Belgica antarctica: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the belgica antarctica lives – recorded in 1 country, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Belgica antarctica
Group	Grasshoppers, bugs & other insects
Found in	1 country
Continents	Antarctica
Class	Insect
Order	Diptera
Family	Chironomidae

Where does the belgica antarctica live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the belgica antarctica in 1 country or territory across Antarctica.

Antarctica

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

What kind of animal is the belgica antarctica?

The belgica antarctica (Belgica antarctica) is an insect in the order Diptera and the family Chironomidae, genus Belgica. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the belgica antarctica

Belgica antarctica, the Antarctic midge, is a species of flightless midge, endemic to the continent of Antarctica. At a length of 2–6 mm (0.08–0.2 in), it is the largest purely terrestrial animal native to the continent. It also has the smallest known insect genome as of 2014, with only 99 million base pairs (Mbp) of nucleotides and about 13,500 genes. It is the only insect that can survive year-round in Antarctica.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Belgica antarctica (revision 1381018571), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q136577 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).