Common Name: Fungus Gnat
Scientific Name: Mycetophila fungorum
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Family: Mycetophidae
Genus: Mycetophila
Species: M. fungorum
The scientific name for the fungus gnat is the Mycetophila Fungorum. The common name for it is the Fungus gnat. The first thing you’d notice about it is that it can fly and it’s very small. It can be found in Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Missouri, and Nevada. The size of the Gnat is approximately 1/16 inch in length. They are dark colored and sometimes grayish yellow.
The identifying characteristics of the gnat are they have long, slender legs, delicate antennae, and clear wings. Also, they have very short lives, usually only a few weeks at the most. The food they prefer is roots of a plant with peat or a humid medium and algae or mosses growing on top. The female gnats life is only about one week, and it lays about 100 or more eggs. They grow fast because they have a short life but the species still continues.
The Fungus Gnat is not currently on the IUCN red list and has not been determined to be anywhere near the endangered species list. The fungus gnat is a decomposer because it feeds on other dead organisms. The gnat larvae makes breakfast, lunch and dinner out of your plant roots. There competition for water is turf lawn. The predators of the gnat are a great amount of mites