Tiger bee fly / Xenox tigrinus

I first noticed these in Pennsylvania last summer. When in flight they appear to be much more aggressive then they actually are, and this is on purpose. Like the name implies, they are meant to mimic a bee and it even sounds like one when it flies. These flies have a transparent dark coloration on the wings that appears to follow the veins. The spaces in between the color are completely transparent. The body is completely dark with the exception of the white tufts of "fur" located on the thorax. After finding this mating pair a noticed even more of them and I questioned the possible attractants and did a little research.

According to an article from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, the adult flies mainly eat pollen and are an important pollinator. At the beginning of summer we removed a section of grass and replaced it with wildflower seeds, which have now become 2-3 feet high flowers that I'm sure these insects visit. After the species mates, the female hunts for carpenter bee nests to lay their eggs. The larvae then hatch and consume the carpenter bee eggs. The backyard of our house has a large wooden deck and awning built by the last person who rented the property, a prime nesting target for carpenter bees. We have also noticed an increase in carpenter bees this year, and we can always tell when a new one makes a nest since they never clean up the wood shavings they discard from the hole they create. Now I know to leave these flies to their business to help control the carpenter bee population in my yard.

Posted on August 3, 2020 02:35 AM by gzaborowski