Friday 29 August 2014

On the fly

So I took this fly from Cullaloe which I now have figured out down to family at least. I wonder how many of the family look like this in general - I have a feeling there's a resemblance.


You can see from the face that it has a ptilinal suture, it has a bent vein 4, oblong antennae and it has also a thoracic suture - it's a calyptrate fly. This makes it one of Tachinidae; Rhinophoridae, Calliphoridae, Sarcohagidae, Anthomyidae, Muscidae, Faniidae and Scathophagidae. The second half of those are chopped off the list when you see it has Hynopleural bristles.

Lacking a strong post-scutellum, it isn't a Tachinid, and the lower squama doesn't diverge from the scutellum edge so it isn't a Rhinophorid. I wasn't sure if it might be a Callophorid but it seems the hair on the thorax doesn't meet the description of long and wavy and golden, which makes it a Sarcophagid. Looks about right. Wing pattern is right and the other members of the family are at home with that stripes and spots patterning too. 16 genera, 61 species at the time of the AIDGAP family key. Unless I find out there's an easy path I think I'll leave that one there for now!



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