PA tried various fliers (7)
I believe the answer is:
diptera
'fliers' is the definition.
(biological order containing flies)
'pa tried various' is the wordplay.
'various' indicates an anagram.
'pa'+'tried'='patried'
'patried' with letters rearranged gives 'DIPTERA'.
(Other definitions for diptera that I've seen before include "Flighty little types" , "Flies" , "Insects" .)