| Graphomya maculata (Scopoli, 1763) |
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Scientific name: Graphomya maculata (Scopoli, 1763) Common name: French name: Graphomyie tachetée Order: Diptera Family: Muscidae Wingspan : 6-10 mm. Biotope: Flower meadows, hedgerows. Geographic area: Europe. Observation period : May to September. |
Graphomya maculata is a rather stocky fly with a rounded abdomen tip. It has hairy eyes which are almost touching on males. It shows a pale grey thorax with four black longitudinal stripes followed by a central patch ending as a triangle shape on the scutellum. The two central stripes are sometimes merged into a single one. There is also one small black patch on each side of the scutellum. The female's abdomen is whitish grey and marked with black. The male's abdomen is more reddish. The wing-venation is characterized by the fact that the fourth longitudinal vein is curved before the edge of the wing to reach it close to the third vein. You often observe Graphomya maculata on umbelliferae flowers in summer. The larvae grow in the litter and are predators of other diptera larvae. There is a possible confusion with Graphomya minor (also called Graphomya picta) which is very similar. You can recognize this last one by the presence of an anterodorsal bristle located about in the middle of the median tibia and by the pale central stripe on the upper side of the thorax being thinner than the two adjacent black stripes. The abdomen of Graphomya minor is also longer than wide while this is the opposite on Graphomya maculata. |
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This picture clearly shows the marks on the upper side of the thorax. I have first discarded Graphomya maculata because it seemed to me that the fourth longitudinal vein was not curved. I have asked to an expert and he oriented me to this species (in fact we cannot really see the fourth vein on this picture). The rather wide pale central stripe on the thorax and the small bristle very low located on the median tibia confirm Graphomya maculata compared to Graphomya minor. The separated eyes and the abdomen without reddish colour indicate a female. |
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Here is a view of the marks on the abdomen. A nice view of the wings is missing so that we can see the veins. This is always very useful on diptera. |
André Bon August 2011