Eupeodes flower fly

Before I trekked today, I did a quick tour of the backyard, and, with what I spotted—great new dragonflies and butterflies, from a Uhler's Sundragon and a Twin-spotted Spiketail to an Eastern Tailed Blue—I really didn't need to travel anywhere else. The star of the close-to-home show, however, was a pretty little insect that belongs to the Hoverfly genus. These flies are often wasp and yellow-jacket mimics, and they're designed to ward off potential predators. But the subterfuge doesn't keep this naturalist from zooming in for a close look at these entirely harmless flies that visit and pollinate flowers and, because of their intriguing habit of hovering in one place, offer an irresistible photographic challenge. I think this one belongs to the Syrphid fly genus Chrysotoxum, but confirmation will require additional study... and a deft flick of the insect net.

Note added about the identification: In trying to figure out who this flower fly was, I started with BugGuide, always a great place to begin, and discovered an incredible online resource, the Canadian Journal of Arthropod Identification, which has a chapter dedicated to these bugs—"Key to the Genera of Nearctic Syrphidae." It's a terrifically useful key, but, when I sent my fly photo, with a tentative ID, off to two of the key's authors, Canadian biologists Andrew Young and Steve Marshall, they graciously pointed me in the right taxonomic direction. The Syrphid was "Definitely Eupeodes sp[ecies]," wrote Dr. Young, who is one of the world's experts on flower flies. I've long been entranced by these critters, and I may have just begun a new journey of discovery with a great mentor.