Green Metallic Fly

Walter Piorkowski · Post by **Walter Piorkowski** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 8:01 am

Single eyes between the compound eyes.

Shoulder, neck and compound eye.

Green Metallic Fly

Leitz Ortholux in EPI mode
3.8X Orthopac objective
10X Periplan GF projection eyepiece plus 1/3X relay lens
31 combined images @ .001 inch increments, upper image
35 combined images @ .001 inch increments, lower image
Fiber optic illumination
Canon 10D
Photoshop, Maxim

Some new images to share of a small metallic green fly captured many years ago and finally imaged with proper illumination and stacking. Unfortunately it was stored with a moth that shed its scales on it as seen on the compound eye. I don’t know what the extra eyes are called. Maybe someone knows from our forum.

Walt

MacroLuv · Post by **MacroLuv** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 8:35 am

Wow! Impressive!

Are those three ocelli on the first photograph? Looks like the shoulder an neck are compound as well.

Walter Piorkowski · Post by **Walter Piorkowski** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 3:53 pm

Hello MacroLuv,

I am not an entomologist but I believe the orange objects in the upper image are eyes, ocelli or other sensory organs. They are located on the forehead between the fly’s compound eyes.

The “skin” of this fly is covered in tiny spherical cups and mounds making it look as you say like a compound eye itself.

Walt

svalley · Post by **svalley** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 6:18 pm

Walt, nicely done. Very surreal.

beetleman · Post by **beetleman** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 6:36 pm

beautiful stacks Walter...the ocelli photo is very interesting and the color......

Walter Piorkowski · Post by **Walter Piorkowski** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 7:58 am

Thank you gentlemen on your kind comments. I was forced into these extreme closeups by the condition of the specimen. I tried to clean it several times. The results are fun to look at. I wanted to see how much of the curves of the subject that the stacking would restore. Still experimenting.

Walt