Not All Flies are Yucky: 10 Most Colorful Flies

Butterflies, dragonflies, damselflies and others are colorful insects but they are not considered true flies. A true fly is characterized by having a pair of wings like the common house fly, hover fly and a lot more. Most people regard flies as yucky creatures because they are usually found on dirty areas aside from the fact that they transmit lots of deadly diseases. Unknown to many, there are also several species of colorful flies. Check these species of Diptera.

Adejeania Vexatrix

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This colorful insect named Adejeania vexatrix is a species of fly found in western North America from Mexico to Wyoming and British Columbia. The Adejeania genus is monotypic, meaning to say, it has only one species. In addition to its bright orange abdomen and prominent, heavy black setae, this species is noted for its greatly elongated palpi, which stick straight forward from under the fly’s head.

Australian Sheep Blowfly 

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Australian Sheep Blowfly is scientifically named Lucilia cuprina. This beautifully colored species of fly is well-known as a worldwide pest of sheep.

Hoverfly 

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Perhaps this creature with distinct coloration is one of the most popular and beautiful species of flies. Scientifically known as Simosyrphus grandicornis, an Australasian hoverfly, is the sole member of its genus, and is one of the two most common hoverflies in Australia, alongside Melangyna viridiceps.

Mediterranean Fruit Fly

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This brightly colored but destructive insect is native to the Mediterranean area hence its common name. Ceratitis capitata is commonly known as Mediterranean Fruit Fly or simply Medfly for short. It is a species of fruit fly capable of wreaking extensive damage to a wide range of fruit crops. It has spread invasively to many parts of the world, including Australia and North and South America.

Long-legged Fly 

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This metallic-colored creature belongs to Dolichopodidae family of true flies commonly known as Long-legged Flies with more than 7,000 described species. They are generally fairly small, metallic flies with large, prominent eyes but otherwise they show considerable variation: most have long legs but some do not. The males often have enlarged genitalia which can be useful for species recognition. The adults are predatory on other small animals.

Clubbed General

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Scientifically known as Stratiomys chamaeleon, the Clubbed General, is a species of soldier fly found in continental Europe.

Common Yellow Dung Fly 

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Just hearing or reading the name of this insect and the fact that they are often found on mammal feces, most notably that of horses and cows is already a yucky thing. But despite the name, Scathophaga stercoraria, known as the Common Yellow Dung Fly or sometimes called the Golden Dung Fly, it is a colorful fly. It is one of the most familiar and abundant of flies in many parts of the northern hemisphere.

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Flutter-Wing Fly (Palloptera Umbellatarum)   

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This uniquely colored insect belongs to Pallopteridae commonly known as Flutter-wing Fly. It is also known by other common names such as Trembling-wing Flu and Waving-wing Fly because of the striking vibration of the wings in many species. They are found in the temperate regions of the Northern and Southern hemispheres.

Thick-Headed Flies (Conopidae) 

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Yellow and black combination is always regarded as pretty combination by many. This fly resembles the Clubbed General in body coloration. Thick-headed flies are distributed worldwide except for the poles and many of the Pacific islands. About 800 species in 47 genera are described worldwide, approximately 70 of which are found in North America. The majority of conopids is black and yellow, or black and white, and often strikingly resembles wasps, bees, or flies.

Homoneura Hirayamae 

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This colorful insect belongs to Lauxaniidae, a family of acalyptrate flies. The family contains around 1,500 described species distributed worldwide. These are generally small flies (length 5 mm or less) with large compound eyes, often brightly colored in life. Many species have patterned wings.

Bonus Insect

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Certainly, this is not a fly. This is actually a cockroach. This species of cockroach is commonly known as Bush Cockroach. This creature is a manifestation that some cockroaches are also colorful.  

Hope you enjoyed this. Thank you!  

For a related article about flies see

Fantastic, Unique & Weird-looking Flies

For more colorful creatures see:

World’s Most Attractive and Colorful Reptiles

The Worlds Most Colorful Snakes

The Twenty Most Brilliantly Colored Birds in the World