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Hello,

In a ray of sun, on a blackberry leaf, these tiny flies were pretty active in what seemed to be courtship chasing.
In the following pictures, could this be female and male of the same Chironoma species ?


and


Thanks,

Dimitri

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Both are males, but the top one is Sciaridae and the bottom one is Chironomidae.

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Thanks Paul,

So what was all the excitment about ? Waiting for the females to come out ?
I also had a glimpse of a mating couple, but they wouldn't stay still. You know what it is like to take a macro ...
As the proverb goes : "Time flies ... You can't, they go too fast !"

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Maybe both were trying to get the best spot for some sunlight.
And, you often see that males are emerging somewhat earlier than females, but it is also possible that males stay in one place, females in another and either goes looking for the other to mate.