Harpobittacus australis

Harpobittacus australis · Order: Mecoptera · Family: Bittacidae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Harpobittacus australis
Photo: Connor Margetts, CC BY

The hangingfly is black and orange and can grow to about 2 cm long, ending in long claws on its legs. Males hang from plants using their front legs and snatch passing insects with their hind legs.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Its body is black and orange with long claws at the ends of the legs.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

Adults reach up to 2 cm in length.

Source: Wikipedia

More photos

Harpobittacus australis photo 3
Photo: Matt Berger, CC BY

Questions people ask

What do Harpobittacus australis feed on?

Males catch passing insects with their hind legs while hanging from plants.

Source: Wikipedia

Same family (Bittacidae)

Black-tipped HangingflyBlack-tipped HangingflyHylobittacus apicalisBittacus pilicornisBittacus pilicornisBittacus pilicornisBittacus kimminsiBittacus kimminsiBittacus kimminsiHarpobittacus septentrionisHarpobittacus septentrionisHarpobittacus septentrionis

Sources

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

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

Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.

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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.

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