Subject:  Large Fly?
Geographic location of the bug:  Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
Date: 07/19/2021
Time: 02:56 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  This fly(?) has been flying around my deck.  He is about 1″ long.  He seems to like sitting on this light colored umbrella, but he does land on darker surfaces.
How you want your letter signed :  NancyA

Tiger Bee Fly

Dear NancyA,
This impressive fly is a Tiger Bee Fly, a parasitoid that preys on Carpenter Bees.  According to the Missouri Department of Conservation:  “The female tiger bee fly deposits her eggs in places where carpenter bees have laid their eggs. The bee fly larvae eat the carpenter bee larvae.”

Thanks!  I thought I had not successfully submitted that email and photo, but
I guess I had!  I figured it out from a combination of searching the
WhatsThatBug web site and an Internet search and I was astounded to find out
what it is.  I definitely have carpenter bees.  In fact, one is giving me
trouble in the very table that the umbrella is stuck in that the fly was
sitting on when I took the photo!
Nancy Anthracite

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Subject:  Fly? Bee?
Geographic location of the bug:  North Hollywood, CA
Date: 07/17/2021
Time: 06:02 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman :  This was on a tomato plant, is it a pest?
How you want your letter signed:  Larry

Bee Fly

Dear Larry,
This is a Fly that mimics a Bee, and it is commonly called a Bee Fly in the family Bombyliidae.  We do not recognize the species, but there are some similar looking individuals on the Natural History of Orange County website.

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Subject:  Maybe a new bug specie
Geographic location of the bug:  Montreal, Cote-des-Neiges Minto appartments,Quebec,Canada
Date: 04/13/2021
Time: 03:23 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  I may have found a new bug, I search images of it but found none, i am still 11 years old i found it away from grass, It seemed to move, It had a long black nose like a needle, 2 front legs and 2 back legs they were skinny I don’t know if he had 4 or 6 legs, it ha black and clear wings, it was very small and was fuzzy, it was all yellow/beige but in its back it was a black circle, it did no harm and when we touched it ,it moved but didn’t fly away.I found it with my little sister.
How you want your letter signed:  Lilya (the future scientist)

Bee Fly

Dear Lilya (the future scientist),
First let me congratulate you on knowing that you want to be a scientist at such a young age.  This is actually a Bee Fly in the family Bombyliidae, most likely the Greater Bee Fly, Bombylius major, which is pictured on BugGuide.  According to BugGuide:  “A common and widespread bee fly, often seen taking nectar on early spring wildflowers or seen hovering in sunny patches in woodlands.”

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Subject:  Tiger Bee Fly
Geographic location of the bug:  BuTyler Pennsylvania  (Butler???)
Date: 08/24/2019
Time: 08:58 AM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Is it normal to see a tiger bee fly in north western pennsylvania?  I have never seen one before
How you want your letter signed:  Rob Och

Tiger Bee Fly

Dear Rob,
We suspect your sighting was in Butler, Pennsylvania, not BuTyler.  According to BugGuide data, the Tiger Bee Fly ranges over most of eastern North America, including BuTyler, Pennsylvania.

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Subject:  Large fly
Geographic location of the bug:  Lincoln, MA
Date: 08/24/2019
Time: 11:33 AM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Hi Bugman,
This large fly (about an inch long) has been hanging around my deck for a few weeks.  It has an unusual habit of repeatedly darting at the railing when it hovers near the wood.  I am usually able to identify insects on-line, but have not had luck with this one.
How you want your letter signed:  Inconsistent naturalist

Tiger Bee Fly

Dear Inconsistent naturalist,
This is a Tiger Bee Fly and we get numerous identification requests for them each summer.  The female Tiger Bee Fly lays her eggs in the nest of Carpenter Bees, which might be the reason this individual is hovering year your wooden railing.  We love your action image.

Tiger Bee Fly

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Subject:  Butterfly? Day moth?
Geographic location of the bug:  North Alabama
Date: 07/08/2019
Time: 01:34 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  This little creature was hanging out where our ladder attaches to the pool. Can you identify?
How you want your letter signed:  Tammy

Tiger Bee Fly

Dear Tammy,
This is neither a butterfly nor a diurnal moth.  It is a Tiger Bee Fly, a harmless and very distinctive looking Fly.  See BugGuide for a comparison image.

Thank you so much for your time! I asked everyone around here if they knew what this interesting little creature that seems to have Zeus’s face on it’s back.
Best Regards,
Tammy

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