Appearance
"M. bomboides" typically have three basal abdominal tergites densely covered with yellow hairs. The fourth and fifth tergites have black hairs, and the final two segments have pale hairs. The ventrum of the abdomen is adorned with yellow hairs. The average body length of "M. bomboides" is about 25 mm.
Distribution
"M. bomboides" occurs in the southeastern United States in states including North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, and Mississippi.Habitat
Adults typically live in open habitats often in the vicinity of apiaries, perching on stalks of weeds or tips of shrubs from which they launch their attacks.Reproduction
Specific feeding habits of larvae of "M. bomboides" are unknown, but other "Mallophora" larvae are ectoparasites on scarabaeid beetle larvae in the soil."M. bomboides" lay their eggs in soil.Food
As a member of the family Asilidae, "M. bomboides" preys on various aculeate Hymenoptera species. "M. bomboides" in particular prey on bumblebees such as "Bombus pensylvanicus", to which "M. bomboides" bears remarkable resemblances.Evolution
The similar appearances of some flies and bees have been noted since the time of Aristotle. In fact, in these ancient times, the confusion between the two insects led to the disproven notion that bees undergo spontaneous generation from decaying carcasses. British entomologists William Kirby and William Spence first theorized in 1817 that flies gained an advantage by resembling bees, reasoning that the physical similarity of hoverflies from genus Volucella to bumblebees enabled the invasion of bee nests. Having entered the bee nests without arousing suspicion, the flies then lay eggs and depart without being attacked. The same idea was later put forth by British naturalist Alfred Russell Wallace in 1871.References:
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