Chrysomya sp. at Bald Hills, NSW

Metallic blowfly at Bald Hills, NSW

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Identification history

	Chrysomya sp.	4 Feb 2019	jgl
	Amenia imperialis	3 Feb 2019	JulesPhotographer

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6 comments

KerriLee wrote:

4 Feb 2019

I don't think this is Amenia imperialis ... it doesn't seem to have a yellow head, and it lacks spots on the abdomen. It looks a bit more like one I saw yesterday, which I'm tentatively calling Rutillia ... what do you think?
Unidentified on 2 Feb 2019
James may be able to confirm these for us.

jgl wrote:

4 Feb 2019

The way that the eyes aren't bulbous, but rather, wrap around continuously with the spherical/ovoid profile of the head make me think this is closer to Chrysomya. Also, the body segments have a more constant cylindrical shape, rather than being robust, and the metallic banding on the (dorsal) abdomen is broken on T3 but not T4 - thats unlike any Rutilia or Amenia i've seen, although I guess its possible. It's a challenging call because we only have a single angle at poor resolution, but I'd wager this is most likely a species of Chrysomya, or something completely unrelated, like a metallic Strat or Syrphid. You just can't see any of the key characters (wing venation, antenna, face).

jgl wrote:

4 Feb 2019

You'll find pictures of Rutilia and various Ameniines helpfully scattered amongst actual Chrysomya on the Atlas Of Living Australia Chrysomya gallery.

KerriLee wrote:

4 Feb 2019

Thanks for your time and all your insights James - it's great to have you on board!

jgl wrote:

4 Feb 2019

Happy to help, cheers!

JulesPhotographer wrote:

5 Feb 2019

Thank you to both of you! Alas, this little guy flew away before more could be taken, and these from some distance with a 200mm lense. If when exploring this area again, and happen upon it, I will attempt to get other angles for better identification. Thank you both once again! Jules

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