Thread subject: Diptera.info :: Volucella zonaria - new guest in Sweden?
Posted by MStoltze on 13-08-2018 18:43
#1
August 7th my danish fellow and biologist Anders N Michaelsen and I saw a huge hoverfly at the Buddleja in my garden in the southermost part of Sweden (at Maglehem in eastern Scania to be more accurate). None of us are true dipterists (even though both of us occasionally do record some flies), so what came to my mind was the species Volucella inanis with the swedish popular name "bålgetingblomfluga", that means hornet hoverfly. The fly we saw really resembled an european hornet. I catched the fly (with my fingers since it was not very alert) and took some poor photos in a plastic box just for the garden record, and then released the fly. Unfortunately I left home for vacation and didn't have a chance to dig deeper at the moment. The day after the fly came back and Anders (who stayed in the house) managed to do some more appealing photos. Then, after some chatting, we realized at last that this coudn't be inanis. The black second sternite belongs to V. zonaria and nothing else. Even the body length of aprox 20 mm was to large for inanis. Now, back home, I'm able to measure the length quite exact due to some lines 15 mm apart at the bottom of the plastic box (as shown on one of the images here)
So, i think we have a new and large species for Sweden. But since it's new i would like to hear your opinion just to be completely sure!
Edited by MStoltze on 14-08-2018 09:22
Posted by Zeegers on 13-08-2018 21:15
#2
No idea whether it is new to Sweden, but this is zonaria !
Theo
Posted by Zeegers on 13-08-2018 21:15
#3
No idea whether it is new to Sweden, but this is zonaria !
Theo
Posted by MStoltze on 13-08-2018 21:42
#4
Thank you! Well, it's not on the Swedish taxonomic database Dyntaxa and that means it's new UNLESS it has been recorded very recently somewhere else. If there is one there could of course be more, especially after this hot summer.
Posted by Zeegers on 14-08-2018 06:47
#5
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/286077590_Volucella_zonaria_Poda_1761_-_new_to_the_fauna_of_Lithuania_Diptera_Syrphidae
Posted by MStoltze on 14-08-2018 10:18
#6
Thank you Theo. The passage about host species was interesting. It says that immature stages has been found in nests of Vespa crabro (which the fly clearly resemble), but an english articel state that the only recorded host i England are Vespula vulgaris (in underground nests) http://www.bacoastal.co.uk/Entomology/2004-Volucella-zonaria.pdf
Do you know more about which host it use in the european mainland?
Edited by MStoltze on 14-08-2018 12:06
Posted by Zeegers on 14-08-2018 18:47
#7
No, but ask any of the Syrphid guys on the Syrphid subforum.
Theo
Posted by MStoltze on 14-02-2019 21:08
#8
This record of Volucella zonaria was indeed the first in Sweden. It was covered later on the website of Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet. https://www.nrm.se/forskningochsamlingar/forskningsnyheter/arkivforskningsnyheter/2018/forskningsnyheter2018/nyblomflugeartisverige.9005671.html