I took a handful of florist sunflowers outside a few days ago to photograph them in natural light. Almost as soon as I got out there, still holding the flowers in my hand, this most determined 'bee' showed up to investigate. My proximity to the flowers, and him, did not seem to deter him in the least.
Can you tell me what kind of 'bee' this is? (or if not a bee, what then?)
Thanks!
This is a flower/hover fly (Diptera: Syrphidae), a very large family with many species superficially resembling bees or wasps - see http://www.pbase.com/tmurray74/syrphid_flies_syrphidae for some examples.
Thank you very much, suunto!
Although I thought it was a bee, something about the wings made me question that idea. Thank you for the correct info.
I checked Bug Files to see if we might need a photo of this 'bug'. Using the info you provided, I searched for 'hover fly' and tried to match my fly to the photos I found there. I didn't see a photo of a hover fly with the exact same markings. In particular, the markings on the upper body (thorax? trying to dredge up that high school biology) appear different on my hover fly vs those in Bug Files. Can anyone out there tell me if we do or do not have an image of this fly in Bug Files? If not, can anyone help to narrow the ID down a bit so that I might see about submitting this one?
(I did check some of the photos from the pbase link provided, but, as I am not particularly knowledgeable in this area, was quickly overwhelmed by the plethora of nearly identical photos. As I clearly don't know a bee from a fly, I'm probably not the best one to narrow the ID.)
Thanks again, suunto!
Ok, I gathered all of my courage and went back in to try again both to match my fly to one of those at the pbase link provided and to find a similar looking fly in Bug Files. Since you indicate that these flies are fairly common, I figure chances are that an image of it already exists in Bug Files (in which case mine is not needed).
I searched Bug Files again this time for Syrphid fly which yielded considerably more entries of which the Helophilus pendulus seemed a possible match: http://davesgarden.com/guides/bf/go/4842/
Can anyone give this possible ID a 'yay' or 'nay'?
From the 'options' at the pbase link I 'liked' Parhelophilus: http://www.pbase.com/tmurray74/image/32542524
and maybe Anasimyia: http://www.pbase.com/tmurray74/image/30760231
although of these options I'm still partial to the Helophilus.
Oops, upon further research I find that Helophilus pendulus is a 'British' variety which may not have a valid Visa for the US. See, this is why I should not be making 'bug' ID's. ;-)
I realize, of course, that my photo being of far lesser quality that many of those in the database may not provide adequate detail upon which to form a more precise ID. Some of the literature I consulted mentioned the striping or lack thereof as a means of narrowing the choice between 2 particular hover flies, for instance, and my photo does not provide this level of info.
with over 6,000 species of Syrphidae; you will have a difficult time getting a specific ID... if you really have the need, you might try contacting the entomology department at a local university , & ask what species are common in your area.
What you have here is a Flower Fly (family Syrphidae) which is a yellow jacket mimic.
Scutler, I think your fly looks the most like this one http://bugguide.net/node/view/48957/bgimage
