Meliscaeva auricollis

Though small and dark coloured, the slanting rear border of the yellow crescent marks on tergite 2, particularly in males, help to identify the species. The spring generation tend to be darker bodied than those born later in the year.

Prefers well-wooded places and is usually found around trees.

February to December. This is one of the first hoverflies to appear in the year. A warm day, even in January or February, can bring it out of hibernation.

Larvae are known to be associated with aphid colonies on shrubs such as Barberry and Broom and on the flowers and stems of umbellifers. The adult hibernates.

Fairly frequent in southern England and the Midlands, scarcer elsewhere in Britain.

Fairly frequent in Leicestershire and Rutland.