Bug FAQBumblebee Blacklet
Cheilosia illustrata · Order: Diptera · Family: Syrphidae
Source: Wikipedia
The Bumblebee Blacklet is a small hoverfly about 9 to 11 mm long with a black face, black scutellum and reddish-orange hair at the abdomen tip. Adults fly from June to September, most abundantly in July and August, and are found on forest roads, clearings and hedgerows. Its larvae bore into the stems of hogweed and the roots of parsnip, harming those plants.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
It has a black face, black scutellum, bands of black hair on the thorax and third abdominal segment, dark wing centers, long white hairs at the foreleg base and below the scutellum, dark antennae, and reddish-orange hair on the abdomen tip.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults measure about 9 to 11 mm in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
They are seen along forest roads, in clearings, hedgerows and by roadsides.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Adults feed on flowers of umbellifers, especially common hogweed and Angelica species.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Adults are on the wing from June through September, with numbers peaking in July and August. In autumn the larvae tunnel into hogweed stems and parsnip roots.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Their flight period runs from June to September, most common in July and August.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
The species is common throughout most of Europe and extends eastward into the eastern Palearctic region, reaching Siberia.
Source: Wikipedia
More photos
Questions people ask
What plants do the larvae damage?
The larvae bore galleries into the stems of hogweed and the roots of parsnip, harming those plants.
Source: Wikipedia
Where can I find Bumblebee Blacklets?
They are commonly seen on forest roads, clearings, hedgerows and roadsides.
Source: Wikipedia
What do adult Bumblebee Blacklets eat?
Adults feed on umbellifer flowers, especially common hogweed and Angelica species.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Syrphidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheilosia_illustrata
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.