Native-bee-mimic Fly - Eumerus peltatus
Family Syrphidae
This page contains pictures and information about Native-bee-mimic Flies that we found in the Brisbane area, Queensland, Australia.
- Body length 6mm
- This is a small Hover Fly. It is dark brown to black in colours. Head is
black with white face and reddish brown antenna. Thorax and scutellum are
black. Abdomen is black with three pair of lunules markings. The hind legs are
covered with dense short silvery white hairs.
- We saw them only once in Alexandra Hill during late summer. We saw some of them feeding on the pink wild flowers Grass Lily, ( also known as Slug Herb or Blue Murdannia, Murdannia graminea, family Campanulaceae). This flower is common in Alexandra Hill.
- Most hover flies mimic bees or warps. We believed this black small hover fly mimics the Australian native bees.
- From reference information their larvae live in fruit.
- Reference:
- 1. Northern Territory Insects, A Comprehensive Guide CD - Graham Brown, 2009.
- 2. Eumerus sp. A - Common Hover Fly - Graeme's Insects of Townsville, Australia.
- 3. Revision of Australian Syrphidae (Diptera). Part II - Ferguson, E.W. 1926, Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 51: 517-544 [1926].
- 4. Notes on Australian diptera (XXIV), Key to Australian Eumerus species (Syrphidae) - Paramonov S.J., 1957, Annals and Magazine of Natural History 12 10: 125-128 [126].
- 5. Species Eumerus peltatus de Meijere, 1908 - Australian Biological Resources Study, Australian Faunal Directory.
