Posted by Juergen Peters on 11-05-2010 19:29
#1
Hi!
Indeed a cool fly - at 9 °C yesterday afternoon... Is it possible to tell the species name of this
Myopa sp.. At a hedge, northwest Germany, about 7-8 mm.
Posted by Sundew on 11-05-2010 21:06
#5
Myopa is unmistakeable, but to find out the species is a bit difficult. I tried Van Veens key (
http://home.hccne...myopa.html and came to
M. testacea or
M. stigma - try yourself to confirm or refute! (Or wait for an expert :D!)
Posted by Juergen Peters on 11-05-2010 22:00
#6
Hi. Sundew!
Sundew wrote:
Myopa is unmistakeable, but to find out the species is a bit difficult. I tried Van Veens key (
http://home.hccne...myopa.html and came to
M. testacea or
M. stigma - try yourself to confirm or refute! (Or wait for an expert :D!)
Thanks! I would not dare to make a definite decision after these photos going through the key (no experience with keys an the used terms). I both had
Myopa testacea and
polystigma here, and I remember that
testacea was early (found it in March) and big (>= 10 mm), while
polystigma was late (May) and rather small. The key says,
M. stigma is still smaller (4-6 mm), so only judging from time and size I would favour
M. polystigma for this one. But that's only a layman's guess...