Diptera.info

Posted by jezlee on 28-05-2007 17:48

Another fly that was photographed in the UK (25th May 2007) on a bramble/nettle patch next to a canal in the West Midlands. Can anyone help me in it's identification? Many thanks in advance for your help!

Jeremy

Posted by ChrisR on 28-05-2007 18:45

Reminds me of Nemorilla floralis (Tachinidae), but I'm not very confident about that ID because I can't see many of the key-able features (scutellar bristles, facial bristles etc). Maybe Theo can add something? :)

Posted by jezlee on 28-05-2007 19:25

Chris Raper wrote:
Reminds me of Nemorilla floralis (Tachinidae), but I'm not very confident about that ID because I can't see many of the key-able features (scutellar bristles, facial bristles etc). Maybe Theo can add something? :)

I think this is the same fly, if it helps, Chris .... :)

Posted by Zeegers on 28-05-2007 19:26

Upps, too fast.
The abdominal pattern has a typical jizz, I know, not much of a feature if you're not familiar with the species. And the long yellowish hairs on occiput add to this jizz.

Theo

Posted by jezlee on 28-05-2007 19:43

Zeegers wrote:
Upps, too fast.
The abdominal pattern has a typical jizz, I know, not much of a feature if you're not familiar with the species. And the long yellowish hairs on occiput add to this jizz.

Theo

Thanks, Theo for your help - I am a complete novice with flies! Could you explain what or where the occiput is?

Jez

Edited by jezlee on 28-05-2007 19:44

Posted by ChrisR on 28-05-2007 20:07

Theo is refering to the yellow 'collar' of hairs behind the head. Most tachinid flies have white and/or black hairs behind the head but a few genera have really bushy pale hairs (Exorista, Eurithia etc). My (educated) guess on the identity was based on: very hairy eyes; lots of pale hairs behind the head; the lack of some other features; and I then checked the dusting pattern on the thorax against my photo of a Nemorilla at http://tachinidae...brcno=9601 :) If we could have seen a few other features it would have been a very easy ID - particular the humeral callus - the "shoulders" that make up the forward corners of the thorax, where N. floralis has 3 bristles arranged in a forward-pointing triangle :)