Bug FAQGiant Western Crane Fly
Holorusia hespera · Order: Diptera · Family: Tipulidae
The giant western crane fly is the largest North American crane fly, with wings up to about 40 mm long (1.6 in). Its glossy amber wings lack interference patterns, are uniformly colored, and show textured ridges and folds. It lives in western North America.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The wings are glossy amber, lack interference patterns, and have a uniform color with ridges and folds.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Wings can reach lengths of about 40 mm (1.6 in), making it the largest crane fly in North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is found in western North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its native range is western North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 10 of 51 states and DC. Most records: California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona.
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
Source: GBIF
More photos
Same family (Tipulidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holorusia_hespera
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.