Metasyrphus corollae

Today's the day .............................. to hover

It turned into a lovely day here and I spent the afternoon pottering about in the garden. What with one thing and another, I haven't been able to do much gardening this summer - so it was a real treat. It was also a real treat to see this little hoverfly sunning himself on a perfect helipad petal of the night-scented stocks.

Hoverflies are wonderful little creatures because their larvae are superb aphid eaters - and this one is better than most. When the weather is fine a female can produce some 6 to 7 generations in one season. The lifecycle is short and eggs hatch just two days after being laid. The larva will feed on aphids for some 10 days, during which period it can consume up to 800 aphids. After that, the larva pupates and after only 8 days a newborn adult appears - and the whole cycle starts again. A female is capable of producing approximately 1,000 eggs in her lifetime.

I would like to think that there were lots of Metasyrphus corollae in my garden getting on with what they do best ......................................