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Bombylius sp.
Bombylius is a large genus of flies belonging to the family Bombyliidae, known as the bee-flies, due to their striking resemblance to bees and bumblebees. All species in the genus share a similarity with the unrelated bees and bumblebees, which they mimic, possessing a thick coat of fur, with a colour ranging from yellow to orange. They can, however, be told apart from their models by the long and stiff proboscis they possess, used for probing for nectar as they fly (much like a hummingbird), by their rapid and darting flight, and by the peculiar structure of their legs. They can suck the nectar on flight. They also resemble bees and bumblebees in their rapid flight that can change direction abruptly. They are parasitic, since they lay their eggs near the nests of solitary bees and their larvae feed on the larvae of bees and the food stored in their nests.
Spotted in a evergreen oak forest
Camera Model: NIKON D300. Exposure Time: 1/320 sec.; f/9; ISO Speed Rating: 800. Exposure Bias: 0 EV. Focal Length: 300.0 mm.
Spotted on May 4, 2015
Submitted on May 27, 2015
28 Comments (1–25)
Gracias Eulalia
Difícil de conseguir. ¡Buena!
Great series Arlanda,congrats on the well deserved SOTD and thanks for sharing
Thanks DrNamgyalT.Sherpa
Congrats Arlanda for the SOTD.
Thanks Sergio, it is not a very difficult picture to do since they hover very steadily close to the flowers, so you have a couple of seconds to focus and click, ;)
Thanks Mark, we have more than 30 of them in Spain, and all are very difficult to identify. Very week details can identify them, like for example dark stains in the wings, very difficult to see since they seldom stop beating the wings. So, in the end, most of them I can just identify as Bombylius sp. and I am sure that down there it must be very similar.
Thanks Ingrid3
One day I'll take a photo like this one... Congratulations.
Congratulations arlanda. I'm amazed how similar this one is to one of ours.
super neat photo!
Thanks JillBlack
Thanks LaureZarate
Congratulations! Beautiful!
Congrats on SOTD great shot
Thanks Desmond, Irina and James
Congrats! and so cool!!!!
Congratulations on your SOTD, Arlanda..
many of your photos are amazing and picturesque..
Congrats arlanda
Thanks Daniele!
Congratulations Arlanda!
Thanks triggsturner and Zlatan
Thanks a lot, Yasser.
I already photographed a bee-fly before and when I first saw it I though about let it go. But I was a bit bored so I just thought that a it more pics of the bee-fly would not do any harm. So I tried to get it in flight with manual focusing. And that is what I got. I had a lot of fun!!
Wow, magnificent shots.
Congrats on your SOTD arlanda, Stunning phography.