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I am trying to get better at at least identifying flies to family. Are these two flies Tachinidae?

I'm going by overall appearance and the lots of bristles.

Thanks for any help!

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Here's the second fly. Tachinid?

Both were photographed in West Virginia, USA.

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Stephen

The first one I think is going to be Pollenia sp, so Calliphoridae. See the short golden hairs on the side of the thorax? And the bend in the 4th vein is not a sharp change in angle, but a rounded corner.

The second one certainly has the typical tachinid rear end coronet of bristles, but I expect Chris or Theo can take you forward with this one.

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Hi Stephen (& Susan)

I agree with Susan - the first is a callaphorid, with its irregular dusting on the abdomen and hairy thorax. If you compare the 2 pics the first fly is hairy but not exactly 'bristly'.

Fly 2 is definitely a tachinid and it might be a Carcelia sp. but it's impossible to say for sure without a clearer lateral view, showing the bristles on the face.

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Susan, Chris, Thanks so much for the help. I am starting to categorize my photos and notes and I hope soon to be better at assigning family. Thanks so much for giving, not just the ID, but the several tips. I don't have much experience with things like wing venation, but what little I have done I have been pleasantly surprised at how clear the venation details are in most photographs.

Thanks again!

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Your welcome. If you search the archive for 'Pollenia' you'll see that everyone sends pictures of these flies and labels them as 'Tachinidae?'. No wonder, they are large, common in gardens and fields, rather slow and thus relatively easy to shoot.

Given the variability of the shape and hairiness, and often poor condition of overwintering adults I stilll occasionally mistake Pollenia for a tachinid in the field.