Stable Fly vs Yellow-legged Dance Fly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Stable Fly Yellow-legged Dance Fly
Scientific Name Stomoxys calcitrans Empis livida
Order Diptera Diptera
Family Muscidae Empididae
Size 6-8 mm 7-10 mm
Habitat Farmland Rivers & Streams
Diet Blood Feeders Nectar Feeders
Regions Worldwide Europe
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Stable Fly

A blood-feeding fly that closely resembles the house fly but has a prominent piercing proboscis. It is a painful biter of livestock and humans.

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Did You Know?

Unlike house flies, both males and females are blood feeders and deliver a painful bite.

Yellow-legged Dance Fly

A medium-sized dance fly with yellowish legs, a grayish body, and a distinctive long proboscis. It forms conspicuous mating swarms near streams and in sheltered clearings.

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Did You Know?

In some dance fly species, males wrap worthless objects in silk to trick females into mating, a form of sexual deception.