These are commonly known as 'daddy-long-legs', They are easily identified by the 'V' shaped rear of the thorax and very long legs which are easily broken off. When at rest, the larger species hold their wings out whilst the others generally fold them flat over the abdomen.

These flies have a flattened body which are usually bright and often metallic colours. The feet have 3 pads and the wind veins are are crowded on the front part of the wing. They visit flowers for the nectar .

Feet with 3 pads. Second long vein curves forward to enclose stigma. Hind tibia with 2 spurs.

These are mainly predatory flies like most of their relatives in the superfamily Empidoidea,

These have variable forms but are generally small to medium in size and have a non-metallic body which is bristly..

Some of these species are commonly called 'Dagger flies' (in recognition of their sharp piercing mouth parts), 'Ballon Flies' or 'Dance flies'.

These are very bristly predatory flies that chase and catch other insects in flight. They generally sit in wait on a leaf/stem and dart out as a potential prey passes. The captured insect is then sucked dry with the stout proboscis and then discarded.

There is a deep groove between the eyes of both sexes and a 'beard' on the face protects the eyes from damage by struggling prey. The legs are sturdy with one or two pads. At rest, the wings are folded over the back of the abdomen.

The larvae eat dead vegetable matter but most are predatory and eat beetle and fly grubs in the soil.

These belong to the superfamily Syrphoidae and are commonly seen hovering, darting about and landing on flowers for nectar.

The body shape, size and colour is extremely variable and generally have black and/or yellow colourng to mimick bees and wasps to ward off predators. They are completely harmless but even we get confused by the colouring.

There are 3 sub families - Eristalinae, Microdontinae and Syrphinae.

These belong to the superfamily Tephritoidea and are also called fruit flies. This gets confusing as another family of flies are also called fruit flies and hence my classification here.

The elaberate colouring and marking of the wings distinguishes this fly. Some are beneficial to agriculture but some are very destructive.

There are many sub families - too numerous to mention here.

These belong to the superfamily Oestroidea. The larvae develop in a living host eventually killing it.

The are extremely varied in appearance. Some are brilliantly coloured resembling blow flies whilst others are rather drab like the house fly.

There are 5 sub families - 'Dexiinae', 'Exoristinae', 'Goniinae', 'Phasiinae' and 'Tachininae'.

These belong to the superfamily Oestroidea. Commonly known as 'Blow flies', 'Blue-bottles'. 'Green-bottles' and 'Cluster-flies'.

The adult flies are usually metalic coloured green blue or black. They lay their eggs on carrion and the larvae feed off this.

There are 6 sub families - 'Auchmeromyiinae', 'Calliphoriinae', 'Chrysomyinae', 'Luciliinae', 'Melanomyinae' and 'Polleniinae'.

These belong to the superfamily Oestroidea. Commonly known as 'Blow flies', 'Blue-bottles'. 'Green-bottles' and 'Cluster-flies'.

Most flesh flies breed in carrion, dung, or decaying material, but a few species lay their eggs in the open wounds of mammals; hence their common name.

Some flesh fly larvae are internal parasites of other insects. These larvae, commonly known as maggots, live for about 5–10 days, before descending into the soil and maturing into adulthood. At that stage, they live for 5–7 days.

Sub-families: * Miltogramminae, * Paramacronychiinae, * Sarcophaginae

These belong to the superfamily Muscoidea. Some of the species are commonly known as 'House-flies' or 'Stable-flies'.

The adult flies are attracted to sugar, sweat, tears and blood. Some are predatory whilst others feed on plants and animal waste. The larvae may be found in decaying vegetation, soil, bird nests, fresh water and on carrion to name a few.

There are 7 sub families - 'Atherigoninae', 'Azeliinae', 'Coenosiinae', 'Cyrtoneurininae', 'Muscinae', 'Mydaeinae and 'Phaoniinae'.

These belong to the superfamily Muscoidea. Some of the species are commonly known as 'Dung-flies'.

The adult flies are predators of other small insects. The larvae of this family are diverse in their food sources, ranging from plant feeding and other insect larvae predation in vegetation, water and dung

There are 2 sub families - 'Scathophaginae' and 'Delinnae'.

These belong to the superfamily Platypezoidea. Some of the species are commonly known as 'Flat-footed-flies'.

The adult flies reside in woodland and feed off deposits on leaves. The larvae of this family herbivores.

There are numerous sub families - Not listed here.

These belong to the superfamily Sphaeroceroidea. Some of the species are commonly known as 'Flat-footed-flies'.

The adult flies are small to medium sized and vary in colour from yellow to reddish yellow or reddish brown to black. The larvae of this family feed on decaying plant and animal matter, mushrooms and various fungi.

There are 6 sub families - 'Borboropsinae', 'Heleomyzinae', 'Heteromyzinae', 'Rhinotorinae', 'Suillinae' and 'Trixoscelidinae'.

These belong to the superfamily Psychodoidea. An alternative common name is the 'Drain fly' .

The adult flies are very small and the wings and body are covered in hairs making them moth like except they only have one pair of wings like True flies. These hairs make it virtually imposible to identify the individual species without killing the fly and examining it under a microscope. The adults are nocturnal and associated with damp habitats.

There are 6 sub families - 'Bruchomyiinae', 'Horaiellinae', 'Phlebotominae', 'Psychodinae', 'Sycoracinae' and 'Trichomyiinae'.

These belong to the superfamily Sciomyzoidea. This family of flies are commonly called 'black scavanger flies' or 'ensign flies'. The former names describes their ant-like structure and the latter name refers to the the wing waving habit of some of the species.

The adult flies are usually found around dung or decaying plant and animal matter.

There are 10 Genera - 'Decachaetophora', 'Enicita', 'Enicomira', 'Meroplius', 'Nemopoda' 'Orygma', 'Saltella', Sepsidimorpha', 'Sepsis' and 'Themira'.

Bombyliidae is a large family of flies with hundreds of genera, although their life cycles are not well known. Adults generally feed on nectar and pollen, thus are pollinators of flowers. They superficially resemble bees, thus are commonly called bee flies.

The larvae are either preditors or parasitoids. The adults depositing her eggs in the area of potential hosts. When the larvae emerge they seek out their victim.

Anthomyiidae is a large and diverse family of Muscoidea flies. Name came from Greek "anthos" (flower) + "myia" (a fly). Some species are commonly called "root-maggots", as the larvae are found in the stems and roots of various plants. As larvae, some also feed on decaying plant material, and some are leaf miners; the family also includes inquilines, commensals, and parasitic larvae. Some species in the family are significant agricultural pests, particularly some from the genus Delia, which includes the onion fly (Delia antiqua), the wheat bulb fly (Delia coarctata), the turnip root fly (Delia floralis), the bean seed fly (Delia platura) and the cabbage root fly (Delia radicum).

There are 2 sub families Anthomyiinae and Pegomyinae

Dolichopodidae, the long-legged flies, make up a large family of true flies with more than 7,000 described species in about 230 genera distributed worldwide. The genus Dolichopus is the most speciose, with some 600 species. They are generally small flies with large, prominent eyes and a metallic cast to their appearance, though considerable variation is observed. Most have long legs, though some do not. The males often have enlarged genitalia which can be useful for species recognition. The adults are predatory on other small animals.

The majority of conopids are black and yellow, or black and white, and often strikingly resemble wasps, bees, or flies of the family Syrphidae, themselves notable bee mimics. Conopids are most frequently found at flowers, feeding on nectar with their proboscis, which is often long.

The larvae of all conopids are internal parasites, most of aculeate (stinging) Hymenoptera. Adult females aggressively intercept and deposit eggs on their hosts in-flight, and the female's abdomen is modified to form what amounts to a "can opener" to pry open the segments of the host's abdomen as the egg is inserted.

Marsh flies are generally slender, yellowish or brownish, ¼–½ inches long. They have fairly prominent eyes, prominent forward-pointing antennae, and bristles on the hind femora (upper hind leg). The wings are often mottled with various light brown markings according to species.

Marsh flies are common along the edges of ponds and rivers, and in marshy areas where the larvae prey on or become parasites of slugs & snails. Very little is known about the complete life cycle of these flies.

Habitat: Near ponds, streams, marshes. Food: Adults drink dew and nectar. Larvae prey on slugs and freshwater snails. Information Source Wikepedia

A family of acalyptrate flies. It contains around 1800 described species in 126 genera distributed worldwide. These are generally small flies (length 5 mm or less) with large compound eyes, often brightly coloured in life. Many species have patterned wings.

Their species diversity declines strongly in the more temperate regions. There are slightly fewer than 180 species from Europe. Most species are inhabitants of forests, to be found on low shrubs, trees, and leaves.

Mosquitoes resemble crane flies (family Tipulidae) and chironomid flies (family Chironomidae), with which they are sometimes confused by the casual observer.

Mosquitoes have mouthparts that are adapted for piercing the skin of plants and animals. While males typically feed on nectar and plant juices, the female needs to obtain nutrients from a "blood meal" before she can produce eggs.

The family contains about 1,600 described species worldwide, most diverse in arid and semi-arid regions with sandy soils. The larvae are predators of insect larvae in soil.

They are often known as picture-winged flies, along with members of other families in the superfamily Tephritoidea that have patterns of bands or spots on the wings. Most species share with the Tephritidae an unusual elongated projection of the anal cell in the wing, but can be differentiated by the smoothly-curving subcostal vein.