which hoverfly eristalis ?

[Naturenutz]

Found this eristalis in the garden today,you can see the veins in the wings.
I am still learning these,i dont think it was eristalis tenax purely on size.

[JRsbugs]

I would say female Eristalis pertinax, it looks to have a pale section on the upper part of the hind tibia and front feet look orange.

Janet

[Naturenutz]

Took a few shots janet,here's another angle,showing the legs nicely.

[JRsbugs]

Yes, definitely E. pertinax.

[Geoff F]

E. tenax and E. pertinax can be difficult to separate and size/abdomen colouration are unreliable. The best method, apart from using a microscope, is to examine the tarsus of the first and second legs which are black on E. tenax but yellow or yellowish orange in E. pertinax.

The upper part of the hind tibia is also yellow in E. pertinax but black in E. tenax. However, be careful because some E. tenax can appear to have a paler colour here especially when seen under bright sunshine, but this should never be as distinctly yellow as E. pertinax.

E. pertinax males tend to have a rather more tapered abdomen and E. tenax have some darker banding across their eyes. But both of these features can be difficult to see from a photo.

Most of the other similar species have some form of dark shading on the wings or other distinctive features. E. interruptus can easily be confused with E. tenax or E. pertinax as it has a dark tarsus like E. tenax plus a part yellow hind tibia like E. pertinax.

Janet may be able to add a few more tips.

Hope these suggestions will prove useful in the future.

Geoff.