[Syrphidae] courtship behaviour

[Brigitte Howarth]

Dear all, 

I sent this straight to Frank yesterday, thinking it had gone to the group,
so delayed, here it is:

This will probably cause a flurry of e-mails saying the observation is
unsuitable for 'Syrphidae', forgive, but Frank describes a behaviour I
observed in some beetles this past week here in the UAE. In the case of the
beetles they were in copulation with the male holding the female's head
with his forelegs. The female began to move, either because it was being
disturbed (by me) or because it had 'had enough'. The male responded by
trying to restrict the female's movement by obstructing her head (possibly
the antennae) even more, though the female won after quite a struggle to
get away. I wonder if it is a similar case with your observation, Frank?
BTW, I have a couple of pictures of this.
Best wishes, 
Brigitte

Dr B. Howarth
Al Ain English Speaking School
P.O. Box 17939
Al Ain
U.A.E.

alternative e-mail: uaehoverfly@hotmail.com