Common Tachinid

Tachina fera can reach a length of 9–14 millimetres (0.35–0.55 in), with a wingspan of 16–27 mm. These tachinids show a grayish upperside of the thorax, due to dense pollinosity, with regular black stripes. The abdomen is yellow orange with a wide black dorsal stripe ending in a point. They are bristly on the thorax and abdomen, especially towards the tip, where they have long thorn-shaped, protruding black bristles. Close to the thorax there is a striking, orange-red and shiny 'bump' called postscutellum, with a thin black edge. The head is yellowish colored, with long antennae, whose second segment is yellow, while the third, much shorter, is black. The back of the head shows yellowish hairs and the large compound eyes are red in color. The size of the eyes in relation to the head is sex dependent. The palps of the mouthparts are long, thin and thread like. The wings are slightly yellow tinged, show a brownish yellow veining and are yellow brown at the base. Calyptrae are whitish yellow. The legs are predominantly yellowish, but in the male they are usually dark with a yellow tip. This species is very similar to Tachina magnicornis, that is a little smaller, has a medial dorsal band forming lozenges and that does not terminate in a point.

This species can be found in the entire Palearctic realm, across Europe as far north as Scandinavia and European Russia. It is also present in Israel and North Asia, east to China, Mongolia, Korea, and Japan, and in North Africa.