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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Flies (Diptera) » Aschiza » Syrphid Flies (Syrphidae) » Syrphid Fly Larvae
Photo#126829
Syrphid Attack!
Copyright © 2007 Stephen Luk

Syrphid Attack!
Richmond Hill, York Region, Ontario, Canada
July 11, 2007
Size: Larvae 3 mm max
The drama that you are witnessing in this image is an aphid slaughter - the dark, crumpled-looking aphids are corpses drained by the insatiable hover fly larvae. I count a total of twelve syrphid larvae alone in this image (on both plant stalks), and there are more elsewhere on the plant outside of the image.
I only recently found this aphid colony - and the syrphids are already a step ahead of me.

** CORRECTION: Host plant was Sow Thistle, Sonchus sp. (not Thistle). Thanks to Chuck Entz for the correction.
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Contributed by Stephen Luk on 13 July, 2007 - 2:37pm
Last updated 10 March, 2008 - 3:31pm

Thistle or Sow Thistle?
A Sow Thistle (Sonchus spp.) would have flowers and seed-heads more like a dandelion
… Chuck Entz, 13 July, 2007 - 4:30pm login or register to post comments

 
Thanks for the correction!
I do remember the plants having flower heads that look like those of dandelion.
… Stephen Luk, 13 July, 2007 - 5:16pm login or register to post comments

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