Species details

Chrysotoxum vernale Loew, 1841

Biology

Available records suggest that this species occurs across a range of habitats, from heathland to woodland clearings and perhaps even reed beds. The larva is thought to be associated with ant-tended root aphids. Nothing is known of its actual ant associate and to date no breeding site has been confirmed with certainty. Adults have been reported visiting Wood Spurge Euphorbia amygdaloides.

Distribution

All modern records are confined to Dorset and Hampshire where it appears to be restricted to a narrow coastal belt. There are also 19th Century records from Cornwall (G.H. Verrall) and Devon (J.W. Yerbury). There are numerous records from the Channel Islands, suggesting that C. vernale is close to the edge of its European range.

Status

ENDANGERED - Ball & Morris, 2010. Endangered (RDB1) - Falk, 1991 and Shirt, 1987.