Exploring Pigeon Valley: Hover Flies

This is the 104th article in an ongoing series that highlights the riches of Pigeon Valley, the urban nature reserve in the heart of Glenwood. The focus of this article is on Hover Flies.

There is always wildlife around us; a downside of phrases like ‘the Big Five’ is that it stops us noticing and valuing other forms of wildlife. It was only recently that I noticed rather beautiful bee-like insects visiting flowers near me, and on Sunday I watched one in Pigeon Valley, noticing that, if anything deserved the word ‘hover’, this was it. By chance, my brother Jonathan photographed one the same day, and we had it identified as Asarkina Africana, one of the thousands of such Hover Fly species around the world.

The colours make this fly look much like a bee, scaring off predators who would otherwise eat it. In reality, of course, this is just deception; the Hover Fly has no bite or sting. It feeds on plant nectar and pollen and is involved in pollination of many species. The female lays eggs on leaves; when they hatch, the larvae eat leaves and also aphids. After about two weeks, the larva falls to the ground and gradually develops into a flying adult.

ALSO READ: Exploring Pigeon Valley: The Blue-mantled Crested Flycatcher

The continued existence of such beautiful species is threatened by agricultural pesticides and climate change, of course. When I see adverts that claim triumphantly that some spray ‘kills all bugs!’ I think, yes, they are right, and that is mainly to our loss.

Crispin Hemson chairs the Friends of Pigeon Valley, a group that undertakes clearing of alien plants, keeps records of bird and mammal sightings and alerts management to any problems.

The Friends have a monthly walk at 7.30am on the second Saturday of each month. Email: friendsofpigeonvalley1@gmail.com.

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