Bug FAQBeautiful Deer Fly
Chrysops callidus · Order: Diptera · Family: Tabanidae
Also called: Cunning Deer Fly
Source: extension.umaine.edu, UF/IFAS
Beautiful deer flies are yellow to black with striped abdomens, mottled wings, and large patterned eyes. Females need blood and their bites are painful, while males feed on pollen. They live in shady spots under bushes in Canada and the United States and can be reduced with blue sticky traps or pyrethroid pour-ons for livestock.
Source: extension.umaine.edu, UF/IFAS, Wikipedia
How to recognize it
They have large eyes with gold or green patterns and dark bands on their wings. Their bodies range from yellow to black with striped abdomens and mottled wings. Adult hind tibiae have apical spurs, unlike horse flies.
Source: extension.umaine.edu, UF/IFAS
Is it a pest in the house?
They are annoying to people, cattle, horses, dogs and other mammals. Bites can lower milk production in livestock.
Source: extension.umaine.edu, UF/IFAS
Does it bite or sting?
Only females bite for blood; males eat pollen. The bite feels like a bee sting and can cause pain, itching and swelling.
Source: extension.umaine.edu, UF/IFAS
How to get rid of it
Blue sticky cylinders attached to slow-moving objects or worn on a cap can trap many flies. For livestock, pyrethroid pour-ons act as limited repellents.
Source: UF/IFAS
Where it comes from
They are found in Canada and the United States.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
Yellow flies have yellow bodies and dark eyes with fluorescent green lines. Horse flies are dark brown to black with green or black eyes.
Source: UF/IFAS
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 38 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Ohio, Michigan, Mississippi, South Carolina, Wisconsin, Maryland, Illinois, New Hampshire.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
Do beautiful deer flies bite?
Yes, only the females bite for a blood meal and the bite is painful.
Source: extension.umaine.edu
How can I reduce deer fly numbers around me?
Use blue sticky traps on slow-moving objects or wear them on a cap, and consider pyrethroid pour-ons for livestock.
Source: UF/IFAS
Where are beautiful deer flies found?
They are native to Canada and the United States.
Source: Wikipedia
What animals do they bite?
They bite humans and other mammals such as cattle, horses, and dogs.
Source: extension.umaine.edu
Same family (Tabanidae)
Sources
- extension.umaine.edu: https://extension.umaine.edu/home-and-garden-ipm/common-name-listing/deer-flies/
- UF/IFAS: https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/IN155
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysops_callidus
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.