Beneficial allies for your crops: Hoverflies
Monday 15 September 2025 PestFacts
Beneficial insects are important for sustainable farming as they help with pollination and controlling pests. As spring arrives, we're already seeing parasitoid wasps, lacewings, ladybird beetles, hoverflies, and other predators.
By managing these helpful insects, growers may be able to use fewer pesticides, leading to healthier crops.
Hoverflies are one of the most valuable beneficial insects. Their larvae play an important role in biological control, feeding primarily on aphids, but also attacking a range of soft-bodied insects like caterpillars and mealybugs. As adults, hoverflies contribute to crop pollination, making them a key ally in both pest management and crop productivity.
Adult hoverflies are typically 4 to 10 mm long and have dark bodies with distinctive black and yellow markings. They're distinguished from bees and wasps by their slender flattened bodies and wings. Unlike bees and wasps, which have 2 pairs of wings, hoverflies are true flies and possess only one pair of clear wings.
Hoverfly larvae can grow up to 10 mm long but are often difficult to spot. Their flattened, legless, maggot-like appearance and green or brown colouring allows them to blend into foliage while searching for aphids. At times, larvae may be present in high numbers and are sometimes mistaken for pests.
For a closer look, watch the short videos from The Beatsheet (Queensland), which show hoverfly larvae actively searching for aphids and feeding on them.
Let hoverflies work for you: Simple steps to support these pest predators
Adult hoverflies are strongly attracted to yellow and white flowers, especially those with open centres that provide easy access to pollen. Creating diverse habitats like hedgerows, cover crops, brush piles, and wildflower strips can help sustain populations of these generalist predators by supplying alternative food sources, shelter, and protection from pesticides or extreme weather.
Hoverflies are also fast and powerful flyers, capable of migrating long distances. They can quickly move from feeding on flowers along crop borders to the centre of a paddock. With excellent eyesight, hoverflies can immediately detect aphid colonies within crops. You will often see them hovering around plants in search of prey, before laying their eggs close to these food sources so that newly hatched larvae have immediate access to food.
Excessive pesticide use can significantly reduce hoverfly numbers, limiting their value as natural pest control agents. Avoiding broad-spectrum insecticides and selecting products that are less harmful to non-target organisms helps conserve hoverfly populations and maintain ecological balance.
To support informed decision-making, Cesar's beneficials chemical toxicity table, developed specifically for the Australian grains industry, offers guidance on selecting effective pest-control products that minimise harm to beneficial insects. This resource is particularly valuable in situations where chemical intervention is unavoidable.
Report to PestFacts
The PestFacts SA team always wants to know what invertebrates you find in your crops and pastures, whether it's a pest, beneficial, or unknown species. We even want to know about the usual pests.
Please send your reports or identification requests via the PestFacts map.
Alternatively, please contact:
Maryam Ehsangar
Phone: 0448 010 339
Email: maryam.ehsangar@sa.gov.au
Maarten van Helden:
Phone: 0481 544 429
Email: maarten.vanhelden@sa.gov.au