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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Flies (Diptera) » "Aschiza" » Hover Flies (Syrphidae) » Eristalinae » Milesiini » Milesiina » Spilomyia

Genus Spilomyia

Classification · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Season · Remarks · Internet References · Works Cited

Unknown fly - Spilomyia interrupta - female

syrphid flower fly - Spilomyia longicornis - female

Data point for September - Spilomyia sayi - male

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Diptera (Flies)

No Taxon ("Aschiza")

Family Syrphidae (Hover Flies)

Subfamily Eristalinae

Tribe Milesiini

Subtribe Milesiina

Genus Spilomyia

Explanation of Names

Spilomyia Meigen 1803

Greek spilos (σπιλος) 'spot, fleck' + myia (μυια) 'fly'

Numbers

11 spp. in our area, 17 in the New World(1)(2), >100 in Eurasia(3)

Size

12-17 mm

Identification

good wasp mimics: pattern of pigment on eyes hides "fly eyes"; V-mark on thorax, short antennae

keys to spp. in(1)(4)

Range

Widespread in the New World & Eurasia(3); in our area, widespread but poorly represented in se. US: 4 spp. are eastern widespread, 4 western widespread, and 3 restricted to AZ-TX-OK(1)

Habitat

Larvae in water-filled tree holes

Season

Summer to fall

Remarks

mimics of social wasps, have habit of resting on the four posterior legs and waving front legs about in almost the same way that vespids move their antennae(5)

Internet References

Taxon page(2)

Guide to ON spp.(6)

Works Cited

1.	Spilomyia flower flies of the New World (Diptera: Syrphidae) Thompson F.C. 1996. Mem. Ent. Soc. Wash. 18: 261-272.

2.	Key to the genera of nearctic Syrphidae Miranda G.F.G, Young A.D., Locke M.M., Marshall S.A., Skevington J.H., Thompson F.C. 2013. Can. J. Arthropod Identification 23: 1‒351.

3.	Thompson F.C., Pape T., Evenhuis N.L. (2013) Systema Dipterorum, Version 1.5

4.	Synopsis of the North American species of Spilomyia (Syrphidae, Diptera) Curran C.H. 1951. American Museum Novitates 1492, 11 pp.

5.	SYRPHIDAE OF OKLAHOMA (DIPTERA)

6.	Syrphidae of Ontario

Contributed by Cotinis on 10 April, 2004 - 9:25pm
Additional contributions by Hartmut Wisch, Chuck Entz, Aaron Schusteff, Vox Sciurorum, v belov
Last updated 19 January, 2014 - 11:38am

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