Eristalis arbustorum

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Eristalis arbustorum
Hoverfly (Eristalis arbustorum) male.jpg
Male
Syrphidae - Eristalis arbustorum-2.JPG
Female
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Diptera
Family:
Syrphidae
Genus:
Eristalis
Subgenus:
Eoseristalis
Species:
E. arbustorum
Binomial name
Eristalis arbustorum
Synonyms
List
  • Eristalis lyra(Harris, 1776)
  • Eristalis nemorum(Linnaeus, 1758)
  • Eristalis paralleli(Harris, 1776)
  • Eristalis parralleli(Harris, 1782)
  • Musca arbustorumLinnaeus, 1758
  • Musca lyraHarris, 1776
  • Musca nemorumLinnaeus, 1758
  • Musca paralleliHarris, 1776
  • Musca parralleliHarris, 1782 [1]

Eristalis arbustorum, the European drone fly, is an abundant Northern Hemisphere species of syrphid fly, originally officially described by Linnaeus in 1758 as Musca arbustorum. The name "drone fly" is related to its similar appearance to the drone of the honeybee. Hoverflies get their names from the ability to remain nearly motionless while in flight. The adults are also known as flower flies as they are commonly found on and around flowers from which they get both energy-giving nectar and protein rich pollen. The larvae are aquatic filter-feeders of the long-tailed type.

Contents

Description

External images For terms see Morphology of Diptera
The wings are 7–10 mm long. At least, the basal half of the arista is plumose. The face is entirely pale dusted; there is a shining black median stripe in rubbed specimens. The hind femora are pale at their tips only. E. arbustorum resembles E. abusiva , but they are distinguished by the plumose arista, as well as a less projecting mouth-edge and shorter hairs overall. The top quarter of tibia 2 is black. [2] [3] [4] [5]

The male genitalia are figured by Hippa et al. (2001). [6] The larva is figured by Hartley (1961). [7]

Biology

Eristalis arbustorum is found in a wide range of wetlands and in alluvial softwood forest, temperate coniferous forests, boreal forests, taiga, and montane tundra, as well as farmland, urban parks and gardens. It visits the flowers of a wide range of low-growing plants and shrubs. [8] The larva is aquatic, occurring in shallow, nutrient rich standing water and in cow-dung, silage pits and compost heaps. The species is known to be migratory in Europe. [9]

Distribution

Eristalis arbustorum occurs throughout the Palaearctic, including North Africa, as well as in North India (Indomalayan realm). [10] In North America, the species was introduced near Toronto around 1885 and is now ubiquitous throughout much of the United States and Canada. [9] [11] distribution map

Related Research Articles

<i>Eristalis pertinax</i> Species of fly

Eristalis pertinax is a hoverfly in the family Syrphidae. It was first described by Giovanni Antonio Scopoli in 1763 and is found in Asia and Europe. Like Eristalis tenax, the larvae of E. pertinax are rat-tailed maggots living in drainage ditches, pools around manure piles, sewage, and similar places containing water with high organic load and low oxygen concentration.

<i>Eristalis nemorum</i> Species of fly

Eristalis nemorum is a species of hoverfly. It is found in the Palearctic and in the Nearctic.

<i>Myathropa florea</i> Species of fly

Myathropa florea, sometimes referred to as the Batman hoverfly, is a very common European and North African species of hoverfly. Adults may be seen on flowers from May to September. It is of a similar size to the common drone fly, but Myathropa are generally more yellow, with two light bands to the thorax, interrupted with a black central smudge. In museum specimens, any yellow colour soon fades to brown after death. Like most species in the tribe Eristalini, Myathropa are rather variable in size, shape and colour.

<i>Eristalinus sepulchralis</i> Species of fly

Eristalinus sepulchralis is a European species of hoverfly. The species are brownish-white from a close up, and look like a wasp. From a distance though, they are yellowish-black coloured, and look like a bumble bee. The species can be found throughout Europe in the Baltic states, North Europe, Central, Southern and Western Europe and across the Palaearctic to Kamchatka, Japan, China and India. Finland, Great Britain, Hungary, Ireland, Norway, and the Netherlands.

<i>Eristalis intricaria</i> Species of fly

Eristalis intricaria is a European species of hoverfly. It is a furry bee mimic, superficially resembling Merodon, though Merodon have all black leg tibiae, as opposed to partly yellow. E. intricaria is somewhat variable in colour pattern, and some attempts at naming varieties have been tentatively made. Flight time of adults in the UK are from March to September. It is generally widespread, but is seldom seen in large numbers. Habitat is woodland or marshland.

<i>Dasysyrphus tricinctus</i> Species of fly

Dasysyrphus tricinctus is a European species of hoverfly in the genus Dasysyrphus, a member of the family Syrphidae. It is found across Europe, although reported in highest density from the British Isles and Scandinavia. While not uncommon it is generally only seen in modest numbers, typically in lowland woods with peak numbers in late May and early June and again in late August and early September.

<i>Meliscaeva auricollis</i> Species of fly

Meliscaeva auricollis is a West Palearctic species of hoverfly.

<i>Parasyrphus annulatus</i> Species of fly

Parasyrphus annulatus is a Palearctic species of hoverfly.

<i>Eristalis abusiva</i> Species of fly

Eristalis abusiva is a European species of hoverfly. It is similar to Eristalis arbustorum.

<i>Eristalis cryptarum</i> Species of fly

Eristalis cryptarum is a holarctic species of hoverfly. Known as the bog hoverfly or bog-dwelling drone fly, it is a bog specialist but may occur in other wetlands. Its larvae are assumed to live in peat that is saturated with water, such as that found in these boggy areas. The female has been observed depositing eggs on and close to very fresh cow dung along oligotrophic seepages in moorland.

<i>Melangyna lasiophthalma</i> Species of fly

Melangyna lasiophthalma is a Holarctic species of hoverfly.

<i>Epistrophe grossulariae</i> Species of fly

Epistrophe grossulariae is a Holarctic species of hoverfly.

<i>Ferdinandea cuprea</i> Species of fly

Ferdinandea cuprea is a European species of hoverfly notable for its brassy abdomen. The larvae have been found in sap from trunk damage on oak and ash.

<i>Lejogaster metallina</i> Species of fly

Lejogaster metallina is a Palearctic species of hoverfly.

<i>Parasyrphus lineolus</i> Species of fly

Parasyrphus lineolus is a Holarctic species of hoverfly.

<i>Parasyrphus vittiger</i> Species of fly

Parasyrphus vittiger is a species of hoverfly, from the family Syrphidae, in the order Diptera.

Melangyna arctica is a Holarctic species of hoverfly.

<i>Melangyna quadrimaculata</i> Species of fly

Melangyna quadrimaculata is a European species of hoverfly.

<i>Meligramma guttatum</i> Species of fly

Meligramma guttatum is a Holarctic species of hoverfly.

<i>Epistrophe nitidicollis</i> Species of fly

Epistrophe nitidicollis is a European and North American species of hoverfly.

References

  1. ↑ Stubbs, Alan E.; Falk, Steven J. (1983). British Hoverflies: An Illustrated Identification Guide. British Entomological & Natural History Society. pp. 253, xvpp.
  2. ↑ Van Veen, M. (2004) Hoverflies of Northwest Europe: identification keys to the Syrphidae. 256pp. KNNV Publishing, Utrecht.addendum
  3. ↑ Van der Goot,V.S. (1981) De zweefvliegen van Noordwest - Europa en Europees Rusland, in het bijzonder van de Benelux. KNNV, Uitgave no.32: 275pp. Amsterdam.
  4. ↑ Bei-Bienko, G.Y. & Steyskal, G.C. (1988) Keys to the Insects of the European Part of the USSR, Volume V: Diptera and Siphonaptera, Part I. Amerind Publishing Co., New Delhi. ISBN   81-205-0080-6.
  5. ↑ Coe, R.L. (1953) Diptera: Syrphidae. Handbks.ident.Br.insects, 10(1): 1–98. R.ent.Soc.London. pdf Archived 2018-10-04 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ↑ Hippa, H., Nielsen, T.R. & van Steenis, J. (2001) The west Palaearctic species of the genus Eristalis. Latreille (Diptera, Surphidae). Norw. J .Entomol. 48: 289–327.
  7. ↑ Hartley, J.C. (1961) A taxonomic account of the larvae of some British Syrphidae. Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. 136: 505–573.
  8. ↑ de Buck, N. (1990) Bloembezoek en bestuivingsecologie van Zweefvliegen (Diptera, Syrphidae) in het bijzonder voor België. Doc.Trav. IRSNB, no. 60, pp. 1–167.
  9. 1 2 Skevington, Jeffrey H.; Locke, Michelle M.; Young, Andrew D.; Moran, Kevin; Crins, William J.; Marshall, Stephen A. (2019). Field Guide to the Flower Flies of Northeastern North America. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. ISBN   9780691189406.
  10. ↑ "Fauna Europaea". Archived from the original on 2018-08-30. Retrieved 2017-01-08.
  11. ↑ Peck, L.V. (1988) Syrphidae. In: Soos, A. & Papp, L. (eds.) Catalogue of Palaearctic Diptera, 8: 11–230. Akad.Kiado, Budapest.


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