On the Fly: Interactive Atlas and Key to Australian Fly Families

Description:

There are 104 families of flies known from Australia and the only comprehensive identification guide to these groups is found in The Insects of Australia (CSIRO, second edition 1991). This key is technically challenging and difficult for non-taxonomists to use.

The key divides the families into four broad groupings (Lower Diptera, Lower Brachycera (including Lower Cyclorrhapha), Calyptrata and Acalyptrata). The family keys are accessed via a key to the four groupings, and a section to assist in distinguishing true flies from similar insects belonging to other orders.

On-The-Fly is richly illustrated with images of character states, and live images of representative species. There is a taxon information page on each family, including information on diversity, biology, ecology and pest status. The key is a complete educational tool with general information about fly biology, classification, collection, curation, links to literature and websites. The software package is greatly enhanced for education with the inclusion of an interactive glossary of fly anatomy for use in conjunction with the key.