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Threats
Conversion of habitat
to agricultural,
residential, and
commercial use
STATUS:
ESA -- ENDANGERED
SIZE:
Length:
1 inch (2.5 cm)
HABITAT:
Arid or semi-arid regions, sand dunes
POPULATION:
When listed as Endangered
in 1993, only 5 populations were known to exist
CONSERVATION>:
None
In 1977, the Karner blue became the first insect
to be listed on the New York State Endangered Species List.
The Delhi sands fly was the 17th insect -- but the first fly -- to be listed as Endangered by the ESA.
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Flowers and Flies
Hovering over wildflowers like a hummingbird, the inch-long Delhi sands fly is one of the largest and rarest of flies. The fly uses its long proboscis to suck nectar from flowers. It's named for the fine sandy soil that once covered its habitat in southwestern California. Nineteenth-century agricultural expansion and 20th-century urban sprawl have virtually wiped out that habitat, which was none too big to begin with (probably never more than about 40 square miles [104 sq km]). This sand deposit is now found only in a handful of locations, all on private property in the counties of San Bernadino and Riverside. Even though farms in the area have gone out of production, the fly hasn't been able to reestablish itself. This may be because many of the native flowering plants it feeds on have been driven out by introduced species.
A close relative of the Delhi sands fly, the El Segundo fly, once lived on coastal sand dunes in Los Angeles County. It hasn't been seen for decades and is probably extinct.
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