Thread subject: Diptera.info :: Tachinidae in Mesnil

Posted by ChrisR on 22-07-2008 20:32
#7

I'd love a copy of Mesnil for studying the wider Palaearctic but it is too expensive for me so I haven't even seen a copy :(

Tschorsnig & Herting is a very good key for central & northern Europe (the main reason we spent a year translating it ;)) but tachinids can be tricky for novices because the keys give you a name, but it can be hard to know if you ended up in the right place because there is often no single feature that is very distinctive about tachinid genera or species - it is always an accumulation of features that gives you the identification.

Unfortunately there isn't an easy answer, except to post photos here for experts to confirm; to take them to show an expert; or to find a local collection that you can go and look at. Also, I have put photos on the http://tachinidae... of as many UK tachinids as I could find so that might help you confirm your identifications :)

Chris R.

Edited by ChrisR on 22-07-2008 20:34