Pipizella virens

[stuart]

Pipizella virens (Fabricius, 1805)

Identification ease/difficulty: 3

Status

• Notable in Falk (1991)

Sources of information

• Page 213, Pl. 5, fig 8 in Stubbs & Falk (1983)
• Map here and page 112 in Ball & Morris (2000)
• Page 319, Pl. 5, fig. 8 in Stubbs & Falk (2002)

[stuart]

Species account from Provisional atlas of British hoverflies, Ball & Morris, 2000.

Pipizella virens (Fabricius, 1805)

Biology: On the Continent, the larvae are reported to be associated with aphids on the roots of white umbells. Found in taller and lusher vegetation than P. viduata, in situations like woodland and scrub edges, the fringes of wetlands, and clifftop and other coastal grassland. Adults stay close to the ground and will bask on sunlit leaves, but are sometimes found visiting taller flowers including white umbells

Distribution: Much scarcer than P. viduata, this species is largely restricted to the lowlands of south-east England, although there are a few records from northern England, south-west England and Wales. Separation from P. viduata requires care and is best done by examination of the male terminalia which are figured by van der Goot (1981)