What’s this fly? It looks mean
Location: Janesville, IA
August 12, 2011 12:20 pm
This fly was outside on my porch. I initially took a series of pictures and it was just the fly. When I returned, it looked like it had caught a house fly and was consuming it. It’s big, about an inch long. It looks like a cross between a fly and a cricket. I really need to buy an insect book.
Thanks.
Signature: Jill Lockey
Robber Fly eats House Fly
Hi Jill,
The predator in your photo is a Robber Fly. Robber Flies are adept at capturing prey on the wing. If you want an excellent identification guide, consider Eric Eaton’s Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America, and Daniel is very proud of his first book, a pop culture tome on insects entitled The Curious World of Bugs. We can’t believe we don’t have a House Fly category, and now is an excellent time to remedy that.
Thanks for the ID and the suggestions on bug books. I will check those out.
JILL
1
Unidentified black fly in Herndon, VA.
Location: Herndon (4 miles from Dulles Airport), Virginia
August 12, 2011 4:55 pm
Hi Bugman,
We found this very cool all-black fly in the backyard yesterday just before dusk (8pm ish EST).
The body is all black, no color or shimmer anywhere not even in the wings or eyes. 2 large compound eyes – black. 2 wings are solid black in color and non-transparent. They attach at the shoulders either side of a flat black plate behind the head and close in a very wide v-shape.
Frontal abdomen shows distinct horizontal bands, black and hairless.
Dorsal abdomen is covered in black hair. Abdomen has rounded end but no ovipositor or other abdominal structure that I can see.
6 regualar fly legs, black, (did I mentions he is all black?)and two short splayed antennae at very top of head originating between eyes.
Last thing, couldn’t identify mouth parts but he has a very large depending proboscis – also black. He is more than 1in in length with wings longer. In the pics he (she?) is inside a drinking glass with an adult hand holding it for scale. Hope that helps. I hope you don’t have any questions because we released him after the photoshoot but we would truly love to know what kind of beastie he is. (I have more pics if you need them.) Many thanks in advance.
Signature: Anna & Aoife
Black Horse Fly
Hi Anna and Aoife,
Our editorial staff spent considerable time during our formative years in nearby Reston. This is a Black Horse Fly, Tabanus atratus, a species that depends upon an aquatic environment for the development of the larva, and the presence of livestock as a food source for the blood sucking female adults. It is possible to tell the sexes apart by viewing the eyes, which alas, your photos do not provide the necessary details for that distinction. The large eyes of the male are closer together, and they touch one another. In the female, there is a space between the eyes. See BugGuide for additional photos.
Mr Marlos – fabulous to get a reply from you, thank you.
Aoife is my 12yr old daughter who found and captured the fly. She will be thrilled to receive your response.
So it’s a Black Horse Fly. It’s so big. I had no idea they could get that big.
As ex-Restonites you will know that there’s plenty of local aquatic environment to grow babies but not so much livestock any more. My dog regularly comes in with big bug bites on his hairless belly so perhaps we are doing our part for the species after all.
My apologies for the lack of eye-detail. It was coming on dusk and rather than hunt for the camera we took hasty shots with a cell phone. I cannot say for sure if the eyes were touching but we were happy to find the bug and even happier to know what it is. There are such marvellous creatures in your own back yard in this country. Long may they thrill us and thank you again for doing what you do.
Best regards from myself and my larvae.
Anna, Aoife, Jess & Sarah.
1
flylike on butterfly bush
Location: new jersey
August 12, 2011 4:12 pm
can you please id ?
Signature: susan
Bee Fly
Hi Susan,
This is a Bee Fly, and it appears to be a match for the Exoprosopa fasciata group, however, we cannot find an exact match for the body coloration, though the wing veinage seems to be an exact match. See BugGuide for the many variations in this group that is characterized by “the wing color along the leading edge.”
Cicada killer?
Location: Doylestown PA/ Stephens City VA
August 10, 2011 6:31 am
Greetings!
I have what I believe are cicada killer wasps living in my backyard:dirt mounds with tunnels, siting of very large(3 inches) insect like the one in the photo going into said mound. Meanwhile, my neice in VA took a pic that looks exactly like the critter I saw going into the mounds.My questions are: is this a photo on a cicada killer female, and what is going on in this photo?
Signature: Deb Kerns
Red Footed Cannibalfly dines on Paper Wasp
Hi Deb,
The behavior you describe is consistent with that of Cicada Killers, however, the predator in the attached photo is a Robber Fly known as a Red Footed Cannibalfly. It is feeding on a Paper Wasp. Red Footed Cannibalflies would not be building underground nests, so despite the striped abdomen, if you compare this predator with this Cicada Killer image from our archives, you will see the apparent differences between the two insects. The Cicada Killer is a much more robust insect. Not having a photo in front of you and trusting your memory might be creating a false similarity between the two species.
Bug horror story
Location: Stuttgart, Arkansas
August 9, 2011 1:52 pm
I was grocery shopping one night with my two daughters. The youngest saw raisins, and wanted them, so I bought a 6 pack of individual serving boxes.
We got to the car, loaded the groceries, and dug out the package of raisins. I stripped off the cellophane and handed her a box, and drove on home. Within 3 minutes, she wanted more, so I gave her another box. I decided to munch on one myself.
I opened my box, and tumped a few into my mouth. By the second bite, I noticed they didn’t taste quite right. My older daughter turned on the light, and poured the raisins into her hand. Imagine my utter disgust when I saw her hand was full of half-eaten raisins, and living maggots.
I have not been able to eat raisins since…
Since this form requires me to attach a photo, even though I don’t have one relevant to the story, please enjoy my image of ants devouring a pecan.
Signature: Grossed out in Arkansas
Ants Eat Pecan
Hi Grossed out in Arkansas,
We sympathize with your trauma. We hope your individual box was the only one infested with maggots. Your letter is definitely worthy of tagging as Worst Bug Stories Ever!!! It is worth noting that maggots are consumed in some cultures, and we doubt that there will be any negative health ramification other than the psychological trauma. Your ant photo, though not related to the raisin story, could in itself provide the narrative element for another Worst Bug Story Ever.
ALL of the boxes had maggots….. Ants are my phobia, but even I thought the ants devouring the pecan was pretty cool. But I won’t be eating any pecans from my yard anytime soon since I know I have ants that like them!
Hi again Grossed out in Arkansas,
Perhaps you are raising an entomophage, a person who likes to eat insects. If it is any consolation, we suspect what you mistook for maggots was more likely the grubs of a beetle like a Drugstore Beetle or other species of beetle that commonly infests stored food products. Maggots are fly larvae and they would be more likely to be found in garbage that contains putrefying flesh or rotting vegetable matter.
2
horse fly eyes
Location: Possum Creek metropark, ohio
August 9, 2011 12:58 pm
saw this at one of the local parks, i knew it was a horse fly, but the eyes amazed me, i want a pair of sunglasses that look like them!
Signature: BIBEF
Female Horse Fly
Dear BIBEF,
When we return back to the office after running errands, we will try to determine which species this lovely female Horse Fly is.
Update
This photo of Tabanus abdominalis on BugGuide is a close match. The eye pattern, leg markings and general coloration seem close, though the camera angle of the photo we are posting is not ideal for identification purposes. The sighting data in the nearby states of Kentucky and Illinois also supports the possibility that this fly is Tabanus abdominalis.
2
Big Black Winged Insect
Location: Chincoteague, VA
August 8, 2011 7:47 pm
Hello,
This bug was on my car when I visited Chincoteague Island off the coast of Virginia. It was near the coast in the woods. Between 1 and 2 inches long. Any ideas?
Signature: Megan
Female Black Horse Fly
Dear Megan,
You have photographed a female Black Horse Fly, Tabanus atratus, the same species we posted a photo of yesterday after being snared in the web of a Golden Orbweaver. The eyes of female Horse Flies are spaced farther apart than those of the males which have no separation.
1
What is it, Bugman?
Location: Midlands of South Carolina
August 8, 2011 12:21 pm
I found this bug in my studio window. Unfortunately it was already dead, but no bug carnage was incurred by me. I had caught one of these that was buzzing around the studio a few days before and released it outside. A few weeks ago, I saw a bug that looked similar to this take down a dragonfly in mid-flight. I’m guessing it may be a robber fly? Thanks to your website I am learning to identify a few bugs. I saw a wheelbug in my garden this morning.
Signature: Laura in Irmo, SC
Red Footed Cannibalfly
Hi Laura,
This Red Footed Cannibalfly, Promachus rufipes, is indeed a Robber Fly. See BugGuide for additional information. These large Robber Flies might be the most adept hunting insects that take prey on the wing. It is not unusual for them to take on large adversaries like Dragonflies. We are pleased to hear that you are learning to appreciate the insects around you as opposed to just killing anything that appears scary.
2
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