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Luminary Oddities · Natural history & art

Giant Mydas Fly

Gauromydas heros

Diptera / Mydidae

Gauromydas heros is a giant Neotropical fly, with documented body lengths reaching approximately seven centimetres. Its immature stages develop in the waste chambers of leaf-cutting ant nests before moving upward through the soil to pupate.

Read the species account

At a glance

Size ↘
Documented body length reaches approximately 70 mm. [1]
Immature habitat ↘
Waste chambers in Atta ant nests. [1]
Northern Brazil ↘
Female recorded near Ariquemes in 2017. [2]

Identity and classification

Gauromydas heros belongs to Mydidae in Diptera. Its historical combination is Mydas heros. [3][1]

Morphology and identification

The species can reach about 70 mm in body length. Diagnostic features of Gauromydas include a strong ventral ridge on the hind tibia, a prominent apical spur and an elongated terminal antennal portion. [1]

Distribution and habitat

An identified female collected near Ariquemes, Rondônia, in March 2017 supplied a published record from northern Brazil. The genus is Neotropical. [2][1]

Life cycle

Historical observations place larvae in waste chambers of Atta nests. Mature larvae ascend through the soil to pupate approximately 10–20 cm below the surface. [1]

Feeding and hosts

Male adults have been recorded visiting flowers. Historical accounts indicate that females apparently do not feed. Larvae in ant-nest refuse were reported as feeding on other immature insects, including scarab beetle larvae. [1]

Nomenclature and history

The 2015 revision retained G. heros and described two additional species of Gauromydas. [1]

Sources

  1. Review of the Gauromydas giant flies ↗

    Zootaxa 4048 · Accessed 2026-10-13

  2. Primeiro registro da maior mosca do mundo, Gauromydas heros, para a região Norte do Brasil ↗

    I ICCAF, Simião, Santana and Puker · Accessed 2026-10-13

  3. Gauromydas heros current taxonomic record ↗

    GBIF Backbone Taxonomy · Accessed 2026-10-13

Sources checked 2026-10-13. Illustrations · Luminary Oddities.

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