Melangyna Quadrimaculata on:
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''Melangyna quadrimaculata'' is a
Wing length 7·25–9 mm. Males only four spots on the abdomen. Female tergites black, pale abdominal markings absent. Eyes with short hairs. The male terminalia are figured by Hippa (1968) ). Larva described and figured by Rotheray (1994). See references for determination.
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
an species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of hoverfly
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 ...
.
DescriptionExternal images
For terms see
Morphology of Diptera
Dipteran morphology differs in some significant ways from the broader morphology of insects. The Diptera is a very large and diverse order of mostly small to medium-sized insects. They have prominent compound eyes on a mobile head, and (at most) ...
Wing length 7·25–9 mm. Males only four spots on the abdomen. Female tergites black, pale abdominal markings absent. Eyes with short hairs. The male terminalia are figured by Hippa (1968) ). Larva described and figured by Rotheray (1994). See references for determination.
Distribution
Palearctic
The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa.
The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Sibe ...
Southern Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark South to Belgium. Ireland East through Central Europe into European Russia and on to the Russian Far East, Siberia and the Pacific coast (Sakhalin).
Biology
Habitat ''Fagus'' and ''Quercus'' ancient woodlands, also in extensive parks in with overmature trees. Arboreal, but descends to visit flowers of ''Alnus'', ''Anemone nemorosa'', ''Carpinus'', ''Chrysosplenium oppositifolium'', ''Corylus'', ''Hamamelis mollis'', ''Lonicera xylosteum'', ''Populus tremula'', ''Salix'', ''Sambucus'', ''Tussilago''.de Buck, N. (1990) Bloembezoek en bestuivingsecologie van Zweefvliegen (Diptera, Syrphidae) in het bijzonder voor België. ''Doc.Trav.'' IRSNB, no.60, 1-167. The flight period is end February to end April. The larvae are predacious on adelgids on firs.References
Diptera of Europe Syrphinae Syrphini Insects described in 1873 {{Syrphidae-stub