Golden-Backed Snipe Fly

Posted on May 28, 2014 by jjneal

The Golden-Backed Snipe Fly, Chrysopilus thoracicus, is a beautiful insect with gold tufts on its thorax and white tufts on the edges of the abdomen. This fly is frequently seen resting on foliage in late spring. There is no detailed description of the biology of this fly. The adults do not bite. Some observers suggest that they are predatory on other insects. Others suggest that they feed little as adults. The mouthparts are suited for piercing and feeding on other insects. The larval stages have not been reared. It is assumed that larvae of these flies are predatory on other insects as are other species snipe flies. The fly in the photo visited my picnic in the park today.

About jjneal

Jonathan Neal is a retired Associate Professor of Entomology at Purdue University and author of the textbook, Living With Insects (2010). This blog is a forum to communicate about the intersection of insects with people and policy. This is a personal blog. The opinions and materials posted here are those of the author and are in no way connected with those of my employer.

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4 Responses to Golden-Backed Snipe Fly

GarryRogers says:

May 29, 2014 at 2:01 am

Interesting. Nice photo of a handsome creature. Thank you.

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Karim Hamou says:

June 12, 2020 at 6:19 pm

I ve learned that the golden blacked snipe live in north america.I found a couple on the roof of my house.????
I know a few about theire behaviour.But what astonishes me is what brough them from america to algeria.can this little creature fly all that distance?

Reply
- jjneal says:
  
  June 12, 2020 at 10:40 pm
  
  A couple of possibilities. You could be seeing another species of snipe fly that looks similar. If it is Chrysopilus thoracicus, most likely it would have hitch hiked on trade goods from North America.
  
  Reply