Lovebug
The lovebug is a black fly with a bright orange or red chest and red legs. In early spring lots of them come out at the same time and fly around in pairs, joined together at the tail. That is how it got its name.
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Fun facts
It is a slow and clumsy flyer and usually flies just above the ground.
When it falls on its back, it tumbles around and kicks its legs to turn over.
The mother lays her eggs just anywhere on the soil.
It is one of at least 90 kinds of March flies in the United States and Canada.
Most asked questions about Lovebug
?Why is it called a lovebug?
In spring the flies swarm and fly around in pairs, joined at the tail.
?Do lovebugs bite?
No. Lovebugs cannot bite or sting.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Bibio femoratus
- Named by
- Wiedemann, 1820
- Group
- Flies and mosquitoes
- Family
- Bibionidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Diptera > Bibionidae
- Lives on
- North America
- Also known as
- March fly
Where the facts come from
- Bibio femoratus (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by WanderingMogwai. CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
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