The colourful fly gets chosen

The wings of the fruit fly are extremely thin, transparent, and apparently colourless. But, in secret, the wings in fact shimmer with beautiful colours thanks to a refraction phenomenon. The colours are only visible against a dark background, and were first discovered only a few years ago by researchers at Lund University. The refraction phenomenon is only found in small insects with very thin wings, particularly flies and wasps. Researchers have now confirmed that the female fly selects her mate based on the male fly’s secret wing colours. Professor Erik Svensson at Lund University hopes that these results will stimulate increased interest in the role that the light environment plays when choosing a mate.

Text: Lena Björk Blixt 

edited by Pia Romare

Photo: Qinyang Li