DASYTOuONINAE 



ROBBER FLIES OF THE WORLD 



51 



Antenna attached at the upper fifth of the head, long 

 and slender and considerably longer than the head. 

 First 2 segments nearly equal. The third segment 

 slightly compressed laterally, of nearly uniform thick- 

 ness, almost twice as long as the first 2 segments 

 combined and bearing apically a spoon-shaped micro- 

 segment turned dorsally and carrying within a spine. 

 Pile of the first 2 segments composed of numerous, fine, 

 appressed hairs dorsally, 2 or 3 similar hairs below and 

 on the second segment apically a pair of stiff setae. 



Head, anterior aspect : Face width below antenna one- 

 third the head width and slightly divergent below, 

 subepistomal area large, slightly oblique. Face with- 

 out pile, the epistomal margin with a transverse row 

 of 7 or 8 pairs of stiff, moderately long, slightly curved 

 bristles which are directed straight downward. The 

 fj-ont is of the same width as the face, short, with a 

 low, convex elevation on either side, which merges with 

 the ocellarium. Vertex slightly narrowed but little 

 excavated, the ocellarium quite large, extending well 

 above the eye profile and carrying 2 or 3 pairs of weak, 

 medial and several similar postocellar hairs. Eyes 

 with the central facets enlarged. 



Thorax: Mesonotum broadly pollinose over the 

 greater part ; the margin from the humerus to the noto- 

 pleuron, the postalar area, the scutellar margin, meta- 

 notum, except the prominent bulla, the humerus, and 

 almost the whole of the pleuron, bare and shining. 

 Mesonotal height two-fifths its length. Pile of meso- 

 notum scanty, fine, short, curled and suberect; longer 

 laterally. A row of acrostical bristles present, with 

 wide, apilose band on either side. The dorsocentral 

 bristles are short and weak throughout. The notopleu- 

 ron has a stout, sharp, tuberculate, basally swollen 

 spine. Margin of the scutellum with a few, short setae ; 

 its disc slightly convex and with some very short, fine 

 pile and several transverse grooves. Propleuron with 

 long, stiff pile, the collar with weak bristles. Upper 

 mesopleuron with a few, stiff, bristly setae, the anterior 

 prolongation and the upper sternopleuron with a few 

 scattered hairs. Metapleuron with only 2 or 3 weak 

 bristles and 2 or 3 additional, slender hairs. Metanotal 

 slopes micropubescent only; metasternal slopes and 

 metasternum with 6 to 10 long, slender hairs each. 

 Postmetacoxal area membranous. 



Legs: The femora are moderately stout. The hind 

 femur bears a few, minute, appressed, scattered hairs 

 dorsally and apically, 6 short but stout spines laterally 

 and 1 at the subapex medially. There are about 40 

 scattered erect fine hairs over the whole ventral sur- 

 face. The corresponding erect fringe of the hind tibia 



is much more dense but confined to the basal half ; dis- 

 tally there is a brush of setae. Hind tibia has 5 or 6 

 short, stout, dorsal spines, 4 somewhat longer lateral 

 spines and the apex with 6 stout bristles. Middle 

 femur with 3 stout apical posterior and 3 stout ante- 

 rior basal bristles; dorsal bristles are minute and 6 in 

 number and include 2 short basal, 1 long middle and a 

 still longer anterior bristle beyond; posterior bristles 

 exceptionally stout but short, 7 in number. The ante- 

 rior femur has a stout middle and apical posterior 

 bristle, a stout middle anterior bristle. Ventrally 

 both anterior and middle femora have only a scattered 

 fringe of long, fine hairs. Anterior tibia with 5 stout, 

 short, dorsal, 11 short, stout, anterodorsal, 8 short 

 stout, posterior, and on the outer third posterovent- 

 rally 2 longer stout bristles. Apex of anterior tibia 

 with 8 stout bristles and no spine. Pulvillus large; 

 empodium long ; and claws stout and sharp. 



Wings : Marginal cell open by a distance equal to the 

 length of the anterior crossvein; anterior branch of 

 third vein ends at wing apex, second submarginal cell 

 arched at base. The first posterior cell widely open, 

 fourth posterior cell open but narrowed to two-thirds 

 of its maximum width; anal cell unusually widely 

 open; second basal cell ends in three veins. Alula 

 large, the ambient vein complete. Anterior half of 

 wing strongly tinged with sepia. 



Abdomen: The abdomen is drooping and pendent, 

 robust, and at the base as wide as the mesonotum ; the 

 fourth and fifth segments considerably wider, the first 

 3 thickly punctate, the sides of the first but little swol- 

 len. Six tergites are present in the male, the sixth 

 long, the seventh concealed within it, the whole abdo- 

 men rather strongly subcylindrical and convex; the 

 pile is abundant on the basal part of the abdomen but 

 quite dense posteriorly, short, suberect and fine; lateral 

 margins with only slightly longer pile. Spines absent 

 except upon the first tergite where there is a single 

 pair of short, stout spines. Sternal pile long and stiff. 

 There are 6 tergites present in the female; the seventh 

 and eighth tergites in the female are quite short, later- 

 ally compressed and forming part of the ovipositor. 

 Male terminalia protrusive but short and not very con- 

 spicuous and not rotate. Female terminalia slightly 

 compressed laterally, incorporating 3 tergites of nearly 

 equal length, but decreasing size ; ventral plate notched 

 deeply at the apex, but only one-sixth of its length; 

 spines and acanthophorites absent. 



Distribution : Oriental : Godula sumatrana Enderlein 

 ( 1914) , from Indo-Malaya. 



Australian: Godula limbipennis Macquart (1849); 

 vespiformis Thompson ( 1869) . 



Tribe Damalini 



This is a tribe of a few genera of comparatively small 

 flies. Two of the genera, Damalis Fabricius on the 

 Asiatic and African continents, and Holcocephala 



Jaennicke in the Neotropical region, each contains a 

 considerable number of species. They are character- 

 ized by the open posterior cells, the anal cell closed or 



