Scorpion Fly Facts & Information
Protect your home or business from scorpion flies by learning techniques for identification and control.
Order Mecoptera
Treatment
How do I get rid of scorpion flies?
What Orkin Does
Orkin Pros are trained to help manage flies and similar pests. Since every building or home is different, your Orkin Pro will design a unique program for your situation.
Keeping flies out of homes and buildings is an ongoing process, not a one-time treatment. Your Orkin Pro can provide the right solution to keep flies in their place...out of your home, or business.
Call us 877-621-0297
FAQs
-
This insect species lives near but not in water and needs moist, cool, vegetative habitats to breed and develop. These insects usually don't enter homes, but residents near lakes or marshes may see one fly indoors accidentally. Scorpion flies do not infest houses and spend most of their time on low-hanging leaves and branches, looking for insect prey.
-
Scorpion flies do not infest indoors and therefore would have no indoor signs. They usually are encountered as adults outdoors. They may be seen in vegetation.
-
Despite its frightening appearance, a scorpion fly does not bite or sting humans. Males use their curled, scorpion-like tail for reproduction, and their cone-like long mouthparts for feeding, plus these insects are not venomous. Scorpion flies do not cause harm or damage to homes.
Behavior, Diet & Habits
Understanding Scorpion Flies
Appearance
Scorpion flies are so called due to the males of one family (Panorpidae) having enlarged abdomen and genitalia, which resemble a scorpion’s tail and stinger.
Stinger: Scorpion flies are so called due to the males of one family (Panorpidae) having enlarged abdomen and genitalia, which resemble a scorpion’s tail and stinger.
Wings: Scorpion flies have two pairs of wings
Legs: Strong pair of hind legs, which they use to catch prey.
However, despite their double set of wings, scorpion flies generally fly slowly and in erratic patterns.
Bites
Although scorpion flies appear alarming, they are not known to harm humans. They also seldom breed in large groups, preferring instead to live in single, mated pairs.
Diet
Depending on the species, some scorpion fly larvae may be predatory. Others feed on moist, decomposing organic matter, which can include carrion.
Reproduction & Life Cycle
Larvae resemble small caterpillars, with compound eyes and short antennae. During pupation, the scorpion fly buries itself into loose soil, emerging as an adult fly.
Scorpion fly mating and feeding rituals are of interest to the scientific community. Females select their partners based on gift offerings of prey. Scorpion flies are also known as hanging flies, as they sometimes hang suspended from a plant branch in order to blend into their surroundings. They then pounce on smaller insects.