80 



DIPTERA OF MINNESOTA. 



STRATIOMYIDAE. 



Soldier-Flies. 



As children, and the same is, in a measure, true of us as adults, 

 we always ran to obtain a glimpse of the bright uniforms of soldiery. 

 Some such thought must have inspired the naturalist who first called 

 the members of this family "Soldier-Flies," for while some are of mod- 

 est colors, many show most brilliant and striking features in this direc- 

 tion — yellow and black, or black and green being the most striking com- 

 binations, while uniform metallic greens and blues are extremely com- 

 mon. While the smaller species are 

 active, the larger varieties are notice- 

 ably slow. They can be picked from 

 flowers by the hand, and make no 

 efl^ort to escape. On June 12th, at 



Fig. 69. A characteristic Stratiomyid wing, ^t- Authouy Park, withiu half an hour 



After Comstock. ^j^g writcs collcctcd from the flowers 



a Ninebark bush, Physocapns opulifolius which stood in the hot sun, 

 over fifty specimens of this family, representing nine different species. 

 They were exceedingly abundant, and twice that number could read- 

 ily have been obtained. This bush, a near relative of the golden 

 leaved Spirea, has apparently a great attraction for many flies, as well 

 as Hymenoptera, since member of other families, Muscids, Sarcop- 

 hagids, Syrphids and Stratiomyids, were swarming about the newly 

 opened flowers. 



This family is a large one, about 

 1. 000 or more species being known. 

 In the more typical forms the abdomen 

 is broad, and more or less flattened. 

 The venation of the wing is a most 

 striking characteristic (see illustra- 

 tion). The adults are flower lovers. 

 They lay their eggs on the ground, on 

 aquatic plants, and possibly on the 

 water. The larvae feed either upon 

 small animals or upon vegetable mat- 

 ter. The larvae of one species has been 

 found in cow dung and under stones, 

 and another larval form occurs in the 



r 1 ^ ^.,, ,, Fig. 70. Flies attracted tc "Nine Bark" 



sap of elm trees, still another j,^^^ o^i^i^^, 



