New Zealand Blue Blowfly

The New Zealand blue blowfly is endemic to New Zealand. It is found throughout mainland New Zealand as well as on Chatham, Auckland, Stewart and Campbell Islands that surround New Zealand. The specimens found on Auckland and Campbell Islands differed slightly from the mainland species by having a blue green metallic sheen instead of a violet metallic sheen on the abdomen.

Habitat preferences. This species is found throughout New Zealand, although it does have a preference for alpine areas where snow tussock is present, in particular in the South Island mountain ranges and Stewart Island. It is also known to be a species that contributes to fly strike in sheep. While it is not a species that initiates fly-strike, it can be a secondary candidate so may be found on farmland areas as well. This particular species is hardly ever found indoors.

New Zealand blowflies have a relatively short life cycle. The female deposits her eggs in a decaying medium, which for this blowfly species can include decaying leaf matter as well as decaying carcasses. After 24 hours the eggs hatch into larvae; there are three growth stages of larval development and during this period the larvae feed on either plant or animal tissues. After a period of eight days the larva stops feeding and is ready to develop into a pupa underground; this occurs approximately 3 cm into the soil where conditions are dry, either where the larvae were feeding or a close distance away. The larvae empty what contents they have in their stomachs and contract to form pupae. Approximately two weeks after pupa development an adult fly is formed that is ready to mate. Female blowflies have a pre-egg laying period of 4–7 days and only live for approximately 2–3 weeks; in this time around 600–800 eggs are deposited, in total the entire cycle is about 20–25 days in length from egg to egg. The New Zealand blue blowfly predominately mates over the summer months, in particular February, because it relies on warmer temperatures for egg-to-adult development.