LAPHEI1NAB 



ROBBER FLIES OF THE WORLD 



385 



Text-Figure 27. — Paratractia dasypus Wiedemann 



ment cylindrical, rather narrow, the attachment still 

 more narrow, with 4 or 5 long, bristly hairs ventrally 

 and 2 or 3 at the apex. 



Antenna attached only a little above the middle of 

 the head. It is elongate and slender, the first segment 

 is 1% times as long as the second segment. Third seg- 

 ment iy 2 times as long as the combined length of 

 the first two; it is of nearly uniform thickness, tends 

 to be a little swollen ventrally a short distance from 

 the base, and dorsally bears near or just beyond the 

 middle a distinct, shallow incision with a bristly spine. 

 Apex bluntly pointed, slightly narrowed and pubes- 

 cent. Medial surface with a long, oval area of shorter 

 pubescence reaching back to the basal third. 



Head, anterior aspect: The face below antenna is a 

 little more than a fourth the head width and scarcely 

 divergent below. The pile of the face is long and fine 

 on the dorsal half and curved downward, a little more 

 dense and slightly bristly in character on the lower 

 portion of the face and there is a fringe of 6 pairs 

 of quite slender, pale, much longer, bristly hairs, which 

 are transversely or circularly across the epistomal mar- 

 gin and on the upper half of the lateral subepistomal 

 margin. The front is rather short owing to the deep 

 excavation of the vertex; the latter has vertical sides. 

 The front laterally bears a shallow fossa. Sublateral 

 margins of the front with 5 or 6 slender, bristly hairs, 

 the swollen, medial portion with a row on either side 

 of 3 or 4 hairs. The ocellarium is large and high, 

 with nearly vertical sides, and it is placed anteriorly 

 though not visible in profile. Ocellarium with a pair 

 of long, only moderately stout, reddish bristles, di- 

 vergent and curved backward. 



Thorax: The mesonotum every where densely, flat 

 appressed, short, curled, brassy pilose. The lateral 

 bristles consist of 1 stout, black notopleural and 1 

 quite slender, stiffened hair on front of this bristle; 

 supraalar with 1 long, black bristle, postalar with 3 

 black bristles. The scutellar margin has 4 stout bristles 

 and there are fine, long hairs in front of the scutellum. 

 Disc of scutellum with only short, subappressed, yel- 

 lowish pile. Mesopleuron on the upper three-fourths 

 with numerous, appressed, bristly hairs and witli a 

 stout, rather long, reddish bristle on the posterior mar- 

 gin below the wing and an additional slender black 

 bristle above it. Sternopleuron with scattered, fine pile 

 dorsally, more abundant pile anteriorly. Pteropleuron 

 apilose, posthypopleuron with 3 or 4 long, stiff hairs 

 above and numerous, fine hairs below in a vertical row. 

 Lateral slopes of the metanotum with 5 short, stout, red- 

 dish, quite spinous bristles and with other pile below. 

 Propleuron with only stiff pile posteriorly, bristly pile 

 ventrally, the anterior pronotum however, with 6 or 

 7 stout bristles on each side. Nearly the whole of the 

 lateral metasternum with abundant, fine pile; the ven- 

 tral metasternum with a few scattered hairs; postmeta- 

 coxal region membranous; the tegula has a few, fine 

 bristles. 



Legs: The hind femur is rather considerably thick- 

 ened, especially on the distal half, and bears a dense 

 brush of subappressed, stiff, reddish to blackish pile 

 on the distal half of the dorsal surface, together with 

 a few, slender, blackish bristles intermixed near the 

 apex. Lateral margins with dense, moderately long, 

 dark pile and 1 stout, brownish yellow, oblique, lateral 

 bristle at the outer third. Ventral margin with a dense 

 brush of erect, rather fine, brownish black pile. Tibia 



