Chris, Jim Labonte with the Oregon Department of Agriculture said, "This fly is in the family Tephritidae, genus Neotephritis. The pattern of spots on the wing is very similar to a native and very commonly encountered species, the sunflower maggot, Neotephritis finalis. However, it doesn't quite match the specimens I have, although the pattern appears variable. There are other species known from Mexico, Central and South America, the West Indies, and Hawaii - it could be one of those. If the submitter still has the specimen (or better yet, multiple specimens), that would be the only way to tell for certain which species it is."

Lisa DeBruyckere
June 3, 2010, 4:29 a.m.

At the time I sent in the report I didn't have any specimens, but caught one today. If you want it, please respond by email to drcool@msn.com. If I can get more, I will send as many as I can.

-Chris.

Reporter
June 4, 2010, 6:14 a.m.

Mystery solved! When you said it could be a sunflower maggot, I realized I have a tray of balsamroot flower heads drying out to gather the seeds for a wildflower garden I'm working on. When I shook the tray, several of the flies flew out. So it is native after all, and sorry for the false alarm. Let me know if you still want the specimen, otherwise I'll assume you don't need it now.

Reporter
June 4, 2010, 11:21 a.m.