Flower-fly

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Syrphidae

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Diptera
Superfamily:	Syrphoidea
Family:	Syrphidae

Subfamilies

200 genera
about 5,000 species

The flower-flies or hover-flies are a family of flies (Diptera), scientifically termed the Syrphidae.

As one of their names suggests, they are most often seen around flowers; the adults feed mainly on nectar and pollen,

Image:FlyingBugPollination-Oct5th.jpg

while the larvae (maggots) eat a wide range of foods. In some species, the larvae are saprophytes, eating decaying plant and animal matter in the soil or in ponds and streams. In other species, the larvae are insectivores and prey on aphids, thrips, and other plant-sucking insects. Aphids alone cause tens of millions of dollars of damage to crops worldwide every year, and so aphid-feeding hover-flies are being recognised as important natural enemies of pests, and potential agents for use in biological control. Adult syrphid flies are important pollinators.

Some syrphids, such as Volucella pellucens, mimic bees or wasps in appearance, sometimes bearing an alarming resemblance, both in shape and coloration to those insects. It is thought that this mimicry protects hover-flies from falling prey to birds and other insectivores which avoid eating true wasps because of their sting. However a flower-fly and a wasp can be distinguished by counting the wings. The flies have two wings, and the wasps and bees have four.

About 6,000 species in 200 genera have been described. One species, Eristalis gatesi, is named after Bill Gates [1].