Bug FAQViolet Leafwalker
Chalcosyrphus chalybeus · Order: Diptera · Family: Syrphidae
The violet leafwalker is a fairly common syrphid fly in the Northeastern United States. Adult flies visit flowers to drink nectar and collect pollen for protein.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
This species is called the violet leafwalker and belongs to the syrphid flies.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
Adults are often seen on flowers where they feed.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
The flies obtain energy from nectar and protein from pollen.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
It is native to Canada and the United States.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 33 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, New York, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maine, Tennessee.
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
What do violet leafwalkers eat?
Adults feed on flower nectar for energy and on pollen for protein.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Syrphidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chalcosyrphus_chalybeus
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-25 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-25.