55 
Genus 
HtEMATOPOTA, Meigen. 
Haematopota pluvialis, Linn. 
Plate II. — Fig. i, <$ \ fig. 2, ? . 
This species is one of the commonest and most generally dis- 
tributed of British blood-sucking flies. It occurs throughout the 
British Islands, and is even to be met with in London suburbs, as 
shown by a specimen taken at Fulham, on July 12th, 1 891 . The 
dates on the specimens in the Museum collection prove that the 
perfect insect is on the wing from June to August inclusive. On 
the continent of Europe H. pluvialis is equally widely distributed, 
and the Museum series includes examples from various localities, 
from Norway to Italy and Spain. 
With reference to this species Curtis writes (' British Entomology,' 
1834) that it is " common everywhere in woods, on palings in lanes 
&c, in June, Jul)-, and August, in England, Scotland, and Ireland ; 
the females, which attack both men and horses, sometimes appear in 
myriads without one male." 
The preliminary stages of H. pluvialis are passed in the soil 
(humus). 
Haematopota crassicornis, Whlbg. 
Plate 12. 
Care is needed for the distinction of this species from the foregoing, 
with which it agrees in distribution. So far as coloration, however, 
goes, H. crassicornis is distinctly the darker species of the two, 
while in both sexes the light stripes on the thorax are more 
conspicuous. 
