Hoverfly for id please

INHT · #1 (**permalink**) 22-08-2011, 05:03 PM

Can anyone tell me what this hoverfly is please? Thanks,
Becky

JRsbugs · #2 (**permalink**) 22-08-2011, 05:54 PM

Eristalis arbustorum male I would say.

Geoff F · #3 (**permalink**) 22-08-2011, 09:18 PM

We really need to see the face to be absolutely certain, Becky.

It is typical abdomen markings for Eristalis arbustorum, as Janet suggested, although nothing is absolutely 'typical' for Eristalis species.

There appears to be a faint wing darkening but I would need quite a bit of convincing to seriously consider E. horticola as an alternative. And the dark wing stigma seems too large for E. interruptus.

INHT · #4 (**permalink**) 23-08-2011, 09:18 PM

Thanks Geoff and Janet. Today I took another photo of a different hoverfly, but when I tried to get its face, it moved round (I think it did it deliberately!) Still, I hope it'll be identifiable. I'll put this down as Eristalis arbustorum.

Anomalous · #5 (**permalink**) 23-08-2011, 09:35 PM

Hi

Unfortunately, you really cannot put this down as arbustorum, as the genus is too variable to be certain. There is also E.abusivus to consider. Put it down to experience, and get a picture of the face, next time!

Ian

JRsbugs · #6 (**permalink**) 23-08-2011, 10:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anomalous

Hi

Unfortunately, you really cannot put this down as arbustorum, as the genus is too variable to be certain. There is also E.abusivus to consider. Put it down to experience, and get a picture of the face, next time!

Ian

Fortunately, for our own records, we can do what we like.

The chances of it being E. abusiva are slim, we can't really see if the eyes have a narrow gap between them (the face is not the best clue) and we can't see if tibia 2 is mostly yellow. We can see however that the scutellum is brown, in E. abusiva it should be yellow.