Taxonomy

Lapposyrphus lapponicus

Distribution

Species Biology

Preferred environment

Forest, both coniferous (Picea/Abies) and deciduous (mesophilous and humid Fagus) forest, up to and including the altitude of the Larix zone (2,000m in the Alps); also in montane birch (Betula) forest of northern Europe and in conifer (Picea/Abies) plantations. In continental Europe this species is frequent in forests from the Mediterranean to subarctic parts of Scandinavia. It is found in deciduous forest of beech and coniferous forests of spruce and fir, and, at the northern end of its range, in montane birch forest. It also occurs abundantly on the continent in conifer plantations. The sole Irish record is from a conifer plantation.

Adult habitat & habits

Clearings, tracksides etc.; males hover at 2 - 5m over tracks etc. and also in the shade, beneath large trees, with one male stationed beneath each tree; settles on shrub foliage and tree trunks. It was suggested by Goeldlin (1974) that L. lapponicus can overwinter as an adult and large numbers of females of this species have been observed, in the middle of November, investigating cracks in rock faces along a track in Quercus/Picea forest. Similarly, Wolff (1990) found females of L. lapponicus hibernating in the brickwork of a bridge, in a wooded locality, two years running. But Kula (1982) indicates overwintering occurs as larva or puparium, so it may well be that in these species larvae, puparia and adults can hibernate successfully.

Flight period

March/November, but most frequent in the period June/August. This is a highly migratory species (Aubert et al, 1976). Larva: described and figured by Goeldlin (1974). According to Kula (1980) the larvae may be found at all heights above the ground in spruce (Picea) trees and can overwinter among litter on the forest floor. Laska and Stary (1980) reared L. lapponicus from aphids on Euonymus and Fagus.

Flowers visited

Caltha, Chaerophyllum, Chelidonium, Crataegus, Euphorbia, Knautia, Ligustrum, Prunus spinosa, Ranunculus, Rubus, Salix, Sorbus, Tussilago.

Irish reference specimens

In the collections of NMI

Determination

See Key provided in StN Keys volume, Dusek and Laska (1976) and van der Goot (1981), where L. lapponicus appears as Metasyrphus lapponicus. Stubbs and Falk (1983) and Ball et al (2002) suggest that two species may be confused under the name lapponicus, but do not resolve this issue and their contention is here regarded as unproven. L. lapponicus is easily confused with various Eupeodes species, such as E. bucculatus, E. luniger or E. nielseni, but may be distinguished from all known European Eupeodes by its bare metasternum. This sclerite carries long hairs in Eupeodes species. The male terminalia are figured by Dusek and Laska (1976). The adult insect is illustrated in colour by Kormann (1988).

Distribution

World distribution(GBIF)

Fennoscandia south to Spain and the Mediterranean (including Crete); from Ireland east through most of Eurasia (including Turkey) to the Pacific coast; Iceland; Greenland; N America from Alaska to California. 

Irish distribution

Added to the Irish list by Gittings (2006). At present known only from one specimen collected from a plantation of Picea sitchensis in Co.Kerry in 2003. It's occurrence in a conifer plantation in Ireland would be in character with its occurrence elsewhere in Europe. If this species were generally distributed in conifer plantations in Ireland it should have been found previously and should certainly have been reported more than once during the massive sampling programme conducted in conifer plantations by Tom Gittings, during course of the BIOFOREST project that gave rise to the only known Irish record of L. lapponicus. However, only the one specimen was found and it has to be concluded that, despite the availability of many apparently suitable areas of conifers, the species is extremely localised in Ireland. It is tempting to conjecture that this syrphid has only recently arrived in Ireland and is as yet not well-established here. How it arrived in Ireland would then be of some interest, since the species is all but extinct in Britain. The adults are well known for long distance movements, and it would seem as likely that it has reached Ireland from Iberia as that the remnant British population has given rise to its arrival in Ireland. If it is a recent arrival in Ireland one might expect Irish records of it to become more frequent. But at present it would have to be regarded as a candidate for inclusion on any list of threatened Irish Syrphidae.

Temporal change

Records submitted to Data Centre in 2025

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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.

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