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Borneo unusual fly and ant ID (1 Viewer)

Jim M.

Member since 2007
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United States
Can't even guess at the family for the fly – never seen anything remotely like it in the nearctic. The large ant is a puzzle too – check out the six large curved spines on the back and the shiny gold abdomen. Any help appreciated.
 

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Thanks Andy. Looks like you nailed the genus of the ant--now only 600 species to choose from ;-). Still curious about the function of the spines; maybe just general defense from predators/enemies.
 
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I would guess at family Micropezidae for the fly

Thanks. Think you are correct. Members of the family (stilt-legged flies) are said to extend their front legs to mimic wasp antenna. While this one is not doing that in the photo, we can see the front legs have a pattern similar to what I've seen in the antenna of many similarly sized wasps: black overall with a medial white band.
 
Thanks. Think you are correct. Members of the family (stilt-legged flies) are said to extend their front legs to mimic wasp antenna. While this one is not doing that in the photo, we can see the front legs have a pattern similar to what I've seen in the antenna of many similarly sized wasps: black overall with a medial white band.

Just to follow up, an expert at iNaturalist says the fly is actually in a different group, the Acalyptrate Flies, which is paraphyletic and status currently unresolved. The similarity to stilt-legged flies is superficial. He says the genus is Nothybus.
 
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