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This little Tephritid [Tephritis sp?] was doing its wing waving performance on Lesser Celandine Ranunculus ficaria 14 March 2007 in my garden on the eastern edge of London.

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Can anyone offer a species name?

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Hi Susan,

It's not possible to tell with a 100% certanty, but I think it's T. matricariae. The larva live inside flowerheads of Crepis spp.

John

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Many thanks John . I'll put a question mark against it - but your knowledge of this family is amazing.

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Thanks Susan.
By the way, nice avatar, are they easy to walk on

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It took me a couple of goes to get used to them, but actually they are great in the snow. I hardly ever wear them otherwise, as they are rather heavy. I bought the boots because I wanted the box they came in actually. Do you know the brand? They are Fly of London, and came from a strange little shop in Lille specialising in British fashion labels. They were the end of a line so cost me the princely sum of 10 euros . The box, which now houses my pins, forceps and other entomological bits and pieces, is covered in pictures of flies, lifted from some old scientific illustration plate I would guess, and somewhat luridly coloured, but recognisable and correctly named.

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Yes I know them.
Unfortunately they're not distributed here in Holland, but I came across them in Portugal and I couldn't resist buying some.
The do have quite a large collection of very fashionable ones, and rather expensive too..
Nevertheless I am very content with them!
Though mine came in a black box....

John