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In a Cannabis sativa plant it was found a dead caterpillar with three pupae around; from there emerged three tachinid flies (in Catalonia it is known that Helicoverpera armigera feeds occasionally on this plant, but see also http://www.nhm.ac...index.dsml).

The date a friend gave me the pupae was 15th october 2007 (Spain: Catalonia: Girona: Albanyà: 590 m.). The emergence date is unknown (may be on 2008).

There are a lot of features to study (Palearctic genera key http://www.tachin.... ), but I think the most crucial and clear ones are these:

WING: Wing R1 with bristlets. Vein R4+5 with setae which extend, from the base, beyond intersection with vein R-M. Vein M with a stub about as long as crossvein R-M. Crossvein DM-Cu exceptionally oblique. Cell r4+5 just closed at wing margin.

Then it just lefts Hypovoria and Voria, but Hypovoria has a petiole at cell r4+5... and this one not.

Using the Central European keys, it's more difficult: Parafacial (cheeks) with only one proclinate seta (=except for hairs only with one, strong, downwardly curved bristle); eye bare; metakatepimeron with a patch of short setulae above metacoxa; frons wider than one eye; haustellum of the proboscis at most 2x the length of its diameter; 2nd segment of the arista scarcely longer than its width; ad apical spur of the fore tibia longer than the dorsal apical spur

But don't get clear with:
1- Tergites 3 and 4 without discal bristles ("the central pair of marginal bristles sometimes shifted a little towards the front").
2- Pteropleural (=anepimeron) bristle missing.

NOTE: The pictures are not for the same individual nor sex; it seems there are 2 of 9 mm (with a rounded tip of abdomen an genitalia outside) and 1 (with a pointed abdomen) about 8 mm.

Thanks for confirming, Rafael

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Yes, I think so :)

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Looks OK (the ID, not the specimen )

Voria is a parasitoid of Noctuidae, so that figures as well.


Theo

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Two short questions:
- Are the bigger ones with rounded tip of abdomen and showing terminalia out, females? (and the one with pointed abdomen, a mele?) Or viceversa? The individual sent is one of the first ones
- This species should NOT have median discal bristles on T3 & T4 and NOT pteropleural bristle (as maybe shown in picture 4, the central second row picture)

I'm very sorry that maybe the more interesting tachinid flies sent have some parts broken, sometimes I did'nt have enough patience to wait the Barber's liquid effect, so next time I will do it better

Rafael

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- vice versa - if they have a genital capsule then they are males ... if they have a point or a tube at the end of the abdomen then they are female :)

- I only see one pair of median bristles per tergite and in this case they are always marginals - even if they are slightly more median than normal marginals. Are there 2 pairs or 1?

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Ok, then they were 2 males and 1 female, and the sent one is a male, which suppose it would be usefuli if genitalia is needed

There were marginal bristles, a pair for terguite, on T3 and T4

So, in the picture below what i'm pointing out are not the pteropleural bristles (then would be ok for Voria)?

Thanks

Rafael