314 SCESTOPISIDjE. — mydaidje. 



Life-history. Something of this has been known since the time 

 of Dufour, he, Bouche, Frauenfeld, and others having described it, 

 and the species has been bred on numerous occasions. The larva 

 was at first thought to live on carpets, stable-rugs, horse-hair 

 mattresses, and such-like articles, but it was subsequently found in 

 Polypori, and on willows and other trees. A Scenopinus pupa has 

 been found in a cocoon of Saturnia pyri, in which were the remains 

 of the Saturnia pupa, and the species is said to have been bred from 

 decaying wood. The larva is certainly carnivorous, probably 

 living on the larva? and pupaa of moths and other insects, possibly 

 of fleas also, found in houses, but evidently breeds in the opeu 

 air also in a similar manner. The larva is elongate cylindrical, 

 rather tough, of about twenty segments, with small brown head, 

 moving in a serpent-like manner; the pupa being slender, with 

 rows of spines and bristles. 



Mr. Verrall notes a curious point about this species, that a 

 large number of females are found with the wing-tip broken off, 

 and suggests that it may be done in pairing. In four European 

 fenestrate in the Indian Museum this is the ease in two specimens, 

 a third having one wing damaged near, though not actually at, 

 the tip, the fourth being perfect ; also in nine Indian fenestralis 

 in the same collection only one wing is thus broken, whilst in 

 five European glabrifrons all the wings are perfect. 



Family MYDAIME. 



The Mydaid^e are flies of from moderate to gigantic size, easily 

 recognised by their peculiar venation, their projecting club-shaped 

 antennae, and their bare surface, being wholly devoid of bristles 

 except for a few on the legs. The prevailing colour is black, with, 

 in many species, bands on the abdomen of red or yellow. 



Head about as broad as thorax, transverse ; neck short and 

 narrow ; frons and vertex sunk, making the eyes appear especially 

 prominent ; ocelli indistinct, or, when on a prominence, at some 

 distance from the vertex. Proboscis varying from very long and 

 thin, with small labella, to rather thick and short, with labella of 

 considerable size ; palpi, when present, one-jointed, long or thin, 

 but generally absent. Eyes bare, wide apart in both sexes, and 

 never with enlarged facets. Antennae porrect, approximate or 

 touching at base ; the two basal joints normal, 2nd shorter than 

 1st, with a few bristles or stiff hairs ; 3rd joint generally elongate, 

 clubbed or knobbed at tip, with traces of annulations. 



Thorax subquadrate, with sparse (rarely thicker) pubescence on 

 dorsum, coarse pubescence at sides of dorsum ; humeri prominent, 

 pleura? often with a moderate amount of pubescence ; scutellum 

 small though broad, unspined; metanotum very large. 



Abdomen elongate, 7-segmented, with light pubescence onty ; 

 genitalia in J of moderate size, with small foliaceous lamella? 



