Migrant blowfly

Male Locust Blowfly (Stomorhina lunata) on Common Ragwort (Jacobaea vulgaris)

While wandering around in the garden recently, I spotted what I thought was a hoverfly I'd never seen before. I snapped a few shots and scurried to the house to get Mike, so that he could get some photos as well. However, when I tried to look it up later, I couldn't find it in our hoverflies field guide. So Mike undertook an internet search, and discovered that it wasn't a hoverfly at all. It's a Locust Blowfly (Stomorhina lunata). Once you know what to look for, it's a fairly distinctive insect. The combination of striped back (see below), banded abdomen (orange in males, grey in females) and "pushed out" lower face help to identify it. Adults feed on nectar and pollen, visiting a variety of flowers in the umbellifer and daisy families. But the larvae are voracious predators, specialising on the eggs of several species of locusts — including some that are serious agricultural pests. To date, there is no evidence that the larvae are predators of grasshopper species in the UK, so the occasional adults found here are all thought to be vagrants; they're widespread across much of Europe, Africa and Asia. It's amazing to think of such a tiny creature making its way across the English Channel, which stretches 21 miles at its narrowest point. They remain quite rare here, but sightings are increasing in southern England, and the species has been found as far north as Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire. Quite an unexpected one to add to our list!