Seasonal variation in body size and the relationships among body size, parity, and fecundity of host-seeking Tabanus quinquevittatus females (Diptera: Tabanidae)

Host-seeking females of T. quinquevittatus were collected in carbon-dioxide-baited and unbaited canopy traps in 1980 and 1981 in south-western Quebec. The wing length and parity of each individual were determined. The number of ovarioles was estimated from 125 specimens. The relationships of sampling years, sampling days, carbon dioxide, parity and fecundity to wing length were evaluated by linear regression analysis. There was a gradual decline in body size of females during the flight season in each year. Completion of a gonotrophic cycle and response to carbon dioxide were not related to body size. Fecundity could be estimated from wing length by a linear regression model.