Actina chalybea explained

Actina chalybea is a species of 'soldier flies' belonging to the family Stratiomyidae subfamily Beridinae.^[1]

Distribution

This species is present in most of Europe.^[2] Adults prefer shady and moist habitats.

Description

The adults of Actina chalybea ca reach a length of 7.5- long.^{[3] [4] [5]} These flies have a metallic green thorax. The head is quite large and rounded, with small black antennae pointing forward. Palps are clearly visible.^[3] The eyes are green, almost contiguous in males^[3] and clearly separated in females. Forehead and thorax are covered with long black hair. The scutellum has four black spines. The abdomen is flattened and the legs are black with femora partially yellow.

Biology

Adults can mostly be encountered from April through June.

Bibliography

• Keith Bayless - Actina species
• Rozkošný, R. 1998. Chapter 24. Family Stratiomyidae. Manual Palaearct. Dipt. 2: 387–411.

External links

• Biolib
• Tout un monde

Notes and References

1. Woodley . N.E. . A World Catalog of the Stratiomyidae (Diptera) . Myia . 2001 . 11 . 1–462. 7 December 2022.
2. https://fauna-eu.org/cdm_dataportal/taxon/76767ce1-64c2-4d4a-8f71-6fe29b5ebe13 Fauna europaea
3. Menno Reemer, 2014 Field Key to the Soldierflies of the Netherlands (Diptera: Stratiomyidae & Xylomyidae)
4. Book: Stubbs . Alan E . Drake . Martin . British Soldierflies and their allies (an illustrated guide to their identification and ecology) . 2014 . . Reading . 9781899935079 . 528 pp, 20 plates . 2.
5. Book: Zeegers . T. . Schulten . A. . Families of Flies with Three Pulvilli: Field Guide Northwest Europe . 2022 . Jeugdbondsuitgeverij . Graveland . 9789051070682 . 256pp.