of the Family Tabanldse. 353 



to be its metropolis. The species lias been described by 

 Pcrty, tlic author of the cntomolofjjical portion of Spix and 

 Martius's travels, under the name of Hadrus lepidotus. It is 

 a member of the Tabanidae family, and, indeed, is closely 

 related to the Hamatopota plavialis, a brown fly which 

 haunts the borders of woods in summer time in England. 

 The ]Motuca is of a bronzed black colour ; its proboscis is 

 formed of a bundle of horny lancets, which are shorter and 

 broader than is usually the case in the family to which it 

 belongs. Its puncture does not produce much pain, but it 

 makes such a large gash in the Hesh that the blood trickles 

 forth in little streams. Many scores of them were flying 

 about the canoe all day, and sometimes eight or ten would 

 settle on one's ankles at the same time. It is sluggish in 

 its motions, and may be easily killed with the fingers when 

 it settles.'^ 



In chap. viii. p. 693, he mentions a sand-wasp, Monedula 

 signata, which jjrovisions its cells with the Motiiea : — 



"The Monedula siynata \% a good friend to travellers in 

 those parts of the Amazons which are infested by the blood- 

 thirsty Motuca. I first noticed its habit of preying on this 

 fly one day when we landed to make our fire and dine on the 

 borders of the forest adjoining a sand-bank. The insect is 

 as large as a hornet and has a most Avaspish appearance. 

 I was rather startled when one out of the flock which was 

 liovering about us flew straight at my face ; it had espied a 

 Motuca on my neck, and Avas thus pouncing upon it. It 

 seizes the fly not with its jaws, but with its fore and middle 

 feet, and carries it off tightly held to its breast. Wherever 

 the traveller lands on the Upper Amazons in the ncighbour- 

 liood of a sand-bank he is sure to be attended by one or more 

 of these useful vermin-killers." 



Lepidosdaga recta^ ? , Loevv. 



One female (Tylor-Townsend Coll.). 



One female from Panzos, Vera Paz (Biol. Ccntr.-Am. Coll.) 

 {Champion) . 



Selasoma, Macquart. 



-SV/«so?«rt, Macq., Dipt. Exot. i. (2) p. 187 (lb38j ; Loew, Dipt. Siid- 

 afrik. p. 31 (18UU). 



This genus was formed by Macquart for one species from 

 S. America, and he suggested Tnlxtinis cyunciis, Wiedem., 

 would belong to it, locality unknown. 



