Orange Dagger Flies

A dagger fly (Diptera: Empididae), possibly Empis digramma [Note added 2009-09-05: I now think these are both Empis Lutea based on photos here, here, here, here and here.], feeding on hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium).  The tubular shape of the abdomen suggests that this is a male.

Photo taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading University grounds, Reading UK, on 2009-07-14.

The following photo was taken a couple of days later (2009-07-16).  Here the tapered abdomen suggests a female.

A Soldier Fly

A soldier fly, species Chloromyia formosa (Diptera: Stratiomyidae).  In this species the females have a metallic blue-green abdomen while in the males it is gold.  This difference is most noticable in flight when the abdomen is not covered by the wings. Chloromyia speciosa is similar but the lower parts of the hind legs are yellowish (see here).

Photos taken in the long grass in Whiteknights Park, Reading University grounds, Reading, UK, back on 2009-06-04.

A Yellow Gall Fly

Terellia tussilaginis (family Tephritidae, order Diptera), a gall fly, on burdock (Arctium sp.).  This fly was so persistent in hanging around this burdock flower head that I thought it might be a specialist parasite of that plant, and it turns out it is (as indicated on this page at Bioimages UK).  At the time, I suspected that it might be a female laying eggs on the flower head, but when I got back home I discovered that the females have a large red ovipositor, so it must have been a male.  Maybe it was guarding the burdock plant so as to mate with any females that visited it?

Photos taken in Reading University grounds, Reading, UK, on 2009-07-16.

Self-Heal

To me these plants always look a bit shabby because they never seem to have a full quota of petals.  However, if you get close up even the bare parts of the flower-head have interesting details.  Self-heal or Prunella vulgaris.

Photo taken in Reading University grounds, Reading, UK, on 2009-07-16.

Frit Flies

A week or two back I came across this tiny (4mm long) yellow fly which reminded me of Pikachu. It is a frit fly (family Chloropidae, order Diptera), probably Thaumatomyia sp. but I can't be any more specific than that.  (Some Thaumatomyia species were originally included in the genus Chlorops, and you will often find them referred to by that name out on the web.)

Photo taken in Reading University grounds, Reading, UK, on 2009-07-05.

This morning I went out again with the express intent of getting some more photos of the above flies and, although I thought did see one, it was too quick for me, and got away in the long grass.  However, a bit later on I photographed the following similar looking fly:

It turns out that this is also a frit fly but this time in the genus Cetema, possibly Cetema ceris (the white arista, which are visible in the above photo, being one of the characteristics of that species).  The red spot on the abdomen is probably a parasitic mite, the second mite I have come across on a fly in the past few days.

Photo taken in Reading University grounds, Reading, UK, on 2009-07-16.