Cranefly Identification with Microscopes: Species

There are around 350 cranefly species in the British Isles, many of which require microscopic examination in order to reliably identify to species. This course will take you to the next step, providing you with the skills you need to be able to start identifying craneflies to genus and species using a microscope.

This course provides an introduction to identifying craneflies to species. This includes a short presentation introducing the morphological features used to identify specimens to family level, followed by practical sessions guided by our expert tutor. During the lab sessions, you’ll explore a wide variety of different cranefly species, including both common and rare ones that can be trickier to find in the wild. This course will use the British Craneflies, by Alan Stubbs – copies will be available for use from our reference library.

Supported by the tutor, you will look at the palp length, eye hairs and wing markings and venation. For example, learners will be taught how to distinguish between different wing markings and venation, and will identify mystery specimens illustrating these different forms.

Through a combination of taught classroom content and lab-based practical sessions, learners will gain confidence in using the identification key and preserved specimens to identify craneflies to genus and species level.

Course tutor: Pete Boardman