Broad Centurion
Laurence Livermore

Flies in Kent

Ever wondered about some of the species of fly buzzing around us? Here's your chance to learn about some of these creatures and how to identify them.

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Crane fly (Tipula luna)
Crane fly (Tipula luna) ©Chris Lawrence

Daddy longlegs

Species

Flitting about the house in summer, the gangly, brown daddy longlegs is familiar to many of us. They are a valuable food source for many birds.

St Mark's Fly
St Mark's Fly ©Guy Edwardes/2020VISION

St Mark's Fly

Species

The St Mark's fly is small, black and shiny. It is so-called because it emerges around St Mark's Day, April 25th. Large numbers of adults can be found in woodland edges, hedgerows, fields and wetlands.

Broad Centurion
Laurence Livermore

Broad centurion

Species

The Broad centurion, or 'Green soldier fly', is one of our most common soldier flies, and is often found in gardens. It has hairy eyes and a metallic blue or bronze body. It is an important pollinator.

Downlooker Snipefly
Downlooker Snipefly ©Chris Lawrence

Downlooker snipefly

Species

The Downlooker snipefly gets its name from its habit of sitting on posts or sunny trees with its head facing down to the ground, waiting for passing prey. It prefers grassland, scrub and woodland habitats.

Notch-horned Cleg-fly
Notch-horned Cleg-fly ©northeastwildlife.co.uk

Notch-horned cleg-fly (horse fly)

Species

The Notch-horned cleg-fly isa horse fly dark grey in colour, with grey-brown mottled wings and intricately striped, iridescent eyes. There are 30 species of horse-fly in the UK; this is one of the most frequently encountered species and also one of the…

Twin-lobed Deer-fly
Twin-lobed Deer-fly ©Les Binns

Twin-lobed deer-fly

Species

Many of us have felt the painful bite of the Twin-lobed deer-fly (a 'horse-fly') while out walking in damp grasses or woods. But mostly, it prefers to feed on the blood of cows and ponies, often becoming a pest.

Dark-edged Bee-fly
Dark-edged Bee-fly ©Chris Lawrence

Dark-edged bee-fly

Species

Our largest and most common bee-fly, the dark-edged bee-fly looks just like a bumblebee, and buzzes like one too! It feeds on flowers like primroses and violets in gardens, parks and woodlands.

Hornet Robberfly
Hornet Robberfly ©Cécile Bassaglia

Hornet robberfly

Species

With black-and-yellow markings, the Hornet robberfly looks like its namesake, but is harmless to us. This mimicry helps to protect it from predators while it perches in the open, waiting for its own prey.

Marmalade hoverfly
Laura Cronin

Marmalade fly

Species

Our most common hoverfly, the marmalade fly is orange with black bands across its body. It feeds on flowers like tansy, ragwort and cow parsley in gardens, hedgerows, parks and woodlands.

Heineken Fly
Heineken Fly ©Walwyn

Heineken fly

Species

A common hoverfly, the Heineken fly has a distinctively long snout that enables it to take nectar from deeper flowers, reaching the parts other hoverflies cannot reach! It frequents hedgerows, gardens and woods.

A common banded hoverfly on a pink flower.
© Linda Seward

Common banded hoverfly

Species

The Common banded hoverfly has a fitting name: it is not only one of our most common species, its black body is also covered in yellow bands! It can be seen in many habitats from gardens to woodlands.

drone fly
Jim Stevenson

Drone-fly

Species

With brown-and-orange markings, the Drone-fly looks like a male Honeybee, but is harmless to us. This mimicry helps to protect it from predators while it searches for nectar in gardens and urban areas.

Narcissus Bulb Fly
Narcissus Bulb Fly ©Penny Frith

Narcissus bulb fly

Species

With ginger hairs, dark banding and a cream tail, the Narcissus bulb fly looks like a bumble bee, but is harmless to us. This mimicry helps to protect it from predators while it searches for nectar in gardens.

Hornet Mimic Hoverfly
Hornet Mimic Hoverfly ©Dave Riseborough

Hornet mimic hoverfly

Species

With black-and-yellow markings, the hornet mimic hoverfly looks like its namesake, but is harmless to us. This mimicry helps to protect it from predators while it searches for nectar.

A Batman hoverfly perched on an ivy stalk. It's a yellow hoverfly with black markings, including a marking on the thorax in the shape of the Batman logo
Batman hoverfly © Vaughn Matthews

Batman hoverfly

Species

This common hoverfly can be recognised by the dark markings behind its head, which often resemble the Batman logo.

A bumblebee mimic hoverfly on a purple thistle flower. It's a fuzzy black and yellow hoverfly with a white tip to the abdomen, looking just like a bee. It's given away by its large eyes and short antennae
Volucella bombylans © Janet Packham

Bumblebee mimic hoverfly

Species

This furry hoverfly does an impressive job of impersonating a bee.