The term gnat is applied as a colloquial name to any of various small insects in the order Diptera and specifically within the suborder Nematocera. This suborder represents the more primitive members of the Dipteran order but still contains several very notable and important families such as the Chironomidae (non-biting midges) and the Culicidae (mosquitoes). Other families include the Tipulidae (crane flies), Bibionidae (hairflies), Ceratopogonidae (biting midges), Cecidomyiidae (gall midges), Simuliidae (black flies), and others. Gnat or GNAT may refer to: gnat, a colloquial name to any of various small insects GNAT, a Free Software compiler for the Ada programming language G7es torpedo, the German Naval Acoustic Torpedo Folland Gnat , a light jet aircraft GNAT-750, an unmanned aerial vehicle Category: ... Orders Subclass Apterygota Archaeognatha (bristletails) Thysanura (silverfish) Subclass Pterygota Infraclass Paleoptera (Probably paraphyletic) Ephemeroptera (mayflies) Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) Infraclass Neoptera Superorder Exopterygota Grylloblattodea (ice-crawlers) Mantophasmatodea (gladiators) Plecoptera (stoneflies) Embioptera (webspinners) Zoraptera (angel insects) Dermaptera (earwigs) Orthoptera (grasshoppers, etc) Phasmatodea (stick insects) Blattodea (cockroaches) Isoptera (termites) Mantodea (mantids) Psocoptera... Suborders Nematocera (includes Eudiptera) Brachycera Diptera (di - two, ptera - wings), or true flies, is the order of insects possessing only a single pair of wings on the mesothorax; the metathorax bears a pair of drumstick like structures called the halteres, the remnants of the hind wings. ... Infraorders Axymyiomorpha Culicomorpha Blephariceromorpha Bibionomorpha Psychodomorpha Ptychopteromorpha Tipulomorpha Nematocera are generally primitive flies, typically recognized by filamentous, multi-segmented antennae which may be plumose in some males. ... Genera See text Chironomidae larva, about 1 cm long, the head is right. ... Midges on a car Midges are small, two-winged flying insects. ... For other uses, see Mosquito (disambiguation). ... Genera Over 14,000 The crane flies are a family (Tipulidae) of insects resembling giant mosquitoes. ... Bibionidae , march flies and love bugs, is a family of flies (Diptera). ... Subfamilies Forcipomyiinae Dasyheleinae Ceratopogoninae Leptoconopinae Ceratopogonidae, or biting midges (or, in the United States, no-see-ums, sand flies, punkies, and others), are a family of small flies (1-4 mm long) in the order Diptera. ... Cecidiomyiidae is the correct name for the insects known as the gall midge. ... Genera Many, including Simulium Prosimulium A Black Fly (sometimes called a Buffalo Gnat or Turkey Gnat) is any member of the family Simuliidae of the Culicomorpha infraorder. ...

The males often assemble together in large mating swarms and can disorient drivers. School of juvenile herring - many fish have the opercula wide open for ram feeding and you can see the red gills The term swarm (schooling or swarming) is applied to fish, birds and insects and describes a behavior of an aggregation (school) of animals of similar size and body orientation...

Gnat larvae are mostly free-living. Many feed on plants, though some are carnivorous. Larval plant feeders, e.g. the Hessian fly larvae, cause root, stem, and leaf galls to be formed by the host plant. Some species of fungus gnats (families Mycetophilidae and Sciaridae) are very common pests of mushrooms and roots of potted plants in homes and greenhouses. This article deals with meat-eating animals. ... A larval insect A larva (Latin; plural larvae) is a juvenile form of animal with indirect development, undergoing metamorphosis (for example, insects or amphibians). ... Binomial name Mayetiola destructor (Say, 1817) The hessian fly, Mayetiola destructor, is a species of fly that is a significant pest of cereal crops including wheat, barley and rye. ... Kalanchoë infected with crown-gall using Agrobacterium tumefaciens. ... Fungus gnats are small, dark, short-lived flies, of the families Sciaridae and Mycetophilidae (order Diptera), whose larvae feed on plant roots or fungi and aid in the decomposition of organic matter. ... Genera About 150 see list of mycetophilid/keroplatid genera Mycetophilidae is a family of very small flies, forming the bulk of those species known as fungus gnats. ... Genera Sciara  many more Sciaridae is a family of flies, commonly known as dark-winged fungus gnats. ... For other uses, see Mushroom (disambiguation). ... The Royal Greenhouses of Laeken. ...

Some South American Pleurothallid orchids are pollinated by tiny gnats and have correspondingly small flowers. South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... The Pleurothallidinae are a sub-tribe of plants of the orchid family (Orchidaceae). ... Orchid re-directs here; for alternate uses see Orchid (disambiguation) Genera Over 800 See List of Orchidaceae genera. ... For other uses, see Flower (disambiguation). ...

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