Tribes of Eristalinae

A very large and diverse tribe that share some microscopic anatomical characteristics, and are usually associated with woody debris such as decaying logs, wood pools and stumps where larval flies develop, feeding on fungi, algae and the products of decomposition. Some of our local species are bumblebee mimics, but most mimic Vespula wasps.

The Eristalini are stout, stubby flies with aquatic, deposit-feeding "rat-tailed" larvae with long breathing tubes (like small snorkels). They vary greatly in their disguises. Some of them look and buzz a lot like honeybees, hence their name. The most common species was introduced from Europe in the 1870s.                                            Blera badia, Lopez Island                                                                                                                          

Bulb flies

Tribe Merodontini

An Old World tribe with a single introduced North American species. Merodon are bumblebee mimics spread by international trade in flower bulbs a century ago. Their color patterns vary  with variations in bumblebee populations. Unlike our native bumblebee mimics (Criorhina, Mallota), Merodon have small concave faces.