''Dasysyrphus'' is a genus of

hover flies Hover flies, also called flower flies or syrphid flies, make up the insect family Syrphidae. As their common name suggests, they are often seen hovering or nectaring at flowers; the adults of many species feed mainly on nectar and pollen, while ...

with 50 identified species distributed worldwide (see distribution map). While the genus is relatively easy to identify
genera key
the differences between species have a more narrow range of variations. Therefore, identification of species by images of specimens alone should be made with care. (See available keys below)

Larvae

The known larvae are mostly tree dwelling on both

conifers Conifers are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All extan ...

and deciduous trees. They feed on aphids and other small

Hemiptera Hemiptera (; ) is an order (biology), order of insects, commonly called true bugs, comprising over 80,000 species within groups such as the cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, Reduviidae, assassin bugs, Cimex, bed bugs, and shield bugs. ...

resting in the daytime. This

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

habit, plus the camouflage coloration of the larvae may account for the lack of larval reports for this genus.

Description

for taxonomic terms see Thompsonor Speight
br> These are medium-sized flies with a combination of characters: the margin of the abdomen grooved and dark with light spots present on tergites 2,3 and 4, haired eyes microtrichose wings (at least anteror third) with a elongate stigma, third vein ending at the apex of the wing, calypter with ventral lobe bare and a bare metasternum. ''Dasysyrphus'' wing abdominal spots

Resources for identification to species

*Bartsch et al. (2009) for Nordic countries, *Barkalov (2007) for Urals, Siberia and the Far East. *van Veen (2004) for Northwestern Europe *Van der Goot,V.S. (1981) Russia *Stubbs & Falk (1983) for Britain *Ghorpade (1994) for India (Ghorpade, 1994) *Peck(1974) for the PalaearcticPeck, L.V. (1988) Syrphidae. In: Soos, A. & Papp, L. (eds.) ''Catalogue of Palaearctic Diptera'', 8: 11-230. Akad.Kiado, Budapest. *Locke 2013 Nearctic ke
nearctic species key

Species

*'' D. albostriatus'' ( Fallén, 1817) *'' D. amalopis'' (

Osten Sacken The House von der Osten-Sacken is an old and distinguished noble family of Baltic Germans. The family members held the titles of ''Baron'', ''Graf'', ''Knyaz'' and ''Fürst''. History The origins of the family are traced to 14th century. In 16 ...

, 1875) *'' D. bilineatus'' ( Matsumura, 1917) *'' D. corsicanus'' ( Becker, 1921) *'' D. creper'' (Snow, 1895) *'' D. eggeri'' ( Schiner, 1862) *'' D. friuliensis'' (van der Goot, 1960) *'' D. hilaris'' (

Zetterstedt Johan Wilhelm Zetterstedt (20 May 1785 – 23 December 1874) was a Sweden, Swedish Naturalism (philosophy) , naturalist who worked mainly on Diptera and Hymenoptera. Biography Zetterstedt studied at the Lund University, University of Lund, where ...

, 1843) *'' D. intrudens'' (

, 1877) *'' D. lapidosus'' Barkalov, 1990 *'' D. lenensis'' Bagatshanova, 1980 *'' D. limatus'' (Hine, 1922) *'' D. lotus'' ( Williston, 1887) *'' D.neovenustus'' Soszyński & Mielczarek, 2013 *'' D. nigricornis'' ( Verrall, 1873) *'' D.occidualis'' Locke & Skevington, 2013 *'' D. osburni'' (

Curran Curran may refer to: People * Curran (surname) * Curran Oi (born 1990), an American figure skater Material * Curran (material) Places *Curran, community in Alfred and Plantagenet, Ontario, Canada ;Northern Ireland * Curran, County Londonderry ...

, 1925) *'' D. pacificus'' (Lovett) *'' D. pauxillus'' ( Williston, 1887) *'' D. pinastri'' (

De Geer The De Geer family (also: De Geer van Jutphaas and De Geer van Oudegein) is a prominent industrial family of Walloon origin that belongs to the Swedish and Dutch nobility. History The name derives from the town of Geer near Liège (in present ...

, 1776) *'' D. postclaviger'' (Stys & Moucha, 1962) *'' D. reflectipennis'' (

, 1921) *'' D. richardi'' Locke & Skevington, 2013 *'' D. tricinctus'' ( Fallén, 1817) *'' D. venustus'' ( Meigen, 1822)

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1759082 Hoverfly genera Taxa named by Günther Enderlein Syrphini