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clubbed mydas fly

clubbed mydas fly (Mydas clavatus)

Features and Behaviors

FEATURES
This large (about one inch in length), black fly has an orange-to-red band on its abdomen. The antennae have four segments, and the furthest segment from the body is enlarged. The tarsi have two pads. The top of the head has a depression between the eyes.

BEHAVIORS
The larvae live in soil or decaying wood and eat the larvae of scarab beetles. Adults feed on flower nectar. Found statewide, this species is a mimic of spider wasps. It lives in woodlands, fields and gardens.

Illinois Range

Taxonomy

​Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum:  Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Family: Mydidae

Illinois Status: common, native