From a distance, I thought this was a wasp. Look at that patterning!
But then, those eyes…
This is a wasp-mimicking fly of the Spilomyia genus, perhaps S. longicornis.
Now here’s a bee, one of the Agapostemon sweat bees.
Note how the eyes are on the side of the animal. Flies have front-facing eyes that often meet near the middle. In this image you can also see the two pairs of wings that bees and the other Hymenoptera (wasps, reproductive ants) have. Flies, Diptera, have only two wings.
These Eyes
Published October 23, 2018 Fieldnotes 1 CommentTags: bees, flies, insects, invertebrates, wasps
Too cool! Thanks for making me realize I need to know more about wasps and bees!