What is this tiny fly?

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Cibarius (Doug) Murfreesboro, TN Jun 21, 2011

This small fly was on my morning glory blossom this morning. It is about 4mm long. Can someone tell me its name?

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flatpickit Charleston, SC Jun 21, 2011

This is a hoverfly of the family Syrphidae, and I believe of the genus Toxomerus. In your area, one thing to look at would be the margin of the abdomen.

From bugguide.net - "If continuously yellow (sometimes narrowly so) you've got T. marginatus. If it is alternating black and yellow because the dark horizontal bands extend all the way to the edges, consider T. geminatus and T. politus."

I can barely make this out, but I feel like I see that yellow margin in your picture. Here are some examples:

http://bugguide.net/node/view/8221/bgimage?from=24

Also, they are considered beneficial insects as their larvae feed on many plant pests. And, did you notice that some of the pictures at the link show individuals that are more orange? They say that when the larvae are expose to heat, the adults turn out to be more orange. Cool stuff in my opinion!! Thanks for submitting the picture.

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Cibarius (Doug) Murfreesboro, TN Jun 25, 2011

Thanks for this prompt identification. Wikipedia tells me that this creature feeds on pollen.

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