For terms see Morphology of Diptera The upper margin of the facial tubercle is smooth.

[1][2][3][4] [5] Scandinavia south to the Iberian Peninsula and from Ireland eastwards through central and southern Europe to Turkey', European parts of Russia, Russian Far East and Siberia.

It is low-flying over ground vegetation; males hover at 1-3m in small clearings.

Flowers visited include Caltha, Cirsium arvense, Leontodon, Leucanthemum, Menyanthes, Prunus spinosa, Ranunculus, Salix, Senecio, and Taraxacum.

The larva feeds in the stems of Achillea, Matricaria and Sonchus oleraceus and in the involucre of Tragopogon.