Tracking the Picture-Winged Fly

Honey bees, bumble bees, hover flies, parasitoids and common houseflies aren't the only visitors paying their respects to our two nectarine trees.

A picture-winged fly (Ceroxys latiusculus) dropped in on Feb. 28 for a quick visit.

About the size of a common housefly, it's known as a nuisance pest that hangs around the house more than it does around nectarine trees.

Little is known about is biology, says entomologist Whitney Cranshaw of Coloradio State University.  Its larvae often develop within the seed heads of Senecio, a genus of the daisy family that includes ragworts and groundsels.

It’s often mistaken for a walnut husk fly.

This one crawled up and down the nectarine blossoms as if mimicking a bee.

In a wing beat, it was gone.