Rat-tailed-maggots
Guides
Chrysogaster
Low-horned Wrinkleheads
Chrysogaster is a genus of small hoverflies in the subfamily Eristalinae. Adults are dark or black with shiny colorful reflections and visit flowers in damp marshy areas. The aquatic larvae possess a short posterior breathing siphon, shorter than that of related genera such as Eristalis. Several related genera—Melanogaster, Orthonevra, Lejogaster, and Riponnensia—were formerly classified within Chrysogaster.
Palpada
Plushback Flies
Palpada is a genus of 85 species of flower flies (hoverflies) in the tribe Eristalini, distributed across the Neotropical and Nearctic regions. Adults are often colorful and bee-like in appearance. The genus is distinguished from related Eristalini genera by specific morphological characters including uniform eye pile, pale hairs on the meron, and distinctive wing venation. Larvae are aquatic 'rat-tailed' maggots with extensible breathing siphons that allow survival in low-oxygen environments.