Black Soldier Fly
Hermetia illucens
Larvae are so voracious they can consume double their body weight in waste daily, naturally suppressing harmful bacteria and pest fly populations.
- Scientific name
- Hermetia illucens
- Taxonomy
- Animalia › Arthropoda › Insecta › Diptera › Stratiomyidae › Hermetia
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- increasing
- Biome
- urban
- Habitat
- Compost heaps, decomposing organic matter, agricultural areas, and forest margins.
- Diet
- Larvae consume decaying organic waste, compost, and manure; adults do not feed, surviving entirely on fat reserves.
- Range
- North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Australia
- Size
- Adults: 15-20 mm in length.
- Lifespan
- Larvae: 2-4 weeks; Adults: 5-8 days.
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Pesticides, habitat sanitization, and extreme cold temperatures.
- Safe to approach?
- Completely harmless. Adults lack functional mouthparts and cannot bite or sting. They are safe to observe at any distance. If one lands on you, simply let it rest or gently brush it away.
Hermetia illucens , the black soldier fly , is a common and widespread fly of the family Stratiomyidae. The larvae and adults are considered neither pests nor vectors. Instead, black soldier fly larvae play a similar role to that of redworms as essential decomposers in breaking down organic substrates and returning nutrients to the soil.
Photo: Katja Schulz, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
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