Best time to see: May to end Sep

Key facts

Tachinid flies are parasitoids, whose young develop inside, and kill, other insects, such as caterpillars

Britain has some 270 species, many dull-coloured or resembling houseflies

Common and widespread across Britain and Ireland

Recognition

Large and bristly fly with an orange abdomen with a black stripe down the centre; 10–14mm long

found in meadows and woodland margins

Often seen feeding or basking on umbellifers or waterside plants, or on the ground searching for hosts for its eggs

Lifecycle

Females seek out the nests of other insects – mainly moths and butterflies – and lay their eggs nearby

After hatching the young eat and kill their hosts, then emerge to repeat the cycle