Other Common Names
Flutter-wing Flies, Pictured-wing Flies, Picture Wing Flies
Numbers
9 species in our area
(1), in 3 genera (
Palloptera, Temnosira, Toxonevra) ~70 spp. in 12 genera total
(2)Identification
Wings usually conspicuously longer than the abdomen and with dark markings; proboscis short and thick; ovipositor with a non-retractile sheath
Range
Throughout NA and the temperate regions of the world
Habitat
Adults on flowers and low-hanging branches in shady habitats, larvae under bark, and in flower buds and stems
Food
Larvae phytophagous or predaceous on longhorn & bark beetle larvae (Cerambycidae, Curculionidae: Scolytinae)