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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Flies (Diptera) » "Acalyptratae" » Sphaeroceroidea » Lesser Dung Flies (Sphaeroceridae) » Sphaerocerinae
Photo#1012214
Mesosphaerocera? - female
Copyright © 2014 Joe R.

Mesosphaerocera? - Female
Hanover, Jo Daviess County, Illinois, USA
September 1, 2014
Size: ~3-4mm
Collected with a carrion baited pitfall trap at a sand prairie. Specimen in alcohol.

I'm having a hard time deciding on who this fly is. The alcohol has distended the abdomen, so it doesn't quite match up with the key in the MND. The face is elevated below, producing a ridge under the antennae. This excludes Sphaerocera. The choice between Mesosphaerocera and Parasphaerocera is based on the relative length of the intermembranous areas, which are distorted in this specimen from the alcohol. Comparing the specimens already in bugguide, this seems closer to Meso than Para.

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Mesosphaerocera? - female Mesosphaerocera? - female
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Contributed by Joe R. on 21 October, 2014 - 7:12pm

Check species descriptions
According to MND one of the species is named annulicornis, which is consistent with the banded antennae. If the other species have plain antennae, you have your ID. (Or an undescribed species.)
… John F. Carr, 21 October, 2014 - 7:22pm login or register to post comments

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