a striking pale blue and black banded fly, interrupted crossbanding on abdomen, solid bands on thorax. 6 mm long (head to tail). Feeding on scat with wings folded flat over the abdomen; wings clear with no markings. Pale blue face with large purple-brown eyes. Habit like a syrphid or stratiomyid at rest. Only this single observation despite keeping a regular watch for reappearance. Unable to match with any reference material available to me (ALA, I-Nat, SCNM, CNM, internet). Would request identification if possible.
Thanks NaturMapr and through you Michael Mulvaney for this suggestion. I don’t think it is Limnophora – this lacks the strong blue banding on the thorax of my fly and the limited distribuion data in the ALA makes it unlikely for my location. I have since determined this fly as Anthomyia medialis Anthomiidae and have submitted it to ALA on this basis; it is a strong match on both physical traits and distribution. I would value any further opinions on this. Bevegia