We spotted this odd looking chap in the office, and from a distance thought he was a bee. Being a big fan of bees, I immediately jumped on the desk to take a picture and prove that he's not a bee!
It looks like some kind of wasp-mimic - I am convinced this is a variety of fly (it's the eyes which give it away for me), but my colleagues are less certain. No amount of googling has led me to anything which looks the same!
Can anyone help to identify this? Thank you in advance! :)
Not a bee, indeed a fly. A true fly- a group that only have a single pair of wings - Di(two)-ptera(wing)=Diptera. You were on the right track, in Uk these are often called beefly/bee-flies.
Here's some people and links that can likely help - and submit records to know more precisely which of several it can be ...
http://www.brc.ac.uk/soldierflies-and-allies/bee-flies
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