LAPUKIINAE 



ROBBER FLIES OF THE WORLD 



more long, strong, lateral bristles; remaining tergites 

 with 2 or 3 quite stout bristles in decreasing numbers 

 on the terminal segments. In the male are seven ter- 

 gites, the length of seventh a third or less that of the 

 sixth. Seven tergites present in the female. The 

 eighth is incorporated in the ovipositor, which is 

 slightly compressed laterally, rounded and subconical, 

 with a long, slender, dorsal, posterior extension and 

 bristles only below. Male terminalia only moderately 

 conspicuous, rotate one-fourth to the left; the dorsal 

 proctiger notable for an apical fringe of 9 long, quite 

 stout, close-set, spinous bristles. 



Distribution: Neotropical: Pilica clausicella Mac- 

 quart (1849) ; cyaniventris Bromley (1934) ; cyrtophora 

 Hermann (1912) ; elegans Bromley (1934) ; erax .Brom- 

 ley (1934) ; erythrogaster Wiedemann (1828); formi- 

 dolosa Walker (1860); olbus Walker (1849); 

 phonicogaster Hermann (1912) ; punctata Bromley 

 (1934); pyrrhopyga Wiedemann (1828); rubidapex 

 Hermann (1912) ; rufipennis Wiedemann (1828). 



Genus Neophoneus Williston 



Figures 273, 650, 1236, 1245 



Phoneus Macquart, Dipteres exotiques, vol. 1, pt. 2, p. 79, 1838. 



Type of genus: Phoneus servillei Macquart, 1838, by 



monotypy. Preoccupied by Aves, 1829. 

 Neophoneus Williston, Psyche, vol. 5, p. 255, 18S9. Change of 



name. 



Flies of medium or large size, characterized by the 

 robust but comparatively elongate form, the stout bris- 

 tles and short and reduced pile. The definitive char- 

 acter is the prominent, long proboscis which has a 

 conspicuous tuft of long, stout bristles in the middle 

 of the dorsal surface. Old World genera of the 

 Ctenotini have a similar dorsal tuft of bristles but 

 their claws are blunt. Wings slender and long with 

 the first posterior cell long and narrow and narrowly 

 open. Claws sharp. Length 20 to 35 mm. 



Head, lateral aspect : The head is long and the face is 

 unusually prominent ; near or above the middle the face 

 extends forward in a prominent, rounded, convex bulge 

 or gibbosity. The occiput is thick below, disappearing 

 at the upper third of the head. It is pubescent with 

 dense, long, crinkly, extremely fine and delicate pile; 

 the upper portion bears stiff pile and a few weak 

 bristles. Proboscis large, conspicuous, thrust forward 

 horizontally and not quite twice the head length; the 

 outer half is flattened above and bears in the middle 

 a characteristic and conspicuous tuft of numerous, long, 

 stiff, black bristles. The apex is quite pointed, pilose 

 and plane above, curved and tapered below; the apex 

 bears in the middle a few black bristles directed forward 

 ventrally, and from the middle to the base numerous, 

 long, fine, white hairs. Palpus small and slender and 

 composed of two segments ; the first segment is cylindri- 

 cal. The second segment completely excavated and 

 flattened but unusually slender; it bears slender, scat- 

 tered bristles which proceed from the whole surface 



353 



but are stronger, longer and aggregated at the apex. 

 The antenna is set at the upper fourth of the head and 

 is as long as the head. The first segment is longer than 

 the second. The third segment is iy 2 times as long as 

 the first two combined; it is slightly wider than the 

 second, attenuate towards the base, and a little narrowed 

 at the apex, which bears a pit and concealed spine. 

 First segment below has 1 quite long, stout bristle; both 

 the first and second segments bear bristly hairs above 

 and below. 



Head, anterior aspect: The head is unusually wide; 

 the face is quite wide and the extensive genal area ex- 

 tends well under the eyes. The prominent facial gib- 

 bosity bears about 10 pairs of dense, long, stiff bristles 

 spread over the whole, or in some species a like number 

 of more restricted and centralized bristles. The surface 

 of the face is densely micropubescent and on the upper 

 part is long and abundant pile continued laterally down 

 the sides of the face and also on the sides of the subepis- 

 toma. Front extremely short; the sides bear long, fine 

 or stiff pile. Vertex deeply excavated but the ocellar 

 tubercle is small and usually rather low, with 1 pair of 

 long and 1 pair of short, divergent bristles. 



Thorax: the mesonotum is long, moderately convex 

 with acrostical elements present and a bare stripe on 

 either side; the pile is scattered, scanty, fine, bristly 

 and suberect; humerus pilose. Notopleuron with 1 to 

 3 bristles, supraalar with 1 to 3, postalar with 3 to 8, 

 and scutellum with 3 or 4 pairs of bristles, all well de- 

 veloped. Prescutellar area with bristly hairs, scutellar 

 disc pilose, the apex convex. Metanotum low, pubes- 

 cent, with a low, inconspicuous lip, sides slightly swol- 

 len, with 5 or 6 hairs only. Propleuron pilose; 

 pronotum with a wide band of fine pile. The mesopleu- 

 ron is pilose and in upper posterior corner bears from 

 1 to 6 stout bristles; pteropleuron and posthypopleu- 

 ron with abundant pile, metapleuron convex, with a 

 wide band of moderately long, very fine, radiating pile. 

 Lateral slopes of metanotum with 5 or 6 bristly hairs. 

 The postmetacoxal area is membranous but the sides of 

 the metasternum encroach a little. Presternum not 

 dissociated. 



Legs: Hind femur and tibia moderately elongate, 

 slightly dilated distally. Hind femur covered with 

 dense, appressed setate pile and with an erect, ventral 

 fringe of fine pile continuing on to the tibia. The 

 dorsal and lateral surfaces bear numerous, very long 

 and delicate hairs ; the apex has 3 or 4 delicate bristles 

 and 1 subapical lateral bristle which is quite stout; 

 there is sometimes a bristle at the apex laterally and 

 medially. Hind tibia with a double row of fine, mod- 

 erately long bristles and short hairs. At the subapex 

 are 2 or 3 ventral bristles. Middle femur with fine, 

 long hair dorsally and ventrally and 2 or 3 bristles at 

 apex posteriorly. Middle tibia with a double, diver- 

 gent, dorsal row of 3 or 4 bristles; there are 4 rows 

 below, consisting of a double ventral row and a ventro- 

 lateral and anteroventral row ; all these contain delicate, 

 long bristles; the posterior complement is for the most 

 part stiffest. Apex with 2 posterior, 2 dorsal, 1 an- 



