The Diptera are the order of insects with the two-winged flies. It is a big group, but one of the most obvious and relatively easy to ID are the Hoverflies. Most species don’t have common names so in the gallery below they have their latin names. All species shown are recorded from Holt Lowes

Their biology is complex, the adults are usually nectar feeders but their larvae are usually predatory. many hoverfly larvae eat aphids for instance. Some larvae are aquatic.

it will be fairly obvious that many of these hoverflies are bee or wasp mimics. That means that predators (mostly birds) have learned that this warning colouration can mean a nasty sting if it is a bee that is eaten. The hoverflies thus gain protection- they merely have to mimic bees and wasps and are not eaten