Dark-edged Bee-fly
The Dark-edged Bee-fly is a bee mimic, meaning it resembles a small bumblebee yet it is actually a fly. In flight, it is even more like a bumblebee as it produces a high-pitched buzz.
The Dark-edged Bee-fly has yellowy-brown hair on its body, long, spindly legs and a long, straight proboscis. The wings have dark markings along their leading edges, hence it's common name. There are several species of Bee-fly in the UK which can be very difficult to tell apart. The Dark-edged Bee-fly has a dark edge to it's wings, while other species have plainer, translucent wings.
The Dark-edged Bee-fly is the most common and largest of the Bee-fly species in the UK. It is most common in south England, the Midlands and the Welsh lowlands but it has also been expanding northwards in recent years as far as north Scotland. It can be found particularly in April and May in a variety of habitats including gardens, alongside hedgerows, in and around woods and around the coast. It is a familiar sign of spring as it hovers over flowers and uses its long straight proboscis to feed on nectar.
The larvae of the Dark-edged Bee-fly are parasitoids of the larvae of mining bees which usually nest in colonies in soil in woodlands or even in flower beds and lawns. Female Bee-flies hover a few inches above mining bee nesting areas and flick eggs on to the ground with a rapid twist of the body. Once Bee-fly eggs hatch, the larvae crawl in to the underground nest cell of the host mining bee. Once the host grubs are sufficiently large, the Bee-fly larvae attach themselves and start to suck out the body fluids of the host species.
Date: 25th April 2020
Location: Laindon, Essex
The Dark-edged Bee-fly has yellowy-brown hair on its body, long, spindly legs and a long, straight proboscis. The wings have dark markings along their leading edges, hence it's common name. There are several species of Bee-fly in the UK which can be very difficult to tell apart. The Dark-edged Bee-fly has a dark edge to it's wings, while other species have plainer, translucent wings.
The Dark-edged Bee-fly is the most common and largest of the Bee-fly species in the UK. It is most common in south England, the Midlands and the Welsh lowlands but it has also been expanding northwards in recent years as far as north Scotland. It can be found particularly in April and May in a variety of habitats including gardens, alongside hedgerows, in and around woods and around the coast. It is a familiar sign of spring as it hovers over flowers and uses its long straight proboscis to feed on nectar.
The larvae of the Dark-edged Bee-fly are parasitoids of the larvae of mining bees which usually nest in colonies in soil in woodlands or even in flower beds and lawns. Female Bee-flies hover a few inches above mining bee nesting areas and flick eggs on to the ground with a rapid twist of the body. Once Bee-fly eggs hatch, the larvae crawl in to the underground nest cell of the host mining bee. Once the host grubs are sufficiently large, the Bee-fly larvae attach themselves and start to suck out the body fluids of the host species.
Date: 25th April 2020
Location: Laindon, Essex
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Also in: Insects, beetles, spiders, etc.
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