disabled marmalade

[diggleken]

Hi,
this disabled marmalade hover E. balteatus was in the garden today, coping quite well with a clear twisted abdomen problem.

I wonder how or why this has happened, it seems not to be damage but natural - anyone else seen this?
Cheers
Ken

[Anzu]

ooo interesting, I think you are right about it being natural rather then physical damage. I wonder if he has a hard time hovering being unbalanced like that?

Katy

[JRsbugs]

He might have trouble doing what nature intended him to do!

I have had another hover with a bent abdomen but it was bent downwards, it might have straightened but I saw one which could have been the same over two weeks later still with a bent abdomen, it was a female Eupeodes luniger.

When you see the pupa E. balteatus comes out of it's a wonder there's not more deformed ones!

Episyrphus balteatus