Nairobi fly
{{Short description|Name for two species of beetle}}
{{Taxobox
| name = Nairobi fly
| image = Paederus littoralis01.jpg
| image_caption =
| regnum = Animalia
| phylum = Arthropoda
| classis = Insecta
| ordo = Coleoptera
| familia = Staphylinidae
| genus = Paederus
| species = P. eximius
and P. sabaeus
| binomial = Paederus eximius
| binomial2 = Paederus sabaeus
}}
Nairobi fly is the common name for two species of rove beetle in the genus Paederus, native to East Africa originating from Tanzania.{{Cite journal |last1=Pokhrel |first1=Amrit |last2=Bastakoti |first2=Sanjiv |date=2022-09-01 |title=Nairobi fly in South Asia: A catastrophic threat of the nature |url=https://journals.lww.com/annals-of-medicine-and-surgery/fulltext/2022/09000/nairobi_fly_in_south_asia__a_catastrophic_threat.46.aspx |journal=Annals of Medicine and Surgery |language=en-US |volume=81 |page=104358 |doi=10.1016/j.amsu.2022.104358 |issn=2049-0801 |pmc=9486622 |pmid=36147184}} The beetles contain a corrosive substance known as pederin, which can cause chemical burns if it comes into contact with skin.{{Cite journal |last1=Qadir |first1=Syed Nurul Rasool |last2=Raza |first2=Naeem |last3=Rahman |first3=Simeen Ber |date=2006 |title=Paederus dermatitis In Sierra Leone |url=https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8b58k49j |journal=Dermatology Online Journal |language=en |volume=12 |issue=7 |page=9 |doi=10.5070/D38b58k49j|pmid=17459295 |url-access=subscription }}{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/EARTH/9801/26/kenya.beetle.ap/index.html |title='Nairobi fly' doesn't sting or bite, but it sure does hurt |publisher=CNN |date=January 26, 1998 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070128130446/http://edition.cnn.com/EARTH/9801/26/kenya.beetle.ap/index.html |archive-date=January 28, 2007}} Because of these burns, the Nairobi fly is sometimes referred to as a "dragon bug."
Description
Adult beetles are predominantly black and red in colour, and measure 6–10 mm in length and 0.5–1.0 mm in width.{{cite journal |journal=International Journal of Dermatology |volume=33 |issue=4 |year=1994 |title=Dermatitis caused by Paederus fuscipes Curt. |author=Stefano Veraldi & Luciano Süss |doi=10.1111/j.1365-4362.1994.tb01045.x |pmid=8021088 |pages=277–278|s2cid=28819765 }} Their head, lower abdomen, and elytra are black, with the thorax and upper abdomen red.{{Cite journal|last=Mammino|first=Jere J.|date=November 2011|title=Paederus Dermatitis|journal=The Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology|volume=4|issue=11|pages=44–46|issn=1941-2789|pmc=3225135|pmid=22125660}}
Biology
The beetles live in moist habitats and are often beneficial to agriculture because they will eat crop pests. Adults are attracted to artificial light sources, and as a result, inadvertently come into contact with humans.
Heavy rains, sometimes brought on by El Niño events, provide the conditions for the Nairobi fly to thrive. Outbreaks have occurred in 1998, 2007, 2019, and 2020.
Relationship to humans
=Paederus dermatitis=
The beetles neither sting nor bite, but their haemolymph contains pederin, a potent toxin that causes blistering and Paederus dermatitis. The toxin is released when the beetle is crushed against the skin, often at night, when sleepers inadvertently brush the insect from their faces. People are advised to gently brush or blow the insect off their skin to prevent irritation. Research from a group at the University of Hyderabad in 2024 suggest that the use of LED lights at night may be a solution to prevent acid fly attacks.{{cite journal |last1=Kannampuzha |first1=Tejas |last2=Shamanna |first2=B R |title=Exploring the use of white Light Emitting Diodes to prevent 'Acid Fly' attacks |journal=Indian Journal of Entomology |doi=10.55446/IJE.2024.2572 |url=https://indianentomology.org/index.php/ije/article/view/2572 |url-access=subscription }} The study however warns that there may be other unknown factors that may still attract the flies into living areas.
References
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{{Staphylinidae-stub}}