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A hoverfly also known as 'The Footballer' due to the stripey thorax. This lovely wildflower is Devil's-bit Scabious.
HFDF and have a great weekend! :)
A hoverfly on a field scabious at Swelshill Bank near Stroud, this was taken when I met up with flickr member Rod Holbrook at the beginning of the month
Flies in the family Syrphidae are commonly known as hoverflies, flower flies, or syrphid flies.
As their common names suggest, they are often seen hovering or nectaring at flowers; the adults of many species feed mainly on nectar and pollen, while the larvae (maggots) eat a wide range of foods. In some species, the larvae are saprotrophs, eating decaying plant and animal matter in the soil or in ponds and streams. In other species, the larvae are insectivores and prey on aphids, thrips, and other plant-sucking insects.
About 6,000 species in 200 genera have been described. Hoverflies are common throughout the world and can be found on every continent except Antarctica. Hoverflies are harmless to most other animals despite their mimicry of the black and yellow stripes of wasps, which serves to ward off predators.
best viewed LARGE:
An early morning shot of a Hoverfly on a dew covered grass stem.
Setting this one up was a delicate matter as I was trying to avoid any disturbance that would cause the dew drops to fall off, not to mention the hoverfly flying away. All was going well until I attempted to make a small adjustment with the tripod and knocked the grass, fortunately I had a few shots in the bag.
Best viewed very large.
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You can see more of my images on my other flickr account Heath's moth page
This shot shows the translucent nature of Volucella pellucen's ivory-white second tergite, and also the large dark spots on its wings! The translucent ivory-white second tergite rise to the common name for this hoverfly, the Pellucid Fly, as pellucid means translucently clear!
Hoverfly Scaeva selenitica, a very welcome infrequent visitor to the garden. Focus stacked using zerene
Hoverfly
Insect
Although these brightly-coloured insects look like bees or wasps, they are in fact true flies and do not sting. Hoverflies are excellent examples of Batesian mimicry (named after H W Bates who first described it in 1862). They generally mimic bees and wasps – insects that sting and also taste unpleasant, so are avoided by predators. Drone-flies mimic honey bees, Volucella bombylans (pictured) has several different forms mimicking bumblebees, while others species are very convincing wasp mimics.
There are about 250 different hoverfly species in Britain. You can generally see plenty of adults on flowers throughout spring, summer and autumn. Hoverfly larvae are varied too – some even resemble small slugs. They all have different feeding habits. For example they may eat plants, feed on rotting wood and fungi, attack bulbs or parasitise other insects.
More well known and welcome in the garden are those that eat aphids and other pests eg Syrphus spp. Rat-tailed maggots, larvae of the dronefly Eristalis tenax, are found in polluted pools and extend their tail breathing tubes to the surface to breathe.
What does it eat?
Adults eat drink nectar and eat pollen and honeydew. Some species feed on dead insects. The larvae of different species eat different things. Some eat aphids.
When will I see it?
Between March and November, depending on the species.
Where will I see it?
Hovering near and resting on flowers. Many seem prone to entering conservatories and greenhouses.
Link -
www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/bird-and-wildlife-guid...
Macro shot of a Eristalis horticola - a species of hoverfly. Caught resting on a horse chestnut leaf. Taken with a Nikon D7200 and a sigma 105mm macro lens.
Flew into the house, caught by the dog, spat out of dogs mouth onto the carpet, licked and pawed by the dog, saved by myself and placed outside! It cleaned itself up and flew off hopefully not too traumatised by its ordeal!
With over 6,000 species, Hoverflies are prolific and the adults spent their lives nectaring from flowers and plants. Hoverflies are harmless to most other animals, despite their mimicry of more dangerous wasps and bees, which wards off predators.
I found this Hoverfly on the top of a coreopsis flower bud last summer.