Numbers
67 spp. in 9 genera in our area
(3), over 800 spp. worldwide
(4)(5)Identification
Medium-sized, blackish or brownish flies, many of which
mimic thread-waisted wasps (
Sphecidae)
(6)(7):
in some genera the abdomen long, with a slender, wasp-like
pedicel; in others abdomen more uniform in width
head slightly broader than thorax; head often with prominent grooves on front
antennae usually long, about the same length as head and thorax combined; project forward, 3-segmented, third segment bearing either a dorsal
arista or a terminal
style
proboscis long and slender, elbowed and projecting upward in some species
wing venation similar to that in the Syrphidae, but no
spurious vein
Conopids may be distinguished from syrphids that lack a spurious vein by their long, slender proboscis
(6).
Examples of wing venation:
Habitat
The adults are usually found on flowers.
Food
Adults take nectar. Larvae are endoparasites of wasps, bees, ants, crickets, cockroaches, and some Diptera (mostly calyptrate); host group varies by subfamily
(5)Life Cycle
At least in some groups, female conopids
oviposit on hosts during flight. Females have complex abdominal structures to lay eggs on adult hosts prying open the exoskeleton (below left). In
Stylogaster (below right), the ovipositor is long and robust, the eggs having a barbed tip for penetration and attachment of the host in the manner of a harpoon.
