Conservation Status
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No specific information could be found. It can be assumed that as parasitoids, the success of the species is dependent on the success of the host or hosts.
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Cyclicity
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Adults have been collected in early-to-mid May.
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Distribution
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Nearctic (Hall & Evenhuis 1980).
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General Description
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"4-6 mm long, 12-14 mm wingspan. Wings have brown tint and faint darker mottling throughout. Hair with blonde tint.
Characteristics shared with other Bombylius species include a slender first antennal segment, long scattered bristly hairs, holoptic males, conspicuously bristled hind femora, and a distinct intercalary vein (Hull 1973)."
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Habitat
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Arid regions with loose soil of the type frequented by ground-nesting bees.
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Life Cycle
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Very little species-specific information available. The general bombyliid life cycle is described in Marshall (2006). Females coat eggs with a sticky substance in order to gather a protective layer of soil when they are dropped into burrows of potential hosts. First instar larvae actively penetrate host nests, then molt into sedentary ectoparasitoids, a phenomenon known as hypermetamorphosis. Pupae are equipped with rigid ornamentation to assist escape from the burrow. Adults resemble bees as a deterrent against predators, and imitate them behaviourally and functionally by feeding on nectar and spreading pollen.
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Trophic Strategy
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Larvae parasitoids of ground-nesting bees, adults feed on nectar (Hull 1973).
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