Black Hanging Thief

Diogmites platypterus · Order: Diptera · Family: Asilidae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Black Hanging Thief
Photo: Amber M. King, CC BY

The black hanging thief is a dark brown to black robber fly with a slender body and broad wings. Its wings are darker, wider, and longer than those of any other species in the Diogmites genus.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

Diogmites platypterus is found in the eastern United States. It is most common in the Midwest and South, with some records in Georgia and South Carolina.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 17 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Louisiana, Missouri, Illinois, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma.

Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.

Source: GBIF

Status: native in North America; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist

Months it is reported in the US

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Source: GBIF

More photos

Black Hanging Thief photo 2
Photo: hr_dragonfly, CC BY
Black Hanging Thief photo 3
Photo: Melissa McMasters, CC BY
Black Hanging Thief photo 4
Photo: willingarden, CC BY
Black Hanging Thief photo 5
Photo: Michael A. Thaibinh, CC BY

Same family (Asilidae)

Northeastern HammertailNortheastern HammertailEfferia aestuansHarmlessStripe-legged Robber FlyStripe-legged Robber FlyDioctria hyalipennisPlain-tailed Hanging ThiefPlain-tailed Hanging ThiefDiogmites neoternatusKite-tailed robberflyKite-tailed robberflyTolmerus atricapillusGolden-tailed BeebanditGolden-tailed BeebanditMallophora fautrixSand HammertailSand HammertailEfferia albibarbis

Sources

  • Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diogmites_platypterus

Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia

Text written 2026-10-25 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-25.

How this page works

This is one bug's fact sheet. The colored box at the top says whether it is dangerous. Sections below cover how to recognize it, whether it is a pest, and how to deal with it. The US map shows which states have records; tap a state to see other bugs there.

Every fact on Bug FAQ comes from a named source (university extension sites, government agencies, GBIF, iNaturalist, Wikipedia). The source is linked next to each section. If we have no source for something, we leave it out.