Syrphid Hoverfly

As I was sitting in the sun today, enjoying 80+ degree weather, I was visited by dozens of little bees. Turns out they were Hoverflies, and though they are harmless, they are, nonetheless, somewhat annoying. So I did a little research and found the following:

Insecta: flies: hoverflies (Diptera: Syrphidae)

Though they are themselves defenseless, many hoverflies (Diptera: Syrphidae) have evolved to look like well-defended insects that share their habitats among flowers: i.e. stinging wasps and bees.

You can quickly tell it is a fly because, like all flies, it has only two wings instead of the four wings that other flying insects have (the order of the flies is Diptera, which in fact means "two wings").

Resembling a stinging wasp or bee confers the obvious selective advantage of deterring predators that avoid stinging insects. This kind of imitation, in which a harmless animal evolves to look like a dangerous or unpalatable one, is called Batesian mimicry. The phrase takes the name of Henry Walter Bates, a British naturalist of the 19th century who was among the first to describe this evolutionary phenomenon.

Hoverflies are superbly agile fliers. As the name suggests, in mid-flight they can stop and hover briefly in a stationary position, like hummingbirds. The adults take nectar from flowers, usually flat flowers, and are good pollinators. The larvae often prey on plant-pests such as aphids and scale insects.

Though this insect looks like a wasp, it is a fly: a hoverfly (Diptera: Syrphidae).

You can quickly tell it is a fly because, like all flies, it has only two wings instead of the four wings that other flying insects have (the order of the flies is Diptera, which in fact means "two wings").

Many hoverflies have evolved waspish forms and colorations because this confers the selective advantage of deterring predators that avoid wasps because of the wasps' stinging defenses. This kind of imitation, in which a harmless animal evolves to look like a dangerous or unpalatable one, is called Batesian mimicry. The phrase takes the name of Henry Walter Bates, a British naturalist of the 19th century who was among the first to describe this evolutionary phenomenon.

Hoverflies are superbly agile fliers. As the name suggests, in mid-flight they can stop and hover briefly in a stationary position, like hummingbirds. The adults take nectar from flowers, usually flat flowers, and are good pollinators. The larvae often prey on plant-pests such as aphids and scale insects.