Downlooker-flies
Guides
Rhagio
snipe flies, downlooker flies, down-looker flies
Rhagio is a worldwide genus of predatory snipe flies (Diptera: Rhagionidae) comprising approximately 170 species. Several species are known as 'downlooker' or 'down-looker' flies due to their habit of perching on tree trunks in a head-down position. The genus can be distinguished from other rhagionids by two key wing characters: an open anal cell and the absence of a kidney-shaped arista. Taxonomic revisions have been published for both eastern and western Nearctic species.