Microdon mutabilis
Introduction '''''Microdon mutabilis''''', is a species of hoverfly. It is found in many parts of Britain and Europe. The distinctive almost slug-like larvae live in ants' nests. They are hemispherical in shape, heavily armoured and believed to prey on the eggs and larvae of a number of ant species, including ''Formica lemani'', ''Formica fusca'', ''Lasius niger'' and ''Myrmica ruginodis''. It was described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''.
Description Wing length 6–9 mm. Pterostigma 2-2.5 times as long as the length of the wing margin between ends of wing veins R1 and R2+3.Scutellum red or dark red. The male genitalia are figured by Doczkal and Schmid (1999). Note ''M. mutabilis'' is only reliably distinguished from ''M. myrmicae'' by features of the puparium.See references for determination.
References
External links * With images.