Provisional keys and illustrations for the identification of the British Anthomyiidae (Diptera)
These keys and other information relating to the British Anthomyiidae have been written and compiled over a number of years, and were originally available as hard copies. For the last few years they were provided at cost on a CD from the author. You can now download them from this web-site. For a password please email me at providing your name and address.
The keys are intended for personal use only and must not be quoted without permission. Because of the historic difficulty in writing and using keys to the species without examination of the male genitalia, I recommend that users of these keys should be prepared to familiarise themselves with the techniques of preparing and examining the genitalia, by which certain identification is assured. With reliably named material, it does not take long to recognise most of the common species using the keys. Instructions are included for mounting and preparing adults and genitalia.
It should be noted that almost all the males of British species have genitalia which are unique to each species, though there are a few which require careful examination. The females are more difficult and need careful examination of small external differences.
