Bug FAQCommon European Scorpionfly
Panorpa communis · Order: Mecoptera · Family: Panorpidae
Also called: common scorpionfly
The common European scorpionfly is a black-and-yellow insect about 30 mm long with a 35 mm wingspan and clear wings marked with dark spots. Adults appear from May to September, live in damp, shaded hedgerows and nettle patches, and feed on dead insects, occasional live aphids, and plant sap.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Body length reaches about 30 mm (1.2 in). Wingspan is roughly 35 mm (1.4 in) and the wings are mostly clear with many dark spots.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Adults eat dead insects, sometimes live aphids taken from spider webs, and plant sap. Larvae look like caterpillars, grow to about 20 mm, and have three pairs of thoracic legs plus eight pairs of prolegs.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The species has one generation per year; eggs are laid in soil, and larvae scavenge and later pupate there. Larvae resemble caterpillars and reach up to 20 mm in length.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are seen from May through September.
Source: Wikipedia
More photos
Questions people ask
When can I expect to see common scorpionflies?
Adults are active from May to September.
Source: Wikipedia
Where are they most likely to be found?
Look for them in damp, shaded hedgerows and nettle patches near water.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Panorpidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panorpa_communis
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.