Rhagio of Northwest Europe - Identification key

Rhagio are yellowish, sometimes darkened, flies with long, slender legs. They tend to sit on leaves in moist vegetation. Their larvae dwell in the ground.

1.a. Wing darkened, either uniformly dark or hyaline with dark markings, in the latter case cross veins and the wing tip darkly marked -> 2

1.b. Wing hyaline, only the pterostigma darker -> 6

2.a. Wing uniformly darkened -> 3

2.b. Wing hyaline with dark markings ->4

3.a. Palpi on mouth parts yellow; abdomen dark reddish brown with black median spots. 8-15 mm. -> Rhagio cingulatus

Preferred environment: alpine meadows above and below the tree limit. Adult habitat and habits: on the bare ground, rocks and short vegetation. Flight period: summer. Range: Alps. Identification: Szilady (1932). Dark species with uniformly darkened wings (in the female less so).

3.b. Palpi black; abdomen dark with narrow yellow hind margins. -> Rhagio fuscipennis

4.a. Metapleuron bare (between coxa 3 and haltere); wing: dark markings outstanding -> 5

4.b. Metapleuron haired; wing: dark markings weak. 7-12 mm. -> Rhagio vitripennis

Preferred environment: moist herb vegetations, edges of moist woodlands. Adult habitat and habits: adults sit on leaves or head down on poles (remniscent of R. scolopaceus. Flight period: summer. Range: Europe. Identification: Van der Goot (1985).

5.a. Thorax: sides greyish, darker than femora; coxa 2 and 3 greyish; antenna: 3rd segment longer than 2nd. 8-16 mm. -> Rhagio scolopaceus

5.b. Thorax: sides largely yellowish, the same colour as the femora (yellow on males often restricted to part under the wing implant); coxa 2 and 3 yellow; antenna: 3rd segment as long as 2nd. 9-16 mm. -> Rhagio strigosus

6.a. Wing: pterostigma yellowish -> 7

6.b. Wing: pterostigma dark -> 8

7.a. Humerus greyish black; coxa 1 grey; abdomen largely whitish haired. Male: sternite 1 with long hairs. 10-11 mm. -> Rhagio annulatus

7.b. Humerus yellow, rarely greyish dusted; coxa 1 yellowish, rarely greyish dusted; abdomen with black hairs. Male: sternite 1 bare. 8-14 mm. -> Rhagio tringarius

Preferred environment: Moist herb vegetations. Adult habitat and habits: adults sit on leaves in de vegetation. Flight period: summer. Range: Europe. Identification: Van der Goot (1985).

8.a. Thoracic dorsum with pale longitudinal stripes; large: 8-18 mm. -> 9

8.b. thoracic dorsum uniformly greyish, without stripes; wing: pterostigma uniformly dark. 6-8 mm. -> Rhagio lineola

Preferred environment: Woodlands. Adult habitat and habits: adults sit on leaves of trees, scrubs and tall herbs. Flight period: Summer. Range: Europe. Identification: Van der Goot (1985), Stubbs and Drake (2001).

9.a. Wing: pterostigma bicoured: base yellow, tip black (sometimes the very base also blackish, then yellowish part in the middle) -> 10

9.b. Wing: pterostigma uniformly dark -> 11

10.a. Femur 1 entirely yellow; abdomen largely yellow. 9-11.5 mm. -> Rhagio immaculatus

Preferred environment: Woodlands on moist soils, in the Netherland numerous along Alnus-woods on peat soils. Adult habitat and habits: adults sitting on leaves. Range: West and Central Europe. Identification: Van der Goot (1985).

10.b. Femur 1 yellow with dark median ring; abdomene yellow with central dark spots. 8-10 mm. -> Rhagio maculatus

Preferred environment: Woodlands. Adult habitat and habits: adults sitting on leaves and bark of trees. Flight period: summer. Range: Central Europe. Identification: Van der Goot (1985).

11.a. Antenna and palpi on mouth parts blackish -> 12

11.b. Antenna and palpi yellow; head, thorax and coxa dark; abdomen yellow with black median spots; legs yellow, including femora (femur 3 darkened at tip). 12 mm. -> Rhagio montanus

12.a. Femur 1 and 2 yellow -> 13

12.b. Femur 1 and 2 largely black -> 14

13.a. Head: palpi on mouth parts greyish; large species: 12-18 mm. Male: sternite 1 bare. -> Rhagio conspicuus

Preferred environment: Woodlands with mixed forest. Adult habitat and habits: collected near streams with a fringe of decidious forest in the midst of pine woods. Flight period: juli-september. Range: Central Europe. Identification: Van der Goot (1985). Large Rhagio with long, yellow legs (almost Cranefly like).

13.b. Head: palpi on mouth parts yellow; smaller species: 7-12 mm. Male: sternite 1 haired. -> Rhagio vitripennis

14.a. Scutellum blackish; femora all dark with yellow tip. Male: sternite 1 with long hairs. 10-13 mm. -> Rhagio notatus

Preferred environment: moist woodlands near streams. Identification: Van der Goot (1985).

14.b. Scutellum yellow; femora 2 and 3 blackish on basal half, brownish on tip half, femur 1 browned on middle. 7.5 mm. -> Rhagio subpilosus

Rhagio key