Diptera.info

Posted by pat_der2003 on 11-04-2010 19:38

also on this sandy space in Fontainebleau forest, France, on april 11 2010, there was this little fly resting at the sun or waiting for something ?

Edited by pat_der2003 on 14-04-2010 21:04

Posted by Tony Irwin on 11-04-2010 21:57

Looks rather like Leucophora - an anthomyiid that specialises in parasitising mining bees by taking over their nests. It was probably waiting for a suitable host to appear.

Posted by javanerkelens on 11-04-2010 22:37

I think the frontal vitta is to broad for a Leucophora..
Maybe a Botanophila, but not sure about it..
Do you have another photo..?

Joke

Posted by Tony Irwin on 11-04-2010 23:50

You amy be correct, Joke, but I thought that some female Leucophora had a broad frons (30% of head width). More photos would certainly help.

Posted by pat_der2003 on 12-04-2010 04:22

Many thanks to all of you !! :)

Tony Irwin wrote:
Looks rather like Leucophora - an anthomyiid that specialises in parasitising mining bees by taking over their nests. It was probably waiting for a suitable host to appear.

that was my thoughts ! ;) i photographed at the same sandy place and same time Andrenidae and a cuckoo bee !!

javanerkelens wrote:
I think the frontal vitta is to broad for a Leucophora..
Maybe a Botanophila, but not sure about it..
Do you have another photo..?

Joke

i put those two other views : a 3/4 of the face and a lateral shot.

i hope it could help !:)

Edited by pat_der2003 on 12-04-2010 04:22

Posted by javanerkelens on 12-04-2010 20:11

I think ......somewhere around Delia floralis / radicum /...
Is it possible to make a crop of the area around the notopleuron setae?
There should be some small hairs between them.

Joke

Posted by pat_der2003 on 13-04-2010 17:46

i don't know if this is the notopleuron area ... and, if so, it's the better crop i can do !!

hope it can help !! :)

Posted by javanerkelens on 13-04-2010 20:20

#10

You did your best !!
But difficult to say if there are hairs present....it seems there could be one below the shadow of the front neutopleural (and some females can have only one hair..), but is it convincing...no, i think just not sharp enough .
Nevertheless i still think it is one of the Delia radicum/floralis/planipalpis group

Pity...Joke :)

Edited by javanerkelens on 13-04-2010 20:28

Posted by pat_der2003 on 14-04-2010 09:36

#11

Many thanks Joke !! :)

it's OK for me ! Identification from photographies is difficult enough, so getting a genus name and a group of few species is a good job !! ;)

on the contrary, it seems that Delia sp are plant pests and not parasites of wild bees as i previously thought ...

thanks again !

Posted by javanerkelens on 14-04-2010 19:01

#12

it seems that Delia sp are plant pests and not parasites of wild bees as i previously thought

Indeed many Delia sp. are pest.
Delia radicum/floralis/planipalpis are often pest of all sorts of plants from the genus Brassica...
Also many Anthomyiidae are leafminers (for instance..Pegomya, Chirosia)
Just a very interesting group of flies...Anthomyiidae :D

Joke