where the species was first studied;{{cite book |last1=S Papp |first1=Charles |last2=A Swan |first2=Lester |date=1983 |title=A Guide To Biting and Stinging Insects and Other Arthropods |publisher=Entomography Publications |pages=65–66 |isbn=0960840400}} however, it was first found and scientifically named as Holoconops kerteszi in Cairo, Egypt, in 1908.{{cite web |url=http://hilgardia.ucanr.edu/fileaccess.cfm?article=152282&p=HZEEZK |title=The Black Gnats of California |last1=M. Smith |first1=Leslie |last2=Lowe |first2=Homer |date=March 1948 |website=Hilgardia |access-date=December 13, 2018}}
Habitat and bites
This species breeds in the sand of lakes and marshes. Its breeding grounds are located at high tide in damp areas with no vegetation.{{cite web |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237447881 |title=Leptoconops (Holoconops) kerteszi Kieffer (Diptera Ceratopogonidae) in the coastal area of Grosseto: eco-ethological aspects |last1=Raspi |first1=Alfio |last2=Canovai |first2=Roberto |last3=Loni |first3=Augusto |last4=Santini |first4=Luciano |date=June 2007 |website=ResearchGate |publisher=Bulletin of Insectology |access-date=December 13, 2018}} Its larvae can be found in the first centimeter of its breeding ground in shallow sandy water. The adults feed on humans, domestic animals, and birds. Their bites cause swelling that progresses to exudation.{{cite book |last=C. Cheng |first=Thomas |date=December 2, 2012 |title=General Parasitology |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d4GQlYzode8C&pg=PA648 |publisher=Elsevier |page=648 |isbn=9780323140102}}
Study
In a 1967 study, a large amount of the gnats were caught with a portable gasoline-powered device that had its suction tube replaced with a metal funnel. The insect suction sampler was used to capture specimens that were flying around a person's head by having them drawn through a mesh net into the funnel. It was used to analyze adult gnat populations.{{cite journal |url=https://academic.oup.com/jme/article-abstract/4/3/281/2221781?redirectedFrom=fulltext |title=A Collection Device for Leptoconops Kerteszi (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) Biting Gnats |last1=Foulk |first1=J. D. |last2=Sjogren |first2=R. D. |date=August 10, 1967 |journal=Journal of Medical Entomology |volume=4 |issue=3 |pages=281–283 |doi=10.1093/jmedent/4.3.281 |pmid=6052138 |access-date=December 13, 2018}} An insect suction sampler is a device that entomologists use to suck up insects for studies.{{cite web |url=https://www.amentsoc.org/insects/glossary/terms/insect-suction-sampler |title=Insect suction sampler |website=Amateur Entomologists' Society |access-date=December 13, 2018}}
References
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Category:Insects described in 1908