Japanese|日本語

Honeybee?

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  • Hanaabu | Hoverfly
  • No, it's a Hoverfly.
    Among the flowers in full bloom, there are many bees are flying. But if you look closely, you may see something slightly different than a bee. I often find Hoverflies that look like bees.
    There are many creatures that mimic, but Hoverflies are a good example of Batesian mimicry that originally harmless species resemble harmful species in order to avoid predation. Furthermore, they mimic not only their appearance but also their behavior to increase the chances of survival.
    It is clear that Hoverflies not only have a similar color scheme to bees, but also that their body structures are very similar. In particular, the shape and attachment of their wings are similar, so it seems like they could fly in the same way as a bee. They are basically harmless to humans, so it might be interesting to get up close and observe the differences between them and bees.

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    Hoverfly(upper left, bottom right)and Honeybee (upper right, bottom left)

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    There are some differences between them. Hoverfly has larger compound eyes and shorter or no antenna.

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    Issa Kobayashi a famous Japanese poet wrote haiku poem featured the fly's behavior that rubbing them front legs.

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