botfly

American  

[bot-flahy] / ˈbɒtˌflaɪ /

Or bot fly

noun

• botflies
  plural

1. any of several flies of the families Oestridae, Gasterophilidae, and Cuterebridae, the larvae of which are parasitic in the skin or other parts of various mammals.

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botfly British  

/ ˈbɒtˌflaɪ /

noun

1. any of various stout-bodied hairy dipterous flies of the families Oestridae and Gasterophilidae , the larvae of which are parasites of man, sheep, and horses

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• botflies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of botfly

First recorded in 1810–20; bot ² + fly ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

botfly botflies

Gravid botfly females apparently catch mosquitos on the wing and then lay their eggs on the mosquito’s body.

From New York Times ● Feb. 3, 2011

There are about as many ways to get rid of botfly larvae as people you talk to.

From New York Times ● Feb. 3, 2011

Dr. Langmuir, having studied ballistics formulae, showed that if the botfly flew at 800 m.p.h. the wind pressure against its head would be 8 Ib. per sq. in., "probably enough to crush the fly."

From Time Magazine Archive

Horses are the victims of a botfly that lays its eggs on their legs, and sheep are the prey of another kind of botfly that lays its eggs in their noses.

From Time Magazine Archive

Hematological values in deer mice in relation to botfly infection.

From Comparative Ecology of Pinyon Mice and Deer Mice in Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado by Charles L. Douglas

And I was surprised by my reaction: the technology that produced it is amazing, and I’m the person who tries to one-up my editor with disgusting pictures of botflies in Slack.

From The Verge ● Aug. 14, 2018

It’s the botflies that probably get the biggest reaction from family members and new visitors, perhaps because of the truly bizarre nature of their life cycle.

From New York Times ● Feb. 3, 2011

Someone told him that these were the famed deer botflies.

From Time Magazine Archive

Mammals trapped in the grid were inspected for molt, sexual maturity, larvae of botflies, anomalies, and other pertinent data.

From Comparative Ecology of Pinyon Mice and Deer Mice in Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado by Charles L. Douglas

In 1961, the incidence of parasitism by botflies was the highest for the period 1960-1966.

From Comparative Ecology of Pinyon Mice and Deer Mice in Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado by Charles L. Douglas