Megaselia scalaris
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The fly Megaselia scalaris is a member of the order Diptera and the family Phoridae, and it is widely distributed in warm regions of the world. Members of this family are commonly known as "humpbacked flies", "coffin flies", and "scuttle flies". The name "scuttle fly" derives from the jerky, short bursts of running, characteristic to the adult fly. The name "coffin fly" is due to their being found in coffins, digging six feet deep in order to reach buried corpses. It is one of the more common species found within the family Phoridae; more than 370 species have been identified within North America.
Megaselia scalaris was described by the German entomologist Hermann Loew in 1866. Adults of this species are about 2 mm long and yellowish with dark markings. The labellum and labrum have trichoid and conical sensilla, and the labellum's ventral surface has five pairs of sharp teeth. The hind femur has hairs below its basal half and these are shorter than hairs in an anteroventral row on the distal half. The hind tibia lacks a clearly differentiated row of spine-like antero-dorsal hairs. There is a pair of translucent wings, in which vein 3 is not or barely... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
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More parks will be added in future updates.
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Scaled Hump-Backed Fly sighting in Tel Aviv on a given day, based on 10 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 157th most-seen of the 264 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April, June–July, September and December–January
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Scaled Hump-Backed Fly in Tel Aviv on a given day, against under 5% in February–March, May, August and October–November, the lowest months.
Yes
Of the 2 cities where we can rate Scaled Hump-Backed Fly sightings, Tel Aviv has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Austin (United States, under 5%).
Same order: Diptera
The closest relatives of the Scaled Hump-Backed Fly that you can see in Tel Aviv (order Diptera, Flies) are Stripe-Eyed Lagoon Fly (about 20%), Marmalade Hover Fly (about 20%) and Oriental Latrine Fly (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Scaled Hump-Backed Fly is recorded against all the insects logged in Tel Aviv (10 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
