These are old pictures - from June 2010. But these fruit flies are common esp. in summer months every summer for as long as I can remember. They are very tiny. Picture is of the flies sitting on a small thread that was hanging from a reaper. The rest like that. They hover in front of our eyes and we have to drive them away often.
I have studied in school that these are Drosophilas. Looking for any help please.
Dinu
These very well might be Drosophila sp., but you need a clear view of the wing venation to be certain. In this family, the costal vein (the one forming the front edge of the wing) appears to be 'broken' near its base - see diagram A in http://www.metafysica.nl/nature/insect/organi_46ABC.jpg
BTW, although commonly called 'fruit flies,' these more properly should be called vinegar or pomace flies; true fruit flies belong to the family Tephritidae.
Two days ago they were in the kitchen. Tried some close ups... they are so small. I used the flash and got its eyes red. Does these images, though not sharp, help?
These definitely appear to be in the family Drosophilidae; likely also to be in the genus Drosophila.
Could it be the D.melanogaster?
Possibly, but remember, there are more than 1500 described species in this genus! - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Drosophila_species
Thanks Flap.... and this is where I get stuck up, with my limited knowledge! How to pin point now? Fifteen hundred to search! What do do?
I believe that only a specialist in this genus would be able to i.d. to species with any confidence; I certainly would not try!
Ok, then is there any way I can add this to the BF and mention only Drosophila, like we sometimes do with plant files?
You'll have to ask an administrator...
Ok Flapdoodle. I'll explore that. Thanks.
