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This photo was taken in mid-Wales on 18_06_10

I don't know the family so would be grateful for some more help

Thank you

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Pollenia. You can see the golden hairs on the side of the thorax.

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Yes I had a look at some of the photos in the gallery- I have to admit defeat on this one! I like the photo and find the opposing colouration on the abdomen interesting, I'm wondering why the difference?

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Sorry ... the difference between what exactly? The colours or a difference between this fly and typical Pollenia? :)

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1.The difference between the males of the genus Pollenia
2. Why the difference between the opposing black and white colouration on the abdomen!- the left and right hand sides, it seems to be quite typical

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Ahh, well Pollenia are quite variable because those golden hairs often get rubbed off when they move about, meaning that fresh ones can look really golden while older ones might only have hairs left around the edges (as in your photo). The abdomen pattern is all down to the dusting and thsi seems to have some variability - perhaps again caused by wear, but generally dusting is a bit variable anyway on all individuals :)

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The difference in dusting on the left and right sides is just a difference in appearance. The dusting itself is more or less symmetrical but the way the light falls onto the surface can make the different sides appear to be different.

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I imagine it to be like microscopic crushed velvet, with white pile on a black background. Where you see the hairs end-on it appears black.

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It's very clever! an interesting group