Rhamphomyia sp. - Rhamphomyia

Moved

Moved from Empis.

… J.D. Roberts, 17 March, 2007 - 5:33pm

Final Verdict ?

I posted over at Diptera.info to get some feedback from Paul Beuk to confirm the genus on this fly. Here is what he said:

"I cannot be entirely certain but it might be Rhamphomyia, despite the Hybis-like appearance (the thickened hind femora). The discal cell is clearly emitting three veins (only two in Hybotinae) and the anal cell is closed by a strongly recurrent vein (more stongly so than in Hybotidae). Hence Rhamphomyia, because vein R4+5 is not forked."

Thanks to Paul for this clarification, and thanks to everyone for helping on this one. I'll go ahead and move to Rhamphomyia, and perhaps species level ID (if possible) will be made later on.

… J.D. Roberts, 17 March, 2007 - 5:32pm

Moved

Moved from Syritta pipiens.

… Martin Hauser, 16 March, 2007 - 2:33pm

Not syrphid:-)

This is a fine shot of one of the dance flies (Empididae), though:-) Looks to be a male specimen (holoptic eyes).

… Eric R. Eaton, 15 March, 2007 - 6:57pm

Okay

Thanks for the help. What threw me off were the swollen femurs of the hind legs and the faint banding on the abdomen (can't see in photo, sorry). That's one of the reasons why I took a guess at Syritta pipiens. But I noticed I didn't pay enough attention to the coxae/trochanter structure.
Should I move this to Empididae, or can you narrow it down to genus? I'm thinking maybe Empis? Possibly something like Empis tesselata? Thanks again for the correction.

… J.D. Roberts, 15 March, 2007 - 7:05pm

Can't give you genus.

Sorry, I'm not a fly expert, so can't give you a genus. You might try submitting to Diptera.info, though. They'd love to see this image for sure!

… Eric R. Eaton, 16 March, 2007 - 2:15pm

Great site

Diptera.info is fantastic! Thanks Eric. Of course, now that I've browsed through that site, it looks like the genus Hybos could hold some possibilities as well, specifically Hybos femoratus. I don't know the range of that species or genus yet though.

I'll see what Paul thinks once my Diptera.info membership is activated.

Martin I noticed you moved the image to the Empis page in apparent concurrence with my Empis genus suggestion. Do you think Empis is still the most accurate, or is Hybos more likely?

Thanks everyone. I just may become a big Diptera fan after all. :)

… J.D. Roberts, 16 March, 2007 - 3:22pm