Bug FAQYellow-faced Swiftwing
Volucella facialis · Order: Diptera · Family: Syrphidae
Yellow-faced Swiftwing is a large, broad-bodied hoverfly with a face that points downward and feathery aristae on its antennae. Adults sip nectar from flowers, often rest in the sun on leaves, and they migrate long distances. The larvae develop inside bumblebee and social wasp nests where they feed on waste and other larvae.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
They have feathery (plumose) aristae and a face that extends downward.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Members of the genus are large and have a broad, dramatic body shape.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
Adults are often seen sunning on leaves while feeding on flower nectar. The species is strongly migratory.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Adult Swiftwings drink nectar from flowers. Larvae live in bumblebee and social wasp nests, where they act as detritivores and predators of other larvae.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 18 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Alaska, Washington, Colorado, Wyoming, California, Minnesota, Oregon, Maine.
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 the larvae eat?
The larvae feed on waste material and other larvae inside bumblebee and social wasp nests.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Syrphidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volucella
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-28 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-28.