因?yàn)橛幸簧?ldquo;斷頭術(shù)”的本領(lǐng)，蚤蠅科動(dòng)物是螞蟻世界的克星,。這個(gè)蒼蠅家族的成員能將自己的卵產(chǎn)在一只螞蟻的體內(nèi),。幼蠅慢慢孵化出來(lái)后，它們就以寄居的螞蟻的頭部為食,。最終,，使螞蟻的頭部掉落，“寄主”死去,。
這種蚤蠅科動(dòng)物體形非常小,，它可能比一粒胡椒還要矮小。僅僅0.4毫米的體形,，Euryplatea nanaknihali是有記錄的體形最小的蒼蠅——比普通家蠅小15倍,，比果蠅小5倍。
而這種世界上最小的蚤蠅科動(dòng)物也具有這種“斷頭術(shù)”,。該研究小組在線發(fā)表于期刊《美國(guó)昆蟲(chóng)學(xué)會(huì)紀(jì)事》（Annals of the Entomological Society of America）的研究報(bào)告稱,，盡管這種蚤蠅科動(dòng)物的身材短小，它也同樣有能力“搬下”螞蟻的腦袋,。Euryplatea nanaknihali并沒(méi)有因?yàn)轶w形的矮小放棄自己特有的“本領(lǐng)”,，而是盡量保持著自己的“優(yōu)勢(shì)”一面。（生物谷Bioon.com）
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doi:10.1603/AN12011
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Small Size No Protection for Acrobat Ants: World's Smallest Fly Is a Parasitic Phorid (Diptera: Phoridae)
Brown, Brian V.
A new species of phorid fly, Euryplatea nanaknihali (Diptera: Phoridae), is described from Thailand. This is the first Oriental Region record for this genus; it is otherwise known only from the type species from Africa, where it parasitizes ants of the genus Crematogaster Lund. The new species is probably capable of parasitizing the smallest host Crematogaster (Formicidae) ants in its range. At 0.40 mm in body length, it is the smallest known fly in the world.
