"Out Damned Spot!" Said The Tachinid Fly

I was lurking by the ivy hoping for insect visitors. A swarm of Red Admiral butterflies would have been nice, I've seen very few this autumn. Maybe the hornet would make a bumbling visit causing mayhem? I particularly want to capture a Death's Head hoverfly, I saw one the other day but didn't manage a shot.

This bristly Tachinid was easy to capture. I've never seen a fly so seemingly obsessed with washing and grooming itself. It reminded me of Lady Macbeth as it repeatedly wrung its 'hands' as if to rid itself of something nasty. Like Lady M, it is guilty. She has probably laid her eggs in the larvae of lots of butterflies and moths and when her offspring hatch they will eat the host alive.