Bee Fly – Poecilanthrax willistonii

Photographed near Newspaper Rock, San Juan County, Utah, USA. Size: 15mm

Bombyliidae is one of the largest families of Diptera, with over 5,000 valid species described worldwide. Their high diversity may be due to the parasitoid habit of the majority of their larvae. Adults feed on nectar and pollen, and are believed to be important pollinators of many plants, although few species have been studied in detail. Bee flies occur on all continents except Antarctica, however their highest diversities occur in semi-arid and arid environments (Hull, 1973).

These flies are abundant in SE Utah. They are much more energetic and evasive than similar flies here in the American midwest.

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