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A rearing method is described for the filter feeding hoverfly Eristalis arbustorum (L.) based on the use of rabbit droppings. The effects of adding vitamin C and/or yeast to the diet on development, survival and body weight in low and high light intensities were examined. In other studies, the addition of vitamin C has been found to alleviate the effects of light on immature survival. In the present study, no detrimental effects of light were detected on survival or development time, although immature development was slightly faster under bright conditions. Vitamin C had no effect on any of the variables measured. The addition of yeast to the diet did not affect survival, but significantly shortened development time and increased adult body weight. The adult flies from the yeast treatments were the same size as wild caught flies. A crowding effect on development time and body weight completely disappeared in treatments containing a lot of yeast, implying that competition for food was the primary cause of the effect.