EMPIS. EMPIS. 
Generic Character. 
Os rostro corneo, inflexo, 
biv'alvi, thorace longiore ; 
valvulis horizontalibus. 
Mouth with a horny, in- 
flected, bivalve snout, 
longer than the thorax, 
with horizontal valves. 
In point of habit the insects of the genus Empis 
bear some resemblance to those of Tipula and 
Culex. One of the most familiar species is the 
Empis livida of Linnaeus, which is a brownish fly, 
with the thorax marked by three longitudinal 
black lines : the legs are rufous or ochre-coloured, 
and the feet blackish: the wings are transparent, 
wdth dark veins. These insects are observed in 
fields and gardens. Degeer informs us that in 
the year 1773 vast numbers of this species were 
observed on the ears of rye in some parts of 
Sweden, and were believed by the people to have 
considerably injured the crops; but this he con- 
siders as an unfounded notion. They principally 
feed on the smaller kind of flies, &c. 
