Scorpionfly

sebastianbawn · #1 (**permalink**) 26-05-2009, 09:13 PM

Hi all. Found this little lady in Bristol, near some hedgerows. Lost her after a while and then found her again in a fir tree with her dinner! Im guessing the Uk only has the one species of Scorpionfly so I am going with a (definate) female Panorpa communis. Can any of the hoverfly experts ID the prey?

charlieb · #2 (**permalink**) 26-05-2009, 09:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sebastianbawn

Im guessing the Uk only has the one species of Scorpionfly so I am going with a (definate) female Panorpa communis.

There are 3

Panorpa cognata

Panorpa communis

Panorpa germanica

Females can't be id'd to species without dissecting, so it's a Panorpa sp.

sebastianbawn · #3 (**permalink**) 26-05-2009, 09:32 PM

Thats a pain

Well thanks for letting me know, at least I have the genus. Just hope someone can ID the hoverfly in this ladies clutches

Bruce Williams · #4 (**permalink**) 26-05-2009, 10:43 PM

Interesting shot Peter.

Take a look at this thread of mine from last year. It discusses the question of identifying Scorpion Flies in the UK: Identification key for UK Scorpion Flies

Bruce

Geoff F · #5 (**permalink**) 27-05-2009, 07:06 PM

I'm a bit confused about the prey, and have a stiff neck from trying to look upsidedown!

However, purely as a guess, I would go for Chrysotoxum sp. Double black abdominal bands with edges runing along the abdomen sides, and fairly long dark antennae.