ARTICLE I 



REPORT ON DIPTERA OF THE FAMILY EPHYDRIDAE 



By Ezra T. Cresson, Jr. 



The Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 



(Recei\'ed November 3, 1933) 



The Ephydridae submitted to me for study were collected around several saline lakes and 

 hot springs in the Punjab and Indian Tibet, and are represented by thirteen adults of 

 three species belonging to the genera Ephydra and Halniopofa, of which two are here 

 described as new. This did not surprise me as little is known of the Ephydrid fauna of the 

 Tibetan plateau. Becker's contribution on the Diptera of Central Asia^ is the only report to 

 my knowledge on the species of this family known to occur there. In this report he records 

 thirty species, describing several new genera and species, many from localities adjacent to the 

 saline lakes there. Comparatively few species of insects have adapted themselves to such 

 severe conditions as are presented by these generally alkaline and saline waters which, in 

 addition, are often quite hot. Larvae of this f unily have been previously collected in waters 

 with a temperature as high as 43°C. (109°F.).- In the present collection are specimens of 

 larvae from a hot spring at Phuga which were obtained up to 49.1°C. 



It is interesting to note that while expecting to find a group of species confined to such 

 a habitat, I was not prepared to encounter such extreme similarity as I did in the species of 

 the genus Ephydra, here descril^ed, and in one occurring in a similar environment in North 

 America. It required considerable study of all the material of this genus in my hands to 

 secure satisfactory characters for specific recognition. I could not believe that we had one and 

 the same species from such widely separated localities. 



This collection also contains some larvae and puparia, but as none of the adults were 

 bred from any of these, I am unable to determine with certainty the species represented. 

 However, as far as I can determine, these larvae and puparia seem to represent one and the 

 same species, although they show a certain degree of variation which I do not think is of 

 specific value. I append some notes on this material at the end of this paper. 



Ephydra glauca Meigen 



1830. Ephydra glauca Meigen, Syst. Beschr. Europ. Zweifl., VI, p. 120. 



1896. Ephydra ohscuripes Becker, Bed. Ent. Zeit., XLI, p. 222. (nee. Loew. 1866.) 



1930. Ephydra glauca Cresson, Trans. Am. Ent. Soc, LVI, p. 115. 



Indian Tibet: Tso-kar, 14,850 feet altitude, September 5, 1932. 1 ^ , 19. 



The water of Tso-kar is very salt, containing 74,832 parts per million non-volatile solids 

 in solution. 



This species was originally described from Europe, without any citation of definite 

 locality. I have reported it in 1930 from Lac Sarat, Great Wallacia, Roumania; at the 



'Ann. Afus. Zool. Acad. Imp. Sci. St. Petersb., XII, pp. 299-306 (1907). 

 'Brues in the Proc, Am. Acad, A. & Sc, LXIII, p. 202 (1928). 



Mem. Conn. Acad., Vol. X, Art. I. September, 1934. 



