What’s That Fly???? possibly Flower Fly

bugman (online)

May 21st, 2011 at 8:46 pm

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What’s that bug, lol?

fly p holland 300x244 Whats That Fly???? possibly Flower Fly

Unknown Fly

Subject: What’s that bug, lol?
Location: Northeast Ms.
May 21, 2011 10:42 am
What a neat site! I am fascinated by insects, so I will be here often, lol! I found this bug in my house last night. I live in NE Ms.
After moving him/her outside, I took these photos. I thought it was a lightening bug, my husband thinks Wasp, and I have friends on FB that think it’s a Cicada. I don’t think it’s any of these. I figure this is a pretty basic insect that I should know, and feel rather dumb that I don’t, lol! I have been all over the internet looking at images and have had no luck identifying it so far.
Thank you for your time!
Signature: PHolland

fly p holland 2 300x251 Whats That Fly???? possibly Flower Fly

Unknown Fly

Dear P Holland,
We are having a terrible time trying to identify this insect. Here is what we are certain of: It is a Fly. Beyond that, we suspect it is a Flower Fly in the family Syrphidae. The closest match we are able to locate on BugGuide is Monoceromyia floridensis, but sadly, the details of the antennae are not clearly visible in your photos. BugGuide indicates that species if found in Florida, but Mississippi isn’t that far from Florida. Perhaps it is a close relative. The positioning of the wings has allowed us to eliminate any of the Thick Headed Flies found on BugGuide which also have some similar looking species. It is evident that this fly is a wasp mimic because of the narrow waist and coloration. Many Flower Flies mimic bees. We hope one of our readers will write in to confirm or refute this identification.