---
title: "Common Lovebug"
description: "Plecia nearctica — Insecten en spinnen. The lovebug (Plecia nearctica) is a species of march fly found in parts of Central America and the southeastern United States, especially along the Gulf Coast."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/nl/animal/common-lovebug
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Common Lovebug

> Plecia nearctica — Insecten en spinnen. The lovebug (Plecia nearctica) is a species of march fly found in parts of Central America and the southeastern United States, especially along the Gulf Coast.

- Scientific name: *Plecia nearctica*
- Category: `insects` (Insecten en spinnen)
- Habitats: unknown
- iNaturalist observations: 11865
- Wikidata: [Q1763509](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1763509)
- iNaturalist taxon: [127635](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/127635)

## Names

- en: Common Lovebug
- es: Mosca de marzo
- pt: Besouro-do-amor

## Countries with the most observations

US (8969), MX (27)

## Summary

The lovebug (Plecia nearctica) is a species of march fly found in parts of Central America and the southeastern United States, especially along the Gulf Coast. It is also known as the honeymoon fly or double-headed bug. During and after mating, mature pairs remain together, even in flight, for up to several days.
The species was first described in 1940 by D. E. Hardy, though it had been observed in Louisiana as early as 1911. At the time, Hardy reported the distribution of lovebugs to be widespread, but more common in Texas and Louisiana than other Gulf States. By the end of the 20th century, the species had spread…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lovebug

## Photo

![Common Lovebug](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/common-lovebug/medium.jpg)

Photo: lightbed · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/157426001

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/common-lovebug?lang=nl` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).