Toxomerus occidentalis

Curran, 1922

Western Calligrapher

Toxomerus occidentalis, commonly known as the Western Calligrapher, is a of hover ( ) to western North America. are frequent visitors to flowers where they feed on nectar and pollen. The are predatory, feeding on and . The species was described by Curran in 1922 and is one of the more commonly observed syrphid flies in its range.

Toxomerus occidentalis by (c) Sandy__R, some rights reserved (CC BY). Used under a CC-BY license.

Toxomerus occidentalis by (c) Ken-ichi Ueda, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Ken-ichi Ueda. Used under a CC-BY license.

Tox.occidentalis-Female-2 crop by Eugene Zelenko. Used under a CC BY-SA 3.0 license.

Pronunciation

How to pronounce Toxomerus occidentalis: /tɔkˈsɒmərəs ˌɒksɪˈdɛntəlɪs/

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Identification

closely resemble the Eastern Calligrapher (Toxomerus geminatus), making visual distinction between these two challenging. Detailed examination of morphological characters is required for positive identification.