Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods) ➔ Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods) ➔ Class Insecta (Insects) ➔ Order Diptera (True flies) ➔ Family Syrphidae (Hoverflies)

Chrysotoxum bicinctum (Linnaeus, 1758)

Zweiband-Wespenschwebfliege

Synonyms and other combinations:

Chrysotoxum tricinctum Rondani, 1845 | Musca bicinctatum Turton, 1801 | Musca callosus Harris, 1776 |

  • Chrysotoxum bicinctum, female 580
    Chrysotoxum bicinctum (Linnaeus, 1758)  Zweiband-Wespenschwebfliege   
    Chrysotoxum bicinctum, female
    DE, Chemnitz, Zeisigwald; 2005-08-14 10:49:04
    Image number: 580
    female
    DE, Chemnitz, Zeisigwald
    2005-08-14 10:49:04
  • Chrysotoxum bicinctum, female 581
    Chrysotoxum bicinctum (Linnaeus, 1758)  Zweiband-Wespenschwebfliege   
    Chrysotoxum bicinctum, female
    DE, Chemnitz, Zeisigwald; 2005-08-14 10:49:16
    Image number: 581
    female
    DE, Chemnitz, Zeisigwald
    2005-08-14 10:49:16
  • Chrysotoxum bicinctum, male 4782
    Chrysotoxum bicinctum (Linnaeus, 1758)  Zweiband-Wespenschwebfliege   
    Chrysotoxum bicinctum, male
    DE, Chemnitz, Zeisigwald; 2011-07-23 10:47:51
    Image number: 4782
    male
    DE, Chemnitz, Zeisigwald
    2011-07-23 10:47:51
  • Chrysotoxum bicinctum, female 10148
    Chrysotoxum bicinctum (Linnaeus, 1758)  Zweiband-Wespenschwebfliege   
    Chrysotoxum bicinctum, female
    DE, Chemnitz, Hutholz; 2021-07-18 14:04:46
    Image number: 10148
    female
    DE, Chemnitz, Hutholz
    2021-07-18 14:04:46

Classification:
Chrysotoxum bicinctum belongs to the subfamily Syrphinae, tribe Syrphini.
Distribution:
Fennoscandia south to Iberia and the Mediterranean, including northern Africa; through central and southern Europe (Italy, the former Yugoslavia, Bulgaria) into Turkey and European parts of Russia; in Asiatic parts of Russia as far as central Siberia.
Habitat:
Beside streams and rivers in open areas in deciduous and coniferous forests, forest edges, wet meadows and moorland meadows.
Description:
Chrysotoxum bicinctum has a body length of 10 - 12 mm. The predominantly black abdomen shows 2 yellow transverse bands, a wider one on the 2nd and a narrower one on the 4th abdominal segment. The black mesonotum shows a broken yellow line on both sides and two gray-white vertical stripes in the middle. At the front edge of the wings is a large dark spot. The front and middle femora of the predominantly yellow legs are only at the base black. The hind femora are to 4/5 black.
Biology:
Adults fly from May to September. They visit white umbellifers; Achillea ptarmica, Alisma plantago-aquatica, Carduus, Crataegus, Hypochoeris, Potentilla erecta, Ranunculus and Rubus.
Little is known about the natural way of life of the larvae. Under laboratory conditions larvae were reared with aphids.

References, further reading, links:
  1. Pape T. & Thompson F.C. (eds) (2017). Systema Dipterorum (version 2.0, Jan 2011). In: Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life, 2017 Annual Checklist (Roskov Y., Abucay L., Orrell T., Nicolson D., Bailly N., Kirk P.M., Bourgoin T., DeWalt R.E., Decock W., De Wever A., Nieukerken E. van, Zarucchi J., Penev L., eds.). Digital resource at www.catalogueoflife.org/annual-checklist/2017. Species 2000: Naturalis, Leiden, the Netherlands. ISSN 2405-884X.
  2. Gerald Bothe: Bestimmungsschlüssel für die Schwebfliegen (Diptera, Syrphidae) Deutschlands und der Niederlande, DJN, 1984, ISBN 3-923376-07-3
  3. M.C.D.Speight: Species Accounts of European Syrphidae (Diptera), Glasgow 2011, Syrph the Net, the database of European Syrphidae, vol. 65, 285 pp., Syrph the Net publications, Dublin.
  4. Menno Reemer, Willem Renema, Wouter van Steenis, Theo Zeegers, Aat Barendregt, John T. Smit, Mark P. van Veen, Jeroen van Steenis, Laurens van der Leij: De Nederlandse Zweefvliegen (Diptera: Syrphidae), Nederlandse Fauna 8, 2009.