Picture-Winged Fly
What an interesting looking fly this is. The Picture-Winged Fly is a member of the fly order, Diptera. There are many different species of these flies and this one is the Delphinia picta. It is the most common picture-winged fly found in Eastern North America. Their big, black wings have white spots and stripes. They are very small flies, measuring only 1/4- 3/8 inch long. Adults can be found beginning in the middle of May, on flowers to feed on their nectar, or on decaying plant matter. Females lay their 400-500 eggs in badly decaying vegetation lying on the ground. In 4-7 days, the eggs hatch and feed on the decaying vegetation that their eggs were laid on.
I can just "picture" hundreds of these flies having their way with a dead vegetable garden, and I am very happy that I didn't have to witness that to get a photo of one.
Thanks for looking!
Information Source: britannica.com, entnemdept.ufl.edu, insectidentification.org
Image Source: 100% own work.