Taxonomy
Pipiza bimaculata
Distribution
Species Biology
Preferred environment
Forest; woodland edge and track-sides and tall herb open areas in acidophilous Quercus forest.
Adult habitat & habits
Flies around and through forest margin vegetation of shrubs and bushes, settling on foliage at 1-3m.
Flight period
May/June. Larva: undescribed, but Dussaix (2005b) reports rearing this species from larvae collected on Prunus avium, with a leaf-rolling aphid.
Flowers visited
Ranunculus.
Irish reference specimens
In the collections of NMI
Determination
In the restricted sense that this name is applied here, females of P. bimaculata can be determined using the key provided by Speight (2002). Identification of males is more problematic.
Distribution
World distribution(GBIF)
Uncertain, due to confusion with other species, but known from various parts of the Atlantic zone, including Britain and Ireland and probably occurs more widely.
Irish distribution
Recorded as occurring in Ireland in Coe (1953). The few verified Irish records of P. bimaculata are from counties Dublin and Wicklow. The fact that it has only one generation per year and an early flight period mitigate against capture. But the species seems nonetheless scarce. It would seem appropriate that P. bimaculata be considered for inclusion on any list of threatened Irish species.
Temporal change
Records submitted to Data Centre in 2024
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References
Publications
Speight, M. C. D. (2008) Database of Irish Syrphidae
(Diptera). Irish Wildlife Manuals, No. 36. National Parks and Wildlife Service.
Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Dublin, Ireland.
Speight, M.C.D. (2014) Species accounts of European
Syrphidae (Diptera), 2014. Syrph the Net, the database of European Syrphidae,
vol. 78, 321 pp., Syrph the Net publications, Dublin.