My brother found a strange mass of twigs and garbage hanging from a dead branch over a stream that was completely full of flies from this species you can see below. What can be said about it?
location: Silves, Portugal
date: 02/10/2010
YouTube Video
Posted by Rui Andrade on 03-10-2010 23:38
#2
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Posted by Rui Andrade on 03-10-2010 23:39
#3
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Posted by Rui Andrade on 03-10-2010 23:40
#4
In this photo you can see many specimens resting on the shadow.
Posted by Rui Andrade on 03-10-2010 23:41
#5
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Posted by Andrzej on 04-10-2010 00:08
#6
Probably a Piophilid fly !
Posted by Nosferatumyia on 04-10-2010 07:11
#7
certainly a piophilid
Posted by Rui Andrade on 05-10-2010 00:43
#8
Thank you so much Andrzej and Valery! Any idea to what genus it belongs to?
Posted by jorgemotalmeida on 05-10-2010 11:12
#9
Hmm... Andrey Ozerov tolds me that this is not a piophilid.
Edited by jorgemotalmeida on 05-10-2010 11:16
Posted by Paul Beuk on 05-10-2010 12:18
#10
My first impression was Anthomyzidae but when so many people seemed to be convinced it was Piophilidae I decided to shut up...
Posted by Rui Andrade on 05-10-2010 17:54
#11
What a confuse fly:D. If an anthomyzid, which one?
Posted by jorgemotalmeida on 06-05-2013 19:20
#12
Chloropidae.
Posted by Nosferatumyia on 06-05-2013 19:35
#13
Chloropid with vibrissae? Something more remarcable than a woman with beard.
Posted by von Tschirnhaus on 06-05-2013 20:00
#14
Apotropina longepilosa (Strobl, 1893), Chloropidae, Siphonellopsinae: Only two Apotropina species in Europe, many tropical species especially in the Australasian Region, mostly undescribed. Some species aggregate by thousands in shelters or caves (Namibia, Australia). Few is known on the developmental stages. Diverse biology of this plesiomorphic subfamily. Some long orbital bristles reclinate some proclinate, one or two proclinate intercalar bristles [to be seen in the photograph] inwards of the shoulders and many other pecularities within the chloropid family, for example the highly asymmetric male postabdomen.
M. von Tschirnhaus thoroughly studied six of the Portuguese specimens and compared them with his material of the European species, A. longepilosa and A. brevivenosa Dely-Draskovits, 1977, from Germany, France and Turkey. There is certain variability in A. longepilosa concerning the pubescence of the pleuron. Partly the mesopleuron (= anepisternum) is shining but completely covered with some dust, partly the black mark on the lower side of the mesopleuron is shiny, the other part distinctly matt. The propleuron is not completely shining, but its lower hind corner is dusted, too. Distinctions between the length of the arista does not work well, though the arista of longepilosa is a bit shorter. The length of the criss-crossed acr in comparison to the orbitals does not work at all. I confirmed only some of Dely-Draskovits’ distinguishing characters and detected furthers: The wings are brownish in longepilosa. In brevivenosa the dark veins are much darker than the hyaline membrane. Epandrium small in A.l. and big and more rounded in A.b. Whitish pubescence of 3rd antennal segment very dense and longer in A.l., normal and scarcer A.b. Peristome with dark narrow edge in A.l., yellow in A.b. Lower part of face brownish or slightly darkened in A.l., yellow in A.b. 2nd costal section much longer than 3rd in A.l., short in A.b. 3rd antennal segment sexualdimorphic (females blackish), males: lower part ochrous or brownish in A.l., yellow in A.b. 3+1 or mostly 3+2 dc in A.l., 3rd dc from behind not shorter than 4th, all becoming shorter towards the head; A.b: 3+1 dc, the 3rd shorter than the 2nd and the 4th.
Edited by von Tschirnhaus on 31-05-2013 15:58
Posted by Rui Andrade on 06-05-2013 20:52
#15
Thank you for your help! I had already sent some specimens to Jindrich Rohacek and he reached the same conclusion as you. :)