page_title: Bombylius major
section_title: Diet
hierarchical_section_title: Bombylius major / Diet
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Grosser Wollschweber (Bombylius major). English: Bee fly (Bombylius major) gathering nectar on a pink flower. Français&#160;: Un Grand Bombyle (Bombylius major) butinant.
context_page_description: Bombylius major is a parasitic bee mimic fly. B. major is the most common type of fly within the Bombylius genus. The fly derives its name from its close resemblance to bumblebees and are often mistaken for them.
  B. major exhibits a unique flight behavior known as "yawing" and plays a role in general pollination, without preference of flower types. The fly does not bite, sting, or spread disease. However, the fly uses this mimicry of bumblebees to its own advantage, allowing close access to host solitary bee and wasp nests in order to deposit its eggs. After hatching, the larvae find their way into the nests to parasitically feed on the grubs.
context_section_description: The species acts as a nectar robber; this foraging behavior allows the species to feed on floral nectar and is an essential part of adult fly diets. This is facilitated by the characterizable long proboscis of the fly, which is horizontally inserted into the flower. This occurs as the fly continues to buzz in the air, without touching either the anthers or stigma of the flower. The fly also consumes pollen as part of its diet, with considerable differences between the sexes. Males and females visit the same range of flowers as a food source.
  Along with one other species, Bombylius pygmaeus, B. major was observed to selectively (and almost exclusively) visit bluets at several North American sites despite the abundant presence of many other flowers. Of the other pollinators present, these flies were also the most frequent visitors to the flowers.
caption: B. major feeding on nectar
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