Pipiza is a genus of hoverflies known as pitheads. There are 52 Pipiza species worldwide, 11 species in North America north of Mexico, and at least 3 species in Minnesota.

Adults are found in forests, forest edges, and forest openings. They can be seen flying around shrubs and on tall herbs. They rest on leaves and they visit flowers. They feed on flower nectar and pollen. The larvae are predaceous. They feed on aphids and phylloxera, which are gall-making or leaf rolling aphids that exude a waxy secretion.

Photo by Alfredo Colon

The source of the common name “pithead” for the fly genus Pipiza is not definitively known. One possible explanation is that the name refers to the flies’ resemblance to small, dark, coal-like objects, similar to the lumps of coal found at the top of a coal mine shaft, which was historically known as a “pithead.” Another possibility is that the name refers to the flies’ resemblance to small, dark, and inconspicuous creatures that might be found around a pithead. Alternatively, the name may be simply a descriptive term for the flies’ appearance, which is often dark and somewhat rounded, like the top of a pit. However, all of these explanations are just speculations, and the true origin of the name remains a mystery.

Description

An important identification feature of “higher Diptera”, those in the suborder Brachycera, is the postpronotal lobes, which are lateral expansions of the shoulder (humeral) area of the pronotum. Hoverflies in the subfamily Syrphinae have no hairs on the postpronotal lobes. The back of the head is strongly concave and tightly appressed to the thorax. On the male the eyes meet at the top of the head. When viewed from above, the male has five visible abdominal segments.

Hoverflies in the tribe Pipizini have hairy, evenly rounded faces. There are never unbroken yellow or other shining bands across the abdomen.

Pitheads are small, black hoverflies. The face is flattened and it does not have small, rounded bumps (tubercles). It is as wide or wider below, at the sides of the mouth, than above, at the antennae. The antennae are shorter than the head. The abdomen is either all black, or it has a pair of yellow spots on tergite two, and sometimes also on tergite three. The wings are short and wide. On the hind leg, the third segment (femur) is slender and slightly enlarged at the tip (apex).


Distribution
		Sources 24, 29, 30, 82, 83. Telford, Horace S.. (1939). The Syrphidae of Minnesota. University of Minnesota. Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station.
11/14/2024


Taxonomy
Order	Diptera (flies)
Suborder	Brachycera
Infraorder	Cyclorrhapha
Zoosection	Aschiza
Superfamily	Syrphoidea
Family	Syrphidae (hover flies)
Subfamily	Pipizinae (pitheads and kin)

The genus Pipiza was formerly place in the tribe Pipizini in the subfamily Syrphinae. In a recent genetic study (Mengual, 2015), the tribe Pipizini was elevated to the subfamily Pipizinae. Two subsequent studies corroborated the move.

Subordinate Taxa
ebony pithead (Pipiza atrata) four-spotted pithead (Pipiza quadrimaculata) large-legged pithead (Pipiza macrofemoralis) sumac gall pithead (Pipiza puella) white-haired pithead (Pipiza femoralis)

Synonyms


Common Names
pitheads

Glossary

Femur

On insects and arachnids, the third, largest, most robust segment of the leg, coming immediately before the tibia. On humans, the thigh bone.

Tergite

The upper (dorsal), hardened plate on a segment of the thorax or abdomen of an arthropod or myriapod.

Tubercle

On plants and animals: a small, rounded, raised projection on the surface. On insects and spiders: a low, small, usually rounded, knob-like projection. On slugs: raised areas of skin between grooves covering the body.


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Alfredo Colon


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