Other Common Names
Lovebugs (Plecia), St Mark’s flies (esp. Bibio), fever flies (esp. Dilophus), garden flies
Numbers
Arnett
(1) and
Nearctica.com lists 6 North America genera:
Bibio, Bibiodes, Dilophus, Hesperinus, Penthetria, Plecia. Arnett lists 78 North American species.
Identification
Small to medium-sized flies with robust bodies, usually dark, often with brightly colored thorax. Characteristics (Univ. Florida--
ENY 3005):
body usually black covered with long hair, thorax red or yellow in some genera, such as Plecia
antennae short, placed low on face
ocelli (simple eyes) present
males with large compound eyes, divided into upper and lower sections
tibiae with prominent apical spurs
pulvilli (pads) present beneath tarsal claws.
wings clear or dark, some have dark spot on the anterior margin
anal angle of wing usually well developed
Some of these characteristics shown on image(s) below:
Genera can be distinguished by wing veins:
Rs forked, R2+3 at sharp angle: Plecia
Rs forked, R2+3 parallel to wing: Penthetria heteroptera
Rs unforked, partially merged with M: Bibioides
Rs unforked, basal section of Rs much shorter than R-M crossvein: Dilophus
Rs unforked, R-M crossvein shorter than or similar in length to basal section of Rs: Bibio
The last two also have strong spurs at the tip the front tibia.
Food
Adults of some genera visit flowers, but Plecia does not feed as an adult.
Life Cycle
Larvae feed on decaying organic matter, such as feces, roots, logs.
Print References
Borror and White, pp. 270-271
(2)
Milne and Milne, p. 648, fig. 412--
Bibio (3)
