Red Spotted Parasite Fly

Eriothrix rufomaculata · Order: Diptera · Family: Tachinidae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Red Spotted Parasite Fly
Photo: Bea Leiderman, CC BY

The red-spotted parasite fly is 5 to 10 mm long with a 13 to 15 mm wingspan. Adults are seen from July through October and live in hedgerows, grasslands, meadows and fields across much of Europe and Asia.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

Length ranges from 5 to 10 mm and the wingspan is 13 to 15 mm.

Source: Wikipedia

What it eats

Adults feed on flower nectar, especially from Umbelliferae such as Heracleum sphondylium and from Asteraceae. The larvae are parasitic, developing inside the underground larvae of moths.

Source: Wikipedia

Life cycle

The species has one generation per year (univoltine).

Source: Wikipedia

When you see it

Adults are present from July to October.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

Its distribution includes Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, China, the British Isles and many European countries, as well as parts of the Middle East and East Asia.

Source: Wikipedia

More photos

Red Spotted Parasite Fly photo 3
Photo: Sandy Rae, CC BY

Same family (Tachinidae)

Common TachinidCommon TachinidTachina feraSwift Feather-legged FlySwift Feather-legged FlyTrichopoda pennipesEctophasia crassipennisEctophasia crassipennisEctophasia crassipennisCylindromyia bicolorCylindromyia bicolorCylindromyia bicolorYellow-faced FlyYellow-faced FlyTachina grossaWinsome FlyWinsome FlyIstocheta aldrichi

Sources

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

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

Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.

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