DIPTERA BRACHYCERA. 



EREMOCH^TA. 



Three pad-like almost equal pulvilli. Whole insect without 

 macroch?et£e. 



Head usually holoptic in the male, and sometimes {Cyrtida\ Systropivrc) 

 in both sexes, hut on the other hand occasionally {Xylophapis, etc.) 

 dichoptic in both sexes ; vertex and Irons never sunken enough between the 

 eyes to make the eyes protrude. Eyes very frequently brilliantly 

 colored in life and with conspicuous bands or spots ; facets usually 

 enlarged on the upper or front part in the male. Antennse polymorphic. 



The words used by Osten Sacken in 1892 (Berl. Entom. Zeitschr., 

 xxxvii., p. 429) when detailing the characters of his " superfamily " 

 Eremoch^ta were : 



" No macroch?etae ; three well-developed pulvilli ; heads in the male pre- 

 " dominantly holoptic and eyes very often bisected, with larger facets above 

 " than below ; the eyes in both sexes often variegated in different colors ; 

 " the structure of the antennal flagellum polymorphous, more inconstant 

 " here than in any other group of diptera ; tegulic undeveloped in the 

 " Le])tid(r. and Acanthomeridcc, very small in the Stratiomyidcv, and in full 

 " development only in the Tahanidcv. Axillary excision, alula and anti- 

 " tegula, in most cases, distinctly developed. Discal cell, as a rule, present ; 

 " five posterior cells, sometimes four, through the partial or total oblitera- 

 " tion of a vein. Legs rather smooth. Larvte with elongate heads, 

 "composed of horny plates; mandibles not opposed to each other, l)ut 

 " moving with a more or less vertical mobility, and thus foreshadowing the 

 " hook-shaped mandiljles of the larvpe of the Cyclorrliajjha (Long-headed 

 " larvffi, Langkr)[)fe of Marno)." 



Osten Sacken however included only "the families >Stratiomyid(r, 

 " Tahanidce, Acantlwmeridcc, and Lei^tida: (plus Xylophagidai)," relegating 

 the Nemestrinidm and Gyrtidm to his superfamily Tkomoptera; Init 

 after an examination of those two families I have ventured to include 

 them in the EremochKta, because I do not find one word in the a1)ove 

 quotation which would not apply to them. I am also impressed with the 

 fact that they agree with the previously mentioned families in possessing 

 three almost equal pad -like pulvilli and in being absolutely eremochsetous, 

 while the other Tromoptera have only two pulvilli and are not absolutely 

 eremochsetous. It may not be a matter of much importance where the 

 boundary line is drawn between the Eremoch^>ta and the Tromoptera, 



48 



