CalevPhoto

Previous Post: Fun with the new 180L + MT-24EX and stink bugs   Next Post: Playing around with macro lights

The Hoverfly

Most of us are very familiar with the hoverfly.  Their flight patterns are very recognizable and have flustered generations of photographers attempting to get one in flight.  As they stay in the same place for short periods of time, it is very tempting to try to get a picture of one in flight.  This photographer was tempting by one over the weekend.  Alas, the hoverfly one and I wound up with all of one out of focus picture that was quickly deleted.  Still, I managed  to get a few half way decent ones of the hoverfly landed.

I don’t like the white background at all in this shot, but I had to take what the fly provided.  I tried photographing another two other hoverflies in more photogenic areas but none of the shots turned out.  Note that whenever taking insects on a white background, make sure to dial up the MT-24EX a stop or two.  Otherwise the picture will show up as too dark due to the metering in the camera.  This picture is close to the brightness of the original, but previous shots I took were too dark.

After reading a bit though, I never knew how beneficial these flies truly are.

As larva, hoverflies are very beneficial and many of them eat aphids.  A number of them also live in mud and dung but they seem to clean themselves up very well in the adult stage.  As adults, many hoverflies (of the family Syrphidae) feed on nectar and many are beneficial pollinators of plants and flowers.  Therefore these are one bug you do not want to swat.

Interestingly, many hoverflies practice mimicry - or more precisely - making themselves looking like bees and wasps.  This discourages predators from attacking them due to fear of their sting.  Some hoverflies are so good at this deception that I have questioned how close I should get.

Despite their similarities, hoverflies are in the order Diptera (along with house flies) and bees and wasps are in the order Hymenoptera (along with ants).  Therefore the similarities for the most part are strictly on the outside.  For example, hoverflies don’t sting - making them even better photography subjects.

Related posts:

1. Flies, flies, and more flies While most flies tend to be extremely annoying, they are a boon for us macro photographers.  The reason is they are simply everywhere.  It is not difficult to find a fly, and on some days when it seems I can’t find anything, there’s always a fly there to help.  Of...
2. Overcoming my fears Those of you who have had the opportunity to go camping with me or sit down at a picnic with me will know one thing for sure. I am terrified of bees Basically I am terrified of anything winged that stings – which includes wasps, hornets, and bees. I strive...
3. Some fly shots from the weekend Two weeks ago I had the time to take a number of shots outside and had the chance to get two flies (OK, two of them are March flies).  This one looks like it was laughing at me. Actually the more I see flies up close, the more I want...
4. Stalking bees in the garden Those of you who know me will find it very odd that I actually attempted to get some shots of bees the other day.  Even more shocking is that I went with my MP-E 65 instead of the 180L- which is what I normally use when stalking bees.  The thing...
5. Time for some bees During the recent warm weather, I figured it would be nice to get out there and take some bee shots.  This also gave me a chance to work with my 180mm macro, which has lately been ignored in favor of the MP-E 65.  While the MP-E 65 is an amazing...

Tags: diptera, fly, hoverfly, macro, mimicry, photography