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Photo#1060954
Pterodontia misella? - Pterodontia misella - male

Pterodontia misella? - Pterodontia misella - Male
6 miles east of Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo County, California, USA
May 11, 2011
Size: 7mm
I'm guessing this is a male (because of the wing tooth) Pterodontia misella. I do not know the exact date, since I collected 4 specimens (and found another dead on the ground) between April 26th and May 19th 2011, and failed to keep the data separated. The dates for the individual specimens are:
April 26th, 2011 (on a poplar, I believe),
May 2nd 2011 (found dead on the ground),
May 11th on a rose bush,
May 12th on an aphid-infested apple tree, and
May 19th on a rose bush.

I saved all the specimens I found, as they seemed very strange to me at the time. I couldn't seem to find the family with Borror and White's Field Guide to the Insects (1970). I believe because Borror's representative veination illustrations were quite differant from my specimens (that is what I remember, I don't have the book to check though). After a while I started wondering if it was a small-headed fly because of the (obviously!) strangely small head. More recently (probably last year), I was able to identify them (at least tentatively) to Pterodontia using the photos in the guide. Just this week, I noticed Arthur Macmillan's recent sighting from SLO County, and it struck me as rather similar to my specimens, and inspired me to get this photographed and posted.

The immediate "habitat" might be characterized as rural residential, with lots at least 1 acre or larger. The lots are usually mown, landscaped, grazed, or native; but there are islands of blue oak grassland and sparse blue-oak woodland, including about 25 acres of undeveloped land literally a few hundred feet away from the location of this sighting. Areas surrounding the residential area are either vineyards or native grassland/coyote brush.

Very coincidently, I discovered a female specimen (it laid a large number of tiny eggs), just yesterday, a few hours after some of my commenting on Arthur Macmillan's recent Pterodontia misella post! I have photographed it, and the photographs are posted here: .

The photos in this series were brightened for me by Aaron Schusteff.

Images of this individual: tag all
Pterodontia misella? - Pterodontia misella - male Pterodontia misella? - Pterodontia misella - male Pterodontia misella? - Pterodontia misella - male Pterodontia misella? - Pterodontia misella - male

You were correct, this is a male P. misella
Thanks for posting these, and including all the detailed date, location, context, and habitat info. Perhaps going through the process better "primed" you with the extra awareness/sensitivity to better notice the opportunity that arose for finding the female on Monday?

All the characters validating the ID of P. misella are visible in the series here: the position of the tiny antennae at the bottom of the head, and the globular shape of the antennal segments; the single ("3rd longitudinal") vein emanating from the distal corner of the discal cell (as opposed to a forked 3rd and 4th longitudinal vein there...as occurs in P. vix); the presence of orange on the dorsum of the abdomen (as opposed to totally black in P. johnsoni); the entirely black mesonotum (as opposed to anterior red corners in P. notomaculata); and the black scutellum (as opposed to yellow in P. flavipes).

All the above also applies to your 2nd post of the female that deposited the copious tiny black eggs.

PS: I tried to lighten up the images here by post-processing them as best I could on Photoshop. If you'd like to see the results please email me at the address on my profile page. The posts would be much improved if the otherwise well-focused and framed photos were better lit.

 
Nice shot of the wing in frame 2!
Love the wings on these males!

Moved
Moved from Small-headed Flies.

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