Spike

Dark-edged Bee-fly (Bombylius major)

Now that the weather's warming up, we've started to see Dark-edged Bee-flies (Bombylius major) sunning themselves in sheltered parts of the garden. They look mighty scary to the uninitiated — as if they might stick that long, slender proboscis into some tender part of a human's anatomy, rather like a mosquito might. But they're not blood-suckers. Instead, they feed primarily on nectar, and are important general pollinators of low-growing flowers. They also eat pollen, with females consuming far more than males. Their long proboscis allows them to feed more safely, potentially avoiding predators like crab spiders and ambush bugs that might be lurking on the flowers. They're often seen hovering in place with a high-pitched whine, and with their long legs dangling.

Bee-flies get their name from their furry bodies, which resemble those of various bumblebees. Though they're harmless to humans, they aren't quite so innocuous when it comes to bees. Females flick their eggs into the burrows of solitary bee species (particularly mining bees), and the hatched bee-fly larvae feed on both the bee larvae and the food stores left by the bees for their own offspring. The Dark-edged Bee-fly is found across much of the northern hemisphere. In the UK, it's common and widespread (particularly in the south), and found in a variety of habitats, including (obviously) gardens. Adults fly from late-March to June, so we've got plenty of time ahead to enjoy them.