Habitat-transition
Guides
Tetanocera
marsh flies, snail-killing flies, slug-killing flies
Tetanocera is a genus of marsh flies (family Sciomyzidae) comprising at least 50 described species distributed across temperate regions. Larvae exhibit diverse ecological strategies: some are aquatic predators of snails, others are terrestrial predators of slugs, and some species show transitional life histories with parasitoid early instars becoming free-living predators in later instars. The genus has undergone at least three independent transitions from aquatic to terrestrial habitats, with associated parallel evolution in larval morphology. Several species, particularly T. elata, have been investigated as potential biological control agents for agricultural pest molluscs.