Syritta pipiens, sometimes called the thick-legged hoverfly, is one of the most common species in the insect family Syrphidae.

[5] They are fast and nimble fliers, and their larvae are found in wet, rotting organic matter such as garden compost, manure, and silage.

[6][7] The species is also commonly found in human-created environments such as most farmland, gardens, and urban parks, wherever there are flowers.

[9] Thus, they play an important role in environmental functionality, and can serve as bio-indicators, in which their abundance can reflect the health of the environment.

[11] The species Syritta pipiens is within the family of Syrphidae, commonly called hover or flower flies.

Another distinctive morphological feature is the pair of small white wedge-shaped spots on the fly's thorax directly behind its head.

Syritta pipiens belong to the subfamily Eristalinae, closely related to the well-known dronefly, Eristalis tenax.

[7][8] At the larval stage, the species inhabits wetlands that are in proximity to bodies of freshwater such as lakes, ponds, rivers, ditches.

[5] Adult flies feed on the flowers of water-willow (Dianthera americana L.), white vervain (Verbena urticifolia L.), American pokeweed (Phytolacca decandra L.), and candyleaf (Stevia rebaudiana).

List of flowers they also visit: Achillea, Allium, Aster, Calluna, Cardamine, Cirsium palustre, Convolvulus, Crataegus, Epilobium, Euphorbia, Galium, Jasione montana, Leontodon, Polygonum cuspidatum, Potentilla erecta, Prunus laurocerasus, Ranunculus, Rosa canina, Senecio jacobaea, Sorbus aucuparia, Tussilago.

[18] Males Syritta pipiens also use motion camouflage when they approach female, so as to remain cryptic and become more successful in forcing copulation.

Flower flies (the family Syrphidae) are critical and one of the most common bio-control agents of plant pests because their larvae feed on aphids.

[10] Because they play an important role in supporting the functionality of the environment, flower flies also serve as bio-indicators of environmental health, demonstrating the effects of climate change on pollinators.

[10] Their abundance is closely linked to agricultural landscapes and arable lands and is contingent upon the density of flowering plants available.