I have yet to post my final post for the year on the monarch Butterfly but I can guarantee that all, or at least most, of you will be delighted by the beauty of the butterfly. Most of you may not, however, share the same view of this 13mm long fly. Apart from the fact that it is from the order of Diptera (true flies are insects of the order Diptera - from the Greek di = two, and ptera = wings) I can tell you nothing about her. I'm assuming (big leap here) that it's a she because I assume that the two little 'tails' are in fact oviposter. I may be wrong. Presumably someone with more knowledge will correct me if I am. The Diptera include files, mosquitos, gnats, midges, and no-see-ums. There are about 120000 known species of true flies alive today.
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I know nothing about flies myself, but I only count 4 legs not including your 'tails' so I can only assume that they are actually legs.
ReplyDeleteOh. I hadn't looked properly. I was talking about the two earwig like 'things' at the end of the carapace or tail. I now see that the hind leg has been bent forward and under making it look like it almost has four legs down the side nearest the camera. I asked Katherine and she has identified it as a Garden Soldier Fly (Exaireta spinigera).
DeleteAaah I see. Then to me your tails indicate that it is male. That is in dragonflies the male has two and the female has one (the ovipositor).
DeleteThanks for that Helen. Hopefully it will stick in what passes for my brain.
DeleteAs NOT fond of flies as I am (is that even correct grammar) it's nevertheless an impressive macro photo.
ReplyDeleteThanks Monica. It turns out that I should have straightened its leg out before I photographed it.
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