Hoverflies

hoverflies

Garden, plants:

garden spring spring'07 summer su mmerflowers weeds autumn winter houseplants euphorbia

Animals, insects in the garden:

animals/links spiders butterflies dragonflies flies hoverflies/1 hoverflies/2 wasps/bees beetles bugs insects other

Dutch dunes, countries:

dunes Australia England1 2 France1 2 3 Germany Ireland Italy Scotland Spain Slovenia Czechia Croatia

home links

Nederlands / Dutch

Subpage flies: Tachinidae Blow-flies (Calliphoridae) House flies (Muscidae) Soldierflies (Stratiomyidae) Root-Maggot Flies (Anthomyiidae) Small flies Gnats

Hoverflies, Syrphidae

Hoverflies, Flower Flies (Syrphidae) One of their characteristics is their bee, wasp or bumblebee mimicry, whereas they are completely defenceless. Flower flies cannot sting. They have same the bright colours, and sometimes the dense hair covering of bumblebees.
Hovering is a speciality, but they are also fast and very manoeuvrable.
The difference with other flies is the spurious vein. This vein neither ends nor connects with other wing veins. The spurious vein just ends for the edge of the wings.
Cell 2 is closed. The closed cell 4 is longer or as long as one third of the length of the wing.

The arista is on the side of the third antennal segment. Not on the top.
On the thorax are no stiff hairs like other flies.

..
Wing of a Meliscaeva auricollis. Antenna of a volucella zonaria.

Wing:
   1, 2, 3, 4: closed cell
   a: vena spuria or a false vein
   b: stigma
   c: cross vein
   d: outer cross vein

Antenna:
   1: third antennal segment (you can't see the other two on this photo)
   2: arista

Females have smaller eyes which are placed farther apart. The eyes of the male meet at the top of the head. Of course there are exceptions. Than you have to look at the underside of the abdomen, males have curbed asymetricla genitalia. The abdomen of the female is more pointed with inconspicuous genitalia.
Many species feed mainly on nectar and pollen. The larvae (maggots) eat a wide range of foods.

Exceptions
No vena spuria: Eristalinus sepulchralis and Psilota anthracina.
Arista op the top: Callicera and Ceriana
Stiff hairs: Ferdinandea. Less: Volucella, Cheilosia, Brachyopa and Chamaesyrphus.

(Information from: Zweefvliegtabel van Aat Barendregt)

On this page are the hoverflies which look like bees and bumblebees. Some hoverflies on this page look also like wasps. (such as species of the genus Epistrophe) The dark species are also on this page.
Other hoverflies you can find on hoverflies 2 (wasp mimics)

Eristalis
These hoverflies are Honeybee mimics or (Eristalis intricaria) sometimes bumblebee mimics. The larvae are rat-tailed maggots.

The larvae of Erisalis and Myathropa are rat-tailed maggots

The larvae of Erisalis are rat-tailed maggots and feed on rotting organic material in stagnant water. The tail is a breathing tube.
When fully grown, the larva creeps out to pupate.

Another larvae out of the pond. Photo 3-4-2010.

Drone fly, Dronefly (Eristalis pertinax). female Genus: Eristalis.

Tapered Drone Fly (Eristalis pertinax). Genus: Eristalis. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
The Eristalis pertinax is almost similar to the Eristalis tenax. But it don't has the two vertical stripes on the eyes. And the lower part of a leg (tars) is yellow. The abdomen of males is conical.
Length 11-15 mm. January - December. Eristalis feed on nectar and pollen.
Palearctic. But it has been introduced into North America and is widely established. German: Gemeine Keilfleckschwebfliege. French: Eristale opiniâtre.

Common Drone fly (Eristalis tenax). Genus: Eristalis. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
The Eristalis tenax has two vertical stripes on the eyes (two vertical bands of hairs). When it flies, it lets the hind legs hanging down. The abdomen is broad and shiny. The colour is variable from almost orange to dark. The adult females hibernate.
Length: 14-16 mm. January-December. Photos 2-6-2012, 26-7-2012.

Photo 15-1-2012. On a sunny spot in winter.

Eristalis similis = Eristalis pratorum. Genus Eristalis.

Glass-winged Drone Fly (Eristalis similis, synonym Eristalis pratorum). Genus Eristalis. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
Eristalis similis looks like the Eristalis pertinax and the Eristalis tenax.
But it has dark tarses and no vertical stripes on the eyes. The pterostigma is elongated and lightly coloured in females. The abdomen of females is conical.
In the Netherlands the numbers are quite variable. In the area where I live, they are not common.
Length 13-16 mm. March-September. Palearctic.

Eristalis horticola, synonym Eristalis lineata. Genus: Eristalis.

Stripe-winged Drone Fly (Eristalis horticola, synonym Eristalis lineata). Genus: Eristalis. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
It is very similar to the Eristalis interrupta but it has no clear wings.
The yellow rings on the abdomen, the yellow spots and the dark band on the wings are characteristic.
Length 10-14 mm. April-October.
It is be found especially near forests. Palearctic. Photos 28-8-2010, 20-4-2011. German: Garten-Keilfleckschwebfliege.

Eristalis arbustorum. Genus: Eristalis. male

Eristalis arbustorum. Genus: Eristalis. female

Eurasian Drone Fly (Eristalis arbustorum). Genus: Eristalis. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
It is very similar to the Eristalis abusiva. The face is white hairy. Sometimes there is a small black middle stripe on the face. The Eristalis arbustorum has a hairy arista. The Eristalis abusiva has an almost bare arista. A quarter of the shin of the Eristalis arbustorum is deep black. A fifth of the shin of the Eristalis abusiva is black.
The eyes of the Eristalis arbustorum are touching each other's for some distance. Between the eyes of the male Eristalis abusiva is a small distance.
Length 9-11mm. March - october. Palearctic. Photos 10-8-2012.

Eristalis arbustorum. Genus: Eristalis. male. Detail.

Eristalis arbustorum. Genus: Eristalis. female. Detail.

Eristalis arbustorum. Genus: Eristalis. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).

Details.
Photo left: Male. The eyes are touching each other for some distance. You can see the hairy arista.
Photo right: Female. Also a hairy arista. It's difficult to get the hairy arista on a photo.
I have no photos of a Eristalis abusiva.

Eristalis nemorum, synonym Eristalis interrupta. Genus: Eristalis.

Stripe-faced Drone Fly (Eristalis nemorum, synonym Eristalis interrupta). Genus: Eristalis. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
The male Eristalis interrupta often hangs above the female.
The Eristalis interrupta has a bare black median line on the face. It has a very small pterostigma in the wing. It is square or even broader than long. The wings are clear. The female has not always the yellow spots. The Eristalis interrupta and the Eristalis arbustorum are very similar.
Sometimes the male is wrong and it hangs for a very short time above a wrong species. Sometimes several males hang above one female. Length: 10-12 mm.
April-October. Holarctisc. Photos 14-8-2012, 16-8-2012.

Epistrophe

Spring Smoothtail (Epistrophe eligans). Genus: Epistrophe. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
It's a springfly.. The first yellow band (sometimes separately) is broader than the yellow band (also interrupted) Sometimes there is also third band. A copper colored thorax with a beautiful gloss. As you can see on the photos, there is a difference in bands.
They occur in forest edges and shrubs.
Length: 9-11 mm. April-June.

front. German: Zweiband-Wiesenschwebfliege.

Female.

Male. Black-mouthed Smoothtail (Epistrophe melanostoma) Genus: Epistrophe. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
Similar to the in The Netherlands rare Epistrophe flava. Length: 10 - 12 mm. April - June.
The larvae feed on aphids. Photos 1-5-2010, 14-5-2010.

Epistrophe grossulariae. Genus: Epistrophe. male

Male.

Female. Black-horned Smoothtail (Epistrophe grossulariae). Genus: Epistrophe. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
The only species in the northern Netherlands with black antennae. The forehead just above the antennae is black. The thighs are dark at the beginning.
The thorax is dull. Try comparing with that of the E. eligans.
Length: 10 to 13 mm. May to September.
The larvae feed on aphids. Europe, North America.

Male.

Female. Dark-backed Smoothtail (Epistrophe nitidicollis). Genus: Epistrophe. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
A hoverfly with yellow antennae and a very shiny thorax. On the scutellum are black hairs (a difference with the other similar species).
Length 9-12 mm. April-July. One generation. Holarctic. Photo's 22-6-2013, 30-6-2013.

Some hoverflies of the genus Epistrophe look like the hoverflies of the genus Syrphus on the page hoverflies 2.

Eristalinus

Black Lagoon Fly (Eristalinus sepulchralis). Genus: Eristalinus. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
The yellowish white eyes are covered with numerous, small, dark spots.
It has stripes on the thorax. In the middle the abdomen is dull. Furthermore, it is shiny. In the wing lacks the vena spuria. The rear legs are curved.
It is a common hoverfly. It has a preference for moist areas.
In the Netherlands there are two species, but there are many more species outside the Netherlands.
The larva lives in shallow still water with decaying organic matter. It overwinters as a larva.
Length: 9-11 mm. April-September. Palaearctic, Oriental.

On the cactus Echinocactus grusonii. German: Schwarze Augenfleck-Schwebfliege.

Eristalinus aeneus. Genus Eristalinus. male

Male.

Female. Common Lagoon Fly (Eristalinus aeneus). Genus Eristalinus. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae). Not in the garden but in the dunes about 4 km from our house.The yellowish white eyes are covered with numerous, small, dark spots. The Eristalinus aeneus is completely shiny and lacks the clear long stripes on the thorax of the Eristalinus sepulchralis. The wing has a unclear vena spuria. The rear legs are hardly curved.
In open areas with salty influence like here in the dunes near a small lake. In the Netherlands they live mainly along the coast.
The larva lives in shallow stagnant or slow flowing water of the bacteria from decaying organic matter. They haven't problems with the salt in the water. In other countries, the larvae are also found in fresh water.
Length: 10-12 mm. April - October. The adult fly overwinters. Cosmopolitan (In America introduced). Photos 3-5-2013.

Eristalinus aeneus male. Eight years after the previous photos for the first time seen in the garden on a wall. Photo 16-4-2021.

Ferdinandea

Eurasian Copperback (Ferdinandea cuprea). Genus: Ferdinandea. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
This hover fly has copper-colored abdomen. Translated Dutch name: Copper jacket. The wings have two clear dark spots. On the black thorax grey stripes. On the side of the thorax are stiff hairs.
The larva lives in tree sap and wounds of deciduous trees like birch, oak, willow. But the larvae can also occur in other situations. Like rotting oak roots, rotting tree hollows and in France even in the roots of artichoke.
The larva overwinters.
Palearctic. Length 7-13 mm April-September. German: Gemeine Goldschwebfliege.

Myathropa

Common Batman Fly (Myathropa florea). Genus: Myathropa. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
It looks like a honey bee. It has a distinctive pattern of grey bars on the top of the thorax. The Dutch name is skullhoverfly because of this pattern. Variable in size: 10-14 mm.
April-October. Palearctic. They occur in forest edges and shrubs.
The larvae live in damp rotting wood and decaying leaves, water-filled branch axils, manure etc. German: Totenkopfschwebfliege French: Eristale des fleurs.

Didea

Pale-knobbed Lucent (Didea fasciata). Genus: Didea. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
A broad-bodied hoverfly. I therefore think it looks a little more like a bee.
The face is yellow. The halteres are also yellow.
They occur in mixed forests. Length 10-3 mm. April-October The larvae feed on aphids.

Below: The spots of this Didea fasciata are less curved.
Larva didea spec. 9-10-2015.

Leucozona

Pale-saddled Hoary (Leucozona glaucia). Genus: Leucozona. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae). Not in the garden, but in the Lake District in England! In the Netherlands in South Limburg and some other places, but it is increasingly rare.
Usually you can find the Leucozona glaucia on a white Apiaceae or Umbelliferae. They always run back and forth. The eggs are also on these plants. They are especially along forest edges in deciduous forests.
Length 11-3 mm. June-September. Fhe larvae feed on aphids.

Bumbel bee mimics

Criorhina

Dimorphic Bumblefly (Criorhina berberina). Genus: Criorhina. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
It has a broad body with a yellow hairy thorax. There are different color forms. The fly in this picture has a black hairy abdomen with a white tip. Variation Oxyaccanthae has yellow hairy abdomen.
It is often found in forests and thickets. The larvae live in rotting wood.
It lives on nectar and pollen.
Length: 8-13 mm. April-August. Europe to eastern Turkey. Photos 26-5-2016.

Buff-tailed Bumblefly (Criorhina floccosa). Genus: Criorhina. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
Fairly large hoverfly with an orange hairy thorax and rear part of the abdomen. Front part of the abdomen with pale yellow hair. Quite rare in the Netherlands. Seen in the garden for the first time.
It mainly occurs in deciduous forests. The larvae live in rotting wood of maples.
Length: 12-15 mm. April-June. Europe, to the Caucasus. Photos 10-5-2021.

Eristalis

Female.

Eristalis intricaria male Genus: Eristalis

Male. Furry Drone Fly (Eristalis intricaria). Genus: Eristalis. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
It is an Eristalis, but it looks more like a bumblebee. The legs are black with white pieces (knee, tar). The shield is lighter. The males are usually sandy-haired. The females have black on tergite 2 of the abdomen and white at the tip of the abdomen.
The larva is a rat-tailed maggot.
Length: 11-14 mm. March-September. Palearctic. German: Hummel-Keilfleckschwebfliege, Pelzige Mistbiene.

Merodon

. . Narcissus fly, Greater bulb fly (Merodon equestris). Genus: Merodon. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
The hairs have different colour forms. It has strong, black legs. Length: 12-14mm. April-July.
Woods, hedgerows, parks and gardens.
Eggs are laid at the base of foliage of bulbs like bluebell and daffodil. The larvae follow the foliage down to the bulb and grubs tunnels into the bulb.
Similar species: Volucella bombylans (no U-shaped bend in the veins) and Eristalis intricaria (legs are partly pale)
In the Netherlands there are six colour forms. Males and females: bulborum, equestris, flavicans, transversalis. Only females: nobilis en validus. German: Narzissenschwebfliege.

Volucella

Witte reus of Ivoorzweefvlieg (Volucella pellucens) Genus: Volucella

Pied Plumehorn, White-banded Drone Fly (Volucella pellucens). Genus: Volucella. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
It has a broad body. It is mainly black, but the front part of the abdomen has a broad yellow, white band.
It is usually found in woodland, but will enter gardens. It lives on nectar and pollen
Length: 12-18 mm. May-September. Europe, Asia, Japan

The female enters the underground paper nests of the common wasp Vespula vulgaris, or the German wasp, Vespula germanica, and lays her eggs. The larvae feed on all kind of waste and even dead wasp grubs and adults.
Fully grown larvae leave the nest and pupate in the soil below.
Family of the Volucella zonaria. Photos 25-6-2010, 10-7-2012. German: Gemeine Waldschwebfliege. French: Volucelle transparente.

Hornet Mimic Hoverfly (Volucella zonaria). Genus: Volucella.

Hornet Plumehorn, Hornet Mimic Hoverfly (Volucella zonaria). Genus: Volucella. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
It is a big hoverfly. You don’t overlook it. It has orange-yellow and dark bands on the abdomen. The thorax is shiny red brown and dark brown.
It is a summer guest. Not a bird of passage but a hoverfly of passage. Although I have read, this hoverfly reproduces also in the Netherlands.
The larvae grow up in a wasp nest, where they feed also on dead wasp larvae.
Length: 18-22 mm. June-October. German: Hornissenschwebfliege, Große Waldschwebfliege, Riesen-Hummelschwebfliege.

A member of the family is the Volucella inanis. In the Netherlands it is very rare. You can find it in Limburg. The spots are yellower. The thorax is dull brownish black.

Other hoverflies.

Rhingia

Common Snout Fly, Heineken Hover Fly (Rhingia campestris). Genus: Rhingia. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
It is recognizable by the long straight snout. The dark thorax is gray dusted, the abdomen is reddish. It looks like the in the Netherlands rare Rhingia rostrata (in the south). That hoverfly has completely orange legs. Even rarer in the Netherlands is the Rhingia borealis.
The larvae live in dung, especially in cow dung.
Length: 7-11 mm. April-October. Photos 25-4-2011, 17-10-2011, 30-8-2012, 4-9-2012.

Brachyopa

Pale-shouldered Sapeater (Brachyopa scutellaris). Genus: Brachyopa. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
These flies are difficult to recognize as a hoverfly. This is because the dull gray thorax. The abdomen, scutellum and eyes are striking red orange. It is the only hoverfly of the genus: Brachyopa with reddish brown shoulder humps.
Used to be in the Netherlands in the dunes. Now also in other arias of the Netherlands.
The larvae of this genus live in decaying sap on and in the bark of trees. The flies are often nearby such places. The Brachyopa scutellaris also can be found on flowers.
Length: 6-8 mm. April-June. Europe.

Cheilosia

Bumblebee Blacklet (Cheilosia illustrata). Genus: Cheilosia. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
A hoverfly of the family cheilosia with more hairs than most of the members of the family.
A dark spot on the wings. The eyes are hairy. The abdomen is hairy with red hairs on the end. At the shoulder and under the scutellum are long white hairs.
It is a general fly in the Netherlands now. In 1990, it mainly lives in South Limburg.
You can find it on Apiaceae or Umbelliferae like hogweed and parsnip.
Length: 9-1 mm. May-August.
Larvae are found in the roots of these plants.

Cheilosia albipila. Genus: Cheilosia. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
A hoverfly with short brown red hairs. It therefore looks like a red hairy mining bee. The base color of the thorax is shiny black. The abdomen is less glossy. The antennae are orange.
The eyes have long hairs (male: dark hairs, female pale hairs). The face is hairless.
Early flowering shrubs such as willow and blackthorn.
The eggs are deposited on different species of thistle. The larva feeds inside the root or the base of the stem.
Length: 8-12 mm. March-May. Palearctic. Photo: 6-4-2011. German: Weiden-Erzschwebfliege.

Greater Spring Blacklet (Cheilosia grossa). Genus: Cheilosia. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
Not a beautiful picture, because the photo was taken from a distance. Then it was gone. This is the first and the last Cheilosia grossa that I've seen in the garden.
A large, shiny Cheilosia with red hair.
The larvae live in various thistle species. They are mainly found inside the rhizome, but sometimes higher in the stems. The eggs are laid in the rosettes of thistles. The larvae pupate in the ground next to the thistles.
The Cheilosia grossa life especially near willows. I have no willow in the garden and at present no thistles. Therefore I was so surprised to see the Cheilosia grossa here.
Length: 11-12 mm. March-June. One generation. Palearctic. Photo 21-03-2012.

Houseleek Blacklet (Cheilosia caerulescens). Genus: Cheilosia. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
A black abdomen with silver hair bands. Wing with darkened cross veins. No hairs on the eyes. Legs partly dark and partly yellow. A prominent face.
It mainly lived in the mountains in Europe. In the Netherlands the first observation was in 1986 in Limburg. From 1998 there were observations from other parts of the Netherlands.
The food plant of the larva is houseleek. Larvae mine the leaves of houseleeks. Maybe Cheilosia caerulescens is spread by the sale of this garden plant. But that is not certain.
The pupae overwinter. Length 7-11 cm. May- September. Photos 9-8-2010.

Cheilosia variabilis. Genus: Cheilosia. male

Male.

Female. Figwort Blacklet (Cheilosia variabilis). Genus: Cheilosia. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
A common species on the sandy soils It can be found at sunny spots along the forest.
A large cheilosia with black legs and antennae.
The larvae live on Scrophularia. Length: 9-12 mm. April-August.
Photos 22-4-2008, 18-5-2009, 5-5-2010, 13-4-2012. German: Gemeine Erzschwebfliege.

Leafmining Blacklet (Cheilosia semifasciata). Genus: Cheilosia. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
First I thought it was an ordinary fly. But at the way of flying it is to recognize as a hoverfly.
It has some grey spots on the abdomen. De larva is a leafminer.
The other Cheilosia species aren't leaf-miners. It is a miner on Navelwort (Umbilicus rupestris) and Orpine (Sedum Telephium)
Length: 8-10 mm. March-May.

Ragwort Blacklet (Cheilosia bergenstammi). Genus: Cheilosia. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
The eyes of this Cheilosia are slightly hairy, while the face is not hairy at all.
This cheilosia is hairy with golden hairs. But that can only be seen on a highly magnified photo.
The larvae mine the stems and roots of Senico jacobaea.
This hoverfly is found in open places, where Ragwort grows. Length: 8-10 mm. April-September. Photos 30-8-2008.

Cheilosia scutellata. male Genus: Cheilosia.

Male.

Female. Bolete Blacklet (Cheilosia scutellata). Genus: Cheilosia. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
Yellowish hairy, hairless eye. Legs partly yellow. Wide center knot. The scutellum of the female is yellow.
Open forests, mostly sand. Larvae in mushrooms. In particular boletus.
Length 7-10 mm. May-September. Photos 27-8-2012, 3-9-2012.

Parsley Blacklet (Cheilosia pagana). Genus: Cheilosia. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
The female is easily recognized because of the large orange third antennal segment. The male is less easy to recognize. In spring the male is often larger and lighter in colour than in summer.
The larvae live in cow parsley, angelica and common hogweed. In by fungi affected rotting roots.
Length: 5- 9 mm. March- September. Two generations. Europe and North America. Photos 19-9-2009.

Kustgitje (Cheilosia vernalis). Genus: Gitjes (Cheilosia).

Female.

Male. Yarrow Blacklet (Cheilosia vernalis). Genus: Cheilosia. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
A small, stocky cheilosia. The eyes are hairy, the face is hairless. Brushes on the edge of the shield. It is variable in terms of colour of hairs, legs and antennae.
It is found in many different habitats.
The larvae mine in stems of different plants of the family Asteraceae or Compositae. For example, in Yarrow.
Length: 5-7 mm. April-September. Two generations. Palearctic. Photos 10-04-2012, 18-9-2012.

Cheilosia albitarsis. Male. Genus: Gitjes (Cheilosia).

Cheilosia albitarsis. Female. Genus: Gitjes (Cheilosia).

Buttercup Blacklet (Cheilosia albitarsis). Genus: Gitjes (Cheilosia). Family hoverflies (Syrphidae). Not in the garden but in the dunes about 4 km from my house.
Black, hairy eyes (not easy to see), face without hairs. Black legs, but the middle segments of the tarsus of the front leg are light. Female with yellow-brown wing roots. It looks like the in the Netherlands rare Cheilosia ranunculi.
Differences according to Menno Reemer (translated): In C. ranunculi the last tarslid of the foreleg is widened. And males C. ranunculi additionally have slightly yellowish wing roots, as females C. albitarsis have this too. A useful field characteristic to recognize the C. ranunculi males between the C. albitarsis. For final determination you will always have to look at the tarsi.
Often found near buttercups. The larvae live in the roots of the sharp buttercup and creeping buttercup. (perhaps in other species buttercup)
Length: 7-9 mm. April-July. One generation. Holarctic. Photos 6-05-2014.

Pipiza

Common Pithead (Pipiza noctiluca). Genus: Pipiza. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
Not quite sure. It is very similar to Pipiza bimaculata. A difference is that the last two segments of the tarsus of the front legs of P. noctiluca are usually yellow. The other segments are black. All segments of the tarsus of the front legs of P. Bimaculata are black.
A black abdomen with two yellow spots. Bright wings with a vague spot. Pipiza hoverflies have a flat face.
As you can see from the photos, there are two spots on the abdomen. Sometimes they miss those spots. (Often in males). As the photo below left.
I often see them on leaves. But they also visit flowers. The larvae feed on aphids.
Length: 6-10 mm. April-September. Photos 28-9-2008, 29-4-2009, 1-5-2009, 14-5-2010.

This would be a Pipiza bimaculata, but it is not certain. Photo 14-5-2010.

Slanke platbek (Pipiza luteitarsis) Genus: platbekjes (Pipiza).

Pale-footed Pithead (Pipiza luteitarsis). Genus: Pipiza. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
The whole tarsus of front legs is yellow. Of the other legs are the last segments of the tarsus yellow. The abdomen is golden yellow hairy.
Han, Gerard, Menno, Jaap thanks for the help with the identification of this fly. This male is not black and therefore difficult to identify. In the Netherlands it is a rare species!
Length 7-9 mm. April-May. Europe. Photo 17-4-2011.

Heringia

. Heringia spec. Genus: Heringia. (Synonym Neocnemodon). Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
Heringia is a family, consisting of small black hoverflies. Females of this family are hard to identify. But the males are also not easy to identify from a photo. In the Netherlands there are seven species.
Like Pipzella it has a flat face. The third antennal segment is less long.
You see the most species oft on the leaves. Length: 5-8 mm.
The larvae feed on aphids. Photos females 3-7-2011. Photo male 29-7-2009.

Pipizella

Male. Pipizella spec. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
Usually it is not possible to indentify pipizella species from a photo.
Probably Pipizella viduata. That is the most common of the six species in the Netherlands.
They are small black hoverflies with a flat face. The third antennal segment is quite long. The legs are black with yellow.
It is found on umbelliferous. Here on celery.
Larvae are found near root lice include on fireweed.
Length 5-7 mm. The Palearctic. Photo 11-7-2010, 14-5-2013.

Melanogaster, Chrysogaster

Melanogaster hirtella. Genus: Melanogaster. Male

Melanogaster hirtella. Genus: Melanogaster. Female

Female. Common Wrinklehead (Melanogaster hirtella). Genus: Melanogaster. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
As you see a very small black hoverfly.
On this photo on the flower of a Welsh poppy (Meconopsis cambrica).
The Melanogaster hirtella is (just like the Cheilosia albitarsis) a real buttercup species. The Melanogaster at the other photos is sitting on a marsh marigold.
Often in meadows near water. The eggs are attached under leaves of plants near the water. The larvae live along the waterfront. They overwinter as larvae. Length: 6-8 mm. April-July. Photos 14-5-2008, 24-5-2011, 14-5-2013.

Chrysogaster solstitialis. Genus: Chrysogaster.

Dark-winged Wrinklehead (Chrysogaster solstitialis). Genus: Chrysogaster. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
A dark hoverfly. The body is black and the wings are completely darkened. Thorax male is dull black, the thorax of the female has a purple sheen. Strikingly large red eyes.
Chrysogaster solstitialis you often find on umbelliferous. The fly on the picture I found in the scullery. The first time that I saw this species in our garden. Since 1990 it has expanded to the west and north of the Netherlands, where we live.
The larvae live in water with rotting wood.
Length 6-8 mm. April-September. Two generations. Photos 23-6-2013. German: Gemeine Smaragdschwebfliege.

Paragus.

Common Grass Skimmer (Paragus haemorrhous). Genus: Paragus. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae). Not in the garden but in the dunes about 4 km from my house.
Not quite sure, because it is similar to the (in the Netherlands) very rare Paragus tibialis.
A completely black paragus with occasionally some red on the middle part of the abdomen. The face is yellow with a black center stripe. The legs are yellow. The eyes are slightly hairy.
The paragus you often see in the sun between low vegetation near bramble thickets.
The larvae feed on aphids.
Length 4-6 mm. April-October. Holarctic and afrotropic. (not in Northern Scandinavia.) Photos 11-9-2012.

2-8-2021 Nine years later I also photographed the Paragus haemorrhous in our garden.

Eumerus

Onion bulb fly, Lesser Bulb Fly (Eumerus funeralis = Eumerus tuberculatus). Genus: Eumerus. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
A small, black hoverfly. It has a "lump" by an extension at the beginning of the thigh. See detail photo.
Length: 5-6 mm. April-September.
The larvae feed on bulbs of onions, iris, narcissus or hyacinths.
Palearctic. But introduced in North - and South America and Australia. Photos 9-6-2008.

Onion bulb fly, Lesser bulb fly (Eumerus spec.). Genus: Eumerus.

Eumerus spec. Genus: Eumerus. Family hoverflies (Syrphidae).
Some pictures of globes gliding, a name isn't possible. Besides the Eumerus funeralis is the Eumerus strigatus a general hoverfly in the Netherlands. The other species are rare. Photos 10-5-2009, 19-7-2012, 29-8-2012.

To hoverflies 2

I want to thank everyone, who has helped me (waarneming.nl) to identify. In particular Gerard Pennards, Han Endt and Menno Reemer.

A beautiful site with much information: The Garden Safari

Informatie about flies: www.diptera.info

André Schulten has made a Dutch digital guide about hoverflies identification guide to hoverflies

Nederlands / Dutch

Subpage flies: Tachinidae Blow-flies (Calliphoridae) House flies (Muscidae) Soldierflies (Stratiomyidae) Root-Maggot Flies (Anthomyiidae) Small flies Gnats

Subpage wasps, bees, bumblebees: Parasitica, Ichneumonidae Sawflies symphyta Bumblebees Bee hotel

Subpage France: Insects France

-0-0-0-