A few Empididae from the weekend at Union Wood.
Rhamphomyia umbripennis, Empis borealis, Rhamphomyia nitidula and Empis chioptera. Dipterists Forum

In prep for 2025 from NatureBureau's Pisces Publications - we've started the layout for an exciting new first-ever Photographic Guide to Flies of Britain & Ireland. With 1500 photos the book will feature over 1200 species Dipterists Forum Gail Ashton 💚🪲🌍 Rory Dimond 🌼🪰🌼🐝🌼🦟 Dr Erica McAlister

A bit late to the party I know, but just seen my first Dark-edged Bee-fly (Bombylius major) of the season this afternoon. #BeeflyWatch #SignsOfSpring

My first Dark-edged Bee Fly of 2024, Burgess Field NR, Oxford at lunchtime. Dipterists Forum Royal Entomological Society Dr Erica McAlister

Spiny-winged #Heleomyzidae action around a badger corpse in East Yorkshire...Neoleria ruficauda, Scoliocentra villosa and Neoleria propinqua. Won't be long til propinqua disappears, and then N. inscripta will take over til the corpse is gone. Dipterists Forum

Denise Wawman Dipterists Forum Royal Entomological Society Dr Erica McAlister Looks good for Melanostoma but I wouldn't be able to confirm a species without more detail

If you've seen a bee-fly and would like your records to be included in #BeeFlyWatch please add them to iRecord - see details at dipterists.org.uk/bee-fly-watch Dipterists Forum

Three new Darwin Tree of Life genome notes published last week:
Firstly 'The genome sequence of the spotted cranefly, Nephrotoma appendiculata (Pierre, 1919)'
doi.org/10.12688/wellc…
Dipterists Forum Royal Entomological Society Darwin Tree of Life Oxford Biology Dr Erica McAlister NHM Diptera

Three new Darwin Tree of Life genome notes published last week:
Secondly: The genome sequence of the Stripe-backed Dasysyrphus, Dasysyrphus albostriatus (Fallén, 1817)
doi.org/10.12688/wellc…
Dipterists Forum Royal Entomological Society Darwin Tree of Life Oxford Biology Dr Erica McAlister NHM Diptera

With snow still lying thick around Crathie, #Cairngorms , I headed out only to discover this stunning female Snow Flea (Boreus hyemalis) behind the house. This species of Scorpion Fly is flightless & predatory, and there was no shortage of prey either (see thread). #OM1 60mm Macro

It’s Steven Falk demonstrating his flikr site for the Tachinid identification workshop - he’s done a lot of work recently adding to the Tachinids so check it out

flickr.com/photos/6307520…

FSCPrestonMontford #Tachinidae

‘ Everyone is very quiet and concentrating’ - you could hear a micro-pin drop…

The Tachinidae Identification workshop at FSCPrestonMontford - excellent tutelage by Chris Raper & Matt Smith

And we’re off:

This weekend is the Tachinid Identification Workshop with tutors Chris Raper and Matt Smith at FSCPrestonMontford - bristly flies are a go-go

#Tachinidae #training #DipteristsForum

Just arrived in Shrewsbury looking forward to the Dipterist Forum Tachinidae Workshop at Preston Montford Dipterists Forum FSCPrestonMontford

George Verrall, featured in those last two RTs, wrote two volumes of a projected but never completed series on the British Diptera in the early 1900s

Curator/Curatorial Assistant post in Diptera at Natural History Museum 🪰

Skills needed include knowledge of Diptera (preferably with calyptrates/acalyptrates), experience of specimen curation & working with museum collections 🪰

Closing date: 9am, 26th Feb 2024

careers.nhm.ac.uk/templates/CIPH…

Miltogramma punctata from a colony of Colletes succinctus on machair at Oldshoremore, North-west Sutherland last summer. Dipterists Forum

For the first time in 2023, this spectacular robber fly, Leptarthrus brevirostris) was found in Staffordshire by Nick Mott . You can find out more about these and other robberflies at the Dipterists Forum at the fair on March 2nd. Photo credit: Andy Jukes

Please share the poster to your social groups. Note the change of building. This year we are on The Catalyst. It is next to the Science ~building we have been using.

Lots of updates coming this week.

Only five weeks to go!!

Join Buglife & Dr Erica McAlister for🪰Flies: The Maligned Pollinators

🗓️ Thursday 22 February
🕖 19:00-20:00
📌 Online via Teams

🪰Hated. Ignored. Misunderstood. Discover more about our #Dipteran #pollinators & #LoveFlies !

Book your place 👇 #GtMB
trybooking.com/uk/events/land…