Bee flies belong to the Order Diptera, rather than Order Hymenoptera that includes bees and wasps. Unlike true bees, bee flies only have one pair of wings, they lack the narrow waist, and they have longer legs than bees. They have furry bodies, and many species have elongated mouthparts for obtaining nectar. They hover and crawl over flowers in the same way that bees do.

The bee fly in the photograph is feeding on a tickseed sunflower and its beak-like mouth part is very conspicuous. Many other bee flies are mostly black.

The larvae of most bee flies are parasitic on insects and insect larvae that burrow or live in holes in the ground.