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Found today, without the camera was just a little black fly, then I reported it on the PC and seem to be a Tachinidae, small, dark metallic. Hairy eyes in the second half, below.

17.11.2013 - Northeast Italy


Tachinidae di Marcello Consolo, su Flickr

Thanks for the help!

Ciao,
Marcello

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Very interesting ... not sure what it is without a specimen though :) Did you have any more photos from different angles?

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Yeah, I thought it was a Muscidae otherwise I would taken the subject!
I have another shot but it's similar:



Thank you!

Ciao,
Marcello

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Very interesting case.

First impression was Erynnia or Erynniopsis, but those have a clear petiole in the wing

So now I am thinking Elodia morio, a species I have very little experience with



Theo

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Elodia morio is a good call but it doesn't quite match my specimen here. Mine (a male reared from the host) lacks any trace of dusting on the thorax and the abdomen is broader with thinner/finer median discal & marginal bristles. I will have a look at the NHM tomorrow and see what we have there :)

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Thanks Chris and Theo, I'm sorry to not have others photos, but the Tachinid was moving too fast around the flower and I had just the time for a few of shots before it has flown away.

The only way to help you is to zoom some parts :)

Thanks!

Ciao,
Marcello

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Hi Marcello


The pictures are actually pretty decent for such a small fly.
We need to see tiny details, which does not make our life more easy.


Theo

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Maybe we are barking up the wrong tree.
If you enter in tachinidae.eu
* facial ridge with setulae over 1/2
* occiput with only black haira
* apical scutellar setae weak, parallel or divergent

you end up with either Phytomyptera or Neoplectops.

??


Theo

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And if you loosen the black hairs on occiput to 'with some white hairs', you can add Elodia.

Theo

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Thank you Theo for the great help!

About Phytomyptera genus in the North Italy we have:

Phytomyptera nigrina
Phytomyptera bohemica
Phytomyptera cingulate
Phytomyptera stackelbergi
Phytomyptera vaccinii

but the genus Phytomyptera have the bare eyes, the subject in the photo have hairs in the lower part.

About Neoplectops genus it's present only in the South Italy with Neoplectops pomonellae but it have the bare eyes too.

Elodia genus, here we have Elodia ambulatoria and Elodia morio

The subject in the photo have only black air on the occiput (at least for what I can see), but it have a more long bristle (spine) at the mid tibia (Elodia genus).

I could make a chaetotaxy of the subject if it can help you (just because I have the HQ res of the photo) :)

thank you again for your help!

Ref. "I Tachinidi della fauna Italiana. Pierfilippo Cerretti"

Ciao,
Marcello

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Just a quick shot of Elodia morio, for reference ... all of the NHM specimens lack dusting on the enterior portion of the thorax.

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Hi Chris,

thank you for posting this photo!
You're right there is a lack of dusting on the anterior part of the thorax.
Can you confirm please that Elodia morio have the bare eyes?

Thanks!

Ciao,
Marcello

PS: I hope next week (weather permitting) to back in the place where I saw the Tachinid, if I found it again I'll catch it.

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OK, so no Elodia.

It is not Phytomyptera, I would be very surprised.

So we are lost.


Theo

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I'll throw another into the hat - how about Leiophora innoxia?

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Leiophora innoxia I think seem a good one.

It's present in North Italy, eye with a few of hairs in the lower part (just like the subject), ocellar setae well developed and proclinate.
3 orbital reclinate upper setae, or 2 of the same length.
0-2 orbital proclinate setae in the male, 2 in the female.
White hairs in a portion of the posteroventral head (?).
Some or not black hairs behind the postocular line.

By "I tachinidi della fauna Italiana. Pierfilippo Cerretti"

What do you think?

Thanks for the help!

Marcello

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I have considered Leiophora at least three times, but it simply fails on the black hairs on the occiput.
Unless we have been very misled by the picture.....


Theo

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Hi Theo,

later, when I back from work, I'll try to zoom only that part by another shot and then I post it here.

Thanks you!

Ciao,
Marcello

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I am starting to consider that this might be an aberrant Erynniopsis antennata with open topcel. In some Erynniopsis, the petiole is much shorter than in other. I have seen more weird things...


It is definitely NOT Leiphora, I checked my collection.


Theo

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Policheta unicolor, I think.

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Policheta sounds good ... I have received quite a few records of this species this year.

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Mhh ... the keys seems to be right, at least the ones I know :)

I wait to see what Theo think too before to claim victory ;)

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That is it, Erikas !

My experience is restricted to 1/3 specimen of 150 years old.


Theo

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Well, I want to thank you all for the great help and the "time that you lost" for the research"!

Theo, for me would be enough 1/300 of your experience ;) (I mean I would be happy to have just a bit of your experience)

See you at the next Tachinid!

Ciao,
Marcello

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I caught this species slightly more than a month ago, that is why I recognized it quickly. It seems, it is one of the latest tachinids in the year.

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Erikas, I never seen it before, I don't know if I would be able to identify it anyway ...

Thank you for the help!

Ciao,
Marcello

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It is a very rare tachinid here and restricted to the south-west of our country - so an unusual distribution. In a normal year we get zero records but we had 3 this year ... just my luck that I didn't link them to these photos!! ;)

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Chris, next time I'll catch one for you ;)

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Thanks :D