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Strange Fly
Location:  Eastern Ontario, Canada
September 7, 2010 3:03 pm
Can you please help me identify this insect that appears to have 4 eyes. i have never seen anything quite like this anywhere. was very friendly during vacation near Kingston Ontario. We named it the Raspberry Fly because of its colour and approximate size being close to a raspberry. the picture attached is cropped. It is sitting on a friends palm.
Signature:  ?

Second Request
FeedBack
September 20, 2010 11:30 am
good afternoon, I understand your staff is small, i was just wondering what the screening process is. I sent in a picture of an insect I and anyone I show the picture to has never seen before. the title was “Strange Fly” (September 7th, 2010) I was hoping to send friends links to you site to see the bug.
Signature: Joe

Tachinid Fly

Dear Joe,
A name is much nicer than the interrogative punctuation mark you used on your original request.  We apologize for never responding to your original request, but as you indicated, we do have a small staff.  One person, The Bugman, responds to as many letters each day as time not spent on the time clock teaching college classes allows, and then The Bugman posts selected letters to the internet.  A second staff member oversees the running of the website, ensuring that the web browsing public has the highest quality service that our means permit.  This fly is a Tachinid Fly, possibly Hystricia abrupta, which you may see on BugGuide. This group of Tachinid Flies are parasitoids on caterpillars.  Here is the explanation posted to BugGuide:  “The most common hosts are caterpillars. Most tachinids deposit their eggs directly on the body of their host, and it is not uncommon to see caterpillars with several tachinid eggs on them. Upon hatching the larva usually burrows into its host and feeds internally. When fully developed it leaves the host and pupates nearby. Some tachinids lay their eggs on foliage; the larvae are flattened and are called planidia; they remain on the foliage until they find a suitable host.”
P.S.  There are currently 9473 letters in our email inbox.

Hello Daniel,
Wow, some hobby! Thanks so much for your attention in this matter.
I apologize for seeming terribly impatient.
Thanks again!
Your help is very much appreciated.
Have a great day.
Joe

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