Hoverflies of Adur 2006 >

Hoverflies of Adur
WILDLIFE REPORTS 2006


This small hoverfly on the reeds in my garden pond needs to be identified. The small size of this hoverfly is misleading. It must be Eupeodes sp., although it much smaller, half the size of normal Eupeodes I have seen. Eupeodes colollae is favourite for the species identification.
ID help by Bastiaan Wakkie on UK Hoverflies

1 May 2006
Sphaerophoria scripta was in Ray Hamblett's garden, the first confirmed one of these common small hoverflies I have seen this year. Rhingia campestris hoverflies were recorded from the lower slopes of Mill Hill. Eupeodes [=Metasyrphus] sp. were recorded from the Pixie Path.

Rhingia campestris hoverflies were frequent and preferred the Green Alkanet to the White Dead-nettle on the Waterworks Road and were also present in a Shoreham garden visiting Spotted Deadnettle, Lamium maculatum (pic). Medium-sized Syrphus hoverflies were frequent on wasteland and in gardens everywhere as well as Eristalis sp.

21 April 2006
Medium-sized Syrphus hoverflies were at the top of The Drive, Shoreham, with a very small black stripy hoverfly was there and visiting gardenflowers as well. The latter species was common but yet photographed or identified.


19 April 2006
Attracted to the Willow catkins in the pond on the approaches to Lancing College, a handful of very small hoverflies, probably the same species, one with an orange and black thorax escaped identification, but are noted for subsequent years. It was Melanostoma scalare. They are illustrated below. The species on the catkin was a different hoverfly, although it is likely to be the same species?


At the top of McIntyre's Field (east of Lancing Clump) a single medium-sized Syrphus hoverfly was spotted on a sun bathed leaf.

4 March 2006
My first hoverfly of the year was one of the small ones that flew slowly under the warm sun and landed on a Firethorn in a Shoreham garden near Buckingham Park. I had a good look through a magnifying glass and it was possibly a Melanostoma. This small hoverfly had a black and yellow abdomen. However, the Melanostoma hoverflies usually cease in November so unless it is an overwintering fly, it may be another species, perhaps a Platycheirus?

5 February 2006
Two Marmalade Hoverflies, Episyrphus balteatus, made its first appearance of the year in my south Lancing garden, (TQ 186 044). They were were attracted by the flowers of this Christmas Box, Sarcococca humilis, and also a pot of flowering yellow Crocus.
Report by Ray Hamblett on Lancing Nature Notes

23 January 2006
My first sighting of a hoverfly of 2006 was a female Eupeodes luniger. In my south Lancing front garden, (TQ 186 044). I have a large flowering South African perennial Euryops pectinatus, the daisy flowers provide a useful food source when little else is available. The day was sunny and ambient air temperature was around 10° C on the warm, south facing wall. The fly was a little sluggish and spent a few moments warming on the wall before returning to feed.

Link to the Adur Nature Notes 2006 web pages

Adur Insect Links:

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*Xanthogramma pedissequum* This hoverfly can be recognised in flight by the the yellow stripes on the side of its thorax. It hovered in mid-air frequently.	This is a wasp (Vespoidae) (ID to species not confirmed) Hovering was spasmotic and not distinctive, with more flitting about than hovering. Note the wing position.