Small Spotty-eyed Drone Fly

Eristalinus sepulchralis · Order: Diptera · Family: Syrphidae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Small Spotty-eyed Drone Fly
Photo: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

The small spotty-eyed drone fly is about 6.5 to 8 mm long and looks wasp-like up close but resembles a bumble-bee from a distance. It lives near wetlands, river and pond edges and is also found where livestock graze, especially near polluted ditches and slurry pits. Adults visit many flowers for nectar, while the larvae develop in nutrient-rich, rotting vegetation in small water bodies; they fly from mid-April to September.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Up close the fly appears brownish-white and wasp-like. From farther away it looks yellow-black like a bumble-bee.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

Wing length ranges from 6.5 to 8 mm.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it lives

Found on wetland, fen, river and pond margins. Also common where livestock are pastured, near polluted ditches and slurry pits.

Source: Wikipedia

What it eats

Adults visit a wide range of flowers including white umbellifers, yarrow, alliums, and many meadow species. Larvae live in rotting vegetation in ponds and small nutrient-rich water bodies.

Source: Wikipedia

Life cycle

The larva has been illustrated by Hartley (1961).

Source: Wikipedia

When you see it

Adults are on the wing from mid-April to September, extending to October in southern Europe.

Source: Wikipedia

Lookalikes

Close-up it resembles a wasp; at a distance it can be mistaken for a bumble-bee.

Source: Wikipedia

More photos

Small Spotty-eyed Drone Fly photo 3
Photo: Frank Vassen, CC BY 2.0
Small Spotty-eyed Drone Fly photo 4
Photo: Frank Vassen from Brussels, Belgium, CC BY 2.0
Small Spotty-eyed Drone Fly photo 5
Photo: Frank Vassen, CC BY 2.0
Small Spotty-eyed Drone Fly photo 6
Photo: Bj.schoenmakers, CC0

Questions people ask

What does this fly look like up close?

It appears brownish-white and wasp-like when viewed closely.

Source: Wikipedia

Where is the small spotty-eyed drone fly usually found?

It lives near wetlands, river and pond edges and also where livestock graze near polluted ditches and slurry pits.

Source: Wikipedia

When can I see these flies active?

Adults fly from mid-April through September, and a bit later in southern Europe.

Source: Wikipedia

Same family (Syrphidae)

Common Drone FlyCommon Drone FlyEristalis tenaxHarmlessMarmalade Hover FlyMarmalade Hover FlyEpisyrphus balteatusMargined CalligrapherMargined CalligrapherToxomerus marginatusEastern CalligrapherEastern CalligrapherToxomerus geminatusYellow-haired Sun FlyYellow-haired Sun FlyMyathropa floreaThick-legged Hover FlyThick-legged Hover FlySyritta pipiens

Sources

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

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 2026-10-22.

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