Blog Archives

Two Flies Sharing a Meal

Posted on July 4, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

January 21, 2011 | Finca La Isla, Limon Province, Costa Rica

These two flies are sharing a meal.

I can easily identify the larger one as a micropezid.

Micropezid

I’m not sure about the smaller one though.

Smaller fly

Posted in Featured Photos | 2 Comments

Another Micropezid

Posted on July 2, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

13mm (body) | January 21, 2011 | Finca La Isla, Limon Province, Costa Rica

Here’s another micropezid, waving its front legs like they are apt to do.

Frontal view

Posted in Featured Photos | 2 Comments

Another Micropezid

Posted on June 20, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

January 21, 2011 | Finca La Isla, Limon Province, Costa Rica

This one looks a lot like the one I found ovipositing.

Posted in Featured Photos | 1 Comment

Micropezid, ovipositing

Posted on April 30, 2011 by Troy Bartlett

8mm | January 19, 2011 | Armonia Nature Preserve, Limon Province, Costa Rica

While recently reviewing my shots of this fly in the family Micropezidae, I was surprised to find that I unknowingly got a shot of her laying an egg. Here’s another shot for comparison, where she has concealed her ovipositor beneath her abdomen.

Ovipositor concealed

Here’s a crop from the first photo, showing the ovipositor and the egg.

Ovipositor and egg

Everything I’ve read indicates that most larvae develop in decomposing matter, so it seems strange she would be placing an egg on a leaf surface. Perhaps this is  just a method of random distribution, and the egg just falls where it may on the ground below. read more

Posted in Easter Eggs, Featured Photos | 3 Comments