Flies Enpididae Dagger fly
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| 19 May 2021 Park |
Dance fly, (family Empididae), any member of a family of insects in the fly order, Diptera, that are named for their erratic movements while in flight. Dance flies are small with a disproportionately large thorax and a long tapering abdomen. In males, the abdomen usually bears conspicuous genitalia at the posterior end.
Empididae is a family of flies with over 3,000 described species occurring worldwide.
Common names for members of this family are dagger flies (referring to the sharp piercing mouthparts of some species) and balloon flies. The term "dance flies" is sometimes used for this family too, but the dance flies proper, formerly included herein, are now considered a separate family Hybotidae.
Unusual!!! You are making some super finds Amanda and identifying things where I would not have a clue!!!! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Caroline, just spotted this while taking a photo of something else, quite an interesting insect as the male will offer gifts to the female fly. Facebook has been really good for ID, but there are still a few I don't get help with. Also keeping an eye on Twitter as well to see what people are seeing .
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