Yellow-barred Peat Hover Fly
Sericomyia silentis
Their larvae are known as 'rat-tailed maggots' because they use a long, telescopic breathing tube to reach the surface while submerged in oxygen-poor peat mud.
- Scientific name
- Sericomyia silentis
- Taxonomy
- Animalia › Arthropoda › Insecta › Diptera › Syrphidae › Sericomyia
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- stable
- Biome
- wetland
- Habitat
- Peat bogs, fens, wet heaths, and upland moorlands.
- Diet
- Adults feed on nectar and pollen from flowers like Devil's-bit Scabious and Heather; larvae feed on organic matter in wet peat.
- Range
- United Kingdom, Scandinavia, Central Europe, Western Siberia
- Size
- 14-18 mm in length.
- Lifespan
- Approximately 1 year, with most of that time spent in the larval stage.
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Habitat loss through peat extraction, drainage of wetlands for agriculture, and climate-driven drying of bog environments.
- Safe to approach?
- Completely harmless. This species possesses no stinger or biting mouthparts; its wasp-like appearance is a defensive mimicry. You can safely observe them from inches away as they hover over flowers. If one lands on you, simply let it fly off or gently nudge it away.
Sericomyia silentis , is a species of hoverfly. It is widespread throughout the Palearctic but normally encountered in small numbers in mountain regions and moorland and bog locations.
Photo: no rights reserved, CC0, via iNaturalist
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