Flies, pumpkin, Fanna Island, Palau

October 2017. A fly from pumpkins collected on Fanna Islands, southwest of the Palau archipelago. They may be secondary and breeding in the damage done by crabs. They are 2mm long.

Based on the size, biology, and the general habitus and metallic sheen, Dave Britton (DAF, Queensland) suggested Lonchaeidae. None of the required diagnostic characters can be seen from the photos, so others may feel free to nominate some other family. It would be highly unlikely that they are the cause of the damage to the pumpkin, as they are usually secondary pests even in softer fruits like tomato.