Could you help me ID this bug?
Found this bug last week. Thought it was very interesting. Looks like
an alien.
Thanks,
Susan
Hi Susan,
We thought this looked like a Pyrgotid Fly, but we wanted to be sure so we checked with Eric Eaton. Here is what he wrote back: “Actually, you are right on! It IS a pyrgotid fly, Pyrgota undulata (might check the spelling of the species name). As larvae, pyrgotids are parasitic on adult May beetles in the genus Phyllophaga. Adult female pyrgotids often are attracted to lights at night, perhaps to assault the May beetles that also fly in. The female fly lands on a flying May beetle and drives an egg in between its exposed abdominal segments. When the egg hatches inside the beetle, the larvae begins eating it alive. Gross, but nice to know something keeps the beetles in check!
Eric”