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Looks like a Sarcophagid to me, but is that a subscutellum? Help please...

Sorry for the poor quality of photos - breeze, distance etc.

1/7/2009; Devon, England

thanks

Tim

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Body looks very dark, so this might be Nyctia.

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It just looks like a very battered specimen of one of the smaller Sarcophagini - not Sarcophaga but something related. Today I saw many similar specimens on my local nature reserves and from a distance they look like Exorista or "something interesting" until you get close and realize that they have just lost a lot of their colour ;)

Ironically, if you caught it then it is probably still identifiable because it is a male and the genitalia are probably undamaged :)

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Hi Nigel, no definitely wasn't Nyctia - I've learned to recognise that one - much smaller than this individual (though I didn't mention size, so you weren't to know), darkened costal area to wing etc.

As I said, it looked like a Sarcophagid and that's what I assumed it was; I just thought I saw a suggestion of a sub-scutellum and wanted to double check.

Since seeing this I've seen a number of similar flies, all with battered wings and dark bodies, and all presumably Sarcophagids. As for collecting, Chris, I'll first need an assistant to carry the extra gear!

Cheers

Tim

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A small, collapsible, spring-frame net and a few small, plastic boxes - clipped to your belt - is all you need ;) But seriously, I understand the problems - I carried an SLR in the field for about 20 years until I went over to compact digital cameras. The results are sometimes not as good as with the more sophisticated equipment but I carry it more often so I miss less shots and I have the chance to collect at the same time :)