Deer Ked vs Nose Bot Fly of Horses
Side-by-side species comparison
| Attribute | Deer Ked | Nose Bot Fly of Horses |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Lipoptena cervi | Gasterophilus haemorrhoidalis |
| Order | Diptera | Diptera |
| Family | Hippoboscidae | Oestridae |
| Size | 5-7 mm | 10-14 mm |
| Habitat | Woodlands | Farmland |
| Diet | Blood Feeders | Omnivores |
| Regions | Europe, Asia, introduced to North America | Europe, North America, Asia, North Africa |
| Conservation | Least Concern | Least Concern |
Deer Ked
A flattened, reddish-brown blood-sucking fly that sheds its wings upon finding a deer host. It clings tenaciously to the hair with strong claws and feeds on blood throughout its life.
Did You Know?
After landing on a host, it breaks off its own wings permanently, spending the rest of its life as a wingless ectoparasite.
Nose Bot Fly of Horses
A dark-bodied bot fly that deposits reddish-black eggs around the lips of horses. Larvae penetrate the lip mucosa and migrate to the stomach, then before pupation they reattach to the rectal mucosa, causing irritation and inflammation. The name refers to the reddish rectal inflammation it causes.
Did You Know?
Before pupation, larvae reattach to the horse's rectum, causing such irritation that affected horses may rub their tails raw.