Bug FAQBlack-tailed Aphideater
Eupeodes luniger · Order: Diptera · Family: Syrphidae
Also called: Lunuled Aphideater
The black-tailed aphideater is a hoverfly with a wing length of about 7.5 to 8.5 mm and distinctive hook-shaped markings along the centre of its abdomen. It lives in open ground, grasslands, forest clearings, farmland, orchards and suburban gardens up to 2 000 m in the Alps across the Palaearctic from Fennoscandia to the Mediterranean and east into Asia Minor. The larvae feed on aphids, while adults visit a variety of flowers such as white Umbelliferae, Calluna, Malus sylvestris and Taraxacum, and they are on the wing from April to November.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
It has hook-shaped markings along the centre of its abdomen.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Wing length ranges from 7.5 to 8.5 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
Found in open ground, dune grassland, grassland, forest clearings, tracks, farmland, orchards and suburban gardens. Occurs up to 2 000 m in the Alps.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Larvae feed on aphids.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The flight period runs from April to November, starting earlier in southern Europe. Larval illustrations are provided by Rotheray (1993).
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are active from April through November, with earlier emergence in southern Europe.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
It extends east from Ireland through Europe into Asia Minor.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 6 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Alaska, Michigan, Utah, Vermont, California, Colorado.
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
When can I expect to see black-tailed aphideaters?
Adults are on the wing from April to November, appearing earlier in southern Europe.
Source: Wikipedia
Where does this species live?
It inhabits open ground, grasslands, forest clearings, farmland, orchards and suburban gardens up to 2 000 m in the Alps across much of Europe and into Asia Minor.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Syrphidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eupeodes_luniger
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.