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ANNALS
OF THE
SOUTH AFRICAN MUSEUM
VOLUME XXXIV
ANNALS
OF THE
SOUTH AFRICAN MUSEUM
VOLUME XXXIV
PRINTED FOR THE
TRUSTEES OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN MUSEUM
BY NEILL AND CO., LTD., 2 12 CAUSEWAYSIDE, EDINBURGH.
1938.
TRUSTEES OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN MUSEUM.
J. G. VAN dee, Horst, Esq.
W. J. Thorne, Esq.
Professor William Adam Jolly, M.B., Ch.B., D.Sc, F.R.S.S.Afr.
Professor D. L. Scholtz, D.Sc.
Councillor A. J. MacCalltjm, M.P.
SCIENTIFIC STAFF OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN
MUSEUM.
Edwin Leonard Gill, D.Sc, Director and Keeper-in-Chief.
Keppel Harcourt Barnard, M.A., D.Sc, F.L.S., Assistant Director; in Charge
of Fish and Marine Invertebrates.
Albert John Hesse, B.Sc, Ph.D., F.R.E.S., Assistant in Charge of the Ento-
mological Department.
Miss Gwendolyn Joyce Lewis, B.A., Assistant in Charge of the Botanical
Department.
Miss Ella Margaret Shaw, B.A., Assistant in Charge of the Ethnological
Department.
Lieuwe Dirk Boonstra, D.Sc, Assistant in Palaeontology.
Sidney Henry Haughton, B.A., D.Sc, Honorary Keeper of the Geological and
Palaeontological Collections.
A. J. H. Goodwin, M.A., Honorary Keeper of the Ethnological and Archaeological
Collections.
ANNALS
SOUTH AFRICAN MUSEUM
VOLUME XXXIV.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa.
By A. J. Hesse, B.Sc, Ph.D., F.R.E.S., Entomologist, South African
Museum, Cape Town. (With 332 Text-figures.)
ISSUED JULY 1938. PRICE Jfit
PRINTED FOR THE
TRUSTEES OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN MUSEUM, CAPE TOWN
BY NEILL AND CO., LTD.,
212 CAUSEWAYSIDE, EDINBURGH.
AMALS
OF THE
SOUTH AFRICAN MUSEUM
VOLUME XXXIV.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae {Diptera) of Southern Africa.
—By A. J. Hesse, B.Sc, Ph.D., F.R.E.S., Entomologist, South
African Museum, Cape Town.
PREFACE.
Since the time that Wiedemann (1828) and Macquart (1840) described
odd genera and species from material containing South African forms,
over a century ago, specimens of many South African species of
Bombyliidae have found their way into museum collections. From a
systematic point of view the accumulation of unnamed material thus
necessitated more comprehensive undertakings. Among entomol-
ogists interested in Diptera, Loew was one of the first to devote his
attention to the description of South African Diptera and Bombyliidae.
His "Die Dipteren-Fauna Siidafrika's, 1860" is indispensable to the
student of South African Diptera, and as a model of descriptive
accuracy and scientific clarity it has not been superseded. After Loew,
occasional generic and specific descriptions were published by Rondani
(1863), Bigot (1892), and Becker (1912), but another period of accum-
ulation elapsed before any serious attention was again given to South
African and Ethiopian Bombyliidae. This period of half a century
between Loew and modern times was not only a period of settlement
and economic expansion in Africa, but was also one of biological
interest in that the botanical and faunistic wealth of the Ethiopian
VOL. xxxiv.
tt
2 Annals of the South African Museum.
Continent was slowly being revealed by explorers, collectors, and
pioneer-naturalists. Not only did museums and institutions become
enriched by the gun of the big-game hunter, but contributions by
zealous and enthusiastic collectors, interested in Entomology, in-
creased the accessions to their entomological collections a hundredfold.
More comprehensive surveys of South African Diptera were thus made
possible, and Bezzi, through a series of contributions culminating in
"The Bombyliidae of South Africa (Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii,
1921)," and "The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Kegion, 1924,"
carried on the work of Wiedemann and Loew to a further stage. In
the last decade, however, so much collecting has been done in South
Africa and so much material has accumulated that even Bezzi's re-
vision of this family is now entirely inadequate and incomplete from a
taxonomic point of view. In this and the following volume yet another
attempt is made to revise the genera and species of Southern Africa.
For this purpose the author has had at his disposal the large and
unnamed collections of the British Museum, the Imperial Institute of
Entomology, the Transvaal Museum, and the very rich collection of
the South African Museum, as well as smaller collections from the
Deutsches Entomologisches Institut, the Ehodesian Museum, the
Albany Museum, the Durban Museum, the Natal Museum, the
Agricultural Departments of Southern Khodesia and the Union of
South Africa. Members on the scientific stall of the South African
Museum have also undertaken special trips to various localities in the
South and South Eastern Cape, to the mountainous parts of the
Western Province, to the North Western Districts, to Namaqualand,
to Great Namaqualand, and to many localities in the Gouph Karoo,
the Nieuwveld Karoo, the Great Karoo and the little Karoo to obtain
as many specimens as possible from these regions. The expeditions of
the South African Museum to South West Africa, Damaraland,
Ovamboland, and the Kaokoveld during 1915-26 and to parts of
Portuguese East Africa have also contributed many interesting
specimens. The large collection in the Transvaal Museum includes
not only a representative collection from various localities in the
Transvaal but a very good collection from the Little Karoo, obtained
by the late Dr. Brauns, and a miscellanous collection acquired by the
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 3
Vernay-Lang Kalahari and Bechuanaland Expedition (see Ann.
Trans. Mus., vol. xvii, pp. 161-184, 1936, by A. J. Hesse). The rich
unnamed collections from the British Museum and the Imperial
Institute include material from all over the Union and some from
South West Africa and Rhodesia, chiefly collected by Mr. R. Turner,
Professor and Mrs. W. Cockerell, Mr. J. Ogilvie, and Miss A. Mackie.
This present revision attempts to embrace the known genera and
species distributed over the southern parts of Africa from about
latitude 18 or 20 to the south coast, comprising parts of North and
South Rhodesia, Southern Portuguese East Africa, the entire Union of
South Africa, British Bechuanaland, and the Kalahari and the greater
part of South West Africa south of the Kunene River. Notwithstand-
ing the fact that very numerous specimens were examined and studied,
and that a very large number of new species and some new genera are
described, there is no doubt that this vast area still contains numerous
undescribed and unknown forms, and that our Bombyliid fauna is in
reality far richer in species than any revision at present can embody.
In such an extensive area, comprising all possible types of ecological
environments and great stretches of little known, barren or inhospit-
able, wooded or mountainous regions, even organised collecting,
continued for many years, can but acquaint us with comparatively
few of the actual number of species. Even more significant is the fact
that the greater part of Southern Africa is subject to periodic and
usually transient manifestations of insect life dependent upon favour-
able climatic and environmental conditions, which do not necessarily
follow an annual or regular and rhythmic cycle but which may follow
sudden or erratic rainfalls or storms, sometimes after long periods of
drought and dessication. The collector of insects in the Great Karoo,
the Little Karoo, the Nieuwveld Karoo, Namaqualand, the greater
part of Bechuanaland, the Kalahari and South West Africa cannot
obtain a representative collection of the indigenous fauna by merely
undertaking trips during the more propitious seasons, such as spring
and summer, but has to take many climatic factors into consideration
which are at present metereologically unpredictable and which may
either elicit a sudden and transient profusion of plant and insect life
or inhibit their appearance for long periods.
4 Annals of the South African Museum.
Notwithstanding these remarks, this revision aims at being more
comprehensive than any other work dealing with the known South
African forms and purports to be unique for this family in that the
male genital apparatus or hypopygium of practically every known
South African species of which the male is known is figured or
described. The text is thus very long, and if the descriptions and keys
appear to be unnecessarily long and involved the author wishes to beg
the patience of systematists and to point out that such a procedure is
often unavoidable in a family where generic and specific differences
are often very subtle and where it is in many cases extremely difficult
to determine and separate species by the old type of abbreviated
descriptions. The keys and arrangement of the species are not in
accordance with any natural or evolutionary scheme but merely one
of convenience, and if this revision will enable students of Bombyliidae
to identify and recognise the various South African forms at least part
of the object in compiling it will have been achieved. It is also hoped
that all the free-hand drawings and illustrations, many of them in
outline, made by the author himself, will enable those interested in
these insects to recognise and distinguish the structural and specific
differences which they attempt to portray.
Acknowledgments.
In conclusion, I wish to express my indebtedness and obligation to
the Research Grant Board of the Union of South Africa for having
very kindly assisted me financially in the form of a grant, without the
help of which supplementary investigations in various localities would
not have been possible. My indebtedness and thanks are also due to
all those persons who have been so kind as to entrust the unnamed
material under their charge to my care. In this connection I par-
ticularly wish to mention Dr. N. Riley, Keeper of Entomology in the
British Museum, Dr. F. Edwards and Mr. H. Oldroyd of the British
Museum, Sir Guy A. K. Marshall, Director of the Imperial Institute,
Dr. Walther Horn, Director of the Deutsches Entomologisches Institut
(Berlin-Dahlem), Mr. C. Swierstra, Director of the Transvaal Museum,
Mr. G. van Son of the Transvaal Museum, Dr. G. Arnold, Director of
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 5
the Ehodesian Museum, Dr. J. Hewitt, Director of the Albany Museum,
Dr. R. Lawrence, Director of the Natal Museum, Mr. E. Chubb,
Director of the Durban Museum, Mr. H. Munro, Entomologist in the
Union Department of Agriculture, and Mr. A. Cuthbertson, Ento-
mologist in the Rhodesian Agricultural Department. A special vote of
thanks is also due to my colleagues Dr. K. H. Barnard, the Assistant
Director of the South African Museum, to Dr. L. Boonstra, and
especially to Mr. C. Thorne, for their kind co-operation in the collect-
ing of a very large number of species.
General Introduction.
Definition of Bombyliidae.
It is almost superfluous to recapitulate the diagnostic characters of
this family when detailed definitions have been given in turn by Loew
(p. 173, Dipt. Faun. Siidafr. i, 1860), Becker (p. 421, Ann. Mus. Zool.
Acad. Imp. St. Petersb. xvii, 1912), Brunetti (p. 173, Faun. Brit. Ind.
Diptera Brachycera, vol. i, 1920), Bezzi (p. 1, The Bombyliidae of the
Ethiopian Region, 1924), Roberts (p. 91, Proc. Linn. Soc. New South
Wales, Australian Bombyliidae, liii, part 1, 1928), and by Engel (pp.
1-7, Die Fliegen d. Pal. Reg. Lief. 65 (Bombyliidae), 1932).
The chief characters of the family are : —
Body assuming a variety of shapes, being either short, plump, and
bee-like, or elongate and cylindrical and even very elongate, sometimes
mimicking or assuming the body-shape of other Diptera, such as
Therevids, Empids, Asilids, Syrphids, and Conopids or even that of
Aculeate Hymenoptera, such as Sphegids and Vespids; integument
may be entirely dark or black or there may be spots, stripes, bands or
abdominal bands of yellow, reddish yellow, brownish or even whitish ;
it may show a metallic or submetallic bluish sheen ; it may be smooth,
minutely punctured, or even with more coarse puncturation or sculp-
ture on certain parts ; pubescence usually present and well developed,
the majority of species being hairy, almost absent in a few, usually
composed of dense, fine, erect or semi-erect hairs, sometimes inter -
vol. xxxiv. 2
6 Annals of the South African Museum.
mixed with stouter bristles, bristly hairs, or even macrochaetal bristles
on definite parts, especially frons, thorax in front, sides of thorax, on
mesopleuron, on post-alar calli, across hinder part of scutellum and
across hind margins of abdominal segments, with fine, hair-like,
depressed and sometimes dense scales sometimes present and with
broader, flatter and often denser scaling in some forms, sometimes
denser and more concentrated on thorax above, sides of abdomen or
across hind margins of abdomen and venter, on body below and on
legs, with slaty grey or greyish pruinescence or bloom or dust on the
body in a large number of species. Head usually large, usually as
broad as thorax, sometimes even slightly broader, usually globular,
but sometimes slightly elongated; occiput either flattened or slightly
concave or even convex, inflated, bilobate above and with a deep
concavity; ocelli three in number, very rarely reduced, usually
situated in a triangle on a slight elevation on vertex; frons usually
broad in $?, usually much reduced, small and triangular in <$$ (where
eyes are in contact above), usually slightly convex from side, rarely
sunk in, very often with a distinct or an indication of a central groove,
usually transversely or foveately depressed anteriorly in $£ especially;
face in profile varies from being moderately conical to very prominently
conical, or it may even be scarcely evident ; it may be well demarcated
from antennal insertions, and in a few cases it may be tumidly inflated
and convexly continuous with the frontal part ; it may be smooth and
shining or smooth only centrally, or it may be densely covered with
hairs or scaling or even with a brush of dense hairs ; buccal cavity
always well developed and deep, usually with carinate or sharp edges,
separated from inner margins of eyes by a furrow or groove-like
depression, which is very variable in distinctness, sometimes almost
entirely wanting, sometimes only present as a faint f oveate depression,
and sometimes long and groove-like; genae absent or present or
absent lower down on facial region, with or without pubescence or
scaling; eyes large, convex, bare, faceted, the upper facets in $$ of
numerous species distinctly coarser than lower ones, the upper coarser
ones either gradually merging into lower ones or well marked off from
lower ones, with the hind margins of eyes either straight, slightly
-innate, or even with a distinct emargination, with the eyes in one
division of Bombyliids bisected by a line or with an indication of a
bisecting line, the eyes in contact or contiguous above on vertex in S3
or narrowly or even broadly separated in some <?<?, separated above in
very rarely in contact, their inner margins usually diverging
anteriorly on each side of fronsevenif only slightly; antennae porrect,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 7
close together or separated, variable in length, either 3- or 4-jointed,
with or without a distinct terminal element or style, but sometimes
even with 2 or 3 distinct, separately visible, terminal elements, with
some of the antennal joints sometimes markedly incrassate or
thickened, with the third joints rod-like, club-like, spindle-shaped,
ovoid, or modified and clavate or excavate apicaily in some forms,
with fairly dense pubescence or scaling on the first joints in majority of
species and sometimes also with longish hairs or scaling on the third
joints; proboscis short and stoutish or very long and slender, with the
labella fleshy or hard and horny, the labial part and labella may some-
times be covered with fine spines; palps usually 2-jointed, but ap-
parently single-jointed in many forms and even distinctly 3-jointed in
a few; the apical joint may be thickened and clavate, and both joints
may be covered with conspicuous hairs or scaling and may be very
prominent.
Thorax subquadrate or quadrate, broadest behind, flattened,
slightly convex or sometimes distinctly humped ; pronotal part usually
below level of the well-developed mesonotum which abuts on occiput ;
in Toxophora, however, the pronotal part is conspicuous and in the
form of a distinct collar; scutellum usually fairly large, subtriangular
or semicircular, flattened but more usually slightly tumid, very rarely
emarginate or bilobate posteriorly, the hind border usually with
bristly hairs or stoutish bristles; pleurae high in some species (with
humped thorax), the metapleurae bare in some genera but usually
with some hairs or scaling, with a distinct metapleural tuft of bristly
hairs in majority of forms. Wings (cf. text-fig. 1 of a Bombylius,
semidiagrammatic) and their venation are very important in the
separation of genera and even species. Throughout this revision the
old type of terminology, used by Loew, Williston, Osten Sacken, Bezzi,
and also used by many dipterists of the old school, is also used by me
for the sole reason that it is more comprehensible to the amateur and
student. Compared with the more scientific terminology of Comstock,
the various veins and cells alluded to in the text are as follows:—
Costal vein ■ — -Costa — C.
Subcostal vein — Subcosta — Sc.
First longitudinal vein — Radius one — R t .
Second ,, ,, — Radius two and three — R 2+ 3.
Third ,, „ — Radius four and Radius five-
Fourth „ ,, — Media one and Media two — M x and M. 2
Fifth
Cu x , and Cu 2 .
Sixth longitudinal vein
Humeral cross vein
Discal cross vein
Vein between discoidal and
third posterior cells
Annals of the South African Museum.
-Second Anal — 2d A.
h.
Radio-medial cross vein — r-m.
Medial cross vein — m.
Costal cell —2d C.
Second basal cell — 2d M.
First basal cell — R.
Second posterior cell — M x .
Marginal cell — R x .
Third „ „ —2d M 2 .
First submarginal cell — R 3 .
Fourth „ „ — Cu x .
Third „ „ —2d R 3 .
Anal cell — 1st A.
Second ,, ,, — R 4 .
Axillary cell or lobe — 2d A.
First posterior cell — R 5 .
Alula — (AL).
Discoidal cell — 1st M 2 .
Squama — (Sq.)-
The wings of Bombyliidae are characterised by not having cell M 3 .
They are either with or without 4 posterior cells (K 5 , M. lf 2d M 2 , and
id A:'' 0)2, Cui^Ma
Text-fig. 1. — Wing of Bombylius (semidiagrammatic).
0%), usually with a discoidal cell (1st M 2 ), only a few without it, with
2 or 3 submarginal cells (R 3 and R 4 ), rarely with only 1, with the
second longitudinal vein (R 2 + 3 ) arising from third longitudinal vein
(R 4 and R 5 ) either near the base and acutely or a good distance away
from base and at right angles, with the vein (R 4 ) between submarginal
cells in many cases also arising at right angles from M x + R 5 and there
provided with a short stump, with the first and second basal cells
(R and 2d M) sometimes equal in length but usually with R longer
than 2d M, with the discal cross vein (r-m) either before middle, at
middle, or beyond middle of discoidal cell (1st M 2 ), with the first
posterior cell (R 5 ) and anal cell (1st A) either open or closed and acute
apically and provided with a stalk of variable length, with the axillary
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 9
cell or lobe (2d A) either broad and triangularly lobate or narrow, with
the alula (Al.) either broad and lobate or very much reduced, being
vestigial or almost wanting, with the squama (Sq.) usually well
developed and fringed with hairs or scales, with a distinct basal comb
(Ba C.) developed in many species, but almost or entirely absent in
numerous species; wings themselves either hyaline, vitreous hyaline,
greyish hyaline, spotted, mottled, fenestrated, banded, or infuscated;
halteres usually with slender stalks and oval, but sometimes slightly
apically truncated or excavated knobs. Abdomen with 6-9 visible
segments, the visible ones on <$<$ usually one less than in $$, with the
terminal elements or segments in 3$ modified into the hypopygium
and attendant structures, with the genitalia of the $$ sometimes
provided with a row of spines on each side and sometimes also with
the last sternite in $$ slightly modified or elongated to lodge the
genital lamellae, with the abdomen itself variable in shape, either
oval, rotund, straight-sided, conical, tubular, elongate, and in one
subfamily even pedunculate. Legs with the hind ones usually longer
than the others, with the coxae, especially the front ones, sometimes
elongate in conjunction with high pleurae and a humped thorax;
femora with or without hairs, these when present usually longer and
denser in $3, usually with scaling, with or without a row or a few
spines below, often with only spines on hind ones, with or without
apical and lateral spines ; tibiae with distinct rows of spicules or spines,
sometimes very strongly developed, but in some forms poorly de-
veloped, minute and almost absent, with strongly or poorly developed
apical spurs, one or a few of which sometimes more developed than
the others; tarsi with the front ones in some $$ slightly thickened;
claws usually well developed, either sickle-shaped, rapidly curved
downwards apically or almost straight or feebly curved; empodium
usually very poorly developed, vestigial and in form of a short bristle,
but sometimes quite distinct as a visible spine; pulvilli either well
developed, broad or narrow, and extending to middle or beyond
middle of claws or much reduced and confined to base of claws, or in
some, especially in $$, vestigial or even wanting.
Hypopygium. — The hypopygium of the 33 in this family has not
been studied or figured to any extent by previous authors, and the
attempts at describing or portraying them, in the literature at my
disposal, are very unsatisfactory. Becker (pp. 193-227, Ent. Zeit.
Berl., vol. 1, PI. VI, figs. 8 and 9, 1905 (1906)) first made an attempt at
describing the genitalia of Vsia. Copello in 1932 (p. 118, Rev. Soc.
Ent. Argentina, vol. v) reproduced a drawing of the genitalia of
10 Annals of the South African Museum.
Hypertonia morio. The only attempt, however, at describing and
figuring the ^-hypopygium is a large number of illustrations, chiefly
of Bombylius, Usia, Geron, Anastoechus, Lomatia, Aphoebantus,
Anthrax, Satyr amoeba, Spongostylum, Exoprosopa, and Thyridanthrax,
made by Engel in Lieferungen, 65, 67, 69, 87, 91, 99, 101, and 105 of
his "Die Fliegen d. Pal. Reg. (Bombyliidae) 1932-36." Most of the
authors merely refer to the hypopygium, in their synopsis of the
family, as a genital structure or organ of the male sex. None of them
have considered this structure as of sufficient importance to merit a
detailed description or portrayal, and its diagnostic value in the
separation of genera and species has scarcely been considered. Weshe
in his studies of the genitalia in both sexes in Diptera (pp. 339-383,
Trans. Linn. Soc. Lond. (2nd Ser. Zool.), vol. ix, pis. 23-30, 1906) does
not include the genitalia of Bombyliidae. Brunetti (p. 173, Faun.
Brit. Ind. Diptera Brachycera, vol. i, 1920) is content with the state-
ment that the genitalia of Bombyliidae are inconspicuous. Engel,
notwithstanding his large number of very unsatisfactory drawings of
the male genitalia of several genera and species, commits himself to
the following statement: "Zur Unterscheidung von Arten sind diese
Genitalanhange in den wenigsten Fallen zu gebrauchen, da sie meist
von langer Behaarung verdeckt sind." Both Becker and Engel are in
many cases very brief and vague, and in some cases apparently paid
more attention to the lateral processes of the last sternite (tergite),
which encloses and surrounds the hypopygium, than to the essential
hypopygial structures themselves. As is evident from all the illustra-
tions in this revision, the hypopygium is sufficiently and morphologic-
ally distinct in most genera and species to warrant its study and
portrayal as a means of separating the genera and a very large number
of species in this family. As in the case of Culicidae and other dipterous
families, a description and portrayal of all the male genitalia of
Bombyliids are thus important and essential, and the female genital
apparatus, not studied in this revision, will probably prove to be
equally important.
The hypopygium of the male in this family may be conveniently
studied by snipping off the last two or three abdominal segments and
leaving or boiling it for some time in a weak solution of NaOH or KOH,
when all the musculature and attendant nonchitinous tissues will be
dissolved away. The hypopygium proper may now be easily removed
from the other segments by means of needles under a dissecting
microscope. This should be done under water, and the hypopygium,
in by far the majority of species, can itself be better studied under
A Revision of the Bombyliidae {Diptera) of Southern Africa. 11
water. The structure is predominantly chitinous and can also be
studied dry by simply gumming or gluing it on to a card. A mount
in Canada Balsam or on a glass slide under a cover-slip is not necessary
and is not to be recommended unless the detailed study of micro-
sculpture is necessary. The minute hypopygium of very small species
(Cyrtosiinae) may be mounted in glycerine jelly and studied under a
more powerful microscope by transmittent light. This process is,
however, very unsatisfactory for most other Bombyliids in that it
confines a view to one plane only, and the stereoscopic or spacial
relation of one part or structure of the hypopygial complex to another
cannot be so easily made out. By rotating and moving the entire
structure under water, views from all possible angles can be obtained.
Two or three quartz grains (sand) can be used to retain the hypopy-
gium in the desired position. Free-hand sketches and a description
of the parts can thus be easily made under a fairly powerful binocular
microscope. By gumming the dried hypopygium on one of its sides
to a card, different views can also be obtained. Allowance must,
however, be made for a certain amount of shrinkage in such dried and
mounted specimens. The essentials are, however, not affected in
even the dry and slightly shrunken state. A dried mount may be
restudied again by simply boiling it in water or dilute NaOH.
As in the case of most Diptera, the hypopygium of the £$ seems to
be associated with the ninth abdominal segment, but the author
wishes to express no concise opinion as to the exact segmental signifi-
cance, derivation, and homology of the male genital structures in this
family. These structures are merely dealt with from a structural
point of view and not from the developmental aspect. The hypopy-
gium or male genital apparatus of this family is often a very complex
structure, the separate parts of which are difficult to correlate or
homologise with similar structures of other Diptera. In order to
designate homologous structures in the various families, detailed
developmental and embryological studies have to be carried out on
the abdomen of all the Diptera. In the case of Coleoptera and Lepi-
doptera there is to a certain extent some uniformity of structure and
pattern, which enables us to correlate and homologise certain basic
structures in one group with those in another. In Diptera this is by
no means the case, and if we consider the structures present in male
Culicidae and attempt to correlate them with those of males of
Glossina or with those of Bombyliidae or Tipulidae we find that we are
confronted with a problem of homology which may lead to confusion.
In as far as the structures under consideration are not obviously
12
Annals of the South African Museum.
homologous a non-committal terminology is adhered to throughout
this revision.
The chitinised structures (cf. text-fig. 2, a, b, and c of Bombylius
lateralis, and of all the other text-figures of male genitalia in this
paper), constituting the hypopygium, are usually composed of two
basic, independently immovable, symmetrical, shell-like elements, one
on each side, convex on one side and hollowed out on the other, which
are throughout referred to as the basal parts (Ba.Pt.). These parts
may correspond or be homologous to the so-called claspers or coxites
_— --^LApA.
(«) (b) (c)
Text-fig. 2. — (a) Side view of hypopygium of $ of Bombylius lateralis F.
(6) Ventral view, and (c) dorsal view of same.
of some other Diptera, but in the Bombyliidae they are not segmentally
attached externally to the terminal abdominal segments but are
usually partially or completely enclosed by the visible last tergite and
sternite. They may be considered as partially internal in position
and, if homologous to claspers, as similar structures which have
migrated inwards. These parts may be symmetrically and partially
separated, and not entirely separate as in case of claspers, by a central
groove-like impression or suture on the convex side, or they may be
undivided, constituting a single structure. The apparently separate
parts of the former type are, however, not independently movable.
Towards the apical part each half, or the apical part of the undivided
type, is usually narrowed into a sort of neck region, the inner or outer
margins of which may be produced apically into an inner apical
prominence or process (I.Ap.A.), or an outer process. The inner one
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 13
may be covered with a row of Lairs or bristly hairs. The integument
of the basal parts may be smooth or minutely punctured and setif erous,
or it may be provided with bristly hairs or even longish hairs on the
convex side or towards apical part in neck region. Basally each basal
part may also be produced into a lobe or process. Apically each basal
part, in the majority of forms, is usually provided with a separately
movable joint, which is referred to as the beaked apical joint (Ap.Jt.),
and which may represent the styles of some other Diptera. This
joint in some genera, such as Geron, Amictogeron, and Pseudoamictus,
may be represented by an apical, more or less immovable, process or
lobe. The beaked apical joints assume a variety of shapes and they
may be short, broad, oval or elongate, and cylindrical or leaf-shaped,
triangular or bird-head shaped. They may be flattened or hollowed
out above, or they may be convex above. Apically they may end in a
sharp, pointed beak, either directed downwards or outwards, or even
upwards. Sometimes no beak is present, and sometimes a subapical
process or accessory beak may be present. The beaked apical joint
may be more ridged or convex along its inner side above and there
provided with a row of spine-like bristly hairs or a tuft of short or
even longish bristly hairs.
Lodged inside the cavity of the basal parts is the true aedeagal
apparatus or complex (shown in profile, from below or above in
many of the illustrations). This apparatus is attached or joined on
to the basal parts on each side not only by means of membranes but
also by a chitinous band or connecting chitinous strand, referred to
as the ramus (R.). By this ramus the aedeagal complex is kept in
position between the basal parts. The ramus from each side either
coalesces with its partner at the middle to form a bell-shaped or
rim-like part from which arises the apically directed aedeagus (Ae.).
The aedeagus itself is also variable in shape, and it may be long,
slender, curved or straight, short, tubular or spout-like; it may be
hook-shaped, and in some forms it may even be scarcely evident.
Ventrally to it (i.e. away from concavity of basal parts) and towards
the base of it, the combined rami, or base of aedeagus and the rami,
may be produced apically into a ventral aedeagal process (V.Ae.
Pr. or Ae.Pr.), or even into two such processes, one on each side.
This ventral aedeagal process, where present, may assume various
shapes of specific importance, and may even be sometimes very
intricate, complex, and elaborate. Towards and in the concave part
of basal parts the aedeagus may be prolonged towards the base on
each side into a prong, strap, or process (P.Str.), which may be
14 Annals of the South African Museum.
visibly projecting basally behind and beyond the other structures of
the aedeagal complex. The middle part (M.Pt.) of the aedeagal-
complex usually fits into the aedeagal part, and is a conspicuous
part in most Bombyliids. Towards its thicker base on each side there
is a shoe-horn or tongue-shaped, flattened sclerite, referred to as the
lateral strut (L.Str.), which is also variable in its shape and size,
but is almost always slightly hollowed out on the side away from the
concavity of the basal parts. These lateral struts are usually some-
what twisted. Medially and joined on to the middle part, towards the
concavity of basal parts and just between the lateral struts, is a
peculiar, basally directed, chitinous sclerite, referred to as the basal
strut (Ba.Str.). This structure arising from a narrow, more deeply
coloured, chitinous base is usually extremely laterally compressed,
flattened from side to side, appearing linear from above or below, but
in profile it is broad, fan-like, racket-shaped, bat or chopper-shaped
(cf. side views in the illustrations). Only rarely has this basally
directed strut any lateral or dorsal extensions or processes.
In addition to these essentials, the aedeagal apparatus may also
have accessory and symmetrical structures on each side, such as
prongs, curved spines or hook-like structures (cf. the hypopygial
structures of the Geroninae and Systropinae). A reference to the
numerous figures, drawn from two or three different views and in the
majority of cases of either the left or the right half of the basal parts,
will acquaint the reader with the essential fundamentals more than
detailed descriptions. Throughout this paper, unless otherwise
stated, the convex side of the basal parts is considered as dorsal, for in
a large number of forms this side is directed towards the dorsal aspect
of the abdomen. In many forms, however, the hypopygium seems to
be reversed in position, the concave side, which lodges the aedeagal
apparatus, being directed to the true dorsum of the insect, and in other
forms it is even directed laterally. Enclosing the aedeagal complex,
on the opposite side to that of the basal parts, is the last apparent
sternite (or tergite if structures are reversed) to which is attached
apically on each side a small triangular, or subtriangular, terminal
plate (T.S. and T.T.). These plates, which probably correspond to
terminal elements of a segmental nature, are pretty uniform, but in
some forms they may also be of specific value in the separation of
species (see Systropinae) . The last sternite (L.S.) is attached to the
base of basal part on each side and also by means of membranes. In
fche majority of Bombyliids it is also very uniform in structure and
shape, only the apical margin being either truncate, slightly or much
Revision of the Bombijliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa.
15
produced or even emarginated, and the apical angles may also vary,
sometimes being acute or even prolonged. In some forms, such as the
Usiinae (cf. text-fig. 3 of the Palaearctic TJsia versicolor), Systropinae,
and Toxophorinae (cf. text-figures under these subfamilies), the last
sternite, which is sometimes dorsal in position, is of taxonomic im-
Text-fig. 3. — Hypopygium of <$ of Usia versicolor F., showing ventral and
side views, and above a view of aedeagal armature.
portance in that it may be produced or very much prolonged on each
side into a spine-like, prong-like, or even hooked process (L.S. and T.P.
in illustrations), which may act in conjunction with the hypopygium
during copulation.
The mechanical function of the various structures concerned in the
sexual act is not known, but, judging from their position in the
ensemble, there is reason to believe that the beaked apical joints or
processes open the vaginal aperture by an oblique, downward, and
outwardly directed movement and, when locked or closed in this
position, also act as anchors or grappling organs. The aedeagus is an
16 Annals of the South African Museum.
intromittent organ, acting as a guide for the penis proper and the
seminal duct inside it. The accessory structures or ventral aedeagal
processes, when present, may also act as supplementary grappling
organs or guides. The basally directed dorsal processes of the
aedeagus constitute centres for the attachment of muscles, which
probably control the movements of the aedeagus. The lateral and
basal struts, to which strong muscles are also attached in the living
insects, probably control the movements of both the middle part and
the aedeagus. A slight push on the flattened basal strut tends to
push the aedeagus hindwards and also obliquely downwards away
from the beaked apical joints. In the subfamilies Oeroninae and
Systropinae, where the hypopygial structures are very complicated,
it is very difficult to predict the probable mechanical significance of
the various accessory structures.
The genitalia of the females have not been studied in this revision
and they appear to show more uniformity, but there is no doubt that
dissection and treatment of these parts will also reveal generic and
specific differences. Females belonging to the Bombyliidae Tomoph-
thalmae usually have a row or brush of stoutish bristles or spine-like
bristles or even recurved hooks on each side of the genital plates. In
the case of Systropus the last sternite may be prolonged or produced,
sometimes even modified into a shining, horny, spine-like process. In
all Bombyliids the male and female are joined end to end during
copulation, and in this position they are able to fly in either direction.
Biological and Ecological.
Life History. — The life histories of comparatively few Bombyliids
are known even from other parts of the world, and only about seven or
eight life histories are partially known from Southern Africa, and to
these reference is made in the text. From the comparatively little
that is known it is, however, accepted by all authors that the Bomby-
liidae are parasitic or predaceous in their larval stages, feeding on the
eggs, larvae, and pupae of other insects. According to a compilation of
Bezzi (pp. 10-12, " The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Kegion," 1924)
from the known facts, the larval stages of Bombylius parasitise solitary
bees, those of Systoechus and Anastoechus destroy the eggs in the egg-
packets of Oedipodine locusts, those of Geron parasitise the cater-
pillars of certain moths, those of Systropus develop in the caterpillars
or pupae of Limacodid-moths, those of Toxophora parasitise solitary
wasps, those of certain Lomatiinae have been reared in the egg-
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 17
packets of locusts, those of some Anthracinae destroy the larvae of
solitary bees, fossorial wasps, and even beetles, and those of Exopro-
sopinae are parasitic on the larvae of Hymenoptera, Diptera, Lepid-
optera, Orthoptera, and even Coleoptera. Some species of Bombyliidae
are thus of economic importance in that they parasitise species of
insects which are injurious to man or his crops. Two species of
Systoechus in South Africa have been proved to parasitise the egg-
packets of the brown trek locust (Locustana pardalina), and, from an
economic point of view, these insects may prove to be important agents
in controlling this locust to a limited extent. Species of Thyridanthrax
have also been bred from Tsetse Flies (Glossina), and species of Villa
from destructive caterpillars. From complete life histories that have
been worked out in other parts of the world it appears that the eggs
Text-fig. 4. — First instar of a Bombyliid larva (semidiagrammatic from
Uvarov and after Portchinsky).
are laid or deposited in the ground near or in the nest of the host, and
in many cases it appears that the hatched first instar has to make its
way into the egg-packet or nest of the host. The larva probably
passes through at least two or three instars before it pupates. The
first instar or newly hatched larva of some forms (cf. text-fig. 4 of a
Bombylius (semidiagrammatic from Uvarov and after Portchinsky))
is, according to Chapman (Ent. Month. Mag. xiv, 1878, p. 196),
Portchinsky (Dept. Agric. St Petersb., 1895, vide "Locusts and Grass-
hoppers," p. 109, Uvarov, 1928), and Nielsen (p. 647, Zool. Jahrb.,
Bd. xviii, 1903), an active triungulin type, provided with three pairs
of bristles instead of legs on the thorax and also a pair of terminal
bristles by means of which it can move very rapidly and find its food.
According to Portchinsky, this type of larva, of Systoechus autumnalis,
sometimes is unable to find its food at the period it hatches, in which
case it hibernates in the soil until the next spring, when it resumes its
quest. According to Nielsen, the first instar may moult and initiate
a sort of second instar closely resembling the first before entering the
final stage. The last instar, which is usually found feeding on the eggs
18 Annals of the South African Museum.
in the egg-packets or on the larvae of its host, is entirely different (cf .
text-fig. 127). It is an eruciforrn type of larva, without eyes, antennae,
or appendages. As so little is known about the larval stages of Bomby-
liids, it is doubtful whether all Bombyliidae pass through similar stages,
and there is reason to believe that in some cases, such as in Systropus,
the larva is an internal parasite in the caterpillars or pupae of Lima-
codid-moths. The pupae of known Bombyliids (cf . text-figs. 129, 315,
etc.) are peculiar in being usually armed with cephalic processes or
spines, and also with transverse rows of partially embedded spines or
chitinous hooks on the abdominal segments. There is no doubt that
these spines and hooks facilitate movements in the soil, or may even
help to pierce the masonry cell walls or cocoon walls of their hosts.
From what is known it appears that the pupae of Bombyliids are
capable of active movement and to a much greater extent than in the
case of many other Diptera.
Habits and Ecology. — From an ecological point of view the Bomby-
liidae of Southern Africa are interesting in that indirectly they are
associated with more or less distinct plant communities. Certain
areas supporting certain types of plant associations appear to be
proportionally richer in the number and variety of species of Bomby-
liids than others where the same or similar communities are wanting.
The prevalence of certain plant communities is due to various environ-
mental factors of which climate is probably the most important.
Indirectly the distribution and preponderance of certain species of
Bombyliids are thus due to climatic factors. The adults of all known
Bombyliids feed on the pollen, nectar, and secretions of flowers, and
the presence of flowering plants thus plays a great role in the lives of
these insects. Both from a collector's point of view and from geo-
graphical data as regards localities, there appears to be little doubt
that the semi-arid and more barren parts of Southern Africa, such as
the Little Karoo, the Gouph Karoo, the Great Karoo, the Nieuwveld
Karoo, Namaqualand, and Bushmanland, are proportionally area for
area richer in Bombyliidae than any of the other regions considered in
this revision. Judging from the known number and variety of species,
recorded and described in literature from other parts of the Ethiopian
Continent, there is also no doubt that the above-mentioned areas are
also richer in numbers and species than any other part in Africa.
The Karoo and the neighbouring semi-arid regions may thus be said
to support a very rich Bombyliid-fauna and may be considered as an
environment where the Bombyliidae of Southern Africa have reached
their maximum development, both in species, varieties, and numbers.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 19
The Karooid type of plant associations, comprised mostly of sclero-
phyllous plants and shrubs, mesembryanthemums, xerophytes, suc-
culents, and numerous drought-resistant plants, subjected to very
dry conditions but profusely flowering at times, is thus a very favour-
able environment for the development of these insects. Such factors
as a comparatively high diurnal temperature, low rainfall, a profusion
of flowers after showers, an abundance of other insect hosts and
adequate soil conditions no doubt play important roles in the life of
Bombyliids. As all Bombyliids are heat-loving insects, and are more
abundantly found during the noontide heat, their preference for a warm
environment and maximum sunshine is obvious. In view of the fact
that they are dependent on flowers for their subsistence, they in-
directly play a great role in the pollination of our Karoo flowers.
During their larval stages they are parasitic on the developmental
stages of other insects, and the abundance of such insects is to them a
great necessity. Second only to the Karoo in the number of forms is
the Bombyliid-fauna of the type of environment which prevails at the
Cape and in the south and south-western Cape Province, where an
abundance of flowering plants, heaths, composites, and proteaceous
plants attains a maximum glory during spring and early summer, and
where a peculiar mountainous flora attracts a certain type of insect-
fauna. On the other hand, the Bombyliid-fauna, both in numbers and
species, are relatively fewer in the grassland, steppe, or savanna,
where Dicotyledons play a minor role. In fact, comparatively few
Bombyliids are found in grass country, and when represented they are
usually found along the more wooded and dry river courses, on the
rocky prominences or in hilly country where more Dicotyledons
flourish and where a greater variety of plants thrive, or even in the
broken mimosa or mopane bush of the interiors and plateaux.
The Bombyliidae of Southern Africa, and especially of its semi-arid
and more barren parts, are not only remarkably rich in numbers and
species, but there are also numerous genera and species which appear
' to be peculiar to these regions or which show characters not found in
related genera and species in other parts of the world. Peculiar to
and endemic in the southern parts of Africa are genera, such as
Dischistus s.str., Doliogethes n. gen., Lepidochlanus n. gen., Adelidea,
Sosiomyia, Conophorina, Cheilohadrus n. gen., Corsomyza, Callyn-
throphora, Gnumyia, Megapalpus, Crocidium, Adelogenys n. gen.,
Apatomyza, Amictogeron n. gen., Pseudoamictus, Onchopelma n. gen.,
Oniromyia, Nomalonia, Henica, Peringueyimyia, Tomomyza, Pan-
tostomus, Pteraulax, Synthesia, etc. By far the greater number of
20 Annals of the South African Museum.
these genera have been recorded only from the Karoo, Little Karoo,
the N.W. Karoo, Bushmanland, and Namaqualand.* Some genera,
such as Bombylius, Systoechus, Anastoechus, Phthiria, Apolysis, and
Geron, on the other hand, are represented by peculiar and character-
istic species, or are even richer in the number of species than in other
zoo-geographical regions. Characteristic species are also found in
the case of Chasmoneura n. gen., Platypygus, Empidideicus, Lomatia,
and Exoprosopa, some of the groups of the latter genus being pre-
eminently or exclusively South African.
The habits of Bombyliids are little known, and as in the case of most
other groups in nature much information is needed on this point.
They are usually very rapid fliers, their powers of flight increasing as the
temperature rises, and from about eleven o'clock in the morning to
four o'clock in the afternoon they seem to reach their maximum abund-
ance and swiftness. All of them feed on the pollen and nectar of
flowers, but also on the exudations of young shoots and leaves. Certain
species are almost always found settling on or in flowers, and some of
them even appear to be associated with certain flowers. Others, again,
are more usually found hovering over and settling on the soil or hot
sand between shrubs. Many frequent rocky prominences, settling on
the rocks in the hot sun or go there late in the afternoon. Many rapid
fliers hover in the air, producing a monotonous and high-pitched hum,
darting now here and then there. Quite a number prefer dry river
courses, where they settle on the drift sand or exposed rocks. An
interesting point about the hovering and settling habit is that an
individual, which hovers over or settles on a certain spot, when dis-
turbed will fly away but will eventually return to the same spot again
after a while. An individual seems to be restricted to a more or less
limited area, hovering here, settling there on a flower or on the ground,
flying a few paces away and settling again, but after a while repeating
the same procedure over the same ground. As in the case of many
other insects, Bombyliids are very sensitive to cold, cold winds, and
stormy weather. They become sluggish during cold weather and are
not to be found flying about ; specimens often being found clinging to
bushes in a torpid condition. During strong wind they avoid the
windy side of hillocks or hills. Many species appear to come out only
at certain times of the day, and certain kinds are seen only in the fore-
* A species of the interesting Corsomyza has, however, been described as a fossil
from the Baltic Amber of the Lower Oligocene (Tertiary Period). This genus thus
appears to be palaeo-endemic in South Africa. Other ancient genera, from the
Baltic Amber and still living, are Bombylius, Lomatia, and Anthrax.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 21
noon while others are abundant in the afternoon. In South Africa
Bombyliids appear to be more common and numerous during spring
and early summer, but are only abundant during these seasons when
flowers are abundant or when there is a luxuriant plant growth after
rains. Many forms are, however, also found during the hottest part
of the day even in winter, especially in the Karoo and northern parts of
the country. Bombyliids on the whole, however, are heat-loving
insects, and the dense hairy coat so characteristic of the majority of
forms is probably not purely ornamental but probably subserves
special physical and physiological functions in the dry environment
where they preponderate. The dense pubescence is a protection
against solar radiation, heat and light. The pale, gleaming, lurid, or
fulvous reflecting hairs and bristly hairs reflect light and prevent the
absorption of heat, a physiological necessity in a dry environment.
Systematic and Descriptive.
Bezzi in his paper, "The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Region,"
divided this family into two great divisions, the Bombyliidae Homoe-
ophthalmae and the Bombyliidae Tomophthalmae. These divisions he
based on either the absence or the presence of an emargination or
sinuosity along the hind margins of the eyes, and also on the non-
bilobate or bilobate condition of the occiput, and to a certain extent
also on the nature of the wing-venation. According to Bezzi, however,
certain genera, such as Nomalonia, Henica, Peringueyimyia, Tomomyza,
and Pantostomus, are also included in the first great division, where the
eyes are not emarginate behind and the occiput is not bilobate. These
genera, however, though not having emarginate eyes, have a distinct
bilobate occiput and also wing-characters agreeing more with the
second division. There is no doubt, however, that the first three of
these, and especially Peringueyimyia, are transitional forms. For
purposes of convenience it is, however, better to adhere to one
character common throughout the first division rather than an
ensemble of characters which is not strictly distinctive for either the
one or the other. In this revision the first part thus deals with all the
genera not having a distinct and characteristic bilobate occiput, and
to the second part are referred all genera, including those alluded
to above, which have a distinct or pronounced bilobate occiput. To
the second part is also appended a comprehensive index, a biblio-
graphical list, an appendix, and a note on the number of genera,
species, and varieties described and recorded from Southern Africa.
vol. xxxiv. 3
22 Annals of the South African Museum.
PART I.
(With 332 Text-figs.)
Division I.
Occipital region behind eyes not distinctly bilobate, usually flattened
or concavely hollowed out, or merely with a slight central groove-like
depression or shallow furrow down the occiput from behind ocellar
tubercle, and never with a very deep slit-like channel or sulcation
leading into a deep concavity in head behind, constituting a marked
bilobate condition; eyes with the hind margins entire, rarely obviously
sinuate and only deeply emarginate in one genus (Eurycarenus),
always without a bisecting line or such division if present, due only to
larger size of upper facets and then confined to SS\ wings with the
common base of second and third longitudinal veins before fork usually
very much shorter, with the second longitudinal vein usually origin-
ating at an acute angle from the third one, and the vein separating
submarginal cells usually not provided with a distinct and even long
basally directed or projecting stump or appendix near its base where
it bends down to meet the third longitudinal vein.
Key to subfamilies, groups, and genera of Division I.
1. (76) Thorax without a distinctly visible, broad, and well-marked-o£E prothorax
or pronotal part, forming a conspicuous ring or collar, and if such is
indicated it is small, narrow, and hidden by the large mesonotal part
which abuts on the occiput and is also not provided with stoutish macro -
chaetal bristles; scutellum not markedly flattened; legs with the
femora, especially the hind ones, not tending to be markedly incrassate
and narrowed apically and basally and without markedly long and dense
spines, and elongate, flattened, and fluted scales on the tibiae, especially
hind ones; antennae without very dense and conspicuous, bushy scaling
on all the joints ......... 2.
2. (75) Body not simulating or mimicking that of Acule&te- Hymenoptera, such
as Sphex, Sceliphron, etc., or even Vespids like Belo?iogaster ; meta-
sternal region not strongly, broadly, and abnormally developed; abdomen
not remarkably long and also without a slender stalk or petiole ending
in a club as in Sphegids and Vespids; legs, especially the hind ones,
not abnormally long and the front femora without an elliptical callus-
like area; terminal lappets or plates to last sternite (even if dorsal in
position), which encloses the aedeagal complex of hypopygium of $$,
without a black, hardened, sculptured callus . . . .3.
3. (70) Wings with 2 or 3, not less than 2, submarginal cells present; antennae
triarticulate, but the third joint may end in terminal elements or in a
style, rarely quadriarticulate, and if an obvious fourth joint is present
the wings have at least 2 submarginal cells; head with the occipital
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 23
region usually flattened, slightly hollowed or only slightly convex, not
markedly and roundly convexly developed, with the eyes not tending
to be shifted forwards; body usually moderate or large, rarely very
small, with the pubescence usually dense, moderately dense or at least
visibly present in majority of cases, rarely very sparse and short; tibiae
usually with distinct rows of spicules and apical spurs and the basal
joint of hind tarsi never with a basal process or hook below in <$<$; last
sternite in $$ with the upper apical angle on each side rounded or only
subangularly produced but not produced into a sharp, spine-like, or
hook-like process; hypopygium of £$ without any dorsal or ventral
process and rarely with a flattened lateral process on each side of the
basally directed, flattened basal strut from the middle part of aedeagal
complex ........... 4.
4. (69) Head with the vertex and frons rarely equally broad in both sexes, and
if nearly so the frons is not roundly very convex (from side), with the
ocellar tubercle, when well developed, not markedly broad and centrally
grooved towards base and always with 3 well-developed ocelli present,
with the lower apical part of first antennal joints not conspicuously
dilated or tumidly and globular ly enlarged, without any distinct, dense,
and conspicuous scaling on the labral part of proboscis; wings usually
well developed, normal, and broad, not remarkably narrow and feeble
in relation to body and with the base not remarkably narrow . .5.
5. (56) Wings with 4 posterior cells always present and always with a discoidal
cell; antennae with joint 3 rod-like, club-shaped, pointed, and if
modified either broad, flattened, incrassate or clavate apically or even
excavate apically but not ending apically in an upper and a lower
spine-like process or a distinct subapical upper spine or hook-like
process; genae with the hairs or bristly hairs not concentrated in a
forwardly and upwardly directed tuft or brush; abdomen in $$ never
with segment 8 produced on each side below into a lobe-like or lappet-
like process ; thorax only rarely very convex and humped in appearance
6 (Bombyliinae) (p. 40).
6. (39) Wings with the anal cell open, not angularly acute and closed apically,
and not provided with a distinct short or long stalk; antennae with
joint 3 not clavate or thickened apically or excavated apically, and
rarely ending apically in a long and distinct terminal joint or terminal
elements, and if with longish terminal elements the anal cell of wings is
open; hind femora rarely without spines below, and if no spines are
present the anal cell is open . . . . . . .7.
7. (38) Antennae with joint 3 not ending in a very long and slender terminal
element or joint; scutellum not bilobate or bispinose apically; wings
with the marginal cell not markedly and abnormally broad and dilated
apically, and with the second longitudinal vein not arcuately curving
hind wards towards hind border . . . . . . .8.
8. (19) Wings with the first posterior cell acute and closed apically, either provided
with a distinct stalk of variable length, or it may be very angularly acute
apically and with a very short stalk, or it may even be acute and sessile
on the hind border of wings, but it is never distinctly and broadly open,
and in cases provided with a moderately long stalk the vein between
24 Annals of the South African Museum.
first and second posterior cells is not markedly S -curved and the alula
of wings is always well developed and broadly lobate; first antennal
joints not distinctly or widely separated and rarely very incrassate;
femora rarely without spines below, and if without spines first posterior
cell is not open .......... 9.
9. (18) Frons, face, and genae not smooth and brilliantly shining, the face not
very markedly conically produced and separated from frons in front of
antennae by a distinct, deep, transverse furrow; metapleurae usually
hairy and always with a distinct tuft of hairs or bristly hairs just before
base of halteres and above posterior thoracic spiracles; wings with a
more or less well developed or distinct basal comb and with the alula
always broad, lobe-like, and well developed; legs with spines, or some
spines, on the femora below, especially the hind ones . . . 10.
10. (17) Hind margin of eyes without a distinct deep sinuosity or emargination ;
antennal joint 3 with only shortish terminal elements or a style apically;
wings with the vein between the first and second posterior cells joining
on to or received by the vein separating these cells from second sub-
marginal cell; frons in $$ at least without a row of conspicuous and very
stout macrochaetal bristles on each side; hypopygium of $£ with the
dorsal apical part of basal parts not produced apically and upwards or
obliquely upwards into a transverse, flattened, lobe-like part or process,
and also without a very conspicuous tuft of stiff, bristly hairs or bristles
on outer lower margin in neck region of basal parts . . .11.
11. (14) Wings with the first basal cell distinctly much longer than second basal
cell; hypopygium of $$ (text-figs. 2 and 6—77) . . . .12.
12. (13) Wings with 3 submarginal cells present
Bombylius (Triplasius Lw.) (p. 114).
13. (12) Wings with only 2 submarginal cells present . Bombylius L. (p. 41).
14. (11) Wings with the first basal cell as long as second basal cell . .15.
15. (16) Head across eyes markedly broad, at least as broad, or slightly broader
than broadest part of thorax, with the frons broad in $$ and without
a distinct central furrow in $,$ and without a transverse depression or
groove apically in $$; wings with the discoidal cell very broad and
distinctly more truncate apically, its apical cross vein long and usually
longer than the discal cross vein, with the squamae more distinctly
bilobed, the smaller lobe nearest thorax comparatively large and broad;
claws more often almost straight and only slightly curved, rarely sickle-
shaped, and the pulvilli always short, not extending beyond middle of
claws even in <$<$; pubescence on face and body below always strikingly
or conspicuously frosty, cretaceous, or chalky white; hypopygium of
$<$ (text-figs. 78-91) with the beaked apical joints usually very broad
in basal two-thirds, leaf-shaped and the dorsum distinctly depressed or
c\cn foveately hollowed out, with the aedeagus never falcate and the
ramus on each side from basal part never produced apically into a
rod-like or stylet-like process on each side of aedeagus, there being
either no process or a different type of process
Anastoechus Ost. Sack. (p. 290).
"'■ (15) Bead across eyes not markedly broad and almost always narrower than
broadest part of thorax, with the frons comparatively narrower, having
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 25
a distinct indication or a distinct central furrow in <$<$ and always with
a transverse depression anteriorly in $$; wings with the discoidal cell
more acute apically, its apical cross vein being distinctly shorter and
usually shorter than discal cross vein, with the squamae less distinctly
bilobed, the smaller lobe being only indicated, scarcely distinct; claws
almost always sickle-shaped, either rapidly or mort, gradually curved
downwards to apex, rarely almost straight, and the pulvilli long in both
sexes, extending to much beyond middle of claws, and if to about middle
the other characters at least do not conform; pubescence on face and
body below only rarely frosty or chalky white and then not uniformly
and very conspicuously so; hypopygium of <$<$ (text-figs. 92-142) with
the beaked apical joints more elongate and narrow, more gradually
narrowed to apex and not distinctly hollowed out above, with the
aedeagus either falcate, its ventral part being produced into a thin
keel-like plate, or, if not falcate, the ramus on each side from basal part is
produced into an apically projecting rod-like or stylet-like process on
each side of aedeagus ..... Systoechus Lw. (p. 292).
17. (10) Hind margin of eyes with a deep sinuosity or comparatively deep
emargination; antennal joint 3 with a longer and more conspicuous
terminal joint or joints; wings with the vein separating first and second
posterior cells passing straight to hind border, being joined by or
receiving the vein between first posterior and second submarginal cells
like a cross vein; frons in $$ with a row of 2, or more, very stout and
conspicuous macrochaetal bristles on each side; hypopygium of $$
(text-figs. 143-148) with the dorsal apical part of basal parts produced
apically and upwards or obliquely upwards into a transverse, flattened
lobe or process, the upper edge of which is usually black, slightly recurved,
and armed with ctenate spines, longer, more distinct, and more comb-like
on the outer edge or laterally, with a distinct tuft of long, stiff bristles
on lower outer margin in neck region of basal parts
Eurycarenus Lw. (p. 507).
18. (9) Frons, face, and genae very smooth, bare, and brilliantly shining black,
the face markedly and conically prominent in front and separated from
frons in front of antennae by a deep, transverse furrow; metapleurae
bare, but with a tuft of hairs in front of halteres; wings without, or
with only a very feebly developed, basal comb and with the alula very
feebly developed, very narrow, and not broadly lobe-like; legs without
any spines on the femora below; hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 150).
Sisyrophanus Karsch (p. 523).
19. (8) Wings with the first posterior cell open or broadly open on hind border
and thus without a stalk and also never sessile on border, and if in very
rare cases the cell is stalked the alula is vestigial and the vein between
first and second posterior cells is more distinctly S -curved, the femora
are without spines below and the first antennal joints are separated
basally and incrassate ........ 20.
20. (37) Antennae with joints 1 and 2 not markedly incrassate and elongate, and
if joint 1 is elongate it is not markedly and conspicuously thickened
or incrassate, and joint 2 especially is not strikingly incrassate, barrel-
shaped, and elongate; vertex in $$ n ot very tumid, the ocellar tubercle
26 Annals of the South African Museum.
not markedly elevated; face usually more prominent; palps not
obviously, visibly, and distinctly 3-jointed; wings with either 2 or 3
submarginal cells present . . . . . . . .21.
21. (34) AVings with only 2 submarginal cells present ..... 22.
22. (33) Head with the occipital part on each side behind eyes not broad and
somewhat inflated, with the face not relatively broad and tumidly or
conically prominent, narrower, and if conical not tumidly prominent
medially, with the third antennal joints rod-like, slender, pointed but
not markedly elliptical or shortly spindle-shaped and without a dense
covering of spinule-like pubescence, wings, if infuscated, not mottled or
marbled 23.
23. (30) Body more plump, not elongate, the abdomen not markedly elongate
and cylindrical; wings rarely with the basal comb absent or with the
alula vestigial and much reduced, and if so the vein separating sub-
marginal cells is distinctly more S -shaped and the femora are without
spines below; antennal joint 3 stouter, more rod-like, comparatively
more bluntly pointed, and if slender and more sharply pointed the first
joints are thickened and separated, and femora without spines below;
palps with the apical joints not characteristically thickened or clavate
and not directed upwards; metapleurae rarely entirely bare, and if so
hind femora are without spines; last sternite of abdomen in $<$ rarely
elongate and scoop-like, and if so the femora are not spined ; hypopygium
of <$<$ without a subapical lobe or spine-like process on beaked apical
joints, and the aed^agus not markedly long or very slender . . 24.
24. (25) Antennae with the first joints separated, very much thickened and
incrassate, barrel-shaped, with joint 3 elongate and slender, spindle or
subspindle shaped, the apical part very slender; face somewhat produced
and spout-like, bare; wings with the base narrowed, the alula much
reduced, the axillary lobe also reduced and narrowish, the discal cross
vein very much beyond middle of discoidal cell, and the first posterior
cell sometimes closed and stalked apically; pubescence very dense,
fine and shaggy, puff -like, that on head above, antennal joint 1, sides
of face and genae very long, dense and conspicuous, without any pubes-
cence on metapleurae, the tuft being also absent; last sternite in $<$
elongate and scoop-like; legs with dense and longish hairs on femora
below, without any spines on femora below, with the claws curved down
apically and the pulvilli long, reaching apices of claws; hypopygium of
<J(J (text-figs. 151-154) with the beaked apical joints usually directed
outwards and having a peculiar twisted structure, with the aedeagus
usually broad, tubular, and spout-like Dischistus Lw. s. str. (p. 527).
25. (24) Antennae with the first joints contiguous, scarcely thickened, usually
slender, with joint 3 not spindle-shaped, but rod-like, subrod-like, or
only thickened near base ; face broadly rounded, not prominent or much
produced, sometimes also bare; wings with the base not markedly
narrowed, the alula always well developed and lobate, the axillary lobe
always broad and lobate, the discal cross vein very much before middle,
at oi near middle or only a little beyond middle of discoidal cell and the
first posterior cell always open; pubescence much shorter, less dense,
not very shaggy or puff-like, sometimes comparatively sparse and short,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 27
especially in $$, that on head above and on face shorter and less dense,
and if dense it is much shorter, with some scaling or hairs on metapleurae
and always with a metapleural tuft of hairs or scales ; last sternite in $<$
shortish and broad, truncated or slightly rounded but not elongate and
scoop-like; legs with much shorter, or without much, hair on femora
below and always with some spines on hind femora below, with the claws
either curved down rapidly or more gradually and the pulvilli short or
long; hypopygium of <$$ with the beaked apical joints not twisted, and
with the aedeagus less stout and tubular ..... 26.
26. (29) Pubescence on body above with the bristly hairs and bristles not dis-
tinctly frayed or fimbriate apically, without very dense, flattened,
lanceolate scaling on pleurae and body below, the scaling, when present,
being denser only on body above; head with the frons in $? always with
a distinct transverse depression anteriorly, with the first antennal joints
never distinctly thickened and without distinct visible short hairs on
the third antennal joints, with the first terminal element of antennal
joint 3 usually longer, conical, and more conspicuous; wings with the
basal comb slightly or even distinctly more developed, the discoidal cell
longer, narrower, and not broad or short and triangular and without a
tendency for anal cell to be distinctly much narrowed or subacute
apically; pulvilli, when reduced, at least more conspicuous at base of
claws; hypopygium of $<$ always with a distinct membrane or ventral
eadeagal process, or with a ventral apically directed process on each
side below aedeagus ......... 27.
27. (28) Eyes in $$ very narrowly separated, subcontiguous or broadly separated
above, broadly or very broadly separated in $$, usually 3-5 times as
broad as ocellar tubercle; frons in £$ with the transverse depression at
about the middle or just a little beyond the middle, the frons and face
in $$ and face in $<$ never brilliantly shining black; antennae with
joint 1 usually longer and with 3 usually shorter, and when long never
much more than about 1|- times as long as 1 and 2 combined, gradually
narrowed apically from broader base or subrod-like and slightly curved;
wings with the discal cross vein very much before middle, rarely near or
at middle, of discoidal cell, the discoidal cell distinctly broader and
more truncate apically, the basal comb usually slightly more developed;
pubescence on the whole shorter in $$, less sparse in $$, always with
some pubescence on face in both sexes, without any opalescent, gleaming,
silvery whitish scaling or even dense golden scaling on thorax and
abdomen, and without any silvery tufts or black tufts on sides of antennae;
body usually with much red or reddish on face, pleurae, and on abdomen
in both sexes; legs always with a few spines on middle femora below,
and with the pulvilli long or short ; last sternite in <$<$ with the posterior
lateral angles rounded and not angularly pointed; hypopygium of <$<$
(text-figs. 155-165) with only a ventral membranous expansion below
aedeagus or with a distinct lateral apically produced process, not ending
in a distinct spine, on each side below aedeagus
Doliogethes n. gen. (p. 545).
28. (27) Eyes in <J<£ always in direct or actual contact for a short distance above,
not very broadly separated in $$, usually less than 3 times as broad as
28 Annals of the South African Museum.
ocellar tubercle; frons in ?$ with the transverse depression farther
forwards and just behind antennae and often with a medial depression
leading up to tubercle, the frons and face in $$ and face in <J(£ very often
brilliantly shining black; antennae with joint 1 usually short and only
about 2-2| times as long as 2, with 3 more elongate and rod-like, straight,
at least 1£ times, and usually more than 1£ times, as long as 1 and 2
combined; wings with the discal cross vein in the neighbourhood of the
middle of discoidal cell, the discoidal cell more narrowed apically, the
basal comb smaller; pubescence on the whole sparser in both sexes,
more so in $$, rarely dense in <$<$, that on face medially wanting, with
denser and more conspicuous scaling on body above, especially in $£,
rarely without a silvery tuft on each side of antennae in $$, more often
with opalescent, glittering, bluish or greenish, metallic scaling on frons
and body above in $?, and with gleaming, silvery white scaling on
abdomen above in both sexes, or especially in $$; body, including
scutellum, predominantly black, rarely with reddish on pleurae or
abdomen; legs only with spines on hind femora below, and with the
pulvilli always reaching apices of claws; last sternite in $$ with the
posterior lateral angles angular or even angularly produced; hypopygium
of $$ (text-figs. 166-172) with a distinct lateral apically produced process
on each side of aedeagus below, ending in a curved or recurved, slender
hook or prong, or with a complex and broad ventral aedeagal process
below aedeagus provided with a long or curved spine or hook on each
side . . ..... Chasmoneura n. gen. (p. 586).
29. (26) Pubescence on body above with the bristly hairs and bristles frayed or
fimbriate at their apices, with very dense hair-like scaling, either whitish
or cinnabar-red, on body above and dense, flattened, lanceolate scaling
on face, antennae, pleurae, and venter in both sexes ; head with the frons
in $$ convex and without a transverse depression, with the face broadly
rounded and not prominent, with the first antennal joints slightly
thickened and with distinct, visible, short hairs on antennal joint 3 and
with the terminal elements minute and inconspicuous or in form of a
hair; wings with the basal comb very feebly developed, the discoidal
cell shorter, broad, triangular, or bell- shaped and with a tendency for
anal cell to be narrowed or even acute apically; pulvilli much reduced,
vestigial, scarcely visible in $$, and only indicated in rftf; hypopygium
°f <?c? (text-fig. 173) more Bombylius-like, without any ventral aedeagal
process below aedeagus . . . Lepidochlanus n. gen. (p. 613).
30. (23) Body more elongate and cylindrical, the abdomen markedly elongate;
wings with the basal comb absent and the alula much reduced or
vestigial, the second longitudinal vein less bent up at its end, and the
vein separating the submarginal cells less S-curved; antennal joint 3
more slender, elongate, and pointed; palps with the apical joint short,
1 hickened, and directed upwards; metapleurae entirely bare; last sternite
in ^ elongate and scoop-like; hypopygium of <$<$ (text-figs. 174-196)
with a subapieal lobe or spine-like process on elongated apical joints
and wif li I he aedeagus elongate and sometimes very slender . . 31.
.'51 . (32) Body less cylindrical, less humped, and the abdomen broader; pubescence
lunch denser and more shaggy, puff-like, that on antennae below and
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 29
on face very much shorter, that on abdomen much denser and longer
and also present above; frons in $$ with a distinct transverse depression;
antennae shorter and joint 1 much shorter and less than 5 times as
long as 2; wings with the second longitudinal vein straight and less
sinuous at its end, with the alula, though reduced, more developed and
with the anal cell more narrowly open; legs shorter and less developed,
with denser and longer hairs on femora below in both sexes, and middle
tibiae with 1 or 2 pallid spurs apically below: hypopygium of $$ (text-
figs. 174-195) without a very long, slender, and curved aedeagus, without
a lateral lobe on each side of aedeagus and with the basal strut directed
towards base ...... Gonarthrus Bezz. (p. 619).
32. (31) Body more elongate, more cylindrical, the thorax slightly, but distinctly,
more humped and the abdomen narrower and more cylindrical; pubes-
cence sparser, less dense and fine, not fine and puff-like on thorax, that
on antennae below and face very much longer, that on abdomen less
dense and shorter and sparse or absent above; frons in $$ with a distinct
groove-like depression; antennae much longer and joint 1 conspicuously
elongate, quite 5-5^ times as long as 2; wings with the second longi-
tudinal vein slightly undulating and distinctly, though slightly, more
sinuous at end, with the alula very much reduced, vestigial, and with
the anal cell more broadly open; legs longer, more powerful, and with
much shorter and fewer hairs on femora below and middle tibiae with
the apical spurs all unicolorous; hypopygium of <$£ (text-fig. 196) with
a long, slender and curved aedeagus, with a lateral, flattened process or
lobe at base of aedeagus on each side and with the basal strut directed
towards apex of abdomen . . . Paratoxophora Engel. (p. 669).
33. (22) Head with the occipital part on each side behind eyes broad and some-
what inflated or tumidly prominent, with the face relatively, broadly,
and tumidly prominent, with the third antennal joints (text-fig. 197)
distinctly spindle-shaped and covered with dense spinule-like pubescence;
wings extensively mottled or marbled (text-fig. 198); hypopygium of
<J (text-fig. 199) .... Cheilohadrus n. gen. (p. 674).
34. (21) Wings with 3 submarginal cells present ..... 35.
35. (36) Antennal joint 3 from side (cf. text-figs. 200-205) not markedly broadened
towards base, and not distinctly hollowed out below in <$$, and not con-
spicuously broad and bellows-shaped in $$, and without long, stoutish,
bristly hairs or bristles near base above, and long slender hairs near
apex below; antennal joint 1 not markedly thickened; frons in $$
without or with a less distinct transverse depression, which when indicated
is slightly farther back; hairs and bristly hairs on face and genae shorter
and sparser; wings without any pubescent hairs at base above and with
a distinct fringe on the alula; hypopygium of c£c? (text-figs. 200-206)
Adelidea Macq. (p. 680).
(Syn. =Sobarus Lw.).
36. (35) Antennal joint 3 from side (text-fig. 207, b and c) markedly broader and
dilated near base and hollowed out or slightly excavated below in $<$
(b), very strikingly broadened basally and bellows-shaped in $$ (c), and
with long, bristly hairs or bristles above near base and also below near
apex in both sexes; antenna! joint 1 distinctly incrassate and thickened;
30 Annals of the South African Museum.
frons in ?$ with a more distinct transverse depression just behind bases
of antennae; hairs and bristly hairs on face and genae distinctly longer
and denser; wings with distinct pubescent hairs at base above and with
an almost absent, very sparse or vestigial, fringe on the alula; hypo-
pygium of <$ (text-fig. 207, a) . . . Sosiomyia Bezz. (p. 702).
37. (20) Antennae with joints 1 and 2 markedly elongate, markedly and con-
spicuously thickened and incrassate, joint 2 being especially elongate,
incrassate, and barrel- shaped; vertex in £$ more or less tumidly raised,
the ocellar tubercle being more prominent and elevated; face poorly
developed, not prominent but only bluntly rounded; palps obviously
and distinctly 3-jointed; wings with only 2 submarginal cells present;
hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 208) . . Conophorina Beck. (p. 705).
38. (7) Antennae with joint 3 ending in a remarkably long and slender terminal
element or fourth joint (cf. text-fig. 209); scutellum (text-fig. 210),
bispinose or bilobate apically; wings with the marginal cell markedly
broad or dilated apically, the second longitudinal vein arcuately curving
hindwards towards hind border (cf. text-fig. 211); hypopygium of <$
(text-fig. 212) ..... Othniomyia n. gen. (p. 707).
39. (6) Wings with the anal cell angularly acute apically and very rarely not
closed and provided with a stalk; antennae with joint 3 clavate, thickened
or excavated apically or ending in distinct terminal elements or joints;
femora without any spines below . . . . . .40.
40. (49) Head very broad, sometimes markedly broad, as broad as, or broader
than, thorax, with the eyes in $$ broadly separated, at least as broad
as broad ocellar tubercle and sometimes very much broader, with the
frons broad, with the facial region usually very broad, inflated, or tumid,
and sometimes with a characteristic dense brush of bristly hairs on facial
part, constituting a circumoral brush, with the third antennal joints
clavate, thickened, or excavated apically, and the terminal elements
reduced or absent; last sternite of abdomen in <$$ notched medially;
thorax not humped in appearance and body on the whole with much
denser and longer pubescence; wings sometimes with 3 submarginal
cells; hypopygium of known <$<$ (text-figs. 214-217, 219-223, 227, 229-
231, and 233-237) usually with a characteristic, somewhat laterally
compressed, claw-shaped or hook-like beaked apical joints
41 (Corsomyza-growp) (p. 712).
41. (46) Facial region not so strikingly and markedly tumidly prominent or
inflated, the frons in front less tumid, sides of face, the face and genae
not so strikingly inflated; antennal joint 1 not distinctly thickened and
barrel or subbarrel-shaped and usually longer ; proboscis usually longer,
and when short always projecting beyond antennae; buccal cavity
situated more in front of head; hypopygium of <$<$ (text-figs. 214-217,
219-223, and 227-233) with the beaked apical joints more markedly
claw-like and distinctly more laterally compressed . . .42.
42. (43) Head in front markedly broad, the facial region very broad, the sides
of face and genae more tumid, with the inner margins of eyes distinctly
diverging down sides of facial region in both sexes, the head below being
much broaded than vertex, even in $$; antennae inserted much higher
up, at least half or very nearly half the distance from front ocellus to
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 31
edge of buccal rim; pubescence on body distinctly denser and more
conspicuous, especially in <£<J, with that on facial region in form of a
distinct and characteristic, dense, circular, facial brush, even in $$, and
when not conspicuous in $$ the hairs on face are at least more numerous;
empodium between claws and pulvilli usually slightly longer and more
developed; hypopygium of <$<$ (text-figs. 214-227)
Gorsomyzn Wied. (p. 714).
43. (42) Head in front not markedly broad, the facial region not conspicuously
broad, the sides of face and genae not very tumidly prominent, with
the inner margins of eyes down sides of facial region subparallel in $?
at least, the head below about as broad as, or scarcely broader than,
vertex, and when broader, as in some <$<$, a conspicuous facial brush is
absent; antennae inserted much lower down, either just above buccal rim
or much less than half distance from buccal rim to front ocellus ; pubescence
on body very much sparser, and the $$ sometimes almost bare, the erect
pubescence being very sparse, without a distinct, circular, and dense,
facial brush in both sexes ; empodium less distinct and shorter . 44.
44. (45) Eyes in both sexes broadly separated above, the interocular space being
very much broader than ocellar tubercle, with the inner margins of eyes
parallel or subparallel in both sexes ; buccal rim in facial part protruding
prominently and spout-like, especially its upper part; antennae inserted
higher up nearer middle of distance between buccal rim and front ocellus ;
proboscis longer, and the palps more slender and relatively longer;
thorax with a distinct stoutish, macrochaetal bristle on each side in front
of wings; pleurae almost entirely bare and shining, even a small meta-
pleural tuft absent ; wings comparatively shorter, the alula more reduced
and vestigial, the axillary lobe also much narrower and more reduced;
legs with much sparser hairs, and with only inconspicuous, or without
any, bristly hairs apically above last tarsal joint; hypopygium of <$$
(text-fig. 229) Megapalpus Macq. (p. 759).
45. (44) Eyes in $£ above much more narrowly separated, by width of tubercle,
or only a little more and very much narrower than in the $$, and with
the inner margins not parallel in <$<$; buccal rim not protruding and
spout-like in both sexes; antennae inserted almost immediately above
buccal rim; proboscis usually much shorter and palps less elongate and
usually thicker; thorax without any stouter or distinct macrochaetal
bristles in front of wings; pleurae with more, though sparse, hairs even
in $$ and with a small metapleural tuft usually present; wings distinctly
longer, the alula slightly more developed, broader and less vestigial and
the axillary lobe much broader, often markedly subtriangularly lobe-
like; legs with slightly more numerous hairs on femora, even in $$,
and last tarsal joint with a few, or at least one, long bristly hairs apically
above; hypopygium of <$$ (text-figs. 230, 231, and 233)
Hyperusia Bezz. (p. 764).
46. (41) Facial region remarkably broad, markedly tumidly prominent or inflated,
the frons in front more tumidly prominent, sides of face (or face) and
genae very tumid or inflated; antennal joint 1 thickened or even
subbarrel-shaped and short or very short; proboscis very short and
confined to buccal cavity, or when slightly longer not projecting beyond
32 Annals of the South African Museum.
antennae ; buccal cavity situated more below head, due to inflated facial
region; hypopygium of <$£ (text-figs. 234-235, a, and 236 and 237) with
the beaked apical joints either more dorso-ventrally compressed and not
claw-shaped, or when claw-like distinctly less laterally compressed . 47.
47. (48) Head with the front half of frons and sides above antennae very broad
and inflated, the most prominent part of inflated facial part thus above
antennae; antennae inserted immediately above buccal cavity, with
joint 1 more thickened and subbarrel-shaped, the two joints contiguous
basally, with joint 2 covered with a dense coat of fine, spinule-like
pubescence, with 3 clavate or distinctly more broadened apically;
proboscis slightly longer and more slender, the labella narrow, more
pointed and not fleshy; pubescence in $<$ at least longer and denser,
with a well-developed, dense, circular, facial brush and with a small
metapleural tuft present; wings with 2 or 3 submarginal cells present;
legs without dense feathery pubescence on tibiae or at least on hind ones
and the last tarsal joint without, or with only inconspicuous, hairs
apically above; hypopygium of <$$ (text-figs. 234 and 235, a) with the
beaked apical joints narrower, more claw-like, and more laterally
compressed ..... Callynthrophora Schin. (p. 775).
48. (47) Head with the face, sides of face, and genal parts very broad and remark-
ably inflated, the entire facial part below antennae thus more inflated;
antennae inserted very high up, very much nearer front ocellus than
edge of buccal cavity, with joint 1 less thickened and even shorter, the
two widely separated at base, at least as wide as space between posterior
ocelli, without any visible coat of dense, spinule-like pubescence on
joint 2, with 3 more rod-like and not markedly dilated or clavate apically;
proboscis very short, stout, and practically confined to buccal cavity,
spinulated below and with the labella broad and fleshy (Muscid-like) ;
pubescence in <$$ at least distinctly shorter and sparser, without a
distinct and well marked off circular, facial brush, but with the hair
dense on lower parts of genae and lower part of face and without a
metapleural tuft; wings in known species with 3 submarginal cells
present; legs with denser pubescence and with dense feathery pubes-
cence on hind tibiae at least and with one or a few longish hairs apically
above on last hind tarsal joint; hypopygium of <$$ (text-figs. 236 and
237) with the beaked apical joints broader in basal half and broadly
dorso-ventrally compressed, pubescent, and ending in a slender beak,
not claw-shaped Onumyia Bezz. (p. 780).
49. (40) Head normal, not remarkably broad, with the eyes in £$ contiguous
or in contact above, the frons small or narrow, with the facial region
narrow, small or conical, not remarkably inflated or tumid and without
a circular brush of dense hairs, with the third antennal joints tapering
and ending in a terminal element or elements, not excavate or clavate
a pically, last sternite in $$ not notched medially; thorax usually humped
in appearance and body with much sparser and shorter pubescence;
wrings with only 2 submarginal cells present; hypopygium of known <J<J
(text-figs. 238-246) with the beaked apical joints not much laterally
compressed or claw-shaped ....... 50.
60. (55) Body with the thorax more humped in appearance and with longer and
denser pubescence on head, thorax, pleurae, coxae, and abdomen, and
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 33
also with scaling on body; head with the frons less convex, more or less
transversely depressed anteriorly, especially in $$, with the face less
conically prominent and not, or scarcely, demarcated from frontal part,
with the first antennal joints 2, or more, times as long as the second
joints; wings with the third longitudinal vein not bending towards
discoidal cell at level of discal cross vein and witb the base of second
submarginal cell broader and more truncate; legs longer and more
slender, the tibiae with the spicules longer and more strongly developed
and the middle tibiae with a distinct, longer, apical spur below and with
the front coxae longer . . .51 (Crocidium Group) (p. 785).
51. (54) Antennae much shorter, with joint 1 much shorter, much less than 6
times as long as 2, not thickened and with joints 1 and 2 combined very
much shorter than joint 3 (including terminal elements); body not
simulating that of a There vid . . . . . . .52.
52. (53) Head with the occiput more normally concave, with the inner margins
of eyes in $$ very distinctly diverging anteriorly, the frons becoming
wider anteriorly and the distance between eyes across buccal cavity
considerably broader than across face or frons in both sexes, with the
genae always present and distinct, comparatively broad or very broad,
the furrow on each side of buccal rims some distance away from inner
margins of eyes, with the frons and face sometimes brilliantly shining
and with a yellow transverse band across facial region in $$, with the
apical joints of palps slightly longer and clavate apically; wings less
elongate, spotted or hyaline, with the axillary lobe broader, triangularly
produced and rounded posteriorly, the alula broader and more lobately
rounded; halteres with the knobs much shorter and much less than 2
times as long as broad; body on the whole shorter and less elongate,
not resembling an Empid and the thorax less markedly humped; hypo-
pygium of <$<$ (text-figs. 238-245) . . Crocidium Lw. (p. 786).
53. (52) Head more spherical, the occiput less concave, with the inner margins
of eyes in $$ tending to be parallel or subparallel even down sides of
face and buccal cavity, with the frons, face, and distance across buccal
cavity more or less equal, the lower part of head across buccal cavity
thus not, or scarcely, broader than across frons, with the genae almost
absent or wanting, represented along inner margins of eyes only as a
narrow line, almost wanting or even obliterated at about middle and
only narrowly visible on each side above and below, the narrow groove
on each side of buccal cavity thus practically only separating the inner
margins of eyes from the buccal rims, with the frons and face not
smoothly shining and without a transverse yellowish band on facial
region in $$, with the apical joints of palps usually shorter and distinctly
more oval or ovate; wings more elongate, tinged or infuscated, with the
axillary lobe narrower, only rounded posteriorly and not triangularly
prominent, the alula more reduced, much narrower and only slightly
arcuately rounded posteriorly ; halteres with the knobs more conspicuous
and more elongated, nearly or quite 2 times as long as broad; body more
elongate, more resembling that of an Empid or a Culex and with the
thorax even more markedly humped; hypopygium of <£ (text-fig. 246)
Adelogenys n. gen. (p. 811).
34 Annals of the South African Museum.
54. (51) Antennae elongate, with joint 1 conspicuously elongated, quite 6 times
as long as joint 2, somewhat thickened and with joints 1 and 2 combined
only slightly shorter than joint 3 (including terminal elements), body
with a marked resemblance to that of a Therevid
Apatomyza Wied. (p. 818).
(ex, descr. Wiedemann and Becker).
55. (50) Body with the thorax distinctly less convex and less humped in appear-
ance and with the pubescence very short and sparse, the head and body
almost bare and also without any scaling; head (text-fig. 247) with the
frons in $$ at least more convex, not depressed anteriorly, with the face
more conically prominent and distinctly more demarcated from frontal
part, with the first antennal joints shorter, less than 2 times as long as
second joints; wings with the third longitudinal vein bending towards
discoidal cell at level of discal cross vein and the second submarginal
cell angularly acute basally; legs stouter and much shorter, the spicules
on tibiae less strongly developed and the middle tibiae without a long
spur apically below and the front coxae very much shorter and plumper
Heterotropinae (Heterotropus Lw.) (p. 819).
56. (5) Wings sometimes with only 3 posterior cells present, and if 4 are present
the third antennal joints end apically in either an upper and a lower
spine-like process or in a subapical process, with or without a discoidal
cell; antennae with joint 3 ending apically either in an upper and a lower
spine-like process or in a subapical process or an upwardly directed apical
spine or process (if not, wing at least has only 3 posterior cells); genae
often with the hairs or bristly hairs aggregated in a forwardly and up-
wardly directed tuft or brush, and if without such a brush the third
antennal joint is modified; abdomen in $$ usually with segment 8
produced on each side below into a lobe -like process; thorax more often
more distinctly convex and humped in appearance . . . 57.
57. (64) Head with the pubescence on genae on each side not concentrated in a
forwardly and upwardly directed tuft or brush, with the face usually
very short, sometimes practically non-existent, with the first antennal
joints very short, never more than about 1£ times as long as second
joints, with the third joints modified, ending apically in either an upper
and a lower spine -like process or in a subapical upper process or spine;
wings with 4 or with 3 posterior cells and with or without a discoidal
cell, with the apical cross vein of discoidal cell (when present) scarcely
and not markedly S -curved, without a knob-like thickening near base
of upper vein of second basal cell; abdomen in ?$ without a distinct
lobe-like process or lappet ventrally on each side of segment 8; tarsi
without a patch or a clump of a few longer spines basally below on basal
joints; hypopygium of <J<J (text-figs. 248-256 and 258-263) less compli-
cated, with the basal parts usually divided into two symmetrical parts,
with a distinct movable apical joint to each basal part and with the
aedeagal complex more Bombyliine . . 58 (Phthiriinae) (p. 822).
58. (59) Wings with 4 posterior cells, with a discoidal cell always present, with
the second submarginal cell very obtuse basally, the upper vein sharply
benl at base; antennal joint 3 (text-figs. 248 and 253, a) more spindle-
shaped, with a distinct and often prominent upper apical or subapical
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 35
spine-like process, often forming a symmetrical or unsymmetrical bifid
process with a distinct lower apical process or prominence, with con-
spicuous, short, bristly hairs on the joints above, especially in <$<$;
legs with distinct, though feeble, spicules distinctly visible on tibiae
and with the last tarsal joint not very distinctly or markedly thickened
or broader than the others; body in $$ sometimes with much yellow
even on head, thorax, and pleurae, and with the pubescence on the whole
denser and longer; hypopygium of $<$ (text-figs. 248-256)
Phthiria Meig. (p. 824).
59. (58) Wings with only 3 posterior cells, with the discoidal cell sometimes
entirely absent, with the second submarginal cell distinctly much more
acute to very acute basally, the upper vein scarcely, or only slightly,
bent at base; antennal joint 3 (text-figs. 257 and 263) more oval or
equally broad throughout (from side), with a single subapical or apical
upwardly directed spine-like process just in front of which there is also
dorsally a depression or hollow lodging the terminal style, with only
fine and inconspicuous, or even without any, bristly hairs on the joints
above even in $$; legs without any distinctly visible spicules, but
apparently only covered with fine pubescence or short hairs and with
the last tarsal joint distinctly and visibly thickened and broader than
the other joints; body without yellow markings on head and thorax
and with the pubescence distinctly less developed, the greater part of
body being more often almost bare; hypopygium of $$ (text-figs.
258-263) 60.
60. (63) Wings without a discoidal cell, with the second submarginal cell more
distinctly acute basally; eyes in $<$ in contact or separated above;
pubescence on body more conspicuously developed even if sparse, with
distinctly longer and more conspicuous hairs on coxae, femora, and
tibiae in both sexes; thorax comparatively broader and more sub-
globularly rounded; last abdominal sternite in <$$ more elongate and
scoop-like, narrowed or pointed apically; hypopygium of $<$ (text-
figs. 258-262) 61.
61. (62) Eyes in $$ in actual contact for some distance, the upper facets being
coarser than the lower ones; pubescence on body more distinctly de-
veloped in both sexes, longer, that on legs also more conspicuous and
with a distinct row of longer hairs on outer side of tibiae in both sexes;
legs on the whole slightly longer; wings also slightly longer; palps
usually longer and more developed, the apical joint usually slightly
thicker than basal one . . . Apolysis Lw. s. str. (p. 848).
62. (61) Eyes in both sexes comparatively broadly separated, the upper facets
in <£<£ not differentiated from lower ones; pubescence on body much
sparser and shorter in both sexes, that on legs distinctly shorter and
without a distinct row of distinctly longer hairs on tibiae; legs on the
whole stouter; wings also slightly shorter; palps very short, the apical
joint apparently not thicker than basal one
Apolysis Lw. (in part) (p. 848).
63. (60) Wings with a distinct discoidal cell present, with the base of second
submarginal cell more obtuse; eyes in <$<$ in contact above; pubescence
on body very short, very sparse, the greater part of body practically
36 Annals of the South African Museum.
bare, with shorter and fewer hairs on coxae and only fine pubescence
on femora and tibiae ; thorax slightly more elongate and narrower, more
humped in appearance; last sternite in £$ not conically produced;
hypopygium of known <$ (text-fig. 263, b) . Oligodranes Lw. (p. 861).
64. (57) Head with the pubescence on genae on each side produced into a forwardly
and upwardly directed tuft or brush, with the face usually distinct and
conical, with the first antennal joints usually longer than 1|- times as
long as the second joints, with the third joints only tapering to a fine
and sharp point ; wings always with only 3 posterior cells present and with
a discoidal cell always present, its apical cross vein very markedly
S-curved, always with some knob-like thickening near base of upper
vein of second basal cell; abdomen in $$ always with a lobe-like or lappet-
like process ventrally on each side of segment 8; tarsi with a patch or
clump of a few longer spines basally below on basal joints; hypopygium
of cJc? (text-figs. 264-298) entirely different, more complicated, having
a single, undivided basal part, no distinctly movable apical joints, but
only apical lobes or processes to basal part and a differently constituted
aedeagal complex and accessory structures
65 (Geroninae n. subfam.) (p. 866).
65. (68) Body with the thorax markedly convex above, humped, the pleural parts
compressed and high; head more globular, the genae much narrower
and the distance from eye to eye across buccal cavity considerably
narrower, not, scarcely, or only a little, broader than across face ; eyes in
<JcJ in actual contact for a long distance or at least distinctly contiguous,
the line of contact rarely not impressed, with the frontal triangle usually
small, with the ocellar tubercle prominently pimple-like or tubercular
on vertex and the palps shorter ; wings usually narrower and less elongate,
rarely with a tendency for base of second submarginal cell to be opposite
apex of discoidal cell, the distance from discal cross vein to base of second
submarginal cell thus rarely very much, or distinctly, shorter than from
discal cross vein to fork of second and third longitudinal veins; tibiae
with the spicules extending to near bases and not confined to apical
parts ........... 66.
66. (67) Head with dense silvery white scaling and whitish hairs, or at least
with white hairs, on sides of frons, sides of face, on upper parts of genae
and along hind margins of eyes, without any black hairs on frons in $$
or black hairs on antennae in both sexes, with the middle parts of genae
bare and with the genae sometimes gleaming ivory whitish or yellowish;
inner margins of eyes in <£<£ scarcely, or not distinctly, sinuate opposite
bases of antennae; first antennal joints closer together, never longer
than about 3 times as long as the second joints and never dilated or
lliickened at bases and without long, dense, and bushy hair; interocular
space in $$ broader, usually about 2 times as broad as ocellar tubercle;
vnngs never infuscated, the second submarginal cell much shorter, about
as broad apically as long along lower vein or at least never more than
2 times as long as broad apically, with the apical cross vein of discoidal
cell slightly S-curved and with the alula distinctly more developed,
produced and lobe-like or tongue-like; halteres rarely with the knobs
i ii' d above; pubescence with the erect hairs on body above in $$
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 37
denser and slightly longer, never very dark or blackish on dorsum, those
on $$ above also distinctly denser and pale or whitish, never with black
intermixed hairs; hypopygium of <$<$ (cf. text-figs. 264-280) with the
apical processes to basal part usually finger-like, tubercle-like, or boss-
like, with the central guide (C.G.), joined on to ramus (R.)> usually more
separately visible, with a dorsal guide (D.G.) usually present and with
the basal end of aedeagus more distinctly spoon- or ladle-shaped
Geron Meig. (p. 867).
67. (66) Head without silvery white scaling and white hairs on sides of frons,
face, and upper parts of genae, with no silvery scaling behind eyes, the
face without any hairs, entirely bare, sides of frons also bare and with
only a duplicated row of short, blackish, bristly hairs on each side of
middle of frons in $$, with only the extreme upper parts of genae bare,
the middle and lower parts with long hairs, the genae never gleaming-
ivory whitish and with entirely or predominantly blackish hairs on
first antennal joints in both sexes; inner margins of eyes in <$$ distinctly
and more conspicuously sinuate opposite bases of antennae ; first antennal
joints distinctly wider apart, rarely about 3 times as long as second joints,
more often considerably more than 3 times, often markedly thickened
or dilated basally, especially in ^cJ, and in <JcJ more often also with very
long, conspicuous, bushy, black hair; interocular space on vertex in $$
much narrower, never 2 times as broad as tubercle; wings sometimes
tinged cinereous, smoky, or even very darkly, with the second sub-
marginal cell always very much longer, distinctly much longer than
2 times, along lower vein, than broad apically and thus with the sides
more parallel, the apical cross vein of discoidal cell rarely not markedly
S-curved and with the alula distinctly less developed, only slightly lobe-
like and not arcuately prominent; halteres rarely with the knobs not
darkened or blackened above; pubescence with the erect hairs on body
above in <$<$ less dense and on the whole shorter, always predominantly
dark or with much black hair above, those on $$ distinctly shorter and
less dense and always with short, bristly, very dark or blackish hairs
on head, thorax, and scutellum above; hypopygium of <$<$ (cf. text-figs.
281-295) with the apical processes of basal part more flattened, triangular,
or leaf-shaped, with the central guide (C.G.) usually not separately
distinct from base of aedeagus and that of the apically produced prong
or spine on each side above aedeagus, with usually more spines or prongs
at base of apical lobes of basal part and with the apical part of ramus (R.)
always produced into a spine, prong, or process
Amictogeron n. gen. (p. 918).
68. (65) Body with the thorax less markedly convex or humped above, the pleural
parts less high; head slightly more dorso-ventrally compressed, the
genae very broad, and the distance from eye to eye across buccal cavity
very much broader, considerably broader than across face or front part
of frons; eyes in $<$ with the inner margins not in actual contact for a
long distance, at narrowest part distinctly separated or only subcontiguous
by a space only as broad as front ocellus, with the frontal triangle thus
much larger, the line of subcontiguity (if present) not deeply impressed,
and the ocellar tubercle not markedly elevated and with the palps slightly
VOL. XXXTV. 4
38 Annals of the South African Museum.
longer and more slender; wings more elongate, with a tendency for base
of second submarginal cell to be more or less opposite apex of discoidal
cell, the distance from discal cross vein to base of second submarginal
cell thus much shorter than, rarely subequal to or as long as, distance
from discal vein to basal fork of second and third longitudinal veins ; tibiae
with the small spicules practically confined to apical half or the apical part;
hypopygium of <$<$ (text-figs. 296-298) Pseudoamictus Big. (p. 958).
(Syn. =Pseudempis Bezz.)
69. (4) Head with the frons equally broad in both sexes, very broad and roundly
convex, with markedly broad ocellar tubercle, which is centrally grooved
posteriorly, with the ocelli widely separated and reduced, the posterior
ones small and reniform and the anterior one wanting or merely repre-
sented by a scar or puncture, with the lower apical part of first antennal
joints markedly tumid or tubercularly prominent, with distinct, dense,
and conspicuous scaling present on the upper or labral part of proboscis,
especially towards base; wings remarkably narrow, markedly narrow at
base and, relative to body, feebly developed; hypopygium of <$ (text-
fig. 308) .... Cythereinae (Oniromyia Bezz.) (p. 986).
70. (3) Wings (cf. text-figs. 300, 302, b, and 305, b) with the cells much reduced,
with only 1 submarginal cell present, the position of the second sub-
marginal cell being occupied by the first posterior cell, sometimes even
without a marginal cell or a discoidal cell; antennae normally and
conspicuously quadriarticulate, a distinct fourth joint being present;
head with the occipital region more markedly and sometimes prominently
and convexly developed, the eyes being, or tending to be, shifted far
forwards; body usually very small, with the pubescence almost entirely
absent, the greater part of body being almost bare; tibiae with practi-
cally only fine pubescence and no distinct spicules, and with the apical
spurs inconspicuous or very much reduced, and the basal part of hind
tarsi sometimes with a basal hook-like process below in some <$<$; last
abdominal sternite in $<$ with the upper apical angle on each side
produced into a distinct spine-like or hook-like process (cf. text-figs.
301 and 304, a); hypopygium of <$$ (cf. text-figs. 301 and 304, b and
306 and 307) with a dorsal or ventral process or a flattened lateral process
on each side of the laterally compressed basal strut
71 (Cyrtosiinae) (p. 966).
71. (74) Wings (cf. text-figs. 300 and 302, b) with a distinct and normal marginal
cell present and without a discoidal cell; head below not sulcate longi-
tudinally; fourth antennal joints broad (cf. text-figs. 299 and 302, a),
more joint-like and not slender and style-like; body larger, more than
2 mm. long, and with a wing-length of much more than 2 mm., with the
pubescence, even if sparse, distinctly longer and more conspicuous and
with the integument, especially the black parts, more brilliantly shining;
hypopygium of <$<$ (cf. text-figs. 301, b and 304, b) without a medial
dorsal process or a lateral process on each side of basal strut . 72.
72. (73) Body more slender, elongate, the thorax more roundly humped, with the
pubescence shorter and less developed; head elongate, with the occipital
region markedly convex and elongate, not flattened, the eyes shifted
forwards, with the head below produced posteriorly into a blunt, spine-
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 39
like process (cf. text-fig. 299) and the eyes touching or very nearly
touching below ; frons f oveately depressed in both sexes and the space
on vertex equally broad in both sexes, the inner margins of eyes dis-
tinctly converging apically; antennae shorter and joint 3 comparatively
broader (cf. text-fig. 299); proboscis more slender, with a very short
and pointed labella, with the palps not discernible; wings (cf. text-
fig. 300) with the microtrichiae on hind border markedly conspicuous
and with the fine hairs on surface distinct, with the first basal cell not
shorter and very much narrower than second one, with the anal cell
open and the axillary lobe narrow; legs more slender, less conspicuously
pubescent, with the front and middle tibiae at least longer than the
femora and with the hind tarsi in $<$ normal; hypopygium of <$<$ (text-
fig. 301, b) . . . Platypygus Lw. and Ceratolaemus n. subgen. of
Platypygus Lw. (pp. 968 and 969).
73. (72) Body more plump, not slender and elongate, the thorax less roundly
humped, with the pubescence, especially in <$$, distinctly longer and
denser; head normal, subglobular, the occipital region flattened, short,
and normal, the eyes situated normally, with the head below short,
normal and not produced basally, and the eyes very broadly separated
below; frons not foveately depressed, very small in £<$, broad in $$,
the eyes in actual contact above in $<$, the inner margins of eyes in $$
at least subparallel above; antennae (cf. text-fig. 302, a) more elongate
and joint 3 also more slender and elongate; proboscis plumper and
stouter, with longer and more developed labella, with the palps, though
small, discernible; wings (cf. text -fig. 302, b) with the microtrichiae
along hind border short and inconspicuous and without conspicuous,
fine hairs on surface, with the first basal cell much shorter and narrower
than second basal one, with the anal cell acute apically and provided
with a stalk and with the axillary lobe lobe-like and well developed;
legs stouter, relatively shorter, more conspicuously pubescent, with
the front and middle tibiae scarcely longer than femora and hind ones
even shorter, with the base of basal joint of hind tarsus (cf. text-fig. 303)
produced into a hook-like, curved process in <J<J; hypopygium of $$
(text-fig. 304, b) . . . . Onchopelma n. gen. (p. 973).
74. (71) Wings (cf. text-fig. 305, b) without a marginal cell and with or without
a discoidal cell; head below longitudinally sulcate; antennal joint 4
distinctly more slender and style-like (cf. text-fig. 305, a); body smaller,
less than 2 mm. long, and with a wing-length of only about 2 mm. or even
less, with the pubescence very short and less conspicuous and with the
integument duller and less shining; hypopygium of <$<$ (text-figs. 306
and 307) with a median apically directed process and a flattened lateral
process on basal strut . . Empidideicus Beck, and Anomaloptilus
n. subgen. of Empidideicus (pp. 979 and 983).*
75. (2) Body simulating or mimicking that of Aculeate- Hymenopter a, such as
Sphex, Sceliphron, etc., or even Vespids, such as B elonog aster ; meta-
sternal region strongly and broadly developed; abdomen markedly
long and with a slender stalk or petiole, ending in a club as in Aculeate-
* Doliopteryx n. gen. (See Appendix in part II) to come after Empidideicus.
40 Annals of the South African Museum.
Hymenoptera and Vespidae; legs, especially hind ones, abnormally elongate
and Sphegid or Vespid-like, and the front femora with an elliptical,
callus-like, and microscopically sculptured area; terminal lappets or
plates to last sternite (dorsal in position), which surrounds the aedeagal
complex of hypopygium of S3 (cf- text-figs. 310, 311, 313, 314, 317,
319, 321-323, and 325-326), with a black, indurated, or hardened, micro-
scopically sculptured callus-area
Systropinae (Systropus Wied.) (pp. 990 and 991).
76. (1) Thorax with a distinctly visible, broad, and well marked off prothorax or
pronotal part, forming a conspicuous ring or collar in front of the meso-
notal part, the anterior part of which and the pronotal part as well
being provided with stoutish macrochaetal bristles; scutellum markedly
flattened; legs with the femora, especially hind ones, tending to be
markedly incrassate and narrowed apically and basally and with markedly
long and dense spines and dense, elongated, flattened, and fluted scaling
on the tibiae, especially the hind ones; antennae with very dense, con-
spicuous, and bushy scaling on all the joints; hypopygium of <$$ (text-
figs. 327-332) . . Toxophorinae (Toxophora Meig.) (pp. 1028 and 1029).
Subfam. Bomhyliinae.
As is evident from the key, this subfamily includes no less than
24 genera and thus constitutes the largest subfamily in this division.
In contrast with the more or less constant and uniform characters
distinguishing the genera belonging to other well-defined subfamilies,
the genera grouped in this subfamily show no such uniformity. As
will be seen, several genera encompassed by the Bomhyliinae are,
however, nevertheless referable to more or less distinct groups, which
may even be considered as separate tribes. Apart from the genera
Bomhylius, Anastoechus, and Systoechus, which constitute the basic
elements of the subfamily, such groups as the Corsomyza-giouj)
(Corsomyza, Megapalpus, Hyperusia, Callynthrophora, and Gnumyia),
the Crocidium-grouj) (Crocidium, Adelogenys, and Apatomyza), the
Gonarthrus-giou]) (Gonarthrus and Paratoxophora) and even the
Doliogethes-giou]) (Doliogethes, Chasmoneura, and Lepidochlanus) are
separately sufficiently distinct in certain essentials to justify their
elevation to at least a tribal status. Other genera, such as Eury-
carcMus, Sisyrophanus, Adelidea, Sosiomyia, Cheilohadrus, Othniomyia,
and Dischistus s.str., however, cannot be relegated to distinct groups
unless these are mono-generic groupings. For the sake of con-
venience all these groups are provisionally referred to the Bomhyliinae
in tin's revision. There is no doubt that this subfamily thus contains
many heterogeneous elements, but it is equally clear that a proper
definition of the subfamily is only possible when the true systematic
positions of all I lie lienera in the world, now included in it, have been
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 41
elucidated. To a certain extent this is also true of other subfamilies,
and, as is evident from the key, there is no doubt that Crocidium and
Apatomyza and Gonarthrus can no longer be retained in the Phthiriinae,
where certain important antennal and wing-characters are more or
less constant. Neither can the Corsomyza-giouip be referred to the
Palaearctic Usiinae, as was done by Bezzi, for in the former genus
and its allies there are very striking differences. The characters of a
large subfamily, such as the Bombyliinae, are not easy to define, but
the characters, referred to in the preceding key, will emphasise the
essential differences between the various groups which constitute this
subfamily and those of other subfamilies in this first division.
Gen. Bombylius Linn.
(Systema Naturae, ed. x, 606, 228, 1758; Loew, p. 181, Dipt. Faun.
Siidafr., i, 1860; Becker, pp. 441 and 492, Ann. Mus. Zool. Acad.
Imp. St. Petersb., vol. xvii, 1912; Bezzi, p. 6, Ann. S. Afr. Mus.,
vol. xviii, 1921; Bezzi, p. 30, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian
Kegion, 1924; Paramonow, Mem. Acad. d. Sc. de l'Ukraine, torn, iii,
livr. 5, 1926; Engel, p. 196, Die Fliegen. d. Pal. Peg. Lief., 80
(Bombyliidae), 1934.)
(Syn. = Choristus Walk., p. 197, Ins. Saund. Dipt, iii, 1852;
syn. = Parisus Walk., p. 196, loc. cit.)
There is no doubt that the genus is still at present not a well-defined
one, as is evident from the descriptions of the numerous Palaearctic and
Ethiopian species by Bezzi, Paramonow, and Engel. When, however,
a very large number of species is examined, it is almost impossible to
separate off series or groups which together can form a well marked off
subgenus or genus. Species, grading into neighbouring series or
groups in certain characters, are common and constitute the main
difficulty in dividing up this genus. Neither do the male genitalia
throw much light on the problem, for species with markedly distinct
genitalia are often found which in other respects obviously belong to
the same series. The genus at present may be looked upon as an
aggregate of often widely separated elements, which can be made to
grade into each other through intermediate species or connecting
links, and which display certain common characters of otherwise
disparate groups. Notwithstanding much disparity, there are certain
generic characters which, when taken together and not individually,
may be said to define the genus. These characters, which have been
agreed upon by such authors as Wiedemann, Macquart, Loew, Becker,
42 Annals of the South African Museum.
Bezzi, Paramonow, and Engel, have also been used in this paper for
the diagnosis of this genus. The chief characters of Bombylius may
be summarised as follows: —
Body usually bee-like in shape and appearance, with the thorax
rarely humped in appearance, and when showing a humped appearance
this is due to dense and shaggy pubescence, with the abdomen never
distinctly elongate, usually shortish and plump; pubescence usually
comparatively dense and sometimes remarkably dense, long, and
shaggy, usually very dense on abdomen, thorax, and on facial region,
that in $$ not less dense or conspicuous than in $$, but the mystax on
head in front and on genal parts in <$$ sometimes denser and more
conspicuous, with distinct more bristly elements, bristles or even
stoutish macrochaetal bristles usually present on certain sites, such as
on genae, on thorax in front of wings, on post-alar calli, across hind
margin of scutellum, on mesopleuron, and in rows across hind margins
of the abdominal tergites, with such bristles, however, present or
absent from either the one or other site in the various species, with the
pleurae on the whole very hairy and a distinct metapleural tuft always
present, with depressed, finer scale-like pubescence present in many
species especially in the $$, with true scales usually not very well
developed, but are always present on the legs and even sometimes on
body below or even above, either sparsely or in spots or tufts, with the
pubescence very variable in colour and often gleaming sericeous,
silvery or deep golden in different positions and with the scaling, when
densely present on certain sites especially in $$, sometimes gleaming
silvery, reddish golden to golden. Head with the eyes in $$ above
either in actual contact for some distance or contiguous or separated
either narrowly by front part of ocellar tubercle, by the tubercle or
even by a space wider than the tubercle, always separated in $$ by a
space much or very much broader than the tubercle, with the upper
facets of eyes in <$<$ coarser than lower ones and very much so in forms
with the eyes in contact above ; ocelli always present and situated in
form of a triangle on a slight boss-like or tubercle-like elevation;
frons in $<j> either with a distinct and deepish transverse depression or
with a slight depression which is either more longitudinal or even
shallowly transverse and towards apical part of frons or it is convex
and without a depression ; face moderately developed, rarely conically
prominent and rarely conspicuously produced; genae with the upper
part (sides of face) usually broad and well developed and the lower
part also broadish., but with the middle part often very narrow and
even almost linear or wanting where the groove between genae and
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 43
buccal cavity is deepest; antennae with joint 2 always shorter, even if
only slightly, than joint 1 or joint 3, and with joints 1 and 2 always
with more or less conspicuous pubescence, sometimes remarkably
long in some species, with joint 1 rarely very much thickened, with
joint 3 variable in shape, usually bare, and if with indications of
pubescence this is inconspicuous, with the terminal elements of joint 3
sometimes visible as separate joints bearing a style, usually small and
appearing continuous with a stylar element which is always discernible
to a variable degree; proboscis always distinctly projecting beyond
buccal cavity or head, but otherwise variable in length and stoutness,
usually without, but sometimes with, distinctly visible spinules below
on labium, with the labella always more or less elongate and well
developed, sometimes markedly elongate and usually narrowish;
palps distinctly and obviously 2-jointed in the majority of species, the
joints separately visible, with either long or short hairs and never
without at least some hairs on apical joint. Thorax rarely as broad as
head at its broadest part, almost always much broader; wings
constantly with 4 posterior cells present, of which the first is always
closed and acute or subacute apically and there provided with a stalk,
variable in length, with the anal cell always open on the hind border,
with the discal cross vein either before, at, or beyond middle of dis-
coidal cell, never so near base as to make the first basal cell exactly
equal in length to second basal cell as is the case in Systoechus, with
only 2 submarginal cells (excepting only the subgenus Triplasius Lw.,
where 3 submarginal cells are present), with the basal comb usually
well developed but sometimes poorly developed and rarely entirely
vestigial or absent, with the alula usually also well developed and lobe-
like, never reduced and very narrow, with the axillary lobe also well
developed, with the wings themselves either hyaline, greyish hyaline,
tinged yellowish or brownish in part or entirely infuscated or spotted
and mottled to a variable extent. Abdomen with the genital segment
in $? more or less always with some stoutish bristles or more often
spines on each side, connected with the ovipository functions of the
genital laminae. Legs always with spines on femora even if only on
middle and hind ones below, with the spines or spicules on tibiae
usually well developed on all the tibiae, with at least 3 rows on front
ones and 4 rows on middle and hind ones, with the apical spurs on
tibiae always more or less conspicuous ; claws sickle-shaped and short,
strong or slender and sometimes even more straight, scarcely curved
downwards apically, with the pul villi either long and well developed
in both sexes, or long only in $$ or much reduced, vestigial in <$£, and
44 Annals of the South African Museum.
absent or very minute in $$, and in some cases practically wanting in
both sexes and with the apical hairs on last tarsal joint above never
conspicuously long as in Corsomyza and some other genera, more often
almost wanting; tarsi with the front ones in some ?$ distinctly
thickened and thicker than the middle and hind ones. Hypopygium
of 33 (cf. text-fig. 2 and figs. 6-77) extremely variable in shape, with
the beaked apical joints (Ap. Jt.) very variable, never with a subapical
lobe or with the outer part very angularly or lobularly prominent,
often elongate and sometimes broad and almost leaf-shaped, with the
apical part of the aedeagus (Ae.) never very broad and spout-like or
very slender and arcuately curved upwards, with or without a ventral
aedeagal process (V.Ae.Pr. or Ae.Pr.) below, with the dorsal part
sometimes produced basally into a strap-like process projecting
basally on each side, with the basal strut (Ba.Str.) assuming various
shapes. A comparison of the numerous figures with those of other,
and sometimes related, genera will give a much better conception of
the type of hypopygium found in this genus. Though there is some
considerable uniformity in the structure of the hypopygium in Bomby-
lius there are marked structural differences as well, as are evident from
the text-figures, and there is no justification in the case of the South
African forms for Engel's statement that "Der Bau des Epipygiums
ist von erstaunlicher Gleichformigkeit."
To supplement the above summary of the chief characters of
Bombylius, the reader is also referred to the summaries given by the
other authors mentioned above and particularly by Paramonow and
Engel. Owing to a marked "superficial resemblance between many
species and the great difficulty in separating such species, the following
key is in many respects formidable, and the necessary enumeration of
specific differences makes the couplets almost descriptive. It is also
evident from this key that no individual or single character can be
used by itself alone, but that an ensemble of characters is, in many
cases, necessary to distinguish and separate the various species.
Key to the South African species of Bombylius seen and examined
by me.
A. (D) Pubescence on body moderately developed or shortish, not markedly long,
not giying the insects a marked puff-like appearance, that on abdomen
not markedly long and shaggy and when appearing shaggy usually only
BO towards apex, that on sides at base rarely very long, that on first
antennal joints, face, and especially on lower parts of genae usually
without very conspicuous, long, stoutish, and stiff bristles, the pubes-
cence on thorax, when strongly developed, not very conspicuous and
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 45
shaggy, with the bristles on abdomen either absent, poorly developed
or, when stoutish and distinct, not markedly long and conspicuous;
wings usually with the discoidal cell more narrowed apically, often acute
or subacute apically, rarely with an extensive pattern of dark inf uscations,
large spots, or with a system of spots on cross veins and bases of other
veins, and when such infuscations or spots are present the pubescence
on abdomen is not markedly shaggy discally, and on sides and third
antennal joints are not markedly slender, with the squamal fringe usually
much shorter, composed only of fine hairs and without any distinct long
bristly hairs or even bristles, and with the basal comb usually moderately
developed; eyes in $<£ in contact above for a relatively long distance,
or for a short distance, or they are contiguous or subcontiguous, or they
are separated by the ocellar tubercle and not wider than tubercle, with
the upper facets always distinctly and sometimes very much coarser
than lower ones; frons in $$ with a more distinct transverse depression
or longitudinal depression; antennal joint 3 less markedly attenuated
apically and usually more thickened and relatively shorter; legs with
the claws more usually sickle-shaped, curved downwards apically, and
with the pulvilli rarely very poorly developed and not reaching at least
middle of claws; hypopygium of <$$ with the beaked apical joints usually
bird-head shaped, triquetrous, elongated, or even very elongate and with
a long beak and rarely conspicuously depressed or hollowed out above
B.
B. (C) Legs very dark or black and with the spines and spicules always black,
and when legs are yellowish or the tibiae yellowish, the spines and spicules
at least are black; pubescence on body usually with much dark or black
hair or blackish bristly hairs and bristles, even if only on antennae and
face in <$$, more often with silvery white scaling or scale-like hairs in
form of spots or patches on head or body in both sexes; eyes in <$<$ in
actual contact above for a distance at least as long as ocellar tubercle
and sometimes even longer, with the upper facets always distinctly
much coarser than lower ones; frons in $$ usually with a more distinct
and usually deep transverse depression; hypopygium of $$ with the
beaked apical joints more or less triquetrous basally, bird-head shaped,
and with a crown or tuft of conspicuous stimsh bristly hairs above and the
aedeagus usually without a ventral process ... a (Group 1).
a. (6) Pubescence with a conspicuous and broad longitudinal band or stripe of
frosty white hair-like scaling on each side of thorax above and with a
conspicuous broad, transverse band of white scaling on abdomen above
with the bristly elements, especially on thorax, well developed and long;
wings with a distinct pattern in which the front half is very dark blackish
brown or sooty black and with large conspicuous black spots on apical
cross veins of first and second basal cells and at base of second sub-
marginal cell and smaller spots or infusions at apex of first posterior cell
and also at bases of second and third posterior cells, with the end of
second longitudinal vein very rapidly bent upwards or very markedly
sinuate and with the discoidal cell markedly truncate apically; legs
with the tibiae and the tarsi distinctly paler, yellowish or pale yellowish
red ......... 1 (Section 1).
46 Annals of the South African Museum.
1. (4) Wings without any appendices or stumps in marginal and second sub-
marginal cells, with the anterior darkly infuscated part or half more
or less well marked off from the posterior more hyaline part; pubescence
with the paler elements on pleurae and sides of venter more rufous or
reddish mauve in tint, with the transverse band of scaling on abdomen
above more demarcated and more conspicuously white, the white band on
side of thorax narrower and with darker scaling medially and discally
on thorax above and also on head above . . . . .2.
2. (3) Wings with only 2 submarginal cells, with 4 dark spots in the more hyaline
posterior part : one at base of second submarginal cell, one at apex of first
posterior cell, one on cross vein between discoidal and second posterior
cells, and a smaller or minute one on vein at base of third posterior cell, and
also with 2 larger spots on apical cross veins of basal cells; pubescence
with the paler elements on sides of face, pleurae, and on 'sides of venter
more rufous, purplish, or mauvish reddish . $ $ lateralis F. (p. 111).
3. (2) Wings with 2 or usually 3 submarginal cells, usually without rounded spots,
but with infuscations along basal parts of veins and cross veins of second
and third submarginal cells, along basal veins of second and third
posterior cells, often broken up into spots and often with a more distinct
spot near apex of vein between anal and axillary cells; pubescence
with the paler elements on sides of face, on pleurae and sides of venter
usually paler or more straW-coloured in certain lights
$ $ bivittatus Lw. (Triplasius) (p. 114).
4. (1) Wings (text-fig. 5) with appendices or stumps in marginal and submarginal
cells, which are often irregular, sometimes joined on to margin of wing
and thus producing a reticulate appearance, with the anterior darker
part less marked off from the posterior part, which itself is also mottled
to a certain extent; pubescence with the paler elements on frons, on
sides of face, on pleurae, and on sides of venter distinctly paler and even
more straw-coloured whitish, with the transverse band of whitish scaling
on abdomen above more diffuse and the scaling towards apical part of
abdomen above more greyish, the white band on each side of thorax
distinctly broader and with a broad central band of greyish white scaling
on disc of thorax and also on frons . $ namaquensis n. sp. (p. 114).
b. (a) Pubescence without any conspicuous longitudinal band of white scaling on
sides of thorax and without a broad, transverse band of white scaling on
abdomen above, with the bristly elements or bristles, on thorax especially,
shorter, less conspicuous and less shaggy; wings usually not uniformly
and darkly infuscated in front half and without conspicuous spots or
infuscations on cross veins and other veins and a darker anterior infusca-
tion if present almost confined to costal cell or more usually to base of
wings and alula, with the second longitudinal vein and vein between
BubmarginaJ cells distinctly less rapidly bent up at right angles apically
and with the discoidal cell more narrowed apically, subacute, or sometimes
even acute apically; legs either entirely black or entirely yellowish c.
■ (/) Lege predominantly or entirely black, and even tibiae, when not as black
as femora, are at least very dark blackish brown or very dark reddish
brown; wings not apparently elongate and narrowish, with the vein
between submarginal cells distinctly more S-curved, its base distinctly
A Revision of the Bombyliidae {Dipt era) of Southern Africa. 47
more sinuate or bent before meeting the first posterior cell, with the
second longitudinal vein more sinuous or bent upwards at its end, with
the base of wings up to first cross veins either markedly, truncately,
and conspicuously infuscated, or the basal part up to end of second basal
cell and including the costal cell very darkly infuscated; pubescence
always with much black hair or dark hair on the abdomen at least, and
if sparsely black-haired the base of wings at least are darkly and trunc-
ately infuscated and with the rest of the pubescence on body above
and below not uniformly or predominantly creamy yellowish, straw-
coloured yellowish, pale yellowish to sericeous yellowish . . d.
d. (e) Antennae with joint 1 only about 1J— 2 times as long as joint 2; eyes without
any or with only a very slight or feeble, scarcely perceptible, sinuosity
or emargination behind on each side; pubescence on thorax above
shorter and with a more shorn off appearance, that on sides of abdomen
not distinctly tuft -like and shaggy, that on first antennal joints and on
face distinctly very much shorter and even if dense not long and bushy
or shaggy, without any conspicuous spots or patches of brilliantly
shining silvery whitish scaling on head, thorax, or abdomen, and if patches
of coloured hairs or scaling are present as spots, these are dull and frosty
whitish and antennal joint 1 is very short; wings with the second longi-
tudinal vein straight and if slightly undulating antennal joint 1 at least
is short, with the discal cross vein usually just beyond or much beyond
middle of discoidal cell, rarely at about or near middle, and if near
middle antennal joint 1 is short or first longitudinal vein is straight,
with the basal comb usually well developed; hind femora usually with
more numerous spines below and these beginning before middle or near
base ; hypopygium of <$<$ with the neck region of basal parts more slender
and more elongate, not broadened or arcuately dilated along lower
apical margin, and if broadened antennal joint 1 is short and pubescence
on it and face is not long and bushy .... 1 (Section 2).
1. (16) Wings with the second longitudinal vein straight and more rapidly bent
upwards at its end, with the basal comb more conspicuously developed;
hind margins of eyes scarcely perceptibly, or only feebly, sinuous or
emarginate; pubescence on occiput, on irons anteriorly, and on thorax
above very short and with a more distinct short and shorn-off appear-
ance, the whitish spots on each side of irons or on abdomen above if
present not brilliantly shining silvery whitish, that on body above
usually not predominantly whitish and, if predominantly whitish, without
shining silvery whitish patches of scaling on abdomen above and with
that on pleurae and venter not coffee brownish to fulvous brownish;
hypopygium of <$<$ with the neck region of basal parts longer and more
slender and its lower margin not arcuately dilated or broadened . 2.
2. (11) Larger forms, about 11-17 mm. long and with a wing-length of about
15—19 mm.; pubescence on thorax at least distinctly much shorter and
very close cropped in appearance, without lateral and medial spots of
white or fulvous depressed, hair -like scaling on abdomen above and
without a row of white or fulvous spots of hair-like scaling on each side
of venter, and if coloured spots or patches are present on abdomen above
these are composed of tufts of erect hairs as long as the other hairs and,
48 Annals of the South African Museum.
if silvery scale-like patches are present on venter, only the extreme base
of wings is truncately infuscatecl; wings with the dark infuscation
confined to base, more truncated, not extending beyond bases of first
and second basal cells and not reaching basal cross vein in costal cell
and the second basal cell or costal cell clear like rest of Wings; scutellum
almost always with much reddish brown or ferruginous brownish . 3.
3. (4) Pubescence on abdomen above with a broad, conspicuous, transverse band
of orange golden hairs, that on basal side black and that on apical side
whitish to greyish white, that on thorax above and pleurae in $$ black
and in $$ greyish white, due to black intermixed bristly hairs and bristles
$ $ bombiformis Bezz. (p. 116).
4. (3) Pubescence on abdomen above without any medial transverse band of
orange yellowish hairs, predominantly black on abdomen, only an apical
tuft white, yellowish or orange yellowish to golden yellowish or with a
central row of fulvous or orange yellowish spots or tufts on abdomen
above in both sexes, that on thorax above and on pleurae in <$$ and in
some $$, also black but more often greyish, whitish, yellowish-buff to
yellowish in $$ and with or without intermixed blackish elements . 5.
5. (6) Pubescence with the tuft at apex of abdomen predominantly snow white or
tinted with yellowish or orange yellowish only laterally below, not entirely
deep orange yellowish, that on thorax above and on front half of pleurae
in $$ either whitish, greyish white to dull yellowish and without any
black bristly hairs or bristles on occiput and front half of thorax or on
pleurae in $$, With the alular and squamal fringes pale or white in $$;
wings with the alula almost entirely blackish or dark as the basal in-
fuscation on wings in both sexes . . . <J $ analis F. (p. 118).
6. (5) Pubescence with the tuft at apex of abdomen entirely deep yellowish or
deep orange yellowish or if with much black hair there is a central row
of large rounded tufts of orange yellowish hair on abdomen above, the
pubescence on thorax above in $$ dull greyish or bluish grey due to
numerous intermixed black elements, even on occiput and frons, that on
pleurae predominantly dark or blackish in $$, and even that on entire
thorax in $$ may also be black as in <$<$, with the alular and squamal
fringes in both sexes dark or blackish; wings with the apical half or
two-thirds of alula distinctly less infuscated and more hyaline than at
base of wings in both sexes . . . . . . .7.
7. (10) Pubescence on abdomen without a central row of large rounded orange
yellowish or fulvous tufts in both sexes and without a row of whitish
or silvery whitish patches or spots on sides of venter in $$; wings with
the discoidal cell more acute or subacute apically, a longish apical cross
vein not being developed . . . . . . . .8.
8. (9) Wings with the discoidal cell more subacute apically and with a more distinct
apical cross vein; pubescence on thorax and pleurae in $<$ black, that
on frons, thorax above and upper parts of pleurae in $$ greyish or bluish
grey due to numerous intermixed black bristly hairs and bristles, that
on pleurae in $$ dark brownish, and the apical tuft on abdomen in both
sexes less extensive and conspicuous; smaller form, about 12-15 mm.
long and with a wing-length of about 15-17 mm.
cJ $ ayialis var. waterbergensis n. (p. 120).
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 49
9. (8) Wings with the discoidal cell very acute apically and without, or scarcely,
any apical cross vein; pubescence entirely black above and below on
thorax in both sexes, and that on abdomen also predominantly black in
both sexes, but with the apical tuft of orange yellowish hair in both
sexes more extensive, broader, and more conspicuous; larger species,
more bulky, about 16^—17 mm. long and with a wing-length of about
18-19 mm. . . . $ $ haemorrhoidalis Bezz. (p. 120).
10. (7) Pubescence on abdomen above in both sexes with a central row of large
rounded tufts of orange yellowish or fulvous hair, and in $$ with a row
of small rounded dull silvery, whitish spots of hair-like scaling on each
side of venter, the pubescence on thorax above and on pleurae in $<$ en-
tirely black, but that on thorax above in $? bluish grey due to numerous
intermixed black elements; wings with the discoidal cell truncate
apically, a well-developed apical cross vein being present
$ $ fulvonotatus Wied. (p. 121).
11. (2) Smaller species, not longer than about 11 mm. and with a wing-length
not longer than about 12 mm.; pubescence on thorax at least distinctly
longer and with a comparatively less shorn-off appearance, with distinct
lateral and central spots of either white or fulvous depressed hair-like
scaling on abdomen above in both sexes and with a row of spots or a
patch of depressed, hair-like, white or fulvous scaling on each side of
venter as well and in both sexes; wings, apart from the usual basal
infuscation, also with the costal cell and first basal cell or even the
basal parts of marginal and first submarginal cells infuscated or dis-
tinctly tinged or with the basal infuscation extending to apices of first
and second basal cells ; scutellum entirely black as rest of body above
13.
12. (13) Pubescence on body above and below predominantly black in $ at least,
with only a spot at base of each wing, a central row of rounded spots
on abdomen above and 4 contiguous spots on each side of venter of deep
orange yellowish or fulvous scaling; wings with the costal cell and the
base up to middle of first basal cell and to end of second basal cell and
also the alula more or less sooty blackish, with the discal cross vein at
about, or scarcely beyond, middle of discoidal cell and with the alular
fringe entirely dark; antennae with joint 1 relatively shorter and less
than 2 times as long as 2 . . <$ vansoni Hesse (p. 123).
13. (12) Pubescence on body above and below in both sexes predominantly white
or with much white hair, that on head, thorax in front, as 2 discal stripes
on thorax above, that on pleurae and on 3 rows of patches or spots on
abdomen above and on confluent spots on each side of venter white,
with the spots on abdomen composed of white scaling, with the bristly
elements towards apex of abdomen white-tipped, with the pubescence
on venter and even on coxae gleaming golden to yellowish or fulvous
golden; wings either with the extreme basal infuscation dark blackish
brown and the costal cell and basal half of first basal cell yellowish
brown or with a more extensive pattern in which the base is blackish
brown, the costal cell and basal half of first basal cell yellowish and
the basal halves of marginal and first submarginal cells and the apical
half of first basal cell brownish, the brownish even extending down apical
50 Annals of the South African Museum.
cross veins of second basal cell towards apex of anal cell, with the alula
more hyaline or also darkish with the discal cross vein distinctly beyond,
or much beyond, middle of discoidal cell and with the alular fringe with
much whitish hair; antennae with joint 1 relatively longer and quite
2 times as long as 2, and if shorter the pubescence on body is at least
whitish ........... 14.
14. (15) Wings with a more extensive dark pattern, consisting of a very dark
brown or blackish brown base, passing into a yellowish costal cell and
yellowish basal half of first basal cell and a brownish or even dark
brownish basal half of marginal cell, basal half of first submarginal cell
and apical half of first basal cell, these latter brownish infuscations
forming a characteristic quadrate dark patch which also faintly extends
down across apical cross veins of second basal cell towards apical part
of anal cell, with the veins in wings paler but with the apical cross veins
of basal cells distinctly more infuscated and spot-like, with the discal
cross vein considerably beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the alula
also darker and even more brownish; pubescence with the bristly
elements on coxae and to a certain extent also their pubescence deeper
yellowish golden or fulvous as on venter; eyes in $<$ almost touching
at a point a little in front of front ocellus, then rapidly diverging apically
<$ $ hyjpoxanthus Lw. (p. 125).
(Syn. =plagiatus Bezz.)
15. (14) Wings with only the extreme base very dark blackish brown and the
costal cell, narrow basal part of marginal cell and upper part of basal
half of first basal cell slightly yellowish to yellowish brownish, the
greater part of wings thus hyaline, with the veins on the whole distinctly
darker, and the apical cross veins of basal cells less distinctly spot-like,
with the discal cross vein only a little beyond middle of discoidal cell,
with the alula clearer; pubescence on venter also fulvous or yellowish,
but that on coxae much paler and more whitish; eyes in $<$ in actual
contact for a longer distance, at least as long as, or even slightly longer
than, ocellar tubercle before diverging apically
cJ $ acroleucus Bezz. (p. 128).
16. (1) Wings with the second longitudinal vein undulating and less rapidly bent
upwards at its end, with the basal comb distinctly smaller and less
developed; hind margins of eyes distinctly more perceptibly and more
deeply sinuous or emarginate ; pubescence on occiput, on f rons anteriorly,
and even on thorax anteriorly slightly longer and more shaggy in appear-
ance, the whitish tufts on each side of frons and the patches of white
scaling on abdomen above more in form of brilliantly shining silvery
white scaling, with the pubescence on body above predominantly whitish,
that on pleurae and venter brownish, coffee brownish to dark fulvous
brownish; hypopygium of $ with the neck region of basal parts much
shorter and less slender, its lower margin distinctly more arcuately
dilated or broadened $ arnoldi n. sp. (p. 129).
. . (<l) Antennae with joint 1 distinctly much longer and much more than 2 times
as long as 2 and, if about 2 times as long as 2, with second longitudinal
rein undulating; eyes with a distinct and deeper, more perceptible
sinuosity or cmargination behind on each side; pubescence on occiput
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 51
and thorax above distinctly longer, more bushy and shaggy, that on
sides of abdomen distinctly more tuft-like and bushy, relatively longer,
that on first antennal joints and face in both sexes distinctly denser,
longer, and more shaggy or bushy, with conspicuous spots or patches of
brilliantly shining silvery whitish scaling on head, thorax above and on
abdomen above and sometimes with opalescent, reddish or cinnabar
reddish scaling on abdomen above as well, especially in some $$; wings
with the second longitudinal vein undulating, with the discal cross vein
before middle of discoidal cell, rarely tending to be at about middle of
discoidal cell and, if near middle, the second longitudinal vein is
undulating, with the basal comb smaller and less developed ; hind femora
usually with fewer spines below and these more or less confined to apical
half below; hypopygium of <$<$ with the neck region of basal parts much
shorter and less slender, its lower margin distinctly broadened or arcuately
dilated ......... 1 (Section 3).
1. (2) Antennae with joint 1 very much shorter, only about 2 times as long as 2;
pubescence on first antennal joints, face, occiput, and thorax above
distinctly much shorter, not very long and bushy or shaggy, pre-
dominantly white, that on abdomen distinctly shorter and not so con-
spicuously tuft-like on sides and also with much whitish hair, the apices
of the hairs, especially towards apex of abdomen, white-tipped, the
pubescence on pleurae and venter more brownish or rather more fulvous
brownish and with the patches or spots of silvery scaling on abdomen
above less obvious and more hidden by the rest of pubescence; wings
with the discal cross vein at about, or even just beyond, middle of
discoidal cell; hind femora with slightly more numerous spines, about
10-11, below and beginning from near base to apex
$ arnvldi n. sp. (p. 129).
2. (1) Antennae with joint 1 very much longer, elongate and longer than 2, at
least 3 or 4 times as long as 2; pubescence on first antennal joints,
on face, occiput, and thorax distinctly longer, more bushy or shaggy,
predominantly black or very dark on head at least, that on front part of
thorax may be paler, that on abdomen distinctly longer, more tuft-like
and bushy on sides even in $$, and also predominantly black or with
much dark hair, that on pleurae on the whole also darker and more often
also predominantly blackish and with the spots or patches of silvery
white scaling on abdomen above very conspicuous and striking; wings
with the discal cross vein distinctly before, or much before, middle of
discoidal cell; hind femora with fewer spines below, and these more or
less confined to apical half . . . . . . . .3.
3. (6) Wings with a very extensive and conspicuous dark or blackish brown
pattern, extending to level of discal cross vein as follows : the basal half
of marginal cell, the base of first submarginal cell and a confluent spot
on discal cross vein, the medial part of first basal cell, the apical part
of second basal cell across its apical veins and the basal parts of anal
and axillary cells very dark blackish brown, the outer limits of this
infuscation being thus oblique and jagged, with the costal cell, base of
wings, the medial basal parts of first and second basal cells and to a
certain extent the extreme base of anal cell more yellowish or pale
52 Annals of the South African Museum.
yellowish brown, with the apical part of first basal cell more or less
hyaline and with a distinct whitish spot at base of marginal cell and
another near apex of second basal cell, with the discoidal cell distinctly
more truncate apically, a fairly long apical cross vein being present;
hypopygium of <$ with the lower edge in neck region slightly less arcuately
broadened .......... 4.
4. (5) Wings with a distinct, though variable, dark infusion or inf uscation extending
down the vein between anal and fourth posterior cells towards hind
border of wing . . . . . $ $ delicatus Wied. (p. 132).
5. (4) Wings without any infusion or inf uscation extending down the vein between
anal and fourth posterior cells
cJ $ delicatus var. mutilatus Bezz. (p. 132).
6. (3) Wings predominantly vitreous or glassy hyaline, without any extensive
dark pattern, only the base up to or near basal cross vein in costal cell
being truncately infuscated blackish brown, brownish, or yellowish
brown, with the discoidal cell distinctly more acute or subacute apically,
the apical cross vein being much shorter or sometimes even wanting;
hypopygium of <$$ with the lower outer margin in neck region of basal
parts more distinctly or typically arcuately broadened or dilated . 7.
7. (14) Pubescence on sides of abdomen without fulvous, yellowish, orange
yellowish or whitish hair or conspicuous tufts of longish silvery whitish
hair-like scales and without distinct and conspicuous reddish golden,
orange golden, or even opalescent greenish or bluish hair-like scaling or
scales on scutellum and especially abdomen above, the hair on front
part of thorax in both sexes usually less extensively pale; squamal
fringe very dark or blackish in both sexes . . . . .8.
8. (9) Pubescence on occiput, antennae, face, and genae distinctly longer, that in
a tuft behind wings and above halteres on each side straw-coloured
whitish; antennae with joint 1 distinctly longer, quite 5, more than 4,
times as long as 2 and with joint 3 relatively shorter and subequal in
length to joints 1 and 2 combined; wings with the basal inf uscation
and alula sooty blackish, with the veins very dark blackish brown, the
discoidal cell acute apically, and the axillary lobe rather narrowish
$ $ plorans Bezz. (p. 134).
9. (8) Pubescence on occiput, antennae, face, and genae distinctly and compara-
tively shorter, the tuft behind wings and above halteres entirely black;
antennae with joint 1 distinctly shorter and only about 4, or only a little
more, times as long as 2 and with 3 relatively longer and longer than 1
and 2 combined; wings with the basal inf uscation and alula less dark,
more brownish or yellowish brown and, if black, antennal joints 1 and 3
are distinctly shorter, with the veins paler and even yellowish, with the
discoidal cell subacute, less acute and even with a very distinct apical
cross vein and with the axillary lobe distinctly broader and more sub-
angularly rounded opposite apical part of alula . . . .10.
10. (11) Proboscis longer, about 4£-5 mm.; pubescence on body above and below
predominantly or almost entirely black, that on thorax in front in £$
loss extensively pale or fulvous, and that on occiput and on thorax in
front in $$ more obscurely pale and more fulvous brown, but rather
sparse, with the silvery spots on body less developed; wings with the
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 53
veins darker brownish, with the basal infuscation darker and more
blackish brown . . . . • c? $ melanolomus n. sp. (p. 135).
11. (10) Proboscis shorter, about 3§-4 mm. long; pubescence on body above and
below, though predominantly black, with that on thorax in front in $<$
more extensively greyish white, straw-coloured yellowish to pale fulvous,
and in $$ also distinctly more extensively straw-coloured yellowish or
fulvous, and with the spots of silvery white scaling on body above in $$,
and on abdomen in ^ more conspicuous and more developed; wings
with much paler and pale yellowish veins, and with a paler basal in-
fuscation ........... 12.
12. (13) Pubescence with the bristly hairs on occiput, anterior half of thorax
and sides of thorax in $$ with more dark elements, only a small tuft of
fulvous hair on each humerus and anteriorly with the beginnings of 2
admedian stripes of silvery scaling, with the hair on thorax anteriorly
and more medially in $<$ greyish to very pale straw-coloured whitish
and without brownish golden scaling on disc of thorax in $$; interocular
space in $? slightly broader and a little more than 2 times as broad as
ocellar tubercle; wings with the discal cross vein much before middle of
discoidal cell . . . .^ ^ ? lugens Bezz. (p. 137).
13. (12) Pubescence with the bristly hairs on occiput, the fine erect hairs on front
half of thorax, along sides of thorax above wings on each side and inter-
mixed ones on mesopleuron in $ straw-coloured yellowish but with
golden gleams, with the fine scaling on thorax brownish golden, with the
following spots of silvery white scaling: 4 on frons, a tuft on each side
of face, a small spot behind eyes, a spot on the humerus, another just in
front of wings, an admedian patch on each side in front and a small
admedian one on each side in line with those in front of wings, a large
spot on each side in front of scutellum, an elongate transverse patch at
base on each side of tergite 2, small central spots and a patch on each
side basally of tegrites 3-5; interocular space in $ slightly narrower,
only about 2 times as broad as tubercle ; wings with the discal cross vein
just before middle of discoidal cell . . $ tuckeri n. sp. (p. 139).
14. (7) Pubescence on sides of abdomen with conspicuous and longish tufts of
silvery whitish hair-like scaling or with a conspicuous bushy tuft of
orange yellowish or yellowish hair, with sometimes conspicuous and
dense reddish golden, orange golden, or even opalescent greenish or bluish
scales on body above and especially scutellum and abdomen, the pubes-
cence on thorax in front, occiput, and pleurae, and sometimes even on
head with more extensive pale hair in both sexes; squamal fringe much
paler, yellowish or snow-white to silvery white . . . .15.
15. (20) Pubescence on body above without conspicuous or dense depressed
reddish golden, deep golden, or purplish red hair-like scaling or even with
flattened opalescent greenish or bluish scaling in addition to spots of
silvery scaling, with pubescence on pleurae, in entire lower part of meta-
pleural tuft and predominantly on abdomen in both sexes black or very
dark and with the tufts of snow-white hairs or hair-like scaling on sides
basally of tergites 3 and 4 longer and more conspicuous and with the
silvery tuft on each side of face more extensive and more conspicuous
16.
VOL. XXXIV. 5
54 Annals of the South African Museum.
16. (17) Pubescence with the tuft of snow-white hairs and silvery white hair-like
scales on sides of tergites 3 and 4 basally in S3 longer, the pubescence
on occiput and front part of thorax in both sexes straw-coloured whitish
to yellowish; wings more blackish at base, with the discoidal cell more
often subacute and with the discal cross vein just before middle of dis-
coidal cell c? ? ornatus Wied. (p. 140).
17. (16) Pubescence with the tufts of white or silvery white hairs and scales on
sides of tergites 3 and 4 basally in <$$ shorter, the pubescence on occiput
and on thorax, especially in $?, black or predominantly black; wings
more yellowish at base and with the discal cross vein slightly nearer base
of discoidal cell .......... 18.
18. (19) Sternopleuron in $ without a conspicuous patch of silvery scales
S $ kilimandjaricus Bezz. nee Speis. (p. 140).
19. (18) Sternopleuron in $ with a conspicuous patch of silvery white scales
$ var. of ornatus Wied. (p. 142).
(Labelled as kilimandjaricus by Bezzi.)
20. (15) Pubescence on body above with distinct, conspicuous, and sometimes
dense, depressed reddish golden, deep golden, or purplish red hair-like
scaling, and in some forms even with flattened, opalescent greenish or
bluish scaling in addition to spots of silvery white scaling, with more
pale or even yellowish elements on body, the pubescence on pleurae, in
front lower part of metapleural tuft, and in some forms even on abdomen
with much or more pale hairs, with the tufts of silvery white hair-like
scales on sides basally of tergites 3 or 3 and 4 or 3-5, if present, distinctly
shorter and less conspicuous in both sexes and with the silvery tuft on
each side of face usually smaller and less extensive, and if conspicuous
the body has reddish golden or golden scaling above . . .21.
21. (22) Pubescence in $$ at least with conspicuous flattened silvery white scaling
on mesopleuron, propleural parts, front coxae, femora, and the tibiae in
addition to the spots and tufts of silvery white scaling on head, thorax,
and abdomen above, with some flattened greenish, bluish, and purplish
red, opalescent scaling on body above, the pubescence on abdomen and
rest of body more straw-coloured, even that on first antennal joints and
venter below with more straw-coloured elements, the pubescence also
relatively shorter on antennae and also with some long, flattened, silvery
white scale-like hairs on sides of antennal joint 1
$ okahandjanus n. sp. (p. 143).
22. (21) Pubescence in both sexes without flattened silvery white scaling on
propleural parts, front coxae, femora, and tibiae, that on legs usually dark
though they may gleam greyish in certain lights, if with whitish ones on
pleurae body above with reddish golden or golden scaling, without any
flattened, greenish or bluish opalescent scales, the pubescence on first
antennal joints longer and blackish, that on abdomen with more black
hair or if with pale ones with a large tuft of orange hair on sides or with
deep golden scaling above without any conspicuous silvery white scale-
like, hairs on sides of antennal joint 1 . . . . . . 23.
23. (24) Pubescence on sides of abdomen predominantly black even if more
conspicuous in $<$, with a more distinct and conspicuous tuft of silvery
white hair-like scales on sides basally of tergite 4 in <$<$, the pubescence
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 55
on thorax above in front more whitish or straw-coloured whitish, with
the fine depressed scaling on body above slightly duller and less reddish
golden, with some patches of dense silvery white scaling on each side
of venter in $$ ; wings with the basal inf uscation paler and more yellowish,
only extreme base very dark and with the alula very pale, more sub-
opaquely whitish . . . $ $ rufiventris Macq. (p. 144).
24. (23) Pubescence on sides of abdomen in both sexes with a very conspicuous
tuft of orange yellowish to orange golden hair from base of tergites 2-4,
with only a few inconspicuous silvery whitish scales on sides basally of
3 and 4 in $$, more distinct on sides of abdomen in $$, the pubescence
on thorax above in front distinctly more yellowish to pale golden yellowish,
with the scaling on body above distinctly deeper reddish and gleaming
more reddish golden, with only dense fulvous hairs and very few silvery
scales on side of venter in $$; wings with the basal inf uscation distinctly
darker and more dark brownish to blackish brown and with the alula
also distinctly darker and more brownish . . $ $ elegans Wied.
(Syn. =furiosus Walk.) (p. 145).
/. (c) Legs predominantly or entirely yellowish, and if femora are darkened they
are so only basally; wings apparently more elongate and narrowish in
appearance, with the vein between the submarginal cells distinctly less
S -curved and straighter, its base less sinuous or bent down before meeting-
first posterior cell, with the second longitudinal vein slightly less sinuous
or bent upwards at its end, without a well-marked-off and truncated
basal infuscation and without more extensive very dark infuscations,
the base, costal cell, basal half of first basal cell, and the second basal cell
may, however, be slightly tinged more yellowish or yellowish brown than
rest of wings; pubescence on body above and below predominantly
whitish, straw-coloured yeUowish, creamy yellowish to pale golden yellow-
ish and black elements may be present only on frons, antennae, and face
or as transverse bristles or even tufts of hair on sides of abdomen g.
g. (h) Wings with the first posterior cell not sharply and angularly acute apically,
normal and with a normally long stalk, with the vein separating sub-
marginal cells slightly more S -curved and not almost straight, with the
discal cross vein much or very much before middle of discoidal cell, the
first and second basal cells sometimes almost equal in length and almost
Systoechus-like ; head with antennal joint 1 relatively shorter, less than
3£ times as long as joint 2, with the interocular space in $$ very much
broader, very much more than 1^—2 times as broad as ocellar tubercle,
with the frons in ?$ very much broader and normally broadly diverging
apically, with the proboscis shorter and only about 4-5 mm. long, with
the facets on upper anterior part of eyes in $$ not remarkably coarser
and with face broader in both sexes ; abdomen not truncated in appear-
ance and the last few segments not telescoped or tucked in below
segment 5 ; pubescence with that on face less dense and not overhanging
face in front and tuft-like, with the dark or blackish elements if present
on sides across hind margins of abdominal tergites less conspicuously
and markedly tuft-like, and if dense and suggesting tufts abdomen is not
truncated and first posterior cell is not apically acute, with the dark or
black transverse bristles across abdomen, in $$ at least, on the whole
56 Annals of the South African Museum.
stouter; hypopygium of known <$<$ with the inner apical angles of basal
parts less prominent and with the beaked apical joints tapering to a
distinct sharp point or beak ..... 1 (Section 4).
1. (4) Wings with the discal cross vein very much before middle of discoidal
cell, the first and second basal cells being almost equal and almost
Systoechus-like ; pubescence on body, even in <$$, more yellowish or
creamy yellowish, that on body below also more creamy yellowish and
not strikingly whitish, with less dense and tuft-like blackish elements
on sides of abdomen in $$, and sometimes without any blackish hairs on
sides of abdomen in <$$; antennae sometimes reddish or yellowish, with
joint 1 appearing relatively shorter and with joint 3 sometimes slightly
more thickened or broadened basally; claws either sickle-shaped or
nearly straight, and the pulvilli short or reaching middle of claws . 2.
2. (3) Claws normally sickle-shaped, distinctly curved down apically, and the
pulvilli long, reaching and extending beyond middle of claws; antennae
entirely black, with joint 3 markedly club-shaped, very much broadened
basally; pubescence with a tuft of silvery whitish scaling on each side
of frons anteriorly in <$$ at least, without any black or dark bristly hairs
on post-alar calli and on sides of abdomen in $<$ ; wings with the discoidal
cell acute apically; femora in <$<$ darkened at base
<J permixtus n. sp. (p. 145).
3. (2) Claws almost straight, longer, and with the pulvilli short and confined to
base, not reaching middle of claws in both sexes; antennae with joints 1
and 2 and basal half or three-quarters of 3 pale yellowish red in both
sexes, with joint 3 slightly longer, more slender, and much less broadened
basally; pubescence with the tuft on each side of frons anteriorly more
yellowish or sericeous yellowish in both sexes, with a few intermixed
blackish hairs or bristly hairs on post-alar caUi in both sexes, and also
with black bristles on scutellum and transversely across abdomen in $;
wings with the discoidal cell subacute apically, a distinct apical cross
vein being present; femora in both sexes entirely yellowish
<$ $ subacutus n. sp. (p. 148).
4. (1) Wings with the discal cross vein, though much before middle of discoidal
cell, farther away from its base, the first basal cell thus distinctly much
longer than, and not appearing subequal to, second basal cell; pubes-
cence on body paler and distinctly more whitish even in $$, that on body
below distinctly more contrastingly whitish, that on thorax above and
on abdomen above and even on venter however with some or much
yellowish brown or brownish golden, with denser and more numerous
black bristly hairs or bristles on sides of abdomen, especially on segment 3,
in addition to the dark transverse bristles and sometimes with more
numerous intermixed black bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle, frons, face,
and genae in some ?$; antennae black, with joint 1 appearing relatively
longer and with joint 3 usually more slender and rod-like, only slightly
broadened basally; claws sickle-shaped and bent down apically, with
the pulvilli long in both sexes, reaching and extending beyond middle
of claws ........... 5.
.">. ((i) Pubescence on antennae, face, and genae with intermixed black hairs in
both sexes, that on sides of tergites 1 and 2 and more so on 3 with more
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 57
blackish elements, especially in $$; head with antennal joint 1 only
about 2 \ times as long as 2, with joint 3 more rod-like and less broadened
basally, with the interocular space in $$ slightly narrower and only
about 2 times as broad as tubercle, with the proboscis slightly more
obviously spinulated; hind femora with about 13 spines below
$ $ cockerelli n. sp. (p. 149).
6. (5) Pubescence on antennae, face, and genae, in $$ at least, entirely whitish,
that on sides of tergite 1 white, and the black bristly hairs and hairs on
sides of tergites 2 and 3 less conspicuous in $$ at least; head with
antennal joint 1 quite 3 times as long as 2, with 3 slightly more distinctly
broadened basally, with the interocular space in $$ slightly broader,
about 2^ times as broad as tubercle, with the proboscis more finely and
scarcely visibly spinulated; hind femora with only about 8-9 spines
below ...... $ Jcarasanus n. sp. (p. 151).
^- (9) Wings with the first posterior cell attenuated and very sharply acute
apically and provided apically with a short stalk, with the vein between
submarginal cells almost straight, with the discal cross vein, though
also before middle of discoidal cell, distinctly nearer middle, the first
basal cell thus very much longer than second basal cell; head with
antennal joint 1 relatively longer, about 3f-4 times as long as joint 2,
with the interocular space in $$ remarkably narrow, only about 1£,
scarcely 2, times as broad as ocellar tubercle, with the frons in $$
remarkably narrow, the inner margins subparallel for a good distance
before gradually diverging apically, with the face in both sexes, but
especially in $$, also remarkably narrow, with the proboscis usually
more than 5 mm. long, with the anterior upper facets in eyes of $$
distinctly very much coarser; abdomen truncated in appearance, the
last few segments telescoped or tucked in below segment 5; pubescence
with that on face denser and overhanging face in front, tuft-like, with the
blackish elements on sides across hind margins of tergites 2-5 distinctly
and conspicuously tuft-like, with the transverse black bristly elements
on abdomen finer and less stoutish; hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 21) with
the inner apical angle and process of basal parts long, prominently
produced, rounded apically, rabbit-ear like and with the beaked apical
joints broader, more flattened and strap-like, broadly rounded apically
$ $ mollis Bezz. (Section 5)
(Syn.=disjunctus Bezz.) (p. 153).
C (B) Legs entirely or predominantly yellowish and even if femora be darkened
the spines and spicules are always yellowish or pallid; pubescence on
body entirely or predominantly whitish, yellowish, or golden yellowish,
without any black hair on body, and when blackish or dark elements
are present they are found only in form of blackish transverse bristles
or bristly hairs across hind margins of the abdomen, without any tufts
or spots of resplendent, shining, silvery whitish scales on body; eyes in
cJc? rarely in actual contact for a distance as long as ocellar tubercle,
usually subcontiguous or more often separated by width of front ocellus,
front part of tubercle, or even by width of tubercle, with the upper facets
of eyes only distinctly and visibly coarser in forms with the eyes in sub-
contact; frons in $$ usually with a shallower transverse depression which
58 Annals of the South African Museum.
is sometimes very shallow and more medial, not markedly transverse;
hypopygium of <J<J with the beaked apical joints variable in shape,
elongated and narrowish, and when shortish and broadened not typical
bird-head shaped and not markedly triquetrous at base, with the bristly
hairs above on beaked joints usually not conspicuously concentrated and
tuft-like, and with or without a ventral aedeagal process 1 (Group 2).
1. (12) Antennae and proboscis predominantly or entirely yellowish, yellowish
red or pale reddish brown, with only the apex of proboscis darkened and
with antennal joint 3 always reddish or entirely reddish; wings with the
discal cross vein always distinctly much before middle of discoidal cell 2.
2. (7) Claws almost straight, with the pulvilli short, confined to base and not
reaching middle of claws; scutellum black or very dark; wings in <$<$
more extensively tinged yellowish or pale yellowish brown, only the
apical part being more hyaline, almost entirely hyaline in $$, with the
basal comb very vestigial, with the alula more reduced, poorly developed
and not prominently lobe-like, without any indication or trace of spot-
like inf uscations on apical cross veins of basal cells ; pubescence distinctly
longer and more fluffy, especially in <$<$, without any distinctly visible
stoutish bristles or bristly elements in front of wings or across hind
margins of abdomen in both sexes, predominantly sericeous whitish,
straw-coloured whitish to very pale sericeous yellowish in $$ and pale
sericeous yellowish in $$; head with the face distinctly much shorter,
less developed and not spout-like, with the interocular space in $<$ as
broad as tubercle but sides less rapidly diverging anteriorly, the inter-
ocular space in $? less than 3 times as broad as tubercle; smaller species,
about 3^-6 mm. long and with a wing-length of 4-6^ mm., with the
thorax more subglobularly prominent and abdomen more cordiform;
hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 22) without a ventral aedeagal process and
with the basal strut markedly or relatively more elongated . .3.
3. (6) Face paler and more pallid or yellowish in both sexes; pleural parts in
both sexes usually with much red or even entirely reddish and red on
abdomen in $<$ conspicuous on sides and across hind margins, and often
entire apical part is reddish; pubescence in £<$ usually paler and more
sericeous whitish and even in $$ also paler; larger forms, about 4-6 mm.
long and with a wing-length of about 5-6£ mm. . . . .4.
4. (5) Abdomen in ^ more extensively and conspicuously reddish on sides, the
entire apical part being also almost entirely reddish; head with antennal
joint 3 tending to be pale yellowish red like 1 and 2 and with joint 1
apparently longer, with the proboscis usually stouter and less than 3 mm.
long; pubescence sericeous whitish or frosty whitish in $$ and very
pale in $<j> <j $ globulus Bezz. (p. 157).
(Typical Namaqualand forms.)
5. (4) Abdomen in <$<$ less extensively reddened on sides and the apex less
conspicuously red; head with antennal joint 3 tending to be more
brownish and with joint 1 apparently relatively shorter, with the proboscis
distinctly more slender and slightly longer, about 2|-3£ mm. long;
pubescence more pale creamy yellowish or pale sericeous yellowish in
both sexes , . <J $ globulus Bezz.
(Karoo form) (p. 158).
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 59
6. (3) Face very dark or black in both sexes; pleural parts predominantly black
in both sexes and even abdomen in <$<$ predominantly black; pubescence
in both sexes slightly more distinctly yellowish; small form, only about
3^—4 mm. long and with a wing-length of only about 4-5 mm.
c£ $ globulus Bezz. (p. 159).
(Small Namaqualand form.)
7. (2) Claws normally sickle-shaped, their apices curved down, with the pulvilli
much longer, reaching and extending beyond middle of claws ; scutellum
entirely pale ferruginous reddish; wings with the base, costal cell, basal
parts of marginal and first submarginal cells, more than basal hah of
first basal cell and greater part of second basal cell tinged subopaquely
yellowish brown, the base being more yellowish, the rest of the wings in
both sexes hyaline, with the basal comb more conspicuously developed,
the alula distinctly more strongly developed and more lobate, with a
distinct, though sometimes faint, spot-like infuscation on apical cross
veins of basal cells; pubescence distinctly shorter and with a more
shorn off appearance on thorax in both sexes, that on face shorter and
sparser, with distinct macrochaetal bristles in front of wings and in $$
at least with transverse bristles on abdomen, predominantly deeper
yellowish, more golden to brownish or reddish golden in both sexes;
head with the face distinctly more prominent and produced, sometimes
more or less spout-like, with the interocular space in $<$ as broad as
front ocellus or front part of ocellar tubercle or even as broad as tubercle,
then more rapidly diverging apically, with the space in ?? about
3|-4f times as broad as tubercle; larger species, about 6-12 mm. long
and with a wing -length of about 7^-12^ mm., with the thorax not
convexly prominent and abdomen not so markedly cordiform; hypo-
pygium of <$$ with a distinct ventral aedeagal process below . .8.
8. (11) Proboscis remarkably long and straight, about 6-10 mm.; head with
the face markedly prominent, more produced and more spout-like,
with the interocular space in $$ relatively narrower, about 3^, or a little
more, times as broad as tubercle, with antennal joint 3 longer and quite
1^ times as long as 1 and 2 combined; pleurae with less yellowish, the
third antennal joints as pale as 1 and 2, the proboscis is more extensively
reddish, and in $? the hind margins on side of abdomen are not reddened;
pubescence on frons and face much sparser and shorter, that on abdomen
above in both sexes denser and^n $$ with longish erect hairs in addition
to transverse bristles, that on pleurae pale pink mauvish and with the
bristles on body above not or scarcely gleaming whitish at their apices;
wings with the infuscated part slightly darker and more yeUowish brown
or brownish, the infuscation more diffuse, and with the spot-like infusca-
tions on apical cross veins of basal cells more conspicuous; hind femora
with about 7-12 comparatively stout spines below; hypopygium of $
(text-fig. 23) with the apex of aedeagus very slender and curved upwards
and with the ventral aedeagal process acute apically and curved down-
wards ........... 9.
9. (10) Wings with the dark brownish infuscation basally more diffuse, less marked
off, the basal hah of marginal cell and first submarginal cell being also
infuscated, with the spots on cross veins also more diffuse; pubescence
60 Annals of the South African Museum.
in c£(J more golden or brownish golden and that towards apex of abdomen
more creamy yellowish, that on face sparse; hind femora with about
7-10 spines below . . . <$ $ eurhinatus Bezz. (p. 159).
10. (9) Wings with the dark brownish infuscation basally more distinctly marked
off, the basal half of marginal cell and first submarginal cell being almost
hyaline and the spots on cross veins less diffuse ; pubescence in $ slightly
paler, more creamy yellowish and that towards apex of abdomen more
whitish, that on face slightly denser; hind femora with about 11-12
spines below . . ; <J eurhinatus var. bechuanus Hesse (p. 162).
11. (8) Proboscis very much shorter, only about 3-5 mm. long; head with the
face, though prominent, less produced, with the interocular space in £?
relatively broader, about 4-4^ times as broad as ocellar tubercle, with
antennal joint 3 slightly shorter and not 1J times as long as 1 and 2
combined; pleurae with more yellowish in both sexes, the third antennal
joint usually darker and the proboscis also more extensively darkened
below and in ?$ the hind margins on side of abdomen are distinctly
and broadly reddish; pubescence on frons and face denser and slightly
longer, that on occiput also longer, that on abdomen above, especially
in $$, distinctly less dense, shorter and with fewer long erect hairs and,
apart from transverse bristles, with dense depressed hair-like scaling,
that on pleurae slightly paler pinkish mauve and with the bristles on
body above more gleaming whitish at their apices; wings with the
infuscated part paler and more yellowish, less diffuse and with the spot-
like infuscations on cross veins less distinct; hind femora with about
5-8 more slender spines below; hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 24) with the
apex of aedeagus straight and shorter, not curved upwards, and with the
ventral aedeagal process smaller, horizontal, and rounded apically
<$ $ brachyrrhynchus Bezz. (p. 162).
12. (1) Antennae and proboscis entirely or predominantly black, or antennal
joint 3 and by far the greater part of proboscis black, only the extreme
base of proboscis being sometimes yellowish, and if antennae are pre-
dominantly yellowish the position of discal cross vein is different; wings
with the discal cross vein at middle or distinctly beyond middle of
discoidal cell, and when rarely just before middle the antennae and
proboscis are predominantly black . . . . . .13.
13. (20) Wings with the first posterior cell distinctly and sometimes very markedly
attenuated and acute apically, , provided with a very short stalk, this
stalk being usually very much shorter than rest of vein separating first
posterior and second submarginal cells, sometimes even absent and
the first posterior cell thus sessile or even almost opening on hind border,
with the vein between first and second posterior cells straight, never even
slightly sinuous or bent up at its end where it joins the part of third
longitudinal vein (M x +Pv 5 ) separating off the second submarginal cell
and with this latter vein always much straighter . . . .14.
14. (15) Wings with the first posterior cell distinctly sessile on hind border, its
apical part thus less sharply acute, there being no stalk whatever, with
the discal cross vein at about the middle of discoidal cell, with the third
posterior cell (text-fig. 25, III) more or less rhomboidal, all its sides
lending to be equal, with the basal comb poorly developed; scutellum
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 61
predominantly black, only narrowish hind margin reddish, and face,
head below, and pleurae also predominantly dark; pubescence longer
and that on thorax above in $ at least longer and more recumbent, not
with a shorn-off appearance, gleaming almost silvery whitish on body
above and entirely frosty white below; head with the eyes in $ separated
above by a space as broad as front part of ocellar tubercle or tubercle
itself, with antennal joint 3 markedly broadened near base, then more
rapidly narrowed along lower margin; hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 26)
with the ventral aedeagal process recurved apically and with the basal
strut more broadish <$ rhomboidalis n. sp. (p. 164).
15. (14) Wings with the first posterior cell very sharply and angularly acute
apically, not roundly sessile on hind border but provided with either a
very short stalk or a longer one, with the discal cross vein distinctly
and even much beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the third posterior
cell not markedly rhomboidal, its sides being markedly or normally
unequal in length, with the basal comb more strongly and more con-
spicuously developed; scutellum predominantly pale reddish yellow or
pale reddish brown, and face, head below, and pleural parts with more
yellowish; pubescence on body above distinctly shorter in both sexes,
that on thorax above in <$$ with a more shorn off appearance, dull
creamy whitish or yellowish to sericeous or golden yellowish, and if
gleaming whitish and almost frosty whitish below first posterior cell is
angularly acute and face is very pallid; head with the eyes in known
$($ contiguous or subcontiguous above or only separated by front ocellus,
with antennal joint 3 less markedly and rapidly broadened below near
base, and if much broadened basally the apical part is more slender,
pubescence is yellowish above and (or) first posterior cell is angularly
acute apically; hypopygium of known <$$ with the ventral aedeagal
process, if present, differently shaped . . . . . .16.
16. (17) Pubescence on body predominantly dull whitish or creamy and creamy
whitish, that below distinctly more whitish to chalky whitish, and that
towards apical part of abdomen in g$ also distinctly more whitish;
abdomen with the reddish or yellowish red less extensive in both sexes,
the reddish on sides less conspicuous and reddish hind margins in <£$
almost absent; head markedly broad and the eyes markedly large,
especially in $<$, with the interocular space in $$ broader and quite
2|- times as broad as combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, the eyes
subcontiguous or almost touching in front of tubercle in <$$, with the
face relatively barer; wings with the first posterior cell even more
attenuately acute apically and its apical stalk shorter or even very short,
the cell being sometimes almost sessile; front tarsal joints in $$ not
markedly thickened; hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 27) with the neck
region of basal parts dilated and prominently produced, with a down-
wardly directed spine on apical aspect of inner lobe (at base of apical
joints), without a complicated ventral aedeagal process
cJ $ sessilis Bezz. (p. 166).
17. (16) Pubescence on body predominantly or entirely yellowish, sericeous to
golden yellowish, that below only paler yellowish and, if more whitish,
that above at least is distinctly yellowish and that towards apex of
62 Annals of the South African Museum.
abdomen in known <$<$ less whitish; abdomen with the pale yellowish
red distinctly more extensive in both sexes, the reddish on sides of
abdomen in both sexes very extensive and conspicuous, sometimes very
broad even in 99 and the red hind margins of segments in <$$ usually
broad and even pleurae in both sexes with more reddish; head not
conspicuously broad, and the eyes, if large, not broadening the head
transversely, with the interocular space in 99 relative to antennal
joints 1 and 2 much narrower and the space sometimes remarkably
narrow, less than 1\ times combined in length of joints 1 and 2, with
the eyes in known $£ even more contiguous or in subcontact in front of
tubercle, with the face more densely haired; wings with the first posterior
cell more rapidly acute apically, its apical stalk slightly or distinctly
longer; front tarsal joints in 99 distinctly and markedly thickened;
hypopygium of known $$ with the lower margin of neck region of basal
parts not produced, and without a spine or apical aspect of inner margin
or lobe and with different aedeagal structures . . . .18.
18. (19) Head with the eyes in both sexes moderately large, with the face dis-
tinctly longer, quite as long or longer than antennal joints 1 and 2
combined, with antennal joint 3 less broadened near base and less
markedly slender in apical part and with the basal terminal element
inconspicuous, with the interocular space in 99 very much broader, a
little more than 2 times as broad as combined length of antennal joints 1
and 2, with the frons in 99 distinctly very much broader and normal,
with the proboscis not visibly strigilose below; red on body, though
extensively developed, less extensive on abdomen, the greater part of
abdomen above in both sexes with much black and proboscis reddish
below; pubescence on the whole deeper yellowish to golden and that on
body below only paler yellowish, not whitish; wings with the discal
cross vein only a little, or sometimes scarcely, beyond middle of discoidal
cell and with the veins slightly paler yellowish or yellowish brown;
hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 28) with a very complex ventral aedeagal
process . . . . . . • <? 9 mundus Lw. (p. 169).
19. (18) Head with the eyes remarkably large in 9 at least, with the face much
shorter, distinctly shorter than combined length of antennal joints 1
and 2, less spout-like prominent, with antennal joint 3 remarkably broad
near base and then very rapidly narrowed to apex, the apical part very
Blender and with the basal element of terminal elements conical and more
conspicuous, with the interocular space on vertex in 9 though nearly
3 limes as broad as ocellar tubercle, remarkably narrow and only about
subequal in length to combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, with
the frons thus almost abnormally narrow, with the proboscis distinctly
and visibly strigilose below; red on abdomen even in 9 very extensively
developed, the disc predominantly reddish yellow and the black reduced
to a central row of triangular spots and the proboscis entirely black;
pubescence pale yellowish above, becoming gleaming golden yellowish
on abdomen, (bat on body below distinctly much paler and more chalky
whitish ; (rings with the discal cross vein very much beyond middle, at
apical third, of discoidal cell and the veins slightly darker and more
brownish . . . . . .9 atronotatus n. sp. (p. 171).
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 63
20. (13) Wings with the first posterior cell distinctly less angularly acute apically,
never sharply angularly and attenuately acute apically, always provided
with a normally long stalk, this stalk being usually subequal or longer
in length to rest of vein separating first posterior and second submarginal
cells, with the vein between first and second posterior cells always tending
to be slightly sinuous or bent up at its end where it joins the part of third
longitudinal vein (M^Rg) which, separates off the second submarginal
cell and with this latter vein always bent, or pulled, basalwards where
vein between first and second posterior cells joins it . . .21.
21. (43) Abdomen above entirely black, and if hind margins tend to be reddish
they are narrowly so and only on last few segments, with the rows of
transverse bristles across hind margins of tegrites predominantly or
entirely very dark yellowish brown, brownish to black, or at least with
much darker bristles or numerous dark elements on some of the tergites
laterally or towards the apex . . . . . . .22.
22. (23) Legs with the femora in both sexes predominantly or extensively
blackened; pubescence on body above comparatively very short and
dense, that on thorax, especially in $$, with a shorn-off appearance,
with the black bristly elements more densely and conspicuously present
on post-alar calli, on scutellum, and especially across hind margins of
segments where they are very conspicuous and dense, with these black
bristles sometimes flanked on the basal side by reddish brown to orange
brownish hairs, especially in 99; eyes in ^ contiguous or in contact
above for some distance at least subequal to ocellar tubercle; proboscis
markedly long, about 5-8 mm. long; hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 29)
with the ventral aedeagal process composed of 2 pointed projecting
plates . . . . . . • c? 9 impurus Lw. (p. 173).
23. (22) Legs with the femora entirely or predominantly yellowish, and if darkened
then only so at extreme bases; pubescence on body above distinctly
much longer, that on thorax above even in ($<$ longer, more bushy or
shaggy and without a closely cropped off appearance, with the black
bristly elements or bristles across hind margins of abdomen less dense,
less conspicuous, usually less numerous, and sometimes represented by
only a few laterally or ventro -laterally near apex and without any deep
brownish or reddish brown hair flanking basal side of dark transverse
bristles; eyes in <J(J separated above even if only narrowly; proboscis
shorter and usually much shorter than 5 mm. ; hypopygium of $$ without
a ventral aedeagal process, and if with a process this is differently shaped.
24.
24. (42) Pubescence on the whole apparently shorter, not markedly shaggy on
occiput and thorax, that on occiput and front part of thorax, when
viewed from side, not so markedly gleaming sericeous or silky whitish
and not contrasting collar-like with the more yellowish or whitish hair
on rest of thorax above, and if whitish second longitudinal vein is rapidly
bent up at end, with the bristly hairs or bristles on face and genae, on
sides of thorax in front of wing-bases, on post-alar calli, and across hind
margin of scutellum pale or coloured pale yellowish or whitish like rest
of pubescence on these sites; wings with the second longitudinal vein
distinctly or normally bent upwards at its end, i.e. almost at right angles
64 Annals of the South African Museum.
or very rapidly; face and head below rarely black, and if darkened the
wings are usually tinged mauvish brown or distinctly yellowish, and
second longitudinal vein is more rapidly bent up at end . . .25.
25. (30) Wings distinctly and sometimes deeply tinged reddish or mauvish brown,
deeper and darker brownish or reddish brown towards costal and basal
parts, especially in $$; face, head below, and basal parts of femora
inclined to be darker and sometimes blackish; pubescence on body
above usually deeper yellowish, more brownish yellow, and if paler and
more creamy or creamy yellowish wings are at least tinged reddish or
mauvish brown, that on body below, though paler than above, duller
and not contrasting much with that above, that towards apex of abdomen
in both sexes also more yellowish, and if inclining to be distinctly whitish
wings are tinged reddish mauve; antennae with joint 1 longer, at least
4, or even more, times as long as 2 and sometimes darkened along upper
part; eyes in $$ separated above by a space about as broad as front
part of ocellar tubercle or tubercle itself . . . . .26.
26. (29) Pubescence on body above distinctly deeper yellowish to deep golden
yellowish, with a distinct brownish or reddish brown tint in certain
lights, that on body below only paler yellowish not contrasting much
with that above, that towards apex of abdomen in both sexes more
yellowish; wings distinctly tinged deeper reddish or mauvish brown;
antennal joint 1 slightly longer, usually slightly more than 4 times as
long as 2; interocular space in <$$ broader, about as broad as ocellar
tubercle or broad front part of tubercle . . . . .27.
27. (28) Face and head below much darker, almost black or black; femora,
especially in <$<$, distinctly darkened or blackened basally to about
middle and with the coxae and trochanters also darker; pubescence
tending to be darker and more brownish yellow, that on antennae and
face also darker and more reddish brown, with the dark or black trans-
verse bristles across abdomen darker and more conspicuous; antennae
relatively shorter and joint 3 slightly more attenuated apically and less
rod-like; wings in $$ apparently less tinged and less so than in <$$
<$ $ tinctipennis n. sp. var. thornei n. (p. 178).
28. (27) Face and head below paler and more yellowish or pallid; femora less ex-
tensively darkened at bases in $<$, almost entirely yellowish, the coxae and
trochanters also paler and more obscurely reddish yellow; pubescence on
the whole tending to be paler and that on antennae and face paler and
more pale yellowish, with less dark or less conspicuously dark transverse
bristles across abdomen; antennae apparently longer and with joint 3
more distinctly rod-like ; wings in both sexes more equally and uniformly
tinged reddish or mauvish brown . $ $ tinctipennis n. sp. (p. 176).
29. (26) Pubescence on body above paler and more creamy yellowish and even
paler in <$<$, that on body below distinctly very much paler and more
distinctly whitish, contrasting with that above, that towards apical
part of abdomen distinctly more whitish and in <$<$ almost white ; wings
lightly less deeply reddish mauve; antennal joint 1 apparently slightly
shorter and only about 4 times as long as 2; interocular space in <$<$
narrower, about as broad as front ocellus or narrow front part of tubercle.
cJ $ marginellus Bezz. (p. 180).
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 65
30. (25) Wings not distinctly tinged reddish mauvish or brownish mauvish,
usually greyish hyaline or subopaquely greyish hyaline and when with
yellowish brown, the tinge is only evident towards base; face, head
below, coxae, and trochanters more yellowish, yellowish red to yellowish
brown and if coxae and bases of femora are darkened the wings are not
tinged; pubescence on body above much paler yellowish, creamy
yellowish to whitish and even more so in certain lights, that on head in
front also paler and sometimes more whitish, that on pleurae and even
abdomen below paler, more distinctly whitish and contrasting with that
above, that towards apex of abdomen also more whitish, especially in
$3; antennae with joint 1 tending to be shorter, scarcely, or less than,
4 times as long as 2, and sometimes also tending to be entirely dark
above; eyes in gg subcontiguous or contiguous above or separated only
narrowly by breadth of front ocellus . . . . . .31.
31. (34) Body with the abdominal tergites 2-7 or at least 5-7 narrowly margined
with reddish, tergite 7 being more broadly or even entirely reddish,
with the sternites also distinctly margined with reddish, with the face
and head below yellowish or pallid, and if dark in some <$<$ the wings
are subopaquely greyish hyaline or greyish hyaline, with the legs, including
the coxae, entirely yellowish and with a tendency for a longitudinal
reddish infusion on pleurae; wings vitreous hyaline or distinctly more
greyish or subopaquely greyish hyaline, having a distinct subopacity in
some instances ; pubescence on the whole paler, distinctly more sericeous
whitish, especially on front part of thorax, that discally may be faintly
yellowish sericeous, that on abdomen also paler even if yellowish, that
on body below and basal part of venter on each side whiter and more
frosty white, contrasting with the more pale sericeous whitish or yellowish
pubescence above ......... 32.
32. (33) Abdomen with the narrow hind margins of tergites 2-7 or at least 4-7
more distinctly and more conspicuously reddish, the last tergite in $$
sometimes entirely reddish, and the margins in <$£ also broader reddish
and reddish on pleurae more conspicuous; wings distinctly clearer, with
a much fainter whitish subopacity in certain lights, with fewer hairs
above on middle vein at extreme base; pubescence with the trans-
verse bristly elements across hind margins of tergites tending to be
less dark, less conspicuous, more golden brownish, the darkest ones more
evident towards apical part of abdomen; eyes in $$ narrowly separated
by width of front ocellus; hypopygium of <J with the aedeagus slightly
projecting apically beyond apices of basal parts, and with the beaked
apical joints slightly less hairy above and their apices less bent down-
wards ...... <$ ? imitator n. sp. (p. 185).
33. (32) Abdomen with the narrow hind margins of only tergites 5-7 very narrowly
reddish, the last tergite in $$ less reddish, and with the reddish hind
margins in $<$ even more obscure, and with the reddish on pleurae also
more obscure; wings distinctly and more typically subopaquely greyish,
showing a marked subopacity to whitish tint and with the hairs above
on middle vein at base denser and more conspicuous; pubescence
appearing paler and with the transverse bristly elements on abdomen
above distinctly darker, denser, and more conspicuous even from tergite 2,
66 Annals of the South African Museum.
appearing distinctly more dark brownish, even darker towards apical
part and there more evidently pale-tipped; eyes in <$<$ contiguous above
in front of tubercle and narrower there than front ocellus; hypopygium
of <$ (text-fig. 34) with the aedeagus shorter and not reaching apices of
basal parts and with the beaked apical joints provided with longer and
denser hairs above, their apices slightly more bent downwards
<$ Qfucatus Bezz. (p. 182).
(ex labelled specimens.)
34. (31) Body with the abdomen above entirely black in both sexes and the
venter also black or with only very narrow and obscure yellowish margins,
with the face and head below darker or black, and if yellowish abdomen
above is entirely black, with the coxae usually much darker or black
and even extreme bases of femora also darkened, especially in <$<$, with
the pleurae black, but if with reddish the red is more sutural; wings
more distinctly tinged yellowish basally and costally, especially in $£,
or even feebly reddish mauvish, a distinct subopaquely whitish tint not
evident, and if with a slight subopacity abdomen is entirely black above ;
pubescence distinctly more creamy yellowish to golden yellowish, that
on body below, though paler than above, not so vividly whitish and so
contrasting with that above, and, if contrastingly white, abdomen above
is entirely black . . . . . . . J35 <$$
\41 ??
35. (38) Eyes in <$$ narrowly separated by width of broad front ocellus or anterior
part of ocellar tubercle; head below not entirely black, but yellowish
anteriorly; pubescence with the pale or whitish hair on head below and
on pleural parts less extensive, that on pectus and coxae less white
and more straw-coloured than across pleurae, that on thorax above
apparently slightly longer, that on face and first antennal joints less
deeply yellowish and with the transverse black or dark bristly elements
on abdomen above more distinctly developed, more conspicuous, and
present at least on sides of tergites 2 to apex; wings with the yellowish
tinge towards base less evident, or wings may have a slight reddish
mauvish tinge and with the discal cross vein much beyond middle of
discoidal cell .......... 36.
36. (37) Pubescence on body above distinctly deeper and more golden yellowish,
that on abdomen above even more golden, that on venter also more
yellowish; coxae, trochanters, and bases of femora, of which at least
basal halves of front ones, black, and hind femora with about 7-8 spines
below; wings with the veins darker brownish . $ turneri n. sp. (p. 179).
37. (36) Pubescence on body above distinctly much paler, more creamy yellowish,
that on abdomen above much paler and even becoming more whitish
towards apex, that on venter more whitish; coxae more reddish, and
only the extreme bases of femora darkened, and hind femora with only
about 6 spines below; wings with the veins paler reddish brown
<$ marginellus Bezz. (p. 180).
38. (35) Eyes in <3<3 contiguous or subcontiguous in front of ocellar tubercle, the
space very slightly narrower than front ocellus and very much narrower
limn front part of tubercle; head below entirely black; pubescence with
the hair on head below, on pleurae, coxae, and on each side of venter
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 67
basally extensively frosty white, that on thorax above slightly shorter
and less shaggy, that on face and first antennal joints more deeply and
more golden yellowish and with the transverse dark or blackish bristly
elements on abdomen above fewer, inconspicuous, and usually only
represented apically; wings with the yellowish tinge more pronounced
and with the discal cross vein at about the middle of the discoidal cell
39.
39. (40) Claws distinctly more rapidly bent down, almost at right angles, near
apex, the pul villi reaching bent down apices of claws; head with the
face distinctly shorter, subequal in length to combined length of antennal
joints 1 and 2 and the face also darker; pubescence predominantly
golden to deep golden yellowish above, that on abdomen golden yellowish
and scarcely paler towards apex, with the transverse bristles on abdomen
with more numerous dark ones on sides and towards apex, the pubes-
cence on thorax in front more sericeous yellowish; hypopygium (text-
fig. 37) . . . . . c? icteroglaenus n. sp. (p. 190).
40. (39) Claws distinctly more gradually and arcuately curved, the pul villi not
reaching bent-down apices of claws; head with the face distinctly longer
and more prominent, longer than combined length of antennal joints 1
and 2, and the face also more extensively paler ; pubescence on the whole
paler, that on front part of thorax more sericeous whitish, and that on
abdomen, especially towards apical part, distinctly very much paler and
almost whitish, with the transverse bristles across abdomen with fewer
or even without any darkish ones on sides and apically; hypopygium
(text-fig. 36) ..... <$ pseudopsis n. sp. (p. 188).
41. (41) Wings feebly tinged reddish mauve and with a slight subopacity; pubes-
cence creamy yellowish above, more whitish below, that towards apical
part of abdomen slightly paler than on rest of body above, with the
transverse bristly elements across hind margins of tergites dark reddish
brown to dark brownish; face and head below darkish yellowish brown
and brownish, and the coxae and legs yellowish
$ marginellus Bezz. (p. 180).
42. (24) Pubescence on the whole more shaggy anteriorly on thorax and on
occiput, especially in <$$, markedly and more conspicuously gleaming
silvery or silky whitish, contrasting more collar-like with the more
yellowish pubescence on rest of thorax, with the bristles on face and
genae, on sides of thorax in front of wings, on post-alar calli and across
hind margin of scutellum darker, more brownish, or blackish brown, their
bases even distinctly darker; wings with the second longitudinal vein
only gradually bending upwards at its end, thus distinctly less sinuous
at its end; face and head below entirely black
cJ $ meltoni n. sp. (p. 19]).
43. (21) Abdomen above either with distinctly more red on sides or across hind
margins or without any red, with the rows of transverse bristles across
hind margins, where present, entirely pale, whitish, yellowish, or golden
like the rest of pubescence on abdomen, no very dark or blackish bristly
elements being present ........ 44.
44. (77) Abdomen above entirely black, not distinctly conspicuously or extensively
red or reddish on sides and without reddish hind margins to tergites in
68 Annals of the South African Museum.
both sexes, and if red is present above it is obscure or confined to apical
parts (45 gg
\67 ??
45. (62) Eyes in <$<$ contiguous, subcontiguous, just touching or almost in contact
above in front of ocellar tubercle, and if very slightly separated not
broader than width of front ocellus . . . . . .46.
46. (55) Femora distinctly blackened at bases, to near middle or beyond middle
and with even the greater part of hind ones sometimes blackened; face,
head below, and entire antennae black or darkish, and if antennal joint 1
is reddish bases of femora are darkened, with the scutellum also less
extensively reddish, the greater part of base tending to be dark or
blackish 47.
47. (50) Femora more extensively blackened to beyond middle, and even hind
ones are blackened, only the apical parts of femora yellowish; claws
distinctly more rapidly bent down, almost at right angles, at apex, and
the pulvilli more developed and reaching the bent apices of claws;
antennal joint 3 more spindle-shaped; eyes tending to be in actual
contact; hypopygium with the apical joints shorter and broader, not
slender and elongate, more leaf-shaped from a dorsal view and with a
ventral aedeagal process below aedeagus ..... 48.
48. (49) Pubescence distinctly much shorter, not shaggy on thorax above but
with a cropped-off appearance, very pale sericeous yellowish above,
that on body below more whitish, that on disc of thorax and scutellum
deeper sericeous yellowish ; scutellum with the hinder half of disc reddish,
and sides of abdomen with red; head with antennal joint 1 much shorter
and less than 2 times as long as joint 2, with joint 3 slightly broader in
basal half and more rapidly attenuated apically, spindle-shaped, with the
proboscis more distinctly finely strigilose below; wings slightly broader
especially towards base, with the basal comb well developed and with
the first posterior cell tending to be more acute apically; hind femora
with about 8 spines below; hypopygium (text-fig. 48) with the ventral
aedeagal process in form of an apically projecting lobe below aedeagus;
larger form, about 8 mm. long and with a wing-length of about 8 mm.
<$ muscoides n. sp. (p. 217)
(where red is obscure on abdomen.)
49. (48) Pubescence distinctly longer, distinctly longer and more shaggy on thorax
above and on abdomen, straw-coloured yellowish and with slight sericeous
gleams, that on body below, though paler than above, not so contrasting
whitish, that on occiput distinctly more whitish; scutellum predomi-
nantly black and with a scarcely perceptible rufous tint across hind
border and sides of abdomen entirely black; head with antennal joint 1
longer and at least 2 times as long as joint 2, with joint 3 slightly less
broadened basally and less rapidly attenuated apically, the apical part
thus less slender, with the proboscis not visibly finely strigilose below;
\\ injis slightly narrower, with the basal comb very poorly developed and
with the first posterior cell normal apically; hind femora with only
about 3 or 4 more slender spines below in apical half; hypopygium
(text-fig. 39) with the ventral aedeagal process in form of a broad,
flattened, vertical, lamellar plate on each side, converging apically;
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 69
smaller species, about 6 mm. long and with a wing-length of about
6| mm. ...... $ Jcaokoensis n. sp. (p. 193).
50. (47) Femora less extensively blackened and only at bases or in basal halves
of front and middle ones, the hind ones being entirely yellowish or only
obscurely darkened at extreme bases; claws distinctly less rapidly
curved down apically, more gradually curving down to apex and
apparently more slender, with the pulvilli also more slender, and though
reaching middle of claws and even extending slightly beyond middle,
they are actually shorter and do not touch the apices of claws ; antennal
joint 3 more rod-like; eyes above more contiguous or subcontiguous or
touching for a shorter distance or narrowly separated by front ocellus;
hypopygium with the apical joints distinctly elongate, narrow, and
slender and without a ventral aedeagal process below aedeagus 51.
51. (52) Head with the face distinctly longer and more conically prominent,
longer than combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, the face also
more pallid, with the proboscis more distinctly yellowish below; pubes-
cence with that on face on the whole denser, that on disc of thorax and
on each side above wings and on scutellum scarcely with sericeous
yellowish gleams; slightly larger and more bulky form, about 8|- mm.
long and with a wing-length of about 8 mm.; hypopygium (text-fig. 36)
$ pseudopsis n. sp. (p. 188).
52. (51) Head with the face distinctly shorter and less prominent, shorter or only
subequal in length to combined antennal joints 1 and 2, the face entirely
black, with the proboscis also entirely black or with more obscure reddish
basally below; pubescence with that on face shorter and sparser, that on
disc of thorax and on each side above wings and on scutellum with
slightly more distinct sericeous yellowish gleams in certain lights;
slightly smaller forms, about 5|— 6 -£ mm. long and with a wing-length of
about 5f-7£ mm. ......... 53.
53. (54) Wings more distinctly tinged yellowish in costal and basal parts, with the
basal comb more strongly developed, with the second longitudinal vein
distinctly more gradually and less rapidly bent upwards at its end,
with the discal cross vein distinctly beyond middle of discoidal cell;
head with antennal joint 1 predominantly reddish, only darkened above,
with joint 3 more broadened basally, less rod-like, with the proboscis
longer, about 3J mm. long and tending to be obscurely reddish below
at base; pubescence slightly shorter at least on thorax discally, very
pale yellowish sericeous on thorax, more whitish in front, that on scutellum
and abdomen above distinctly deeper sericeous yellowish to pale golden,
the bristly elements more gleaming golden and on sides even more golden,
that on body below whitish; legs with the femora only darkened
or blackened at extreme bases; larger form about 6 J mm. long and with
a wing-length of about 1\ mm. ; hypopygium (text-fig. 40)
<J anomalus n. sp. (p. 196).
54. (53) Wings more subopaquely whitish in basal and costal parts, with the
basal comb very poorly developed, with the second longitudinal vein
distinctly more rapidly, almost at right angles, bent up at its end, with
the discal cross vein at about, or even just before, middle of discoidal
cell; head with antennal joint 1 entirely black, with joint 3 distinctly
VOL. XXXIV. 6
70 Annals of the South African Museum.
more rod-like, only gradually thickened basally, with the proboscis
shorter, only about 1\ mm. long and entirely black; pubescence slightly
more shaggy and longer, predominantly straw-coloured yellowish above,
appearing more sericeous whitish on thorax in front, that on abdomen
above less yellowish golden and the bristly elements not deeply gleaming
golden, that on body below also whitish but less contrasting Avith that
above; legs with the front and middle femora blackened to near, or
about, the middle and even hind ones darkened at extreme bases;
smaller form, about 5\ mm. long and with a wing-length of about 5^ mm.
<£ extraneus n. sp. (p. 195).
55. (46) Femora entirely yellow; face, head below, and antennal joint 1, and to
a certain extent 2, and in some cases even 3, yellowish or yellowish red,
with the proboscis below usually also more extensively reddish and with
the scutellum more extensively and almost predominantly reddish, the
base or basal part more narrowly black . . . . .56.
56. (61) Claws distinctly more gradually curving down to apices, narrower basally
when viewed from side and slightly longer, with the pulvilli on the
whole less developed, more slender, and scarcely reaching middle of
claws; hind femora with more than 6 spines below; head with the face
distinctly longer, distinctly and sometimes very much longer than
combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, with antennal joint 3 and
to a certain extent 2 black, with the proboscis below basally distinctly
more extensively reddish; wings with a more distinctly yellowish tinge
in costal and basal parts, including first and second basal cells, and if not
distinctly tinged the veins at least are darker brownish or reddish brown;
pubescence becoming distinctly paler and more whitish towards apex of
abdomen above and venter, that on thorax in front from in front tending
to be more gleaming sericeous whitish in certain lights than sericeous
yellowish, and that on body below also appearing more whitish in certain
lights; hypopygium (text-figs. 35, 41, and 43) with the beaked apical
joints distinctly much longer and relatively more slender . .57.
57. (60) Smaller forms, about 7-9 mm. long and with a wing-length of about
8-9 mm., less bulky in appearance; legs with the claws slightly shorter
and distinctly more curved and with the pulvilli tending to be longer and
at least reaching middle of claws, with only about 9 spines on hind femora
below and without any spines on front ones below; head with the
proboscis shorter, less than 5 mm. long, with antennal joint 3 relatively
shorter, less rapidly attenuated apically; pubescence distinctly longer
and not so obviously cropped off in appearance on thorax, that on first
antennal joints and face distinctly longer and less sericeous whitish, that
on abdomen above distinctly more shaggy and relatively longer and on
the whole sparser, that on body above, though also appearing yellowish,
Jess creamy yellowish, and that on sides of abdomen basally less distinctly
yellowish, and that in front of wings also less deeply yellowish in certain
lights; wings with the veins more dark brownish, and with the second
longitudinal vein more rapidly bent up at its end, and with the basal
comb slightly less developed; abdominal tergite 1 entirely black, like the
ot her bergites .......... 58.
58. (59) Head wit li l Ik face much longer, more conically prominent, with antennal
. A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 71
joint 1 distinctly longer and quite 3 tinies as long as joint 2, with, joint 3
thicker and more spindle-shaped, broadest just before middle; wings
broader, more distinctly and more extensively tinged yellowish in basal
two-thirds, with the discal cross vein at about the middle of discoidal
cell, the discoidal cell itself more truncate apically; pubescence paler and
more sericeous whitish above in certain lights, that on body below distinctly
more contrasting in whiteness with that above, there being no yellowish
or darkish bristly elements on coxae, that on face and genae longer,
denser, and gleaming deeper ochreous to orange golden; larger form,
about 9 mm. long, with a wing-length of about 9 mm.; hypopygium
(text-fig. 35) ..... <J aurimystax n. sp. (p. 187).
59. (58) Head with the face very much shorter, not tending to be conically pro-
duced, with antennal joint 1 shorter, only a very little longer than 2 times
as long as 2, with joint 3 distinctly more slender, gradually thickened
basally; wings narrower, vitreous hyaline and with only the costal cell,
first basal cell, base and alula subopaquely very pale yellowish, with
the discal cross vein distinctly beyond middle of discoidal cell and the
latter less truncate apically; pubescence distinctly yellower and more
sericeous yellowish above, that on body below with only whitish hair
on head below and across middle parts of pleurae, less contrastingly
whitish, that on coxae more straw-coloured yellowish and with intermixed
darkish bristly elements, that on face and genae shorter, sparser, much
paler and more gleaming pale sericeous yellowish; smaller form, about
7 mm. long and with a wing-length of about 8 mm.; hypopygium
(text-fig. 41) ..... (J calviniensis n. sp. (p. 198).
60. (57) Larger and more bulky species, about 10-11 mm. long, with a wing-
length of about 10-11 mm.; legs with the claws slightly longer and
even less curved and with the pulvilli rather shorter, not, or scarcely,
reaching middle of claws, with about 9-14 spines on hind femora below
and also with 1-3 spines on front ones below; head with the proboscis
longer, about 5-5£ mm. long, with antennal joint 3 relatively longer,
distinctly more rapidly attenuated apically; pubescence distinctly
shorter, that on thorax above denser and with a short cropped- off
appearance, that on antennal joint 1 and on face shorter and more
sericeous whitish, that on abdomen above denser and shorter, creamy
yellowish on body above, that below more whitish, that on sides of
abdomen basally more ochreous yellowish in certain lights, and that in
front of wings also deeper yellowish; wings with the veins more reddish
brown, and with the second longitudinal vein rather less rapidly bent up
at its end, and with the basal comb more strongly developed ; abdominal
tergite 1 sometimes distinctly reddened or reddish on sides ; hypopygium
(text-fig. 43) .... . $ karooensis n. sp. (p. 201).
(Syn. =ruficeps Bezz. nee Macq.)
61. (56) Claws distinctly and obviously more rapidly bent down, almost at right
angles, apically, distinctly broader at bases in profile, with the pulvilli
on the whole more developed, slightly broader, and at least reaching
or even extending beyond middle of claws ; hind femora with only about
4-6 spines below ; head with the face distinctly much shorter and scarcely
as long as combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, with antennal
72 Annals of the South African Museum.
joints 2 and 3 yellowish like joint 1, with the proboscis entirely black or
less extensively yellowish below basally; wings glassy hyaline, with
only the costal cell and base subopaquely almost whitish, with the veins
paler and more yellowish or pale yellowish brown; pubescence more
uniformly sericeous yellowish above, that towards apex of abdomen not,
or scarcely, paler, that on thorax in front more gleaming sericeous
yellowish, that on body below becoming almost imperceptibly paler and
more whitish than on body above and upper parts of pleurae; hypo-
pygium (text-fig. 42) with the beaked apical joints distinctly much
shorter and relatively broader . . <$ xanthocerus Bezz. (p. 200).
62. (45) Eyes in gg distinctly more broadly separated by width of broad front
part of ocellar tubercle or by the tubercle itself, thus much broader than
width of front ocellus . . . . . . . .63.
63. (66) Wings more hyaline, only tinged very pale yellowish or more subopaquely
whitish j^ellowish in costal cell and base or in basal two-thirds, not
brownish or reddish mauve, and rest of wing more hyaline, the veins
also less dark, with the discal cross vein only a little beyond middle of
discoidal cell; legs with the femora entirely yellowish, with the claws
more distinctly and rapidly curved down, almost at right angles, nearer
apex, and the pulvilli reaching bent-down apices of claws ; head with the
face shorter, not convexly prominent and scarcely longer than combined
length of antennal joints 1 and 2, with antennal joint 1 shorter, scarcely
4, or even shorter than 3, times as long as 2, predominantly reddish, with
the proboscis more yellowish at base below; pubescence on the whole
very much paler above, with more sericeous whitish or very pale sericeous
yellowish gleams in certain lights, that towards apical part of abdomen,
distinctly more whitish, that on body below also paler and more whitish,
that on first antennal joints, face, occiput, and thorax in front on the
whole shorter and less bushy or shaggy, with the transverse bristly
elements on abdomen above very pale like rest of pubescence; hypo-
pygium (text-figs. 44 and 45) without any ventral process below aedeagus
64.
64. (65) Wings more elongate, more distinctly and more deeply tinged yellowish
or pale yellowish brown in costal and basal two-thirds, with the basal
comb more strongly developed ; pubescence with more sericeous yellowish
gleams on thorax, that on abdomen on each side basally with a more
yellowish tint, that on pleurae appearing distinctly paler than that
above, with distinct macrochaetal bristles in front of wings; head with
antennal joint 1 relatively shorter and not quite 3 times as long as 2,
also slightly stouter, with joint 3 stouter and relatively shorter, with
the proboscis more extensively yellowish below; hypopygium (text-
fig. 45) with the beaked apical joints slightly more bent downwards
apically and the basal strut broader; larger form, about 6-7 mm., with a
wing-length of about 7^-8 mm. . . . <$ simulans n. sp. (p. 208).
<;."). (64) Wings comparatively shorter, almost entirely glassy hyaline, only the
costal cell, first basal cell, and base very faintly tinged subopaquely
whitish yellowish, and with the basal comb feeble; pubescence slightly
denser, on entire body distinctly more gleaming sericeous whitish and
thai on body below only duller whitish than, above, not very much paler
A Revision of the Bombyliidae [Diptera] of Southern Africa. 73
and without any visible macrochaetal bristles in front of wings: head
with antennal joint 1 slightly more slender and relatively longer, tending
to be 3-J-, or even a little more, times as long as 2, with joint 3 more
slender and apparently longer and more rod-like, with the proboscis less
distinctly reddish below basally; hypopygium (text-fig. 44) with the
beaked apical joints slightly less rapidly bent downwards apically and
with the basal strut smaller and narrower . £ aemulus n. sp. (p. 204).
66. (63) Wings distinctly and sometimes quite darkly tinged brownish or brownish
mauve to even reddish mauve, the costal and basal part distinctly
darker and more brownish, with the veins darker and with the discal
cross vein very much beyond middle of discoidal cell; legs with the
bases or basal halves of front and middle femora darkened or blackened,
with the claws more gradually and arcuately curved, and the pulvilh less
developed, shortish or just falling short of middle of claws; head with the
face, in profile, longer and more convexly rounded, distinctly longer than
combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, with antennal joint 1 almost
black, only brownish below, longer and quite 4, or even a little more,
times as long as 2, with the proboscis entirely black; pubescence distinctly
more yellowish, deeper sericeous yellowish, golden yellowish to even
slightly brownish golden above in certain lights, that on abdomen also
distinctly more pale to deep golden, that on body below more straw-
coloured yellowish to even yellowish, that on antennae, face, genae,
occiput, and thorax in front more shaggy or bushy, with the transverse
bristly elements across abdomen above also deeper yellowish, sometimes
tending to be more brownish golden; hypopygium (text-fig. 30, a and b)
with a distinct and prominent ventral aedeagal process below aedeagus
in form of a vertical, flattened, shell-like plate on each side, which
converges and coalesces apically . . $ tinetipennis n. sp. (p. 176).
67. (74) Claws distinctly more rapidly curved down, almost at right angles and
nearer apex, with the pulvilli slightly more developed and reaching bent
down apices of claws; head with the face distinctly shorter or at least
subequal in length to combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2; wings
glassy hyaline, with the costal cell, basal half of first basal cell, and base
very pale, only subopaquely whitish and yellowish whitish, with the basal
comb very poorly developed and sometimes almost vestigial; pubescence
predominantly very pale, straw-coloured whitish, almost sericeous
whitish to pale sericeous yellowish above, and whitish or almost white
below, with the macrochaetal elements in front of wings wanting or not
strongly developed and the transverse bristles across abdomen on the
whole not very much differentiated; smaller forms, about o-6|- mm.
long and with a wing-length of about 6-7 mm. .... 68.
68. (73) Head with antennal joint 3, and to a certain extent 2, black, with 3 more
rod-like or, if thickened, not tending to be spindle-shaped and not appearing
humped above just before middle, with the face much longer or at least
relatively longer, with the proboscis shorter, about 2-24- mm. long;
pubescence more whitish or paler, gleaming sericeous whitish to very
pale sericeous yellowish above, that towards apex of abdomen also
paler and more whitish, that on body below on the whole more whitish,
the pubescence above longer and more shaggy; abdomen with the hind
74 Annals of the South African Museum.
margins of sternites scarcely, or only very narrowly, yellowish, and the
hind margins of last few tergites not yellowish, and if tending to be
yellowish pubescence is very pale and antennal joint 3 is black; wings
with the second longitudinal vein tending to be more rapidly bent up at
its end ........... 69.
69. (72) Head with antennal joint 1 longer, about or quite 3^-4 times as long as 2,
more slender, with joint 3 distinctly more slender and rod-like, tapering
apically, with the proboscis slightly less stout and more distinctly reddish
below at base, with the face and head below more pallid or yellowish;
pubescence on face, first antennal joints, occiput and thorax in front
distinctly longer and more bushy and on face also denser, that above
more gleaming sericeous whitish becoming more sericeous whitish towards
apex of abdomen ; abdomen with the hind margins of the tergites black,
like rest of abdomen above, but last tergite may be yellowish apically
70.
70. (71) Pubescence on sides of thorax in front of wings and on upper part of
mesopleuron and that on sides of abdomen straw-coloured yellowish and
with sericeous gleams like rest of pubescence, that on sides of frons
anteriorly, on first antennal joints and face above very pale sericeous
yellowish; pleurae predominantly dark; wings with the veins paler and
more yellowish brown; thorax slightly more convex, appearing almost
subglobular ..... . $ aemulus n. sp. (p. 204).
71. (70) Pubescence on sides of thorax on upper part of mesopleuron in front of
wings and that on sides of abdomen with a more distinct and deeper
yellowish tint, that on antennae, front part of frons and on face above also
deeper and even more pale golden ; pleurae tending to have more reddish
above coxae; wings with the veins darker and more dark brown; thorax
less convexly prominent discally . . $ montivagus n. sp. (p. 206).
72. (69) Head with antennal joint 1 distinctly shorter and only about 2 \ times
as long as 2, relatively stouter, with joint 3 distinctly very much stouter,
broadest near base and then only gradually narrowed apically, with the
proboscis also relatively stouter and entirely black, with the face and
head below darker or at least more obscurely yellowish; pubescence on
head, occiput, and thorax in front distinctly shorter, tending to have a
cropped appearance, not shaggy and bushy, and that on face sparser,
that on body above gleaming more pale lemon yellowish, not paler
apically on abdomen; abdomen with the hind margins of the last few
tergites very narrowly pallid, and extreme sides of tergites below also
distinctly pallid .... $ damarensis n. sp. (p. 207).
73. (68) Head with antennal joint 3 and also joint 2 yellowish or pale reddish
yellow, and with joint 1 yellowish, with joint 3 not rod-like, tending
to be spindle-shaped, broadest just before middle, narrowed apically and
to a lesser extent basally, appearing humped above, due to the fact
that lower margin is more straight, with the face distinctly and relatively
much shorter, with the proboscis very much longer, 3^—4 mm.; pubes-
cence very much shorter and with a more shorn off appearance on thorax,
not shaggy, distinctly deeper yellowish and gleaming sericeous to golden
yellowish above, not paler towards apex of abdomen, that on body below
only slightly paler than above, not contrastingly white; abdomen with
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 75
the hind margins of sternites distinctly more broadly yellowish and the
hind margins of tergites 4-7 more distinctly yellowish; wings with the
second longitudinal vein tending to be more gradually bent up at its
end ....... ^ xanthocerus Bezz. (p. 200).
74. (67) Claws distinctly more gradually and more arcuacely curved, with the
pulvilli tending to be less developed and shorter, just reaching the middle
of claws but not extending to their apices ; head with the face distinctly
longer, more produced and longer than combined length of antennal
joints 1 and 2; wings more greyish hyaline, and with the base, first
basal cell, and costal cell more distinctly yellowish or wings are distinctly
and even deeply tinged reddish or brownish mauve, the base and costal
parts being darker, with the basal comb more strongly developed ;
pubescence above predominantly deeper yellowish, deeper golden
yellowish, even tinted brownish or reddish golden in certain lights,
that below only paler yellowish but not sericeous or frosty whitish or
contrasting much with that above, with the macrochaetal bristles in
front of wings more strongly developed and more conspicuous, and the
transverse bristles across abdomen stouter, more conspicuous, and some-
times slightly darker reddish golden than rest of pubescence; larger
forms, about 7-11 mm. long, bulkier and with a wing-length of about
8-11 mm 75.
75. (76) Wings greyish hyaline, with only the base, first basal cell, and costal cell
subopaquely yellowish, with the veins reddish yellow or pale reddish
brownish; head with the face slightly shorter, less convex, with antennal
joint 1 much shorter, only about 2, or a little more, times as long as 2,
with joint 3 broadened basally and tapering apically, with the proboscis
longer, about 5-5^ mm. long; scutellum predominantly reddish, and
sides of tergite 1 usually also reddish; pubescence distinctly shorter,
that on thorax above with a shorn off appearance, that on abdomen
relatively very much shorter and not shaggy, the bristly elements across
hind margins of tergites denser and shorter and rest of pubescence on
abdomen above shorter than bristles and sparse, pale golden to deep
golden above, the transverse bristles not tending to be very dark; legs
with 1-3 spines on front femora and with about 9-14 spines on hind
ones below, with the claws tending to be slightly longer and less curved
and the pulvilli slightly shorter; larger and more bulky species, about
10-11 mm. long and with a wing-length of about 10-11 mm.
$ Jcarooensis n. sp. (p. 201).
76. (75) Wings distinctly and sometimes very deeply tinged reddish mauvish
or brownish mauvish, the costal and basal parts being darker, with
the veins darker reddish brown; head with the face longer and more
characteristically convex above, with antennal joint 1 much longer,
quite 4, or even a little more, times as long as 2, with 3 more rod-like,
less thickened basally and slightly more curved, with the proboscis on
the whole shorter, about 3^—4^- mm. long; scutellum with a broadish
basal triangular black spot and the hind margin blackish and with the
abdomen entirely black; pubescence longer and distinctly more shaggy,
that on abdomen much longer and more shaggy or bushy, the bristly
elements across abdomen, especially towards apex, very long, and rest
76 Annals of the South African Museum.
of pubescence, in form of erect hairs, also long and denser, also golden
to very deep golden above, sometimes even brownish or reddish golden,
the transverse bristles tending to be deeper reddish golden, inclining
even to brownish; legs without any spines on front femora below and
with about 6-12 spines on hind ones below, with the claws tending to be
more curved; less bulky species, about 7-9£ mm. long and with a wing-
length of about 8-10£ mm. . . $ tinctipennis n. sp. (p. 176).
77. (44) Abdomen above not entirely black, with distinct or sometimes broad
red or reddish on sides or with much more distinct or broader reddish
hind margins to tergites even discally or the entire abdomen may be
predominantly muddy yellowish or brownish . . . .78.
78. (115) Integument of body not reddish brown or muddy brown, and entire
abdomen not muddy brown or reddish brown; wings not with a distinct
whitish subopacity . . . . . . . . .79.
79. (84) Pubescence with characteristic, shortish, almost coarse, dense, crinkly,
curly or markedly woolly, matted, non-gleaming, frosty white hair on
occiput, thorax in front and on sides, on pleurae and on abdomen, denser
and more conspicuous on abdomen in <$<$, with the bristly hairs and
bristles on occiput, thorax and sides of thorax, on scutellum and across
hind margins of abdomen in $$ and to a certain extent on scutellum
and across abdomen in $<$ conspicuously gleaming, either deep golden
to reddish golden or silvery whitish and contrasting very much with the
non-gleaming crinkly white pubescence; wings with a distinct, though
sometimes faint, blackish or dark spot-like infuscation on apical cross
veins of basal cells and sometimes also at base of vein between sub-
marginal cells and across basal fork of second and third longitudinal
veins ........... 80.
80. (81) Femora entirely yellowish in both sexes; face pallid or yellowish and
antennal joint 1 paler and more distinctly yellowish; abdomen with
comparatively broad reddish hind margins on tergites 2-6; wings with
the veins paler . . . . . $ $ auriferus n. sp. (p. 210).
81. (80) Femora blackened at bases, extensively blackened or almost entirely
black and even the tibiae sometimes darkened above; face darker and
sometimes very dark blackish brown and the antennae entirely dark or
black; abdomen with the hind margins of tergites more narrowly reddish
or only those of 3-6 reddish or feebly reddish; wings with the veins
darker ........... 82.
82. (83) Femora predominantly black, only the apices yellowish, the tibiae
yellowish, the spines on legs yellowish; scutellum predominantly reddish;
pubescence with the bristly elements on frons, antennae and face brownish
golden, those on disc of thorax and scutellum gleaming deep golden or
reddish golden and those transversely across tergites pale golden, the
bristly hairs on coxae pale golden; wings with the black spots very
conspicuous; antennal joint 1 slightly longer, about, or a little more
than, 3 times as long as 2 . . $ auriferus var. nigripes n. (p. 211).
83. (82) Femora with the front and middle ones blackened only in basal halves,
the hind ones entirely blackened, with the tibiae and tarsi also much
darkened or blackened above, the hind tarsi almost entirely dark, the
spines on legs whitish; scutellum predominantly black or dark, only
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 77
reddish across hind margin; pubescence with the bristly elements on
occiput, frons, antennae and face gleaming white, those on disc of thorax
and abdomen gleaming white, the bristly hairs on coxae sericeous whitish;
wings with the dark spots tending to be less distinct; antennal joint 1
slightly shorter, about 3 times as long as 2
$ auriferus var. melanus n. (p. 212).
84. (79) Pubescence without such characteristic, dense, matted, crinkly, non-
gleaming hairs on body above, whitish hair if present not crinkly or
woolly but more gleaming sericeous, with the bristly hairs and bristles
on body not gleaming golden or almost silvery whitish and not vividly
contrasting with the rest of the pubescence and, if gleaming golden,
without any background of dull frosty white crinkly pubescence; wings
without any distinct spot-like infuscations on the cross veins or other
veins ........... 85.
85. (102) Abdomen with the red more poorly developed, more inconspicuous,
only obscurely present on sides or narrowly across hind margins of last
2 or 3 tergites J86 <J<J
\96$$
86. (89) Eyes distinctly and fairly broadly or more broadly separated above by
width of broad front ocellus or front part of tubercle or by the tubercle
itself; pubescence longer and more shaggy, that on thorax without a
distinct cropped off appearance and that on abdomen longer; last few
tergites more distinctly margined with red . . . . .87.
87. (88) Smaller form, about 6-8 mm. long, with a wing-length of about 6-8 mm.;
head with the upper facets of eyes not markedly coarse, with the proboscis
much shorter, only about 3 mm. long; wings more hyaline and only
slightly subopaquely yellowish whitish at base, costal cell, and first basal
cell, not distinctly tinged yellowish in basal two-thirds and with the basal
comb less developed; pubescence predominantly whitish, more sericeous
whitish above, that on face and antennae also whitish, that on abdomen
towards apex with a pale sericeous yellowish sheen, with the transverse
bristly elements across abdomen, especially on sides towards apex,
darker and more reddish or brownish; legs with about 6-8 spines below
on hind femora, with the claws more gradually and arcuately curved
and the pulvilli slightly less developed . . <$ imitator n. sp. (p. 185).
88. (87) Larger and bulkier species, about 10 mm. long and with a wing-length of
about 9 mm. ; head with the upper facets of eyes rather markedly coarse
and the eyes rather large, with the proboscis much longer, about 5 J mm.
long; wings with the basal two-thirds distinctly tinged yellowish, the
base and costal cell more subopaquely yellowish and with the basal
comb distinctly larger; pubescence distinctly more gleaming sericeous
yellowish above, that on antennae and face also more sericeous yellowish,
that on abdomen on the whole more sericeous yellowish, that on body
below distinctly more contrasting in whiteness with that above, with
the transverse bristly elements on abdomen not tending to be darker
than rest of pubescence ; legs with about 1 1 spines below on hind femora,
with the claws distinctly more rapidly bent down, almost at right angles,
apically and the pulvilli slightly longer; hypopygium (text-fig. 46)
<$ latipectus n. sp. (p. 212).
78 Annals of the South African Museum.
89. (86) Eyes contiguous or subcontiguous above, touching or almost touching
in front of ocellar tubercle, and if very narrowly or almost linearly
separated the inner margins of eyes are contiguous or subcontiguous
and space is narrower than width of front ocellus ; pubescence distinctly
much shorter and with a cropped or shorn- off appearance on thorax, and
that on abdomen distinctly shorter and less shaggy; last few tergites
discally without or scarcely with reddish hind margins, but sides may be
sometimes distinctly reddish ....... 90.
90. (93) Femora distinctly blackened at bases or even more extensively to beyond
middle; head with the antennae entirely dark or black and joint 3 more
spindle-shaped, the face very dark or black and with the proboscis
entirely black and its labial part more distinctly and finely strigilose;
wings with the second longitudinal vein more rapidly bent up, almost at
right angles, at its end, with the first posterior cell tending to be more
angularly acute apically; abdomen with the reddish on sides, though
sometimes obscure, more developed; hypopygium with the beaked
apical joints less elongate and less narrowish . . . .91.
91. (90) Femora more extensively blackened to beyond middle and almost entire
hind ones also black, the hind ones with about 7-8 spines below; head
with the eyes in actual contact or touching at a point a little distance in
front of tubercle and with the inner margins then rapidly diverging
apically, with antennal joint 3 more rapidly attenuate and slender
beyond broadest part just before middle, with the proboscis shorter and
about 3£ mm. long, with the face slightly longer, more or less subequal
in length to combined antennal joints 1 and 2; wings with the discal
cross vein only just beyond middle of discoidal cell; pubescence on body
below more distinctly and more contrastingly whitish than the sericeous
yellowish pubescence above; abdomen with the reddish on sides of
tergites 2 and 3 more evident; hypopygium (text-fig. 48) with a distinct
apically projecting lobe-like process below aedeagus
$ muscoides n. sp. (p. 217).
92. (90) Femora with only the front and middle ones distinctly darkened to near
middle, the hind ones predominantly or almost entirely yellowish and
with about 10 spines below; head with the eyes linearly separated, the
space narrower than the front ocellus, the space really formed by con-
tiguous inner margins and about as long as ocellar tubercle before
diverging apically, with antennal joint 3 less rapidly attenuate and
thicker beyond broader part just before middle, with the proboscis
slightly longer and about 4 mm. long, with the face relatively much
shorter and shorter than combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2;
wings with the discal cross vein much beyond middle of discoidal cell;
pubescence on body below duller and more straw-coloured, becoming
gradually more yellowish towards upper part of pleurae and merging
into the sericeous yellowish pubescence above; abdomen with the reddish
on sides more obscure, more evident on sides apically; hypopygium
(text-fig. 47) without a distinct ventral aedeagal process
<$ inermis n. sp. (p. 214).
93. (90) Femora entirely yellowish; head with antennal joint 1 and sometimes
2 and 3 paler and yellowish, and joint 3 less spindle-shaped, the face,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 79
head below, and basal part of proboscis below pale and yellowish or
pallid, the labial part of proboscis not visibly strigilose; wings with the
second longitudinal vein more gradually curved up at its end and with
the first posterior cell less obviously acute apically; abdomen almost
without any red on sides; hypopygium with the beaked apical joints
distinctly longer and sometimes very elongate and narrowish . .94.
94. (95) Smaller form, about 6|-7 mm. long and with a wing-length of about
6-7 mm., less bulky; head with the face very short and even shorter
than combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, with the antennae
entirely yellowish, joint 3 being reddish yellow and less slenderly
attenuated apically, appearing more humped above before middle, with
the proboscis shorter and only about 3^-4 mm. long and more black
below; wings with the basal comb much feebler, the discal cross vein
nearer middle of discoidal cell, the base, costal cell, and first basal cell
more subopaquely whitish yellowish and the veins paler; pubescence
slightly more yellowish above, that towards apex of abdomen not very
much paler, that on body below only slightly paler and more straw-
coloured than above ; legs with the front femora unarmed and with only
about 4-6 spines on hind ones below, with the claws distinctly more
rapidly bent down, almost at right angles, near apex, and the pulvilli
reaching bent down apices; abdomen, if with reddish only so along-
extreme sides of venter below; hypopygium (text-fig. 42) with the
beaked apical joints very much shorter and less elongate
<J xanthocerus Bezz. (p. 200).
95. (94) Larger and bulkier form, about 10-11 mm. long, with a wing-length of
about 10-11 mm.; head with the face longer, more prominent, much
longer than combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, with antennal
joints 2 and 3 black, joint 3 more slenderly attenuated apically and not
so obviously humped above, the proboscis longer and about 5-5 J mm.
long and more yellowish below; wings with the basal comb more strongly
and conspicuously developed, the discal cross vein much beyond middle
of discoidal cell, with the base, costal cell, and first basal cell more yellowish
and the veins more reddish brown; pubescence slightly or tending to
be paler, more creamy yellowish above, that in front of wings and on
sides of abdomen more ochreous or deeper yellowish in certain lights,
that towards apical part distinctly gleaming paler and more sericeous
whitish, that on pectus and body low more distinctly whitish; legs with
about 1-3 spines on front femora below and about 9-14 spines on hind
ones below, with the claws more slender, distinctly more gradually and
more arcuately curved, and with the pulvilli scarcely, or about, reaching
middle of claws; abdomen with the sides of tergite 1 sometimes reddish:
hypopygium (text-fig. 43) with the beaked apical joints very elongate,
slender, and narrow .'...<£ karooensis n. sp. (p. 201).
(Syn. = ruficeps Bezz. nee Macq.)
96. (99) Claws distinctly more gradually or more arcuately curved, with the
pulvilli on the whole less developed, scarcely reaching, or just extending
beyond, middle of claws ; head with the face relatively longer and slightly
or much longer than combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, with
the proboscis more extensively or distinctly reddish below, with the
80 Annals of the South African Museum.
interocular space on vertex relatively broader and distinctly more than
2 times the combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2; wings with the
basal comb larger and more developed; pubescence with the bristly
elements across hind margins of abdomen tending to be darker, either
deeper golden or more brownish, especially at their bases, than the rest
of the pubescence . . . . . . . . .97.
97. (98) Smaller and less bulky species, about 6-8 mm. long and with a wing-
length of about 6-8 mm.; pubescence distinctly much longer and more
shaggy, especially on abdomen, that on thorax above without a cropped-
off appearance, distinctly paler, sericeous whitish to pale sericeous
yellowish above, that on abdomen paler even if yellowish, that below
more markedly whitish and contrasting even with that above, with
the bristly transverse elements on abdomen tending to be markedly
or even conspicuously darker and more brownish especially towards
apical part of abdomen; abdomen with the hind margins of tergites
3 or 4-6 reddish and tergite 7 almost entirely reddish and a longitudinal
band across pleurae also reddish, the margins of tergites 5 and 6 usually
more broadly reddish; proboscis shorter than 5 mm.; hind femora with
only about 6-8 spines below . . $ imitator n. sp. (p. 185).
98. (97) Larger and bulkier species, about 10-11 mm. long and with a wing-
length of about 10-11 mm.; pubescence distinctly much shorter and less
shaggy, that on disc of thorax with a shorn off appearance and that on
abdomen very much shorter, not bushy or shaggy, distinctly more
yellowish to even deep golden yellowish above and even deeper yellowish
in front of wings and on sides of abdomen, not much paler apically, that
on body below, though paler, not so frosty white and not contrasting
markedly with that above, being more creamy whitish or yellowish, with
the transverse bristly elements on abdomen shorter, denser, and gleaming
golden, only their apices more gleaming sericeous whitish, the rest of
pubescence on abdomen above shorter than bristly elements; abdomen
practically with only the hind margins of tergites 6 and 7 and sometimes
sides of tergite 1 reddish and the pleurae more diffusely reddish and more
so on sternopleuron ; proboscis longer, about 5-5^ mm. long; hind femora
with more numerous spines, about 9-14, below
$ Jcarooensis n. sp. (p. 201).
99. (96) Claws distinctly more rapidly bent down, almost at right angles, nearer
apex, with the pul villi longer and just reaching bent down apices of claws;
head with the face relatively shorter and subequal to or distinctly
shorter to combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, with the proboscis
entirely black or only obscurely reddish below at extreme base, with
the interocular space distinctly relatively narrower, only about 2, or
distinctly much less, times combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2;
wings with the basal comb much reduced; pubescence with the bristly
elements across hind margins of tergites not deeper yellowish than rest
of pubescence .......... 100.
100. (101) Head with antennal joints 2 and 3 black, with joint 3 not very spindle-
shaped, broadened basally and gradually narrowed apically, the apical
part not very slender, with the proboscis shorter, less than 3 mm. long,
with the face only yellowish in front; scutellum with a large triangular
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 81
black spot basally, the hind margins of last few tergites and those of
sternites more narrowly yellowish or pallid, the extreme sides of tergites
below also pallid; wings with the second longitudinal vein distinctly
more rapidly curved up at its end, almost at right angles; pubescence
distinctly paler above, very pale lemon yellowish and with sericeous
gleams to almost whitish sericeous, that on body below scarcely paler
than above, that on antennal joint 1 and face shorter and sparser; hind
femora with only about 4 spines below in apical half
$ damarensis n. sp. (p. 207).
101. (100) Head with all the antennal joints yellowish, joint 3 more reddish
yellow, somewhat spindle-shaped, more attenuated apically and appearing
somewhat humped above at broadest part just before middle, with the
proboscis longer, about 3|-4 mm. long and sometimes slightly reddened
below at extreme base, with the entire face and head below pallid;
scutellum entirely or predominantly yellowish and with the hind margins
of last few tergites and the hind margins of sternites more broadly
yellowish; wings with the second longitudinal vein less rapidly curved
up at end; pubescence more yellowish to golden yellowish above, that
on pleurae creamy or very pale yellowish and towards pectus thus
distinctly paler than above, that on antennae and face denser and longer;
hind femora with about 4-6 spines from just before middle to apex
below ......$ xanthocerus Bezz. (p. 200).
102. (85) Abdomen with the red very conspicuously and extensively developed,
especially in <$<$, and also very broadly and conspicuously across hind
margins of most of the tergites and on sides in $$, the abdomen being
almost entirely or predominantly red in some cases . . J 103. <$$
\l07. ?$
103. (106) Head with the eyes contiguous or in contact above in front of ocellar
tubercle for a short distance, with antennal joint 1 distinctly shorter,
only about 2, or a very little more, times as long as 2, not much dark-
ened ; pubescence much paler, very pale sericeous yellowish or gleaming
sericeous whitish above, that on abdomen also paler or with much paler
sericeous gleams, that on body below also markedly frosty whitish, that
on antennae and face sericeous whitish; abdomen with the reddish hind
margins of tergites also discally more developed; legs with the femora
darkened or blackened at bases or even to beyond middle, or at least
distinctly dark at extreme bases ....... 104.
104. (105) Head with antennal joint 1 shorter, scarcely 2 times as long as 2,
with joint 2 longer than broad, with 3 almost spindle-shaped, broadest
just before middle, then rapidly attenuated apically, with the face
relatively shorter, with the eyes in contact above for a distance nearly
as long as tubercle, with the proboscis about 3-3|- mm. long and visibly
finely strigilose below; pubescence more uniformly sericeous whitish to
pale sericeous yellowish above ; abdomen with the red on sides of tergites
2 and 3 much broader ; wings with the first posterior cell distinctly more
angularly acute apically; legs with the femora more extensively darkened
or blackened to middle or even much beyond middle, and even hind
femora may be extensively blackened, with the claws distinctly more
rapidly bent down, almost at right angles, nearer apex, and with the
82 Annals of the South African Museum.
pul villi longer and reaching bent apices of claws; hypopygium (text-
fig. 48) with the beaked apical joints distinctly shorter, broader, and
more leaf-shaped, with a distinct lobe-like process below aedeagus
$ muscoides n. sp. (p. 217).
(Some forms of it.)
105. (104) Head with antennal joint 1 longer, a little more than 2 times as long
as joint 2, with 2 transverse, not elongate, with 3 not spindle-shaped,
only gradually broadened basally, more rod-like, with the face distinctly
longer, with the eyes in contact for a shorter distance in front of tubercle,
with the proboscis longer, about 3£-4-|- mm., and not visibly strigilose
below; pubescence sericeous whitish on occiput and thorax above,
becoming distinctly more creamy yellowish to gleaming sericeous yellowish
on abdomen and scutellum, the bristly elements on scutellum and abdomen
more gleaming golden yellowish, that on body below also whitish ;
abdomen with the hind margins reddish, broadened on sides but not
very broad on sides of tergites 2 and 3; wings with the first posterior
cell normal apically; legs with the femora almost entirely yellowish,
only the extreme bases of front and middle ones slightly darkened, with
the claws distinctly more gradually or arcuately curved, and with the
pulvilli not reaching bent down apices of claws; hypopygium (text-
fig. 50) with the beaked apical joints elongate and narrowish and without
any process below aedeagus . . $ pruinosulus n. sp. (p. 224).
106. (103) Head with the eyes separated above by width of front part of ocellar
tubercle, with antennal joint 1 distinctly longer, about 3-4 times as
long as 2, more darkened or even blackened above ; pubescence distinctly
more yeUowish, pale golden to deep golden yellowish above, that on ab-
domen also deep golden yellowish and with more golden gleams, that on
body below only a little paler yellowish or straw-coloured yellowish and
not frosty whitish, that on venter even very pale sericeous yellowish in
some specimens, that on antennae and face gleaming golden yellowish;
abdomen with the hind margins of tergites discally not reddish or more
narrowly and inconspicuously reddish, only distinctly reddish on sides
or even broadly reddish on sides; legs entirely yellowish; hypopygium
(text-fig. 49) dpaterculus Walk. (p. 220).
107. (112) Head with the interocular space distinctly narrower, subequal to, or
only a little broader than, length of antennal joint 3, not 1£ times as
long, with the frons thus also narrower, with antennal joint 1 shorter,
only about 2 times as long as 2, relatively thicker, with 2 slightly less
transverse and usually longer than broad, with joint 3 distinctly more
spindle-shaped, broadest just before middle, slightly narrowed basally
and more rapidly apically, sometimes appearing slightly humped above
at broadest part; wings with a tendency for first posterior cell to be more
acute apically; abdomen with the red on sides usually more extensively
developed, and if less developed interocular space at least is narrower;
front tarsi tending to be more thickened, and if not interocular space is
narrow ........... 108.
108. (109) Red on body more conspicuously and extensively developed, present
as ;l large dill use spot on each side of vertex on anterior part of frons,
antenna] joints 1 and 2, the entire face and head below, greater part of
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 83
proboscis below, on the humeral part and even sides of thorax, on the
post-alar calli, the greater part of scutellum, almost the entire pleurae,
on the hind margins of all the tergites very broadly, the entire sides of
abdomen, and even entire apical half of abdomen above, and almost the
entire venter; wings with the discal cross vein at about middle or much
nearer middle of discoidal cell, and with the basal comb very small; legs
with only about 4-5 spines on hind femora below, with the front tarsal
joints not markedly thickened; proboscis not so visibly strigilose below
$ rufescens n. sp. (p. 216).
109. (108) Red on body not so extensively developed, not present on all these
sites, and not to the same conspicuous extent on abdomen or on pleurae,
much black being present on pleurae and abdomen, and frons almost
entirely black; wings with the discal cross vein distinctly, or even much,
beyond middle of discoidal cell and the basal comb larger; legs with
more than 5 spines on hind femora below, with the front tarsal joints
remarkably and conspicuously thickened; proboscis distinctly more
visibly and finely strigilose below . . . . . .110.
110. (Ill) Head with the interocular space slightly narrower', distinctly less than
2 times combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, with the frons thus
narrower and inner margins of eyes almost subparallel, with antennal
joint 3 distinctly more spindle-shaped and more rapidly attenuated
apically, with the proboscis more visibly strigilose below and only about
3 mm. long, with the face tending to be only reddish anteriorly; abdomen
with the red or reddish less extensively developed, that on sides, even if
conspicuous, less broad and not broadly quadrate, and the hind margins
tending to be less broadly red, and pleurae with less red; wings with a
distinct tendency for first posterior cell to be more distinctly or markedly
angularly acute apically; pubescence on the whole tending to be paler
above, very pale sericeous yellowish, and with even more whitish sericeous
gleams in some specimens, that on body below apparently whiter to
frosty whitish ; hind femora with about 7-9 spines below
$ muscoides n. sp. (p. 217).
111. (110) Head with the interocular space relatively broader, quite 2 times
combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, the frons thus slightly
broader and the inner margins of eyes slightly more diverging anteriorly,
with antennal joint 3 slightly less spindle-shaped and slightly less rapidly
narrowed apically, with the proboscis apparently even more finely
strigilose below and about 3^-4|- mm. long, with the face more extensively
yellowish or reddish; abdomen with the red on sides very extensively
and broadly developed, a broad more or less quadrangular salmon red
or reddish patch on each side of tergites 2-4 being conspicuous and
extending even discally, and the reddish hind margins discally also
sometimes tending to be broader and also with more red on pleurae;
wings with the first posterior cell on the whole less angularly acute
apically and sometimes even normal; pubescence on the whole deeper
yellowish sericeous or golden yellowish above, that on pleurae also more
straw-coloured, less markedly white; hind femora with about 8-12
spines below . . . . . . $ Iransitus n. sp. (p. 222).
112. (107) Head with the interocular space distinctly broader, distinctly much
84 Annals of the South African Museum.
broader than length of antennal joint 3, at least 1£ times as long, with
the frons thus much broader, with antennal joint 1 distinctly longer,
about 2^-3, or even a little more, times as long as 2, with 2 more transverse
and not longer than broad, with joint 3 not spindle-shaped, more rod-
like, tapering gradually from a broadened base; wings with the first
posterior cell more normally obtuse apically; abdomen with the red
on sides, though sometimes broadish, tending to be less extensively
developed, only the hind margins on sides of tergites being broader than
discally; front tarsi less markedly thickened . . . .113.
113. (114) Claws distinctly more rapidly bent down, almost at right angles,
nearer apex, the pulvilli appearing longer; pubescence on body above
distinctly more yellowish, golden yellowish to deep golden yellowish,
that on frons, antennae, and face distinctly more golden yellowish, that
on pleurae and pectus more straw-coloured yellowish to pale creamy
yellowish; red on abdomen, especially on sides, across hind margins
broader and more extensive, with a longitudinal reddish band along
pleurae, and to a certain extent lower part of mesopleuron is also reddish,
with the scutellum almost entirely reddish; wings with the veins darker
and more dark brownish and the basal comb smaller; smaller species,
less bulky, about 5-8 mm. long and with a wing-length of about 5|-8 mm.
$ paterculus Walk. (p. 220).
114. (113) Claws distinctly more gradually or arcuately curved, the pulvilli
appearing shorter; pubescence distinctly paler and gleaming more
sericeous whitish on occiput and thorax above, even that on abdomen
gleaming more whitish or very pale sericeous yellowish in certain lights,
the depressed hair-like scaling and fine pubescence on abdomen above
whitish, the transverse bristles more golden but their apices gleaming
more whitish, pubescence on frons, face and antennae gleaming more
sericeous whitish but with paler yellowish tints, that on body below
distinctly more frosty whitish, especially on head below and pectus;
red on hind margins of tergites not conspicuously broadened on sides,
the red on sides thus less extensive, the red on pleurae absent or much
reduced, and the scutellum with a much broader black base; wings with
the veins more reddish or yellowish brown and on the whole paler, with
the basal comb larger; slightly larger and more bulky species, about
8-9 mm. long and with a wing-length of about 8-9 mm.
$ pruinosulus n. sp. (p. 224).
115. (78) Integument of body reddish brown or muddy brown and entire abdomen
muddy brown, reddish brown to ochreous or sienna brownish; wings
with a distinct subopacity and whitish tint . . . . .116.
116. (117) Larger and bulkier species, about 10 mm. long and with a wing-length
of about 9 mm.; legs with denser and longer hairs on femora, with more
numerous, about 14-16, spines on hind femora below, with the claws
more slender, distinctly more gradually and arcuately curved, the pulvilli
distinctly shorter and not reaching apices of claws; head with the eyes
very narrowly separated above in $ by a space as wide as front ocellus,
with the face distinctly longer and more prominent, much longer than
combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, with joint 3 more rod-like,
tapering to apex, the basal element of terminal style longer and more
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 85
developed, with the proboscis longer, about 5 mm. long; pubescence
distinctly paler and more sericeous whitish on thorax in front, becoming
very faintly and feebly pale sericeous yellowish discally and on
scutellum, that on abdomen more sericeous whitish, the elements
transversely across hind margins tinted slightly pale yellowish in certain
lights, the pubescence on mesopleuron almost lemon yellowish, that on
body below also more or less gleaming sericeous whitish, the metapleural
tuft, hair on coxae, and on head below tending to be more contrastingly
whitish; wings on the whole with a more distinct whitish subopacity,
and the first posterior cell not tending to be angularly acute apically;
entire body sienna or muddy brownish, the thorax more reddish brownish,
without any conspicuous ivory whitish or yellowish hind margins to
tergites; hypopygium (text-fig. 51) with the beaked apical joints elongate
and narrow, without any process below aedeagus
<$ pallescens n. sp. (p. 226).
L17. (116) Smaller and less bulky species, about 7-8 mm. long and with a wing-
length of about 7 mm.; legs with sparser and shorter hairs on femora
below in $$, with fewer and only about 3-4 slender spines below on
hind femora, with the claws distinctly more rapidly bent down, almost
at right angles, nearer apex, the pulvilli distinctly longer and reaching
bent-down apices of claws; head with the eyes in <$<$ contiguous above
for a short distance in front of tubercle, with the face much shorter, less
prominent, slightly shorter than combined length of antennal joints 1
and 2, with joint 3 more spindle-shaped, broadest just before middle,
narrowed basally and more rapidly narrowed apically, with the terminal
basal element of style small, with the proboscis shorter and only about
2-2i mm. long; pubescence distinctly more yellowish or sericeous
yellowish above, even in c?cJ, that towards apex of abdomen in <$<$
tending to become more creamy yellowish, more sericeous yellowish or
golden in $$, that below in both sexes very pale, straw-coloured whitish
to yellowish and even on pectus less markedly whitish; wings with a
feebler whitish subopacity and with the first posterior cell tending to
be angularly acute apically, especially in £<$; abdomen and scutellum
more reddish brown, and rest of body slightly darker brownish and with
conspicuous ivory whitish hind margins on tergites which become slightly
broader apically and on sides and with the extreme sides of tergites pallid;
hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 52) with the beaked apical joints very much
shorter, broader, and more leaf-shaped, with a distinct medial, lobe-like
process ventrally below aedeagus . $ $ annuliventris n. sp. (p. 228).
D. (A) Pubescence on body more conspicuous, much longer, even markedly long,
giving the insects a markedly shaggy, bushy, puff-like, or brush-like
appearance, that on abdomen markedly long and shaggy, that on sides
and apical parts shaggy or tuft-like, that on first antennal joints, face,
and especially on lower parts of genae long and bushy and usually with
very conspicuous, long, stoutish bristles or bristly elements, the pubes-
cence on thorax rarely not shaggy, with the bristles on abdomen long,
stout, and usually very conspicuous and those on thorax also well
developed; wings with the discoidal cell usually distinctly more truncate
apically, the apical cross vein being long, more often with an extensive
VOL. XXXTV. 7
86 Annals of the South African Museum.
pattern of dark infuscations, large spots, or with a system of spots or
distinct spot-like infuscations on cross veins and along or on other veins,
the wings sometimes appearing mottled and, if without extensive in-
fuscations, the cross veins are at least spotted and pubescence on body
is long and very shaggy, with the squamal fringe usually longer and with
distinct stiffer bristly elements and with the basal comb strongly
developed; eyes in <$<$ always separated above by at least width of
ocellar tubercle and sometimes by a space distinctly broader than
tubercle, with the upper facets of eyes scarcely, or only slightly, coarser
than lower ones; frons in $$ more convex and usually without a distinct
depression; antennal joint 3 usually longer, more distinctly and markedly
attenuated apically, rod-like in only a few species; legs with the claws
less curved, less markedly sickle-shaped, often almost straight or at
least straighter, and with the pulvilli poorly developed and confined to
base of claws in $$, scarcely reaching middle of claws in majority of <$<$,
long in only a few <$$ and even entirely absent in some $$ and $$;
hypopygium of <$$ with the beaked apical joints usually shorter, com-
paratively very much broadened basally, more often leaf-shaped, almost
always distinctly and deeply foveately depressed above, rarely elongate.
1. (Group 3.)
1. (66) Wings more infuscated, mottled, or extensively spotted, or if more hyaline
with more distinct and more conspicuous spots or spot-like infuscations
on cross veins of basal cells, at fork of second and third longitudinal
veins, at bases of veins between discoidal and third posterior cells and
between submarginal cells, on apical cross vein of discoidal cell, and
sometimes at apex of first posterior cell or even near ends of other veins
in posterior part of wings, with the discal cross vein distinctly beyond
or much beyond middle of discoidal cell, and if at about middle wings are
extensively spotted; head with distinctly longer, more numerous, and
more conspicuous bristles, those on antennal joint 1 below long and
conspicuous, usually very much longer than the joint, with more numerous
and longer bristles on face in front, on genae and with a brush or tuft
of more numerous, longer, and more conspicuous ones on lower parts of
genae, with antennal joint 1 thickened, incrassate, or even barrel or
sub-barrel shaped, and if slender with at least long bristles or with more
numerous bristles on face and genae, with antennal joint 3 usually more
slender, with a more slender apical part or half, rarely rod-shaped, and
if so with joint 1 incrassate or with more and longer bristles on joint 1;
general pubescence on body longer, more shaggy or bushy, appearing
less fine, that on abdomen usually longer, more recumbent, more bushy,
and with longer bristles, the pubescence not tending to be erect and
puff-like on abdomen, that on squamal fringe longer and with distinct,
more numerous and longer intermixed bristles or bristly elements;
scutellum black in majority, red or reddish in only a few; pulvilli in $$
extending beyond, reaching middle or just falling short of middle of
daws and much reduced and confined to base of claws in $$, rarely very
vestigia] or almost absent in both sexes, and when vestigial antennal
joint I is incrassate and bristles on face and genae are well developed,
with the claws usually less slender and more curved . . .2.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 87
2. (23) Wings with the anterior half up to end of costal cell, or end of marginal
cell, darkly infuscated yellowish brown, reddish brown, brownish to
very dark blackish brown or black, with this infuscation distinctly well
marked off or sharply marked off and delimited from posterior hyaline
or more hyaline part, without any conspicuous, large, rounded spots
in apical and posterior part, or without smaller, but outstanding and
contrasting spots on cross veins and bases of other veins in posterior
part, and when such spots are present they are situated along hind
border of infuscated anterior part or are only present as inconspicuous
infuscations along some of the posterior veins and are fewer, smaller,
and less outstanding . . . . . . . . .3.
3. (16) Wings with the anterior infuscated part usually paler and, when dark,
then with more brownish, not markedly very dark brownish black or
black, with the darker infuscations or spots on apical cross veins of second
basal and discoidal cells faint or at least not conspicuous and contrasting
and rarely with a distinct infuscation at base of second submarginal
cell, thus without 3 large conspicuous, outstanding, rounded black spots
along hind border of the anterior infuscated part, without an infuscation
at end of vein between submarginal cells, also without distinct, small,
rounded spots on veins in posterior hyaline part, these, when present,
very indistinct and in form of slight infuscations along some of the veins ;
pubescence on body predominantly pale sericeous yellowish or whitish,
pale yellowish or ochreous or even reddish, but with much yellowish,
brownish yellow to brownish golden hair intermixed on head and thorax,
with the bristles on lower parts of genae entirely whitish, yellowish, pale
reddish brown or reddish, and usually without any black bristles on upper
parts of genae; claws, in <$<$ at least, comparatively shorter, with the
apices not rapidly bent downwards, and with the pulvilli shorter, scarcely
or just reaching the middle of claws, but not extending much beyond
middle; hypopygium of (J<J with a prominent rim below at base
of aedeagus, but without a central carinate, ploughshare -like process
below aedeagus .......... 4.
4. (9) Legs entirely yellowish, the femora scarcely darkened basally; black bristly
hairs or bristles on body less developed and less conspicuous, the head
without any black bristles on frons, antennae, and sides of face, or with
only a few and inconspicuous intermixed ones, and with the black
bristles and hairs towards apex and sides of abdomen and on venter
absent or distinctly less developed and less conspicuous, with the basal
comb also predominantly or entirely yellowish, ochreous, or reddish
5.
5. (6) Bristles on occiput, frons, on antennae, face, on genae, thorax above and
laterally, on pleurae, in metapleural tuft, on scutellum and on abdomen
above, on coxae as well as the hairs in more or less 3 stripes on thorax
predominantly or entirely cadmium red to almost scarlet red, giving
the front part of body a red or purplish red appearance; pubescence on
thorax in $ at least shorter and with a shorn-off appearance; wings with
the anterior infuscated part more uniformly opaquely ochreous or
reddish, without the upper part in basal half of first basal cell or the
costal cell being paler yellowish white or opaquely whitish, with the
88 Annals of the South African Museum.
infuscations on cross veins fainter and less distinct, with the basal comb
distinctly smaller and the squamae fringed with much reddish hair
cJ $ purpureus Bezz. (p. 231).
6. (5) All these bristles whitish, pale sericeous yellowish or ochreous yellowish like
rest of the hair and, when 3 stripes are present on thorax, they are com-
posed of brownish, ochreous, or slightly orange golden pubescence;
pubescence on thorax, even in $<$, distinctly longer, with a less shorn-off
appearance; wings with the anterior infuscated part more yellowish
or yellowish brown, not uniform, but with a distinctly paler, pale
yellowish white or opaquely whitish, elongated spot along upper basal
part of first basal cell, with the infuscations on cross veins distinctly
darker and more conspicuous, with the basal comb yellowish or ochreous
yellow and more developed, and the squamae fringed with whitish or
ochreous yellowish hair . . . . . . . .7.
7. (8) Pubescence on body predominantly ochreous yellow to ochreous golden,
more creamy on abdomen in $, with the stouter bristles on head and
antennae entirely yellowish or brownish yellow, without black ones,
with distinctly fewer and often without any conspicuous black hairs
and bristles ventrolaterally towards apex of abdomen and on sides in
both sexes; antennal joint 3, especially in $, broadest just before middle,
more rapidly narrowed apically and with only about the apical third
slender; proboscis shorter, about 4-4£ mm. long; wings with the
infuscated part more yellowish, the opaquely whitish spot in first basal
cell less conspicuous, with the basal comb more ochreous and without
any very dark or black intermixed spines, with the squamal fringe creamy
yellowish to yellowish; halteres with paler and more yellowish knobs;
hind femora with fewer spines, about 7-9, below; hypopygium of $
(text-fig. 54) $ $ darlingi n. sp. (p. 233).
8. (7) Pubescence on body predominantly very pale sericeous yellowish, even on
abdomen of <$, and, if ochreous hairs are present, they are not predominant
over entire body, with that on propleurae distinctly more sericeous
whitish, with the stouter bristles on head and antennae having a few
or even a large number of black intermixed ones, with the black ones
towards apex of abdomen, even in <$, distinctly more numerous and
conspicuous; antennal joint 3 in both sexes slightly longer, broadest
much before middle or even near base, then distinctly more gradually
attenuated apically, the apical slender part also being much longer,
quite half, or even more, the length of joint; proboscis distinctly longer,
longer than 4£ mm.; wings with the anterior infuscation tending to be
more pale brownish yellow, with the whitish opaque spot in first basal
cell more evident, with the basal comb usually more yellowish and often
with darker and even black spines, with the squamal fringe either entirely
whitish or in part creamy yellowish; halteres with more brownish or
brown knobs; hind femora usually with more than 9 spines below;
hypopygium of <J (text-fig. 53) . . . $ $ micans F. (p. 230).
9. (4) Legs willi the femora always darkened below or basally, even extensively
to beyond middle; black bristly hairs or bristles on body more numerous,
more developed, and always more conspicuous, the head always with
more numerous and conspicuous black bristles on f rons, antennae and face
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 89
or sides of face, with the black bristly hairs or bristles on abdomen
laterally towards apex and on venter below always conspicuously
developed, those laterally towards apex appearing tuft-like, with the
basal comb entirely or predominantly black . . . . .10.
10. (11) Antennal joint 3 broadest much before middle and neaier base, from there
very gradually attenuated apically, the apical slender part being very
long, even in $; wings with the anterior infuscation scarcely extending
beyond end of costal cell or only very slightly, with the greater part
of the apical part of marginal cell entirely hyaline, without any distinct
infuscations along veins in posterior hyaline part, especially at bases of
second submarginal and third posterior cells, and with the elongated
whitish opaque spot at bases of first and second basal cells and even in
the costal cell more conspicuously evident and visible; pubescence on
body above more gleaming and resplendent, sericeous whitish to yellowish,
with the 3 stripes of golden brownish hair on thorax, in $ especially, more
conspicuous and more enhanced by the silvery stripes separating them;
larger and often distinctly more bulky species, ranging from 10-15 mm.
in length and with a wing-length of about 10-16 mm.
$ $ hypoleucus Wied.
(And its numerous forms) (p. 232).
11. (10) Antennal joint 3 broadest at about middle or even before middle, especially
in $$, from there more rapidly narrowed apically, the apical third or
fourth being very slender; wings with the anterior infuscation always
extending distinctly beyond costal cell, even to end of marginal cell,
only the extreme apical part of this latter cell being more or less hyaline,
often with some distinct, though feeble, infuscations in posterior part
and always with a slight, or even distinct, infuscation at bases of second
submarginal and third posterior cells, and with the whitish or yellowish
white opaque spots at bases of first and second basal cells or in costal cell
less conspicuous or even scarcely evident; pubescence on body above
duller in appearance, less resplendent or gleaming, but also whitish
yellowish to yellow, with the 3 darker stripes on thorax less conspicuously
visible and the rest of the hair on thorax less resplendent; smaller and
on the whole less bulky species, with an average length of body less than
11 mm. and with a wing-length of about 5^-11 mm. . . .12.
12. (13) Pubescence predominantly yellowish to golden yellowish, that in 3 stripes
on thorax golden, only the sides gleaming more sericeous whitish, that
on sides of thorax in front of wings fulvous to orange golden, that
on abdomen above pale yellowish sericeous in <J, slightly more golden
in $, with the stouter bristles on head and even on genae (excepting
the black ones on frons, antennae, and sides of face), and on thorax
more distinctly yellowish, some on sides of thorax in $ brownish,
with the bristly hairs on upper parts of pleurae, in metapleural tuft
and on lower parts of pleurae, coxae, sides of abdomen and venter
below golden, only the middle part above front coxae, the head below
and often upper part of metapleural tuft white-haired, with the black
hair laterally below on abdomen and on sides posteriorly more extensive
and more conspicuous; wings distinctly broader, with the infuscated
part more reddish brown, with the bases of first basal and costal cells less
90 Annals of the South African Museum.
whitish opaque; antennal joint 3 slightly longer and, in $ especially,
with the apical part more slender, shorter, and more rapidly attenuated ;
femora less extensively blackened, only at bases or in basal halves;
hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 56); slightly bulkier and more compact
species . . . . . . <$ $ melanurus Lw. (p. 236).
13. (12) Pubescence, from side, predominantly whitish or sericeous whitish to
very pale sericeous yellowish, that on thorax above pale golden to brownish
golden, that on sides of thorax very pale yellowish or brownish, not
orange golden, the bristles there being reddish brown or pale yellowish,
that on abdomen paler or straw-coloured yellowish or slightly yellowish
sericeous, not deeply golden, with yellowish reflections in $, in certain
lights, with the bristles on head, excluding black ones, those on thorax
and scutellum whitish or much paler yellowish or darker brownish to
reddish brown, with the hair on pleurae, those intermixed on sides of
abdomen basally more extensively or even entirely whitish, with the
bristly hairs on coxae straw-coloured yellowish or brownish, not golden,
and lower part of metapleural tuft straw-coloured yellowish or brownish,
with the black hair on abdomen slightly less extensive and less con-
spicuous; wings distinctly narrower and more elongate, with the infusca-
tion either very pale yellowish brown or very dark, almost blackish
brown, without a reddish tinge, less uniform, but with the whitish or
pale yellowish white opaque spot in first basal cell and costal cell more
evident or even rery distinct and often with the infuscation at bases of
second submarginal and third posterior cells more distinct; antennal
joint 3 distinctly shorter and in $$ with the slender apical part slightly
longer; femora distinctly more extensively blackened, almost entirely
so or to very much beyond middle; hypopygium of <$<$ (text-fig. 55);
slightly narrower and more elongate and on the whole smaller species
14.
14. (15) Pubescence on body appearing paler, with the bristles paler, more whitish
to pale yellowish, those on occiput, thorax, sides of thorax, in lower part
of metapleural tuft and on coxae straw-coloured yellowish to very pale
yellowish, with comparatively fewer black bristles on frons, antennae,
and sides of face, those on genae always pale or even whitish, with the
hair on abdomen in $ gleaming pale yellowish sericeous or even whitish
in certain lights; wings with the anterior infuscation paler and often
more yellowish brown, with the apical part of marginal cell more ex-
tensively hyaline, with the infuscations at bases of second submarginal
and third posterior cells less distinct, often scarcely visible, with a
tendency for first posterior cell to be narrow, elongate, and much longer
than second posterior cell; antennal joint 3 in ? at least with a tendency
for the slender apical part to be slightly longer
c? $ hirtus Lw. (p. 235).
(Western forms.)
15. (14) Pubescence on body appearing darker, but actually also predominantly
sericeous whitish, but with the bristles on front part of body reddish
brown, golden brown to brownish, those on occiput, thorax and especially
on sides of thorax, in lower part of metapleural tuft and on coxae reddish
brown to brownish, with distinctly more numerous and more extensive
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 91
black bristles on frons, antennae, and sides of face, those on genae always
with some brownish tipped ones or pale reddish brown intermixed ones,
the hair on abdomen in $ with a more bronzy or brownish golden sheen
in certain lights; wings with the anterior infuscation much darker, very
dark blackish brown, also more extensive in apical part of marginal cell,
often occupying entire apex and with more distinct infuscations at bases
of second submarginal and third posterior cells and often also along
apical cross vein of discoidal cell, with the first posterior cell usually
broader and shorter, subequal to or only slightly longer than second
posterior cell; antennal joint 3 in $ at least with the slender apical part
less slender and slightly shorter . <$ $ hirtus Lw. s. str. (p. 235).
(Eastern forms.)
16. (3) Wings with the anterior infuscation or infuscated part much darker, very
dark blackish brown to blackish, with the spots on apical cross veins
of second basal and discoidal cells and at base of second submarginal
cell much darker, larger, more rounded and more conspicuous, prominently
visible as a row of 3 conspicuous spots along hind border of anterior
infuscation, usually with a distinct infuscation at apex of vein separating
submarginal cells, rarely without more distinct and more rounded, small
spots on veins in posterior part of wing or at least on some of these;
pubescence on body predominantly white, with a silvery whitish sheen,
but with numerous dark or black bristles on front part and much black
hair on abdomen below, with the bristles on lower part of genae more
often with a few black intermixed ones and always with some black
bristly hairs along its upper parts; claws, in <$$ at least, comparatively
very elongate, their apices more rapidly bent downwards and with the
pulvilli much longer, extending to much beyond middle of claws; hypo-
pygium of <$<$ with a distinct, central, ventral, carinate process below
aedeagus in its basal half, often projecting forwards like a ploughshare
17.
17. (22) Spines on legs distinctly very dark blackish brown or black; pubescence
discally on thorax with numerous and often conspicuous dark or brownish
hairs, with the stout bristles on abdomen above darker, dark brownish,
reddish brown to black, though some towards the apex may also be paler
and more yellowish, with the pubescence on venter yellowish or brownish
yellow, with very little white and with the black hair on sides of abdomen
and at apex distinctly denser and more conspicuous, with the hair just
above wing-bases, especially in $, more often yellowish to brownish
yellow; wings without any black spots in posterior part or with only 2
or 3 comparatively small ones at apex of first posterior cell and at bases
of second and third posterior cells, with the middle part of first sub-
marginal cell (between the 2 large black spots) entirely infuscated or
distinctly less hyaline ; antennal joint 3 more slender and more attenuated
and slender in about apical third; aedeagus in <$$ (text-fig. 57) with a
short central, carinate process ventrally in basal half, scarcely projecting
apically ........... 18.
18. (19) Wings without any spots in posterior hyaline part or with only a feeble
infuscation at base of fourth posterior cell; genae and lower parts of genae
always with some, or a good few, intermixed, black bristles; bristles
92 Annals of the South African Museum.
on abdomen above with very dark brownish to blackish ones, only those
at apex being slightly paler, those on front coxae also with distinct dark
brownish or blackish intermixed ones; hair above wings on each side of
thorax more brownish yellow, and hair on squamae yellowish brown and
the bristles on front part of thorax darker and more brownish
<J ? servillei Macq. (p. 237).
(Namaqualand and Karoo forms.)
19. (18) Wings always with black spots in posterior part, either on all three sites
or, if only on one, this spot is larger and more distinct; genae and lower
parts of genae without any black bristles or with only 2 or 3 black ones;
bristles on abdomen above paler, more pale brownish to brownish, the
apical ones often paler or with more distinct pale tips, those on front
coxae yellowish to pale yellowish brown; hair above wings on each side
of thorax paler yellowish or very pale, and squamal fringe whitish to
creamy, and the bristles on front part of thorax also distinctly paler and
more pale yellowish . . . . . . . . .20.
20. (21) Wings with 3 distinct infuscations in posterior hyaline part; genae and
front coxae without any dark or blackish bristles; bristles on abdomen
above in middle part darker brownish . $ ? servillei Macq. (p. 238).
(S. Cape and S. Karoo forms.)
21. (20) Wings usually with only 2 infuscations in posterior part, an indistinct
one at apex of first posterior cell and a large distinct one at base of fourth
posterior cell; lower parts of genae and front coxae sometimes with 2
or 3 dark or blaclrish bristles; bristles on abdomen above often much
paler and even more yellowish in middle part
<J ? servillei Macq. (p. 238).
(Western and Eastern Province forms.)
22. (17) Spines on legs paler and more brownish or yellowish brown; pubescence
discally on thorax without any dark conspicuous hairs or with very few
and insignificant ones, with the stout bristles on abdomen above dis-
tinctly yellowish to very pale yellowish brown or red, with the pubescence
on venter predominantly whitish, only some bristles on sides being
slightly yellowish, with the black hair on sides of abdomen and at apex
comparatively less dense and less conspicuous, with the hair just above
wing-bases sericeous whitish like rest of hair; wings more constantly
with a large spot at base of third posterior cell and a smaller one at apex
of first posterior cell, but often also with a small one at apex of discoidal
cell, with the middle part of first submarginal cell (between the 2 large
spots) more extensively or almost entirely hyaline; antennal joint 3
distinctly less slender, more rod-like, the apical part less slender and
much shorter; aedeagus in <$ (text-fig. 58) with a longer, central, carinate
process vent rally in basal half, which is also prominently produced,
ploughshare-like apically. (Genae always with black bristles below
and upper part of metapleural tuft and the squamal fringe always
serioeous white.) .... <j $ pcntaspilus Bezz. (p. 239).
23. (2) Wings either extensively mottled or spotted and with large, rounded spots
on cross veins, even if there is a well marked off anterior more darkly
infuscated oostaJ part, or with an indistinctly marked off darker costal
and basal pari and with small dark or black infuscations or spots on
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 93
cross veins and other veins, which are much darker, with the anterior
infuscation more prominent and outstanding, or the wings are almost
entirely hyaline or greyish hyaline and with or without infuscations on
cross veins .......... 24.
24. (47) Legs with very dark blackish brown to black, mostly black, spines;
wings with the more uniformly infuscated costal and basal parts darker,
more blackish brown to black, and usually more distinctly marked off
from rest of wing, the rest either with large, rounded, often contiguous
or confluent, dark blackish brown to black spots or with smaller dark
spots ........... 25.
25. (46) Wings extensively mottled or spotted (cf. pi. 1, figs. 2, 3, and 4,
Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, and fig. 3, p. 59, The Bombyliidae of
the Ethiopian Region, by Bezzi), the spots large and conspicuous, the
costal and basal part very distinct, with the spots at apex of second
basal cell, on discal cross vein and, especially, at base of second sub-
marginal cell always conspicuously large and rounded, with infuscations
or spots always present, even if small, at ends of first longitudinal vein
and vein between submarginal cells and at apex of anal and axillary
cells; pubescence on thorax discally always with some golden, deep
golden or brownish golden hair, often in stripes and not entirely sericeous
or silvery whitish, with the black hair on abdomen laterally and ventrally
towards apex always more conspicuously tuft-like, visible from above,
and also more extensively developed laterally below . . .26.
26. (41) Wings (pi. 1, figs. 2 and 3, Ann. S. Air. Mus., vol. xviii) always with a
distinct spot, often large, at about middle of the more hyaline apical
part of marginal cell, which is usually contiguous or confluent with large
spot at base of second submarginal cell, with the spot at end of second
longitudinal vein also more rounded and less diffuse or elongated, the
second basal cell usually with a larger hyaline part or spot near its apex
(if not, then at least the apical part of marginal cell contains a distinct
spot at about the middle) ....... 27.
27. (38) Wings with a pattern as figured (pi. 1, fig. 3, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii),
with large, rounded spots at apex of second basal cell, on discal cross
vein, at base of second submarginal cell, rounded ones at base of third
posterior cell, on apical cross vein of discoidal cell, and at apex of anal
and axillary cells, with smaller ones at ends of second longitudinal vein
and vein between submarginal cells as well as distinct continuations of
the posterior spots along the posterior veins separating posterior cells,
with a very large, or at least moderately large, conspicuous spot at
apices of anal and axillary cells . . . . . . .28.
28. (33) Wings with the rounded spot at apex of second basal cell confluent with
the very large, ovate, or elliptic, usually bipartite, spot at apex of anal
and axillary cells, this latter spot usually being distinctly larger, or at
least as large as the other, and not extending much into fourth posterior
cell and more removed from hind border of wing, thus more in an oblique
straight line with spot at apex of second basal cell and spot-like infusca-
tion at base of discoidal cell and middle of first basal cell, with the bases
of anal and axillary cells usually less extensively infuscated; pubescence
with the black hair on abdomen very conspicuous, more distinctly visible
94 Annals of the South African Museum.
from above, the entire apical part or half appearing as a black tuft;
hypopygium of <$$ without a complex, ventral, aedeagal process
below 29.
29. (32) Forms with usually more numerous pale bristles on body, especially in
$$, numerous intermixed yellowish, brownish yellow to reddish yellow
ones being present on occiput, front part of thorax, disc and base of
thorax, on scutellum and transversely across basal half of abdomen,
those towards apex of abdomen much longer-tipped, whitish or pallid,
with 3 stripes of paler brownish golden hair on thorax and also with
more yellowish intermixed hairs on sides of thorax; wings with spot at
apices of anal and axillary cells as large or larger than spot at apex of
second basal cell, very confluent with it .... . 30.
30. (31) Wings with the confluent spots at apex of second basal cell and apices
of anal and axillary cells not, or scarcely, confluent with anterior basal
infuscation, and with the large rounded spot on discal cross vein not
contiguous or confluent with the one at base of third posterior cell, the
spots tending to be less confluent, there being no distinct tendency for
wings to show 3 broad transverse dark bands
<$ $ megaspilus Bezz. s. str. (p. 240).
(And forms of it.)
31. (30) Wings with the confluent spots at apex of second basal cell and apices of
anal and axillary cells distinctly and broadly confluent with the basal
infuscation and with the larger, rounded spot on discal cross vein confluent
or touching one at base of third posterior cell, the other spots also tending
to be larger and more contiguous or confluent, there being thus a distinct
tendency for wings to show 3 transverse dark bands
<J $ megaspilus Bezz. (p. 240).
(Forms of it.)
32. (29) Form with less numerous pale bristles on body, the bristles on these sites
being predominantly dark or black, and even those in basal half on
abdomen either almost entirely black or at least much darker, with 3
stripes of much darker, more obscure, or more brownish hair on thorax
discally, with the hair on sides of thorax, apart from the black bristles,
distinctly less, or not, yellowish; wings with the spot at apex of anal and
axillary cells either large and confluent with one above it or often smaller,
more tripartite, and less confluent with large one at apex of second
basal cell . . . . . <$ $ megaspilus Bezz. (p. 240).
(Forms of it.)
33. (28) Wings with the rounded spot at apex of second basal cell not broadly
confluent with the spot at apices of anal and axillary cells, either more
narrowly confluent or distinctly separated, the latter spot also much
smaller than the former, tripartite, divided into 3 spots and nearer or
immediately on the hind border of the wings, distinctly not in an oblique
straight line with both the spot at apex of second basal cell and the
spot-like infuscation at base of discoidal cell and middle of first basal
cell, with the bases of anal and axillary cells also distinctly more ex-
tensively infuscated if those spots are in contact; pubescence with the
black hair on abdomen distinctly less conspicuous from above and,
even in very dark forms, not so conspicuously visible from above as a
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 95
black tuft-like brush in apical half; hypopygium of known $£ with a
complex, ventral, aedeagal process below ..... 34.
34. (35) Pubescence on body above with distinctly more numerous pale bristles
in $, those on occiput, anterior part of thorax, sides of thorax above
wings, scutellum, and practically on entire abdomen paie yellowish brown
to reddish brown and, if darker on some of these sites, they are distinctly
paler on other sites, with the pubescence on disc of thorax in both sexes
more extensively brownish golden to fulvous brown, that on abdomen
in $ distinctly more extensively pale, pale creamy to pale yellowish
brown, with pale brownish golden gleams in certain lights; wings with a
tendency to show 3 transverse bands of spots, owing to the tendency
for spots to be confluent or very near together, with the base of vein
separating discoidal and third posterior cells, though rapidly bent to
fourth posterior cell, not markedly or sharply bent at right angles and
never provided at angle so formed with a short appendix or stump;
proboscis comparatively longer, about 5-6 mm. long; legs with the
femora slightly less extensively blackened, and in some $$ not
darkened or only slightly so at bases
cJ $ ammophilus n. sp. (p. 244).
35. (34) Pubescence on body above with either entirely black or blackish bristles
on sites mentioned or, if paler ones are present, these are comparatively
fewer and subordinate to the predominantly black ones in both sexes,
but especially on abdomen above, with the other pubescence on body
above either entirely or predominantly silvery whitish or, if darker, the
golden brownish hair on thorax is distinctly less extensive, that on
abdomen in $$ distinctly paler, more whitish, as in $3, or the pale
brownish golden hair is distinctly less developed and the bristles on
abdomen, however, always entirely black; wings with this tendency to
show 3 dark transverse bands either more distinct or much less evident,
with the base of vein separating discoidal and third posterior cells rarely
not sharply and angularly bent at right angles to fourth posterior cell,
and often with a distinct short stump or appendix at angle so formed;
proboscis relatively shorter, less than 6 mm.; legs always with the
femora in both sexes markedly blackened to much beyond middle and
more often only with the extreme apices yellowish . . .36.
36. (37) Smaller forms, about 5-8 mm. long, with a wing-length of about 5-8 mm.;
pubescence appearing much darker from above, the disc of thorax above
with more brownish or dark brownish golden hair, also with distinct
brownish golden or brownish tipped hairs just above wings and in $
with distinctly more brownish golden gleaming hairs on abdomen above,
with distinctly more extensive black hair on venter below, with the
bristles on thorax and scutellum entirely black, with the coxal bristles
predominantly or entirely black, and the bristles in mesopleural tuft also
predominantly very dark or black; wings with the spots more confluent
and comparatively larger, tending to form more or less 3 irregular
transverse black bands, with the tripartite spot at apices of anal and
axillary cells contiguous or confluent with spot at apex of second basal
cell, with a large and confluent spot at apex of first posterior cell, with the
base of vein separating discoidal and third posterior cells tending to be
96 Annals of the South African Museum.
less constantly bent at right angles, some specimens having this sinuosity
almost normal . . . . <$ $ hottentotus n. sp. (p. 241).
(And forms of it.)
37. (36) Larger species, about 8^—11 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
8-11 mm.; pubescence appearing paler and more greyish or silvery
whitish above, that on disc of thorax with predominantly silvery whitish
hair, only very few yellowish ones being present, that above wings in ?
also whitish, that on abdomen above silvery whitish, shining silvery
whitish, that on venter also with more pale or whitish ones basally and
laterally, with distinctly intermixed yellowish to brownish bristles on
occiput, thorax, scutellum, and even across second abdominal segment in
some specimens, with the front coxal bristles and the intermixed ones on
the other coxae as well as bristles in metapleural tuft predominantly
yellowish; wings with the spots distinctly less contiguous or confluent
(text-fig. 61), more rounded and spot-like and not tending to form 3
typical cross bands, with the spot at apices of anal and axillary cells
always smaller and distinctly separated from large and rounded spot at
apex of second basal cell, with the spot at apex of first posterior cell
more often very small or absent and, if distinct, then not confluent with
the other big spot, with the base of vein separating discoidal and third
posterior cells more constantly and distinctly sharply bent at right
angles and provided with a short stump . $ braunsi Bezz. (p. 246).
38. (27) Wings with a pattern as figured (Bezzi, pi. 1, fig. 2, Ann. S. Air. Mus.,
vol. xviii), with spots also on the same sites, but with or without a very
small and insignificant spot at apex of anal cell, and without any, or only
minute and very indistinct, spots near apices of posterior veins, the spots
at bases of third and second posterior cells not produced or prolonged,
comma-like, along posterior veins, and also with the spot-like infuscation
at end of vein separating submarginal cells very small, absent, or in-
distinct ........... 39.
39. (40) Pubescence on disc of thorax usually with distinct sericeous yellowish or
slightly golden gleams, with a tuft of hair and bristles on post-alar calli
distinctly gleaming brownish or yellowish golden, with some or more
numerous yellowish intermixed bristles on occiput, on each side in
humeral region, on coxae, and on sides of abdomen and venter towards
apex, with the dense hair on venter towards apex usually with more
dark brownish ones; wings with the infuscated parts and spots tending
to be more brownish or even yellowish brownish, a distinct, though
sometimes faint, spot always present at apex of anal cell and sometimes
with a tendency for spots to be present at ends of some of the posterior
veins, with the first longitudinal vein usually paler and more brownish or
reddish; spicules on tibiae tending to be entirely yellowish or brownish
or at least with some intermixed paler ones and the tibiae themselves
sometimes paler; hypopygium of £ (text-fig. 64) with the inner apical
part of basal parts distinctly longer and more produced and the ventral
aedeagal process with 1 spines on it . $ £ capensis Linn. (p. 251).
(And forms of it.)
10. (80) Pubescence on thorax silvery whitish like, the rest of the hairs above,
with the hair on post-alar calli also gleaming silvery whitish, with all the
. A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 97
bristly hairs and bristles on head and thorax, on coxae and abdomen
black, with the hair towards apex of venter appearing entirely or more
predominantly black; wings with the anterior infuscation and spots
much darker and sooty black, without a spot at apex of anal cell and
never with even indications of spots at ends of posterior veins and with
all the veins very dark or black; spicules on tibiae entirely black;
hypopygium of J (text-fig. 65) with the inner apical part of basal parts
not prominent or produced, with the ventral aedeagal process slightly
different and having only 2 spines
cJ $ nieuwveldensis n. sp. (p. 253).
41. (26) Wings (cf. text-fig. 62 in this paper, and Bezzi, pi. 1, fig. 4, Ann. S. Air.
Mus., vol. xviii) without a spot at about middle of apical part of marginal
cell, this part being either more hyaline or uniformly infuscated like
rest of cell, with only the apex of second longitudinal vein more darkened,
with the infuscation at end of vein separating submarginal cells not
rounded or distinctly spot-like, but in form of a more elongated terminal
infuscation, with the second basal cell entirely infuscated like rest of
base or with a small clear spot near its apex .... 42.
42. (43) Large species, about 10-12 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
11-12^ mm.; pubescence on body above predominantly silvery whitish,
only that on disc of thorax slightly tinted yellowish or brownish golden,
that on abdomen above entirely shining silvery whitish, that on venter
and apex of abdomen black, with the bristles on body very stout and
strong, those on occiput shorter, those on sides of thorax, excluding the
black ones in front of wings on each side, on scutellum, and transversely
across abdominal segments 1-3 yellowish or reddish brown; wings
(text-fig. 62) with the posterior part distinctly more hyaline, with a
hyaline or clear spot near apex of second basal cell and another one near
apex of first basal cell, with the middle of apical part of marginal cell
tending to be more hyaline, with the spot at apices of anal and axillary
cells larger, more diffuse, contiguous or confluent with large spot at apex
of second basal cell, with the posterior spots on wing tending to be more
continued as distinct infuscations along posterior veins; proboscis long,
about 5-6 mm. long; legs with more numerous, about 9-10, longer and
stouter spines on hind femora below, with the claws more gradually
curved downwards apically and with the pulvilli shorter, just reaching
or only extending a very little beyond middle of claws; hypopygium
(text-fig. 63) ...... $ fenestrates n. sp. (p. 248).
43. (42) Small species, about 5-6 mm. long, with a wing-length of about 5-6 mm.;
pubescence on body above not predominantly silvery white, that on
disc of thorax, scutellum, and abdomen above more distinctly pale
yellowish or straw-coloured yellowish, becoming more brownish towards
apex and even, when very pale, the abdomen shows yellowish gleams in
certain lights, with the hair on sides of abdomen towards apex and on
venter distinctly more brownish, very dark chocolate brownish, with the
bristles on body very slender and long, almost hair-like on abdomen,
those on occiput also long and slender, those on thorax darker and more
chocolate brownish or darker yellowish brown, those on abdomen tending
to be darker also; wings (cf. pi. 1, fig. 4, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii)
98 Annals of the South African Museum.
with the anterior half or darker part chocolate brownish and posterior
part also distinctly tinged faintly brownish, with at least no clear spot
in second basal cell and without a distinct clear area in first basal cell,
with the apical part of marginal cell uniformly infuscated like rest of
cell, with the spot at apex of anal cell smaller and widely separated from
spot at apex of second basal cell, without any or with only very indistinct
infusions near apices of posterior veins, not continuous with the larger
spots; proboscis shorter in relation to body, less than 6 mm. long; legs
with much fewer, only about 4-7, more slender spines on hind femora below
with the claws slightly more rapidly bent downwards apically and with the
pul villi distinctly longer, extending much beyond middle of claws . 44.
44. (45) Pubescence on body distinctly tinted more pale brownish yellow, that on
abdomen above even darker, becoming more distinctly rusty brown
posteriorly, with the long bristles on occiput and thorax above (excluding
lateral ones in front of wings), those on scutellum and abdomen above
more yellowish brown, with the hair along upper parts of pleurae also
more distinctly yellowish; wings less pointed apically, with the front
half slightly darker, more chocolate brownish, with the spots at bases
of third and second posterior cells and apex of first posterior cell small,
much smaller than the other spots, without any spots at ends of posterior
veins and with scarcely a darker infuscation at apex of anal cell, with the
anal cell acute apically and not opening on hind border, with the second
longitudinal vein distinctly very undulating; antennal joint 3 slightly
shorter and less slender, broadest at about the middle; legs with only
about 4, much shorter and finer, spines on hind femora below from just
before middle to apex, with the claws slightly longer and distinctly more
rapidly bent downwards apically and with the pulvilli longer, nearly
reaching apex of claws <$ punctatellus Bezz. (p. 255).
(Type specimen.)
45. (44) Pubescence on body almost entirely silvery whitish, that on abdomen
with a feeble yellowish sheen in certain lights, with the bristles on occiput,
on the rest of head, on thorax and abdomen above darker, very dark
chocolate brown, only those on scutellum and some intermixed ones
basally on abdomen paler and more yellowish, with the hair on venter
and towards apical part of abdomen also chocolate brownish, with that
on pleurae, excepting only yellowish metapleural bristles, entirely silvery
whitish; wings (cf. Bezzi, pi. 1, fig. 4, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, as
punctatellus) distinctly more pointed apically, with the anterior half not
quite so dark chocolate brown, with the spots at bases of third and second
posterior cells and at apex of first posterior cell comparatively large and
rounded, as large as the other spots, with a distinct, though diffuse,
infuscation at apex of anal cell and also with faint infuscations near
ends of posterior veins, with the anal cell normally opening on hind
bolder of wing and the second longitudinal vein straight to near bent-up
end, where there is a slight sinuosity (much straighter than in Bezzi's
figure); antennal joint 3 very slender, slightly longer and more rod-like,
gradually attenuated from broadest part near base; legs with about 7,
Longer spines, from near base to apex on hind femora below, the basal
spines being remarkably Jon-, almost bristle-like, with the claws shorter,
. A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 99
only gradually curved downwards apically from about the middle and
with the pul villi distinctly shorter, just extending a little beyond middle
of claws . . . . . . $ punctatelloides n. sp. (p. 255).
(Labelled as punctatellus.)
46. (25) Wings (cf. Bezzi, p. 5, fig. 4, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Region)
not extensively mottled or spotted, with the anterior infuscated costal
and basal part less distinctly marked off, the spots, even the larger ones
at apex of second basal cell, on discal cross vein and at base of second
submarginal cell, being comparatively smaller, and the others at bases
of second and third posterior cells much smaller, without any spot,
or only a very feeble one, at apex of first posterior cell, without any
infuscation at ends of second longitudinal vein and vein separating the
submarginal cells, thus with a more hyaline apical part or half of marginal
cell and entirely without any infuscations at apices of anal and axillary
cells; pubescence, excluding black or yellowish bristles on thorax and
scutellum, entirely silvery whitish on thorax, even discally, there being-
no darker or golden hairs in form of stripes, the abdomen above, excluding
whitish-tipped black transverse bristles, with entirely silvery whitish
hair, with the black hair on extreme sides of abdomen and apically on
venter less extensively developed, not conspicuously visible from above
as a black apical tuft or lateral apical tufts, the venter also with compara-
tively more white hair . . . . $ punctifer Bezz. (p. 254).
47. (24) Legs with pale yellowish, pallid, brownish yellow to reddish yellow spines;
wings if darkened with the darker infuscated anterior half or costal and
basal part or base paler, more pale brownish, yellowish brown or yeUowish,
and not very distinctly or conspicuously marked off from more hyaline
posterior part, usually almost imperceptibly merging into hyaline part,
the posterior part of wings either with distinct, but smaller and less
conspicuous, spots (if larger ones are present, the spines on legs at least
are yellowish), or with much fewer or even without any spots, and the
entire wings may also be hyaline and unspotted .... 48.
48. (55) Pubescence not predominantly or entirely snow whitish, frosty whitish
or gleaming sericeous or silvery whitish or predominantly sericeous or
golden yellowish, usually appearing greyish sericeous due to an inter-
mixture of pale sericeous yellowish and sericeous whitish elements,
usually with some or numerous black or dark bristly hairs and bristles
on frons, antennal joint 1 below and on face and with more numerous
or more conspicuous black hairs in tufts on extreme sides of tergites
below and towards apex of abdomen; wings tinged more greyish or
cinereous, the costal and basal parts more brownish or greyish brown,
with the spot-like infuscations on cross veins and other veins more dis-
tinct, more conspicuous, larger and sometimes more rounded or diffuse,
the spots at base of third posterior cell, on apical cross vein of discoidal
cell and at apex of first posterior cell being always more or less distinct,
and if wings are not very greyish and spots not very conspicuous, pubes-
cence at least is not entirely snow white or golden; antennae with
joint 1, though thickened, not barrel or sub-barrel shaped, and with
joint 3 not dilated knob-like at base and not club-like; scutellum entirely
black and abdomen entirely black in both sexes .... 49.
100 Annals of the South African Museum.
49. (52) Wings with the spot-like infuscations at apex of first posterior cell, on
apical cross vein of discoidal cell and at base of third posterior cell small,
indistinct, and usually less conspicuous and without any infuscation or
distinct spot at ends of second longitudinal vein and the vein separating
submarginal cells or at apices of anal and axillary cells, with the discal
cross vein usually very much beyond middle of discoidal cell; head with
the eyes in <$$ distinctly more broadly separated above and at least 2 times
as broad as ocellar tubercle, with the interocular space in known $$ also
relatively broader and slightly broader than 2 times combined length
of antennal joints 1 and 2; hypopygium of $<$ with the ramus on each
side not produced, and the central process below aedeagus merely raised or
produced into a short or long process and not raised arch-like . 50.
50. (51) Larger and bulkier species, about 13-15 mm. long, with a wing-length
of about 13-14 mm.; wings with the darker anterior part more blackish
brown, more distinct, and more extensive, extending up to end of marginal
cell, and this cell thus on the whole more infuscated, with the spots on
apical cross veins of basal cells and at base of vein between submarginal
cells larger, more rounded, darker, and more conspicuous, and with the
infuscations on posterior part of wings also more distinct, with the first
posterior cell broader and less acute apically; pubescence appearing
slightly more sericeous yellowish even in <$$, the sericeous yellowish
bands on thorax more conspicuous, the pubescence on abdomen in gg
scarcely more whitish, that in $$ more velvety sericeous yellowish, with
more black bristles on lower parts of genae ; claws much stouter and with
the pulvilli broader and extending slightly beyond middle of claws in
<JcJ; hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 66) with the basal parts broad and
compact, the dorsal division between them deeply sunk in, with the
beaked apical joints more deeply and foveately depressed above, with the
ventral process below aedeagus in form of an apically produced basal
rim, blunt and not hiding the apical part of aedeagus
c£ $ obesus Bezz. (p. 256).
51. (50) Smaller and less bulky species, about 9£ mm. long, with a wing-length
of about 8| mm. ; wings less cinereous, with the costal and basal infusca-
tion paler, more pale yellowish brown, much fainter and distinctly less
extensive, the entire apical part or half of marginal cell being hyaline,
with the spots less conspicuous, much smaller, and even evanescent in
posterior part of wings, especially at apex of first posterior cell and on
apical cross vein of discoidal cell, with the first posterior cell narrower
and distinctly more acute apically; pubescence in $ at least distinctly
paler and more sericeous whitish, that on thorax appearing more sericeous
whitish and even the sericeous yellowish elements on disc much fainter,
the pubescence on abdomen apparently more whitish, becoming even
paler apically, with fewer or only 2 or 3 darkish bristles on lower parts
of genae ; claws distinctly more slender, with the pulvilli much narrower
and not reaching middle of claws; hypopygium (text-fig. 67) with the
basal parts less broad and compact and not deeply sulcately separated
above, with the beaked apical joints less depressed above, with the
ventral process below aedeagus much longer, lobe-like, and hiding the
apical part of aedeagus $ mollihirtus n. sp. (p. 258).
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 101
52. (49) Wings with all the spot-like infuscations, though slightly duller, distinctly
larger, more rounded and more diffuse, those in posterior part of wings
scarcely smaller or less rounded than those on apical cross veins of basal
cells and at base of vein between submarginal cells, with distinct, though
sometimes faint, spots or infuscations at ends of second longitudinal
vein and the vein between submarginal cells, at apices of anal and
axillary cells and sometimes even with indications of spots even near
ends of the posterior veins, with the discal cross vein just, or sometimes
apparently scarcely, beyond middle of discoidal cell; head with the eyes
in (J(J more narrowly separated above and distinctly less than 2 times
as broad as ocellar tubercle, with the interocular space in $$ also relatively
narrower and only about or less than 2 times as broad as combined
length of antennal joints 1 and 2; hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 68) with
the ramus on each side produced into a pointed process and the central,
ventral process below aedeagus inverted U-shaped, projecting arch-like
and provided with flattened setae apically . . . . .53.
53. (54) Pubescence with the 3 stripes on disc of thorax paler, very pale sericeous
yellowish or straw-coloured sericeous, with the black hair on sides of
abdomen and apical part more extensive and more conspicuous from
above, with all the stoutish bristles on head and body pale yellowish to
yellowish, there being no very dark and black bristles on lower parts
of genae and either none or only a few darkish ones on frons in $$, those
on abdomen also paler and more yellowish; wings with the spots more
distinct, with the spot at apices of anal and axillary cells also more
distinct and often also with faint, though distinct, small infuscations
near ends of veins separating posterior cells
<$ $ zoutpansbergianus n. sp. (p. 260).
54. (53) Pubescence with the 3 stripes on disc of thorax in $$ distinctly more
brownish golden and more conspicuous, with the black hair on sides of
abdomen laterally and apically less apparent and less conspicuous, with
all the bristles on lower parts of genae, all the longer and stouter ones
on face, sides of face, on antennae below, on frons, sides of thorax in
front of wings and some intermixed ones on coxae black, those on coxae
sometimes very dark brownish, with the rest "of the bristles on occiput,
thorax, and scutellum deeper yellowish, more yellowish brown to brownish,
and those on abdomen also more brownish yellow; wings with the spots
even duller and less distinct, the spot at apices of anal and axillary cells
being very faint and indistinct, without any or with evanescent infusca-
tions near ends of posterior veins
$ zoutpansbergianus var. occidentalis n. (p. 262).
55. (48) Pubescence on body predominantly or entirely snow white, frosty whitish,
and gleaming sericeous or silvery whitish or predominantly golden
yellowish, without any dark or blackish bristly hairs or bristles on antennal
joint 1 below, on face or genae and without any tufts of black hair on
sides of tergites ventrally below, or if with some black hairs on sides of
abdomen these are inconspicuous, and if with black transverse bristles on
abdomen rest of pubescence is entirely or predominantly snow whitish or
golden yellowish; wings either more hyaline and with a slightly whitish
tinge, greyish hyaline, or tinged reddish brownish with the costal and
VOL. XXXIV. 8
102 Annals of the South African Museum.
basal parts more subopaquely whitish, yellowish, or reddish brownish,
with the spot-like infuscations on cross veins and other veins if present
usually less distinct and less conspicuous, and if conspicuous pubescence
on body is predominantly golden or snow white, with the spots at base
of third posterior cell, on apical cross vein of discoidal cell and at apex
of first posterior cell either absent or scarcely indicated and sometimes
without any spots on wings; antennae with joint 1 distinctly more
incrassate, more sub-barrel-shaped or even barrel-shaped, and with
joint 3 dilated or thickened knob-like at base, thus club-like, or at least
more distinctly thickened in basal half, and if very slender and not
club-like, joint 1 at least is incrassate and pubescence is snow whitish;
scute Hum almost always with some red or reddish in $$ especially, but
black in some forms, and abdomen sometimes with the hind margins of
the tergites or the sides in $<$ or in both sexes reddish . . .56.
56. (59) Pubescence entirely or predominantly gleaming golden or very deep
sericeous yellowish; wings distinctly more extensively and more deeply
tinged yellowish or reddish brownish in basal two-thirds, the costal cell
and basal parts being even darker or deeper and more subopaquely
yellowish or yellowish brownish, with the basal comb yellowish or ochreous
yellowish; body with more reddish in both sexes, the scutellum being
almost entirely red, the hind margins of tergites and sides of abdomen
more broadly, conspicuously, and more constantly red in both sexes,
with antennal joint 1 usually also with much red and the legs entirely
yellowish in both sexes; proboscis distinctly longer, about 4-6 mm.;
smallish to rather bulky forms, about 8-14 mm. long and with a wing-
length of about 10-15 mm. . . . . . . .57.
57. (58) Wings relatively shorter, more greyish hyaline, with the costal cell and
basal half tinged subopaquely pale yellowish to pale ochreous yellowish,
with only spot-like infuscations at fork of second longitudinal vein, on
apical cross veins of basal cells and at base of vein beween submarginal
cells, there being no distinct infuscations in posterior part of wings,
with the veins slightly paler and more yellowish, with the base of vein
between discoidal cell and third posterior cell less constantly bent at
right angles to fourth posterior cell and more often without a stump;
pubescence tending to be more golden and slightly deeper yellowish
above, that on pleurae scarcely paler than above, the metapleural tuft
more golden yellowish, that on venter also not much paler, almost more
ochreous to orange laterally in ??, without any black or dark hairs on
sides of abdomen ventrally below in both sexes; scutellum usually more
extensively red; antennal joint 1 shorter and only about 2|- times as
long as 2 and with the long slender part of 3 apparently slightly more
slender and slightly more dilated at apex; hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 69)
<J $ spinibarbus Bezz. (p. 263).
58. (57) Wings relatively much longer, more distinctly and more extensively
tinged yellowish or reddish brownish, even the posterior part slightly
1 inged and not hyaline, the costal and basal half becoming deeper reddish
brown, with, in addition to the same 4 spot-like infuscations, which are
darker and more conspicuous, also distinct, though small, infuscations
at apex of first posterior cell and on apical cross vein of discoidal cell,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 103
with the veins darker and more reddish brown to dark brownish, with
the base of vein between discoidal and third posterior cells more often
and more constantly bent at right angles to fourth posterior cell and there
provided with a short stump; pubescence on body above tending to be
paler yellowish or paler golden, more gleaming deep sericeous yellowish,
that towards apex of abdomen in $<$ even paler sericeous yellowish,
that on head below and pleurae distinctly more contrastingly whitish,
that in metapleural tuft also paler and even whitish, that on venter
laterally near base also whitish, and that on extreme sides of abdomen
and towards apex, in some $$ especially, with tufts or with some or
numerous blackish brown to blackish hairs; scutellum usually less
extensively reddened, there being a distinct blackish hind border;
antennal joint 1 longer and quite 3, or even a little more, times as long
as 2 and with the long slender part of 3 relatively less slender and the
apex slightly less apparently dilated . . c? ? angulosus Bezz. (p. 265).
59. (56) Pubescence entirely or predominantly snow whitish, frosty whitish and
gleaming sericeous or silvery whitish; wings more hyaline or vitreous
hyaline, with a faint, but distinct, whitish tint in certain lights, but
with the basal part and costal cell sometimes subopaquely pale yellowish,
pale yellowish whitish to whitish, with the basal comb entirely snow
whitish or with the spines black; body usually with less reddish, the
scutellum sometimes entirely black in both sexes, or black in some ($<$,
or with the red distinctly less extensive in both sexes, the abdomen
with less red on sides and sometimes entirely black in both sexes, with
the femora in <J<J tending to be blackened at bases, sometimes more
extensively blackened, and sometimes the legs are entirely dark or black
in both sexes; proboscis shorter about 1-4 mm. long; very small to
medium-sized species, about 3-11 mm. long and with a wing-length of
about 3-10 mm 60.
60. (63) Very small species, about 3-5|- mm. long and with a wing-length of
about 3-5 mm. ; wings feebly developed, their bases much narrower and
slender, with the alula more reduced and not projecting lobe-like, with
the axillary lobe relatively also much narrower and not lobately rounded,
with the basal comb very feebly developed, almost absent, the wings
hyaline, with a faint milky whitish tint and without any spots on cross
veins or other veins; pubescence on body above and below dull frosty
or chalky white, without sheen, comparatively less dense, but longer
and more shaggy, that on occiput, thorax, and abdomen in both sexes
being markedly long, with the individual hairs stouter, stiffer, more
woolly in appearance and markedly and visibly fimbriate at their apices
and showing a "singed-off " appearance, without any distinct and stouter
or more bristle-like ones being present, those on ocellar tubercle and on
sides of frons, in $$ especially, dark or blackish; head with the eyes in
(JcJ separated above by width of ocellar tubercle only, the interocular
space on vertex in $$ also relatively narrower and slightly less than
2 times as broad as ocellar tubercle, with the frons and face in both
sexes also narrower, with antennal joint 1, though thickened, less
incrassate or barrel-shaped, with joint 3 thickened in basal half and more
gradually narrowed apically, with the proboscis yellowish or reddish
104 Annals of the South African Museum.
for greater part of its length, only about 1-2 mm. long; scutellum black;
legs with the spines on femora and spicules on tibiae poorly developed,
the hind femora with only about 2-3 spines in apical half below and
front and middle tibiae with very feeble, scarcely visible, spicules;
hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 70) with the beaked apical joints very small,
the basal parts subglobular and basal strut very narrow . .61.
61. (62) Wings slightly less subopaquely whitish in certain lights, the veins
darker and more dark brownish to blackish brown, the alula and axillary
lobe apparently slightly less developed; head with the face in both
sexes black or very dark, with the proboscis slightly shorter, about
1-1£ mm. long, with antennal joint 1 apparently less thickend and with
joint 3 more rapidly tapering apically, the apical part slightly more
slender; abdomen only pallid or reddish along extreme sides and at
apex and on venter, the hind margins of tergites discally not very
broadly pallid even in <$$; legs with at least the last 3 or 4 tarsal joints
blackened . . . . $ $ minusculus n. sp. (p. 266).
62. (61) Wings slightly more visibly tinted subopaquely whitish, the veins paler
and more yellowish or pallid, the alula and axillary lobe apparently
slightly broader ; head with the face in $ more yellowish, with the proboscis
slightly longer and about 2 mm. long, with antennal joint 1 pallid and
apparently slightly more incrassate, with joint 3 slightly longer and more
gradually narrowed apically, the apical part less slender; abdomen in <J
almost entirely very pale brownish yellow, paler and more yellowish on
sides, with the hind margins of the tergites discally broadly ivory yellowish
or yellowish, broader on sides and on venter, and with even the thorax
above and scutellum tending to be more dark brownish; legs with only
the last 2 tarsal joints blackened
$ minusculus var. pallidiventris n. (p. 268).
63. (60) Larger to moderately large species, about 7-11 mm. long and with a
wing-length of about 7-10 mm.; wings normally developed, their bases
normally broad, the alula and axillary lobe normally lobe-like and broad,
the basal comb strongly developed, the wings vitreous hyaline and with
sometimes even a stronger milky whitish tint, with the base and costal
cell even more subopaquely whitish or distinctly subopaquely pale
yellowish and with distinct and fairly conspicuous spot-like infuscations
at base of third longitudinal vein, on apical cross veins of basal cells,
on apical cross vein of discoidal cell, at bases of veins between discoidal
and third posterior cells and submarginal cells, and sometimes even at
apex of first posterior cell; pubescence on body silvery whitish and with
distinct sericeous or silvery gleams, comparatively denser and, though
shaggy, shorter, that on occiput and thorax relative to body shorter
and not so erect and bushy, less woolly, the individual hairs and bristles
not visibly dilated or fimbriate at their apices, the pubescence on face
longer, with distinct and stouter bristles on antennae below, face, genae,
on occiput, sides of thorax, scutellum, and transversely across abdomen,
the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle and sides of frons yellowish or also
blackish and sometimes the bristles on thorax and on abdomen are darker
or even black; head with the eyes in <$<$ separated above by a space
much broadei than ocellar tubercle, the interocular space in $$ also
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 105
relatively broader and quite 3, or even a little more, times as broad as
tubercle, the frons and face in both, sexes broader, with antennal joint 1
more distinctly incrassate, especially in <$<$, with joint 3 either more
knob-like thickened at base or very slender and slightly thickened just
beyond middle, with the proboscis black and about 3-4 mm. long;
scutellum mostly reddish, though black in some specimens; legs with
the spines on femora and spicules on tibiae well and strongly developed,
the hind femora with about 5-11 spines below; hypopygium of <$<$ with
the beaked apical joints longer and more developed, the basal parts
not or less subglobular and the basal strut broader . . .64.
64. (65) Legs predominantly yellowish, only the bases or basal parts of femora in
(J <$ darkened or blackened, with sparse and shorter hairs on femora below,
with the spines on femora on the whole shorter and the spicules on tibiae
much shorter, with the claws slightly more curved and the pulvilli longer,
just falling short of middle of claws in <$$, and visible at bases of claws
in $$; wings less tinted whitish in certain lights, with the costal cell,
base, basal part of marginal cell, basal half of first basal cell, and to a
certain extent even second basal cell distinctly tinged subopaquely
yellowish or yellowish whitish, the veins in this region and the first
longitudinal vein also yellowish, with the basal comb snow white, with
the discal cross vein just beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the knobs
of halteres pale yellowish; head with antennal joint 1 in <$<$ less tubercular
below and with shorter bristles below joint 1, with joint 3 shorter and
characteristically club-shaped, the basal part being dilated knob-like,
with the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle and sides of frons basally
yellowish or pale yellowish brownish, with the bristles on face more
numerous' and with a distinct tuft of longish and stoutish bristles on
lower part of genae ; pubescence with all the hairs and bristles on thorax,
scutellum, and abdomen white ; abdomen with the sides or hind margins
of tergites laterally reddish to a variable extent in $$ at least, and with
the apical angles of last sternite in <£<£ less produced; hypopygium of $
(text-fig. 71) . . . . . . c? $ volucer n. sp. (p. 269).
65. (64) Legs predominantly black or dark in both sexes, only the tibiae may be
slightly more brownish in some specimens, the femora black, with denser
and longer hair on femora below in $3 especially, with the spines on
femora distinctly longer and the spicules on tibiae long and conspicuous,
with the claws almost straight and slightly longer, and with the pulvilli
minute and vestigial in both sexes; wings distinctly more whitish in
certain lights, with the base, costal cell, and basal part of first basal cell
subopaquely whitish, the veins conspicuously dark blackish brown or
black right to base, the costal veins also conspicuously dark, with the
basal comb black, with the discal cross vein very much beyond middle,
at about apical third, of discoidal cell, with the knobs of halteres dark
brownish or blackish brown in both sexes; head with antennal joint 1,
in $$ especially, provided with tubercle-like prominences, each bearing
a very long and conspicuous bristle, with joint 3 much longer and more
slender, not thickened at base, being slightly thickened and broadest
just beyond middle, with the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle and sides
of frons basally blackish or black, with the stout bristles on face fewer
106 Annals of the South African Museum.
and with a much stouter tuft of finer bristly hairs only on lower parts of
genae; pubescence predominantly also silvery whitish above and below,
but with a tuft of yellowish, yellowish brown to dark chocolate brownish
hairs at apex of abdomen, with the bristles towards apex of abdomen in
<JcJ more yellowish, and those on sides of abdomen and apically in $$
very dark blackish brown to black, and with the bristles on thorax,
post-alar calli, and scutellum in $$ golden yellowish to pale brownish
golden ; abdomen entirely black in both sexes, and with the apical angles
of last sternite in <$ much produced; hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 72)
^ $ leucolasius n. sp. (p. 272).
66. (1) Wings not mottled, extensively infuscated or spotted, usually distinctly
more hyaline even if costal and basal part be slightly tinged yellowish,
with the spot-like infuscations less conspicuous or distinct, usually much
fainter and fewer, with the discal cross vein distinctly before middle
of discoidal cell, and if wings are darkly infuscated basally or with well-
defined spot-like infuscations the discal vein is before middle of discoidal
cell, or if discal cross vein is at about middle antennal joint 1 is not
incrassate; head with the pubescence, though dense and shaggy, without
any or with much shorter, fewer, and less conspicuous bristles on antennal
joint 1 below, such bristles not very much longer than the joint, with
fewer and usually shorter bristles on face and genae and without a con-
spicuous brush or tuft of numerous long bristles on lower parts of genae,
with antennal joint 1 more slender, less thickened, and not barrel-shaped,
and if tending to be stoutish without long and conspicuous bristles below,
with joint 3 distinctly thicker and more rod-shaped; general pubescence
on front part of body usually shorter, finer, and less shaggy, that on
abdomen appearing finer, more erect, and characteristically puff -like or
bottle brush-like, that in squamal fringe shorter, finer, and without
stoutish or stiffer bristly elements; scutellum predominantly red or
reddish or with much red ; pulvilli very much reduced, minute, vestigial,
or scarcely visible, even absent in both sexes and, where visible, they are
confined to base and not reaching the middle of claws in both sexes,
with the claws usually more slender, usually less curved, and even sub-
straight ........... 67.
67. (78) Head normally broad, distinctly narrower than broadest part of thorax,
with the facial region narrower and normally broad, with the interocular
space in $$ much narrower and less than 4 times as broad as ocellar
tubercle, with antennal joint 3 not club-shaped but more rod-like or
only gradually tapering apically; pulvilli vestigial, very minute, almost
invisible, and confined to extreme base of claws in both sexes; wings less
distinctly tinged yellowish or brownish in basal half in <$<$, and if very
distinctly tinged, head at least is not remarkably broad, with the costal
cell and base in $<$ usually faintly tinged subopaquely pale reddish
yellowish or reddish brownish, with the spot-like infuscations sometimes
Wanting, and if indicated are less evident and practically only present at
base of third longitudinal vein, on apical cross veins of basal cells, and
at base of rein between submarginal cells, rarely, and then only very
indistinctly, on other veins, with the discal cross vein, though also before
middle, nearer middle of discoidal cell, and if not the spots are incon-
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 107
spicuous and fewer; pubescence on front part of body denser and
distinctly longer, that on thorax much longer, denser, and more erect,
denser on disc, that on face and genae longer and more bushy, the bristly
elements longer, more conspicuous, and more numerous, that on pleurae
slightly longer and more shaggy, that on abdomen distinctly longer,
denser, and finer, erect and bottle brush-like in appearance, the hair
entirely white on abdomen, or when dark chocolate brownish ones are
present they are mostly confined to apical part of abdomen and
tergites 5-7, in species with brown hair, not entirely white haired, with
all the bristles on abdomen in $$ not dark, and if so the pubescence at
apex of abdomen is also dark, with fulvous brownish tufts of hair if
present differently arranged or confined to last few tergites and with
the transverse bristles across tergites 2-4 not all dark or black, and if so
in some $$ other characters do not conform; hypopygium of <$<$ with
the beaked apical joints more elongate . . . . .68.
68. (73) Species with much yellowish brown, fulvous brown to chocolate brown
hair on thorax, scutellum, or transversely on some abdominal segments
in addition to frosty white hair, with the bristly hairs and bristles on
head above, occiput, thorax, mesopleuron, and transversely across some
segments of abdomen and venter ranging from yellowish, through
yellowish brown to reddish brown and chocolate brown, the darker ones
or dark- tipped ones usually on scutellum and abdomen; wings always
tinged pale reddish yellow to pale reddish brown in costal and basal
parts, even if only very slightly, with the rest also more often faintly
tinged reddish, not markedly milky whitish, with at least a more distinct
darker infuscation at fork of second longitudinal vein, on apical cross
vein of second basal cell and on discal cross vein, and sometimes also at
base of second submarginal cell, at base of vein between discoidal and
third posterior cells and even very feebly on apical cross vein of discoidal
cell, with the basal comb always dark blackish brown or even black
spined ........... 69.
69. (70) Pubescence on body with the hair on disc of thorax, viewed from above,.
chocolate brown in some $<$ to greyish brown in $$ and $$, when
viewed from side, extensively brownish golden, golden to pale reddish
golden, that on scutellum even deeper brownish golden to fulvous brown,
that on head above pale yellowish brown to brownish, with deep golden
brownish hair on abdominal segment 1, with more chocolate brownish
hair at the apex of abdomen in <$$ and segments 5 and 6 and apex in $$,
the rest of hair snow white, with that on pectus in <$<$ also brownish
yellow, and that in metapleural tuft tinted yellowish, with the bristles
on frons, thorax, and mesopleuron yellowish brown, reddish brown to
brownish, and those on dark-haired segments of abdomen with more
than their apical halves chocolate brown, with those on rest of abdomen
white, those on coxae yellowish to brownish; wings tinged reddish or
yellowish brown only in costal cell and base, with only 3 darker infusca-
tions in basal half, with the discal cross vein much before middle of
discoidal cell; interocular space in <$<$ broader than tubercle, in $$ just
about 3, or a very little more, times as broad as tubercle; antennal joint 1
shorter, especially in <$<$, and with the apical part of joint 3 less slender;
108 Annals of the South African Museum.
femora less extensively blackened, especially front and middle ones;
hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 73) with the inner apical angle of basal
parts in neck region slightly more prominently projecting and without
a slightly ledge-like ventral aedeagal process
S ? peringueyi Bezz. (p. 275).
70. (69) Pubescence on disc of thorax in both sexes predominantly white, without
any, or with only very few, yellowish hairs, usually entirely white, that
on scutellum paler, more straw-coloured yellowish to golden, with usually
brownish- tipped hairs on segments 4, 5, and apex of abdomen in ?$ in
addition to those on segment 1 above and below, with the rest of the
hair frosty white, with that on pleurae, pectus, and in metapleural tuft
in both sexes white like rest of hair on head in front and below, with the
bristles on frons, thorax, and mesopleuron usually paler, more yellowish,
and, when darker, rest of hair on thorax is entirely white, with the bristles
on scutellum also more yellowish, with yellowish-based dark brownish
or chocolate brown, stout bristles transversely on all the abdominal
segments from 2, more so in $$, without any entirely white bristles even
in (J (J, those on coxae being entirely white or whitish in both sexes;
wings either more feebly tinged yellowish in costal and basal parts in $$,
or distinctly more extensively tinged brownish in basal halves as in
some (Jc?, with usually, in addition to the 3 darker infuscations, also
with a distinct infuscation at base of second submarginal cell, often
also at base of vein between discoidal and third posterior cells and even
very faintly on apical cross vein of discoidal cell in some specimens,
with the discal cross vein at about middle, or immediately before middle,
or even just beyond middle, of discoidal cell; interocular space in $$
narrower, as broad as tubercle, in $$ slightly broader, about 3-3^ times
as broad as tubercle, antennal joint 1 slightly proportionally longer,
distinctly more so in <$<$, and with the apical part of 3 slightly more
slender and attenuated; femora, including front and middle ones, more
extensively blackened to very much beyond middle; hypopygium of $$
(text-fig. 74) with the inner apical angle of basal parts slightly less
prominent and without a distinct ledge-like ventral aedeagal process
71.
71. (72) Wings distinctly more subopaquely yellowish, more distinctly tinged
reddish brown in basal part up to end of costal cell and across middle
of first posterior cell to apex of anal cell in ^, with the infuscations
on cross veins and veins more distinct, with the second longitudinal
vein more bent upwards at end ; bristly hairs and bristles on head above
and on thorax paler and more yellowish, the hairs on scutellum, tergite 1 ,
and tergites 4 and 5 slightly paler and more yellowish; abdomen in $
with distinct red on sides and venter also pale yellowish red, and scutellum
more extensively red; proboscis longer, about 3-4 mm. long and antennal
joint 3 less rod-shaped . . • c? ? nigripecten Bezz. (p. 277).
72. (71) Wings on the whole clearer and more greyish hyaline, in both sexes only
slightly more subopaquely cinereous brownish or yellowish in basal
and costal part, with the infuscations on cross veins less conspicuous,
with the second longitudinal vein less bent upwards at its end; bristly
hairs and bristles on head above and on thorax deeper yellowish to
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 109
brownish, the hairs on scutellum, tergite 1, and sides of tergites 4 and 5
darker and more chocolate brownish; abdomen in $$ entirely black, and
scutellum more obscurely reddish on disc; proboscis shorter, about
2-2^ mm. long, and antennal joint 3 more slender and more rod-like
$ $ nigripecten var. cinctutus n. (p. 279).
73. (68) Entirely or predominantly frosty white or snow white haired species,
with only the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle and frons yellowish or
brownish in $<$, or if some brownish hairs are present, they are found
only towards apex of abdomen, all the other hair above and below
being entirely white, with all the bristles on body, even in forms with
slight brownish hair on abdomen, entirely white or at least without any
black or dark bristles on abdomen even if pale yellowish ones are present
on thorax; wings entirely hyaline, with a distinct subopaquely milky
whitish tint, the costal cell and base being more subopaquely whitish,
with the infuscations at fork of second longitudinal vein, on discal cross
vein, and on apical cross vein of second basal cell practically only repre-
sented as blackened parts of the veins, thus feebler, with the other spots
not developed or, if slightly indicated at base of vein between submarginal
cells and at base of vein between discoidal and third posterior cells, the
wings are at least milky whitish, with the basal comb entirely white,
whitish, or very pale yellowish . . . . . . .74.
74. (75) Pubescence and bristles on entire body, excluding only the yellowish
or brownish hairs on ocellar tubercle and frons, frosty or snow white;
wings usually with only distinct blackish infuscations along discal cross
vein, apical cross vein of second basal cell and at base (fork) of third
longitudinal vein, with the basal comb entirely frosty white; sides of
abdomen, or even venter, in both sexes more black
<J $ molitor Wied. (p. 280).
(Sya. = argentifer Walk.)
75. (74) Pubescence and bristles on body not entirely frosty white, with the
bristles on thorax and scutellum yellowish or even with distinct pale
brownish or chocolate brownish hairs, which are pale yellowish at their
bases on abdominal segments 4-7; wings with the same 3 infuscations
but also with slight, but distinct, infuscations at base of vein separating
submarginal cells and at base of vein between discoidal and third posterior
cells, with the basal comb more creamy or more yellowish; sides of
abdomen, especially towards apex and on venter often more reddish
76.
76. (77) Pubescence with the bristles on thorax and abdomen entirely white,
with the hairs transversely on abdominal segments 4-7 in $ pale brownish
or chocolate brownish, but with yellowish bases; wings with the 3
infuscations, in basal half, more diffuse and more confined to veins alone,
with the discal cross vein at about middle of discoidal cell, the discoidal
cell being truncate apically; sides of abdomen even in $ more distinctly
reddish cJ $ molitor Wied. (p. 282).
(Western Province var.)
77. (76) Pubescence with the bristles in front of wings and on posterior calli on
thorax and on scutellum distinctly yellowish, those on abdomen as well
as all the hair entirely white; wings with the 3 infuscations in basal
110 Annals of the South African Museum.
half confined to the veins, not diffuse, with the discal cross vein distinctly
before middle of discoidal cell, and the discoidal cell less broadly truncate
apically; sides of abdomen in <J at least black
<J molitor Wied. (p. 282).
(S.W. African Form.)
78. (67) Head remarkably broad, quite as broad as, or even broader than, broadest
part of thorax, with the facial region in both sexes, but especially in $$,
also remarkably broad, with the interocular space in $$ broader and more
than 4 times as broad as ocellar tubercle, with antennal joint 3 club-
shaped, much thickened in basal half and then rapidly narrowed, the
apical half or more being very slender; pulvilli, though short, more
distinctly developed and longer, visible at bases of claws in both sexes
or even extending to near middle of claws; wings more distinctly sub-
opaquely yellowish or yellowish brownish in $<$ in basal half from end
of costal cell across to end of anal cell, with the spot-like infuscations at
base of third longitudinal vein, on apical cross veins of basal cells, at
bases of the veins separating discoidal and third posterior and sub-
marginal cells, on apical cross vein of discoidal cell, and sometimes even
at apex of first posterior cell more evident, distinct, and more conspicuous,
with the discal cross vein tending to be much nearer base of discoidal
cell; pubescence on front part of body distinctly much shorter, that on
thorax much shorter, finer, and more recumbent, sparser on disc, that on
face and genae shorter and with more scaly elements, the bristly elements
shorter and fewer, that on pleurae shorter, less shaggy, and more woolly
in appearance, that on abdomen less dense, shorter, less fine and erect,
and less bottle brush-like, the fine pubescence on tergites 5-7 in both
sexes, and apical bristles in <$<$ white, the bristles may be brownish in
some $$, but with fulvous brownish or brownish tufts of hairs on sides
of tergites 2 and 3, or 2-4, or 3-4, and fulvous or brownish short pubes-
cence discally across some of these medial tergites in some specimens,
and with the bristles across tergites 2-4 in both sexes dark or at least
yellowish brown; hypopygium of <$<$ with the beaked apical joints much
shorter ........... 79.
79. (80) Head with the eyes above in <$ more narrowly separated by width of
ocellar tubercle, the upper facets very coarse, with the interocular space
in $ very broad and at least 6^ times as broad as ocellar tubercle, with
antennal joint 1 slender and longer, about or at least 4 times as long as 2,
with joint 3 relatively shorter, with more or less its basal half broadened,
the slender apical part being distinctly shorter, with the proboscis only
about 4, or less than 6, mm. long; wings more hyaline, with the costal
cell and basal part from end of costal cell to apex of anal cell in $ at
least tinged paler yellowish brown, with the middle parts of cells in
non-infuscated part not greyish and without distinct whitish bordering
the veins, with the discal cross vein even slightly nearer base of discoidal
'■••II and with the second longitudinal vein more rapidly turned up at its
end; pubescence without any distinct or very dark brownish golden
short hairs on sides of thorax in front of wings and discally on each side,
with the bristles on venter dark, brownish, or blackish brown, with the
tuft of fulvous brownish hairs on each side of tergites 2 and 3 in ^ less
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. Ill
conspicuous ; claws with the pulvilli in $ longer though not quite reaching
middle of claws, in $ confined to base; hypopygium of <J (text-fig. 76)
<? ? bezzii n. sp. (p. 282).
(Syn. =--molitor Bezz. nee Wied.)
80. (79) Head with the eyes above in <$ more broadly separaied, the space nearly
2 times as broad as tubercle, the upper facets distinctly less coarse, with
antennal joint 1 much shorter and only about 2 times as long as 2, with
3 relatively longer, more club-shaped, and less than basal half thickened,
the apical slender part thus very much longer, with the proboscis longer,
about 6 mm. long; wings in $ with the basal part from end of costal
cell and across to apex of anal cell darker brownish, becoming more
yellowish basally, with the middle of the cells in clearer part more greyish
and with a distinct subopaquely whitish border along veins in this part,
with the discal cross vein apparently less near base of discoidal cell and
with the second longitudinal vein less rapidly turned up at its end;
pubescence with distinct fulvous brown or brownish golden short hairs
on sides of thorax in front of wings and discally on each side, with the
bristles on venter whitish, with the tuft of fulvous brownish hairs on
sides of abdomen more conspicuous, and bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle
and base of frons darker; claws with the pulvilli very short and confined
to base of claws in <£; hypopygium (text-fig. 77)
<J anastoechoides n. sp. (p. 286).
GKOUP I.
Section 1.
B. lateralis F.
(Wiedemann, p. 337, Aussereurop. Zwein. Ins. i, Table IV., fig. 5;
Loew, p. 182, Dipt. Faun. Siidafr., i, 1860; Bezzi, p. 8, Ann. S. Afr.
Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This species is very easily recognised and is also one of the most
striking South African species. Its chief characters are: —
Body, including scutellum, predominantly black; head below and
face sometimes brownish ; pleurae usually dark reddish brown or with
reddish brown infusions; legs with the femora black, with the tibiae
and greater part of tarsi yellowish brown or yellowish, the apical parts
of tarsi blackish; pubescence fairly dense, that on sides of abdomen
markedly dense and tuft-like, that on first antennal joints, face, head
below, sides of thorax, pectus and on venter also fairly long and denser
than on thorax and abdomen discally, the pubescence predominantly
dark or black, even the black hair, however, with a brownish, mauvish,
or dark rufous tint in certain lights, that on sides of frons towards
112 Annals of the South African Museum.
apex with gleaming reddish golden intermixed hairs, with intermixed
reddish golden hairs on sides of face and genae, and also with burnished
reddish golden hairs on sides of first antennal joints, with the shortish
bristly hairs lower down on occiput also gleaming rufous or brownish
golden in certain lights, the pubescence on pleurae and especially that,
very densely, on sides of venter, when viewed obliquely from in front,
gleaming rufous to purplish red, that in metapleural tuft with an
admixture of much black hair, with intermixed rufous or reddish
golden and black bristly hairs on coxae, the longer hairs and bristly
hairs or bristles on thorax above, scutellum, abdomen above and on
venter black, with the shorter and finer hairs or scale-like hairs on
thorax above, sides of thorax and on scutellum fulvous or reddish to
brownish golden in certain lights, with a patch or tuft of hair-like
scaling on each side of frons anteriorly, a broad patch on each side of
head behind eyes in line with a fairly broad stripe or band on each
side of thorax and extending to the base, contrastingly frosty white
and very conspicuous, with the scaling on abdomen above depressed
and in form of a conspicuous broadish transverse band of frosty white
or cretaceous white scaling across the apical part of tergite 2 and
basal part of tergite 3, and with the rest of the scaling on abdomen
above dark but dirty yellowish or dull ochreous yellowish in certain
lights especially in apical half of abdomen, with the scaling on femora
dark but with a dull greyish or greasy sheen in certain lights, that on
tibiae paler and more whitish; wings as depicted by Wiedemann
(Table IV., fig. 5, loc. cit.), with the front half up to end of marginal
cell and including alula very dark blackish brown to sooty black,
the posterior half hyaline to greyish hyaline but with black spots, the
spots arranged as follows: a large one on apical cross vein of second
basal cell, another large one on discal cross vein, a fairly large one at
base of second submarginal cell, and smaller ones at apex of first
posterior cell, on apical cross vein of discoidal cell and at base of third
posterior cell, and also with a distinct spot-like darker infuscation in
apical part of second basal cell (this latter spot and the large one on
apical cross vein of second basal cell with a pale spot between them),
with the hyaline hinder part of wing sometimes showing darkish in-
fusions in the cells, with the veins black or very dark brownish, with
the discal cross vein much beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the
second longitudinal vein very rapidly bent or curved hook-like up-
wards at end, with the basal comb black, with the fringe of the alula
gleaming sericeous whitish to yellowish, with the squamae opaquely
very dark blackish brown to black and also fringed with pale sericeous
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 113
whitish or yellowish hairs; halteres very dark or blackish and with
blackish knobs. Head with the eyes not visibly sinuate along hind
margins, contiguous above in $$ for a short distance about equal to,
or a little longer than, length of ocellar tubercle, the interocular space
in $$ on vertex about 3J, to nearly 4, times as broad as tubercle;
antennae with joint 1 about 2J-3 times as long as 2, that of $<$ being
usually only about 2 J times, with joint 2 longer than broad, with 3 in
3d almost 1 J times as long as 1 and 2 combined, in $$ slightly shorter,
almost rod-like, but slightly thicker just before middle or nearer base,
ending apically in a distinct conical joint-like basal element, a second
short j oint-like element, and a terminal style ; proboscis rather stoutish,
very finely spinulate below, about 3-4J mm. long; palps short and
thick. Abdomen rather dorso-ventrally flattened and broad, ovate,
with the transverse bristles slender. Legs with bristly hairs on
femora below, more developed in $$ ; middle femora with about 2-4
spines in apical half in front and 1 or 2 behind; hind femora with
about 5-10 spines from near base to apex below and with some spines
on outer side apically, with all these spines grooved; claws slender,
somewhat compressed, rather long, very much curved downwards
apically, with the pulvilli well developed and broad. Hypopygium of
c? (text-fig. 2. Side view (a), ventral view (6), and dorsal view (c)) with
somewhat sparse, but longish, bristly hairs on dorsum of basal parts
(Ba.Pt.), with the inner apical angles (I.Ap.A.) of basal parts pro-
jecting prominently apically and provided along their dorsal margins
with a row of fine, spine-like bristles; beaked apical joints (Ap.Jt.)
more or less triquetrous, the sides dorsally more carinate, the inner
side provided dorsally with a tuft or crest of spine-like hairs, longer
than the other hairs on the dorsum, with the beak or apical part acute
and slightly curved outwards; aedeagus (Ae.) with a long slender and
straight apical part, nearly reaching the bases of beaked apical joints,
with the base broad, bell-shaped, and with the basally directed aedeagal
strut on each side dorsal to middle part (M.Pt.) not visibly projecting
basally beyond and above lateral struts (L.Str.); middle part (M.Pt.)
prominent and knob-like; lateral struts (L.Str.) strap-like, hollowed
out below and curved as shown in figure (b) ; basal strut (Ba.Str.) fan-
shaped in profile and with its dorsal margin deeply cut out (seen in
dotted outline).
Length of body: about 7^-10 mm.
Length of wing: about 9-12 mm.
Locality. — South Western Cape Province to Namaqualand. (In the
Imperial Institute, British, Transvaal, and South African Museums.)
114 Annals of the South African Museum.
B. (Triplasius) bivittatus Lw.
(P. 181, Dipt. Faun. Siidafr., i, 1860; Bezzi, p. 8, Ann. S. Afr. Mus.,
vol. xviii, 1921.)
This species is apparently an Eastern Province representative of
lateralis, differing from lateralis in having 3 submarginal cells in the
wings and more extensive infuscations along the veins and cross veins
in the more hyaline part of wings. In other respects this species is
very similar to lateralis. Loew placed it in a new genus Triplasius,
but as this new genus does not differ from Bombylius lateralis, except
in having 3 submarginal cells, there is very little structural evidence
in support of Triplasius as a separate genus. As these two species of
Bombylius are to a certain extent peculiar and different from the more
typical representatives of the genus, it is more desirable to refer
lateralis to Triplasius as well and thus have them together as was
stated by Bezzi. Provisionally Triplasius may be considered as a
subgenus of Bombylius. The undescribed <J of bivittatus differs from
the $ in having the eyes contiguous above for a distance about equal
to the length of the ocellar tubercle. The hypopygium of the $ is very
similar to that of lateralis, but differs in having slightly more numerous,
finer and shorter hairs on basal parts above, with the basal processes
of basal parts longer, with the inner apical angles in neck region com-
paratively broader in profile, more rounded and less acute; beaked
apical joints apparently narrower and the beak less curved sideways.
Locality. — Eastern Province. (In the British, Transvaal, and
South African Museums.)
1 $ B. namaquensis n. sp.
This specimen very closely resembles lateralis and bivittatus, and a
comparative description of it is as follows : —
Body also black; pleurae with infusions of dark brownish; legs
with the femora also black and the tibiae and greater part of tarsi pale
yellowish brown; pubescence on body as in lateralis, also predom-
inantly black, but with the fine scale-like hairs on frons, on first
antennal joints above and on sides of face whitish, the bristly hairs on
lower part of occiput straw-coloured whitish, the fine hair-like scaling
on disc of thorax predominantly greyish white, only those in bands
along the inner side of white bands rufous or reddish golden, the fine
cif el . somewhat sparse hairs on thorax above and the bristles on sides
in front of wings black as in the other two species, the pubescence on
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 115
pleurae distinctly paler than in lateralis, straw-coloured, and that on
sides of venter also much paler and straw-coloured, not rufous, even
that on venter paler, the hairs on coxae composed of black bristly
hairs and shorter straw-coloured hairs, with a similar, but distinctly
broader, band of dense frosty white hair-like scaling on each side of
thorax, in line with a similar patch behind each eye and also a similar
tuft on each side of antennae, with the scaling on abdomen above
predominantly greyish white, the white on disc thus much more
extensive, with numerous intermixed whitish hairs on side of scutellum,
with the scaling on femora appearing even a little paler in certain
lights than in lateralis; wings (text-fig. 5) with a distinctly more
Text-fig. 5. — Wing of Bombylius namaquensis n. sp.
marbled or mottled appearance, the anterior part, however, also dark
blackish brown, but the posterior part more mottled as shown in
figure, darkish infuscations and infusions being present along the
course of the veins, with the veins dark blackish brown to black, with
3 submarginal cells indicated, with the second longitudinal vein from
beyond middle and opposite end of costal cell with 2 or 3 (3 on right
wing) appendices, projecting perpendicularly into marginal cell, the
vein itself being irregular and sinuous there, with short stumps on
vein separating second and third submarginal cells as well (in the
right wing one appendix is even joined on to end of second longitudinal
vein, thus cutting off another smaller cell at apex of wing), with the
first posterior cell longer and narrower than in lateralis or bivittatus,
with the discal cross vein at about middle, not markedly much beyond
middle, of discoidal cell, with the fringe of alula also pale sericeous
yellowish, with the squamae opaquely very dark blackish brown but
fringed with straw-coloured hairs ; halteres and their knobs dark as in
the other two species. Head with the interocular space quite 4 times
as broad as ocellar tubercle; antennae with joint 1 also about 3 times
as long as 2, with 3 comparatively shorter than in lateralis and much
less than 1\ times as long as 1 and 2 combined, otherwise as in the
116 Annals of the South African Museum.
latter species; proboscis about 4 mm. long. Legs with about 4 spines
on middle femora in front and 2 behind; hind femora with about 11-13
spines below, the spines themselves slightly stouter than in lateralis.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 9 mm.
Length of wing: about 11 mm. ,
Locality. — Namaqualand: Garies (Mus. Exp., June 1930).
The fact that in this species the veins in the apical part of wings are
very unstable, giving off appendices and even cutting off separate
apical cells and also that, according to Kicardo (p. 89, Ann. Mag. Nat.
Hist. (7), vii, 1901), the veinlet forming the supernumerary cell in
bivittatus is sometimes wanting, is still more evidence in support of
Bezzi's contention that the veins in the apical part of the wings in this
section of Bombylius are unstable and not of generic value.
Section 2.
B. bombiformis Bezz.
(P. 34, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Eegion, fig. 1, 1924.)
This is one of the most strikingly coloured species in this category.
It seems to occur only in the northern parts of the Union of South
Africa and in the Rhodesias. Bezzi has fully described both the $ and
the $ and has given a drawing of a ?. The species is characterised by its
large size, the predominantly black body and legs, though the scutellum
is ferruginous reddish laterally, by the presence of a broad transverse
band of orange golden pubescence on abdomen above across tergite 2
and basal part of 3 in both sexes, but apparently slightly broader in $$.
Pubescence short on thorax, that on tergite 1 and especially on sides
black, that at apical part of abdomen in both sexes white, that on
venter black, only that at apex white, that on first antennal joints,
face, thorax above and below, on scutellum and legs in $$ entirely
black, but with a dark brownish tint in certain lights, that on frons,
antennae, face, thorax, front half of pleurae and predominantly on
front and middle coxae in ?<j> predominantly hoary white, appearing
greyish, due to black intermixed bristles on occiput, bristly hairs on
thorax above, black bristles and macrochaetal bristles, mesopleural
bristles, black post-alar bristles, the pubescence and bristles on
scutellum and predominantly in metapleural tuft in $$ as well as hair
on legs and especially hind ones in $$ also black; metapleurae to a
great extent bare and often showing through dark brownish or
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. Ill
brownish; wings greyish hyaline, with the basal part and alula
brownish, the alula, however, less brownish and more cinereous, with
the basal comb in $$ black, in $$ black-spined but covered above with
white pubescence, with the fringe of the alula more or less gleaming
pale brownish, the part of fringe near base white in $<j> but very dark
brown in £$, with the veins brownish to reddish brown, with the
discal cross vein beyond middle of discoidal cell and apex of discoidal
cell acute or subacute, a short apical cross vein being sometimes
present, with the squamae opaquely very dark blackish brown,
Text-fig. 6.
-Side and ventral views of hypopygium of $ of Bombylius
bombiformis Bezz.
fringed with white hair in $$ and blackish hair in 3$; halteres dark
and with very dark brown or blackish brown knobs in both sexes.
Head with the eyes in $$ in actual contact above for a distance at least
as long as ocellar tubercle, separated above on vertex in $$ by a space
a little more than 2 times as broad as tubercle; antennae with joint 1
relatively short, only about 1J-2 times as long as 2, with joint 3 thus
appearing elongate and more than 2 times as long as 1 and 2 combined,
gradually narrowed apically, ending in a conical basal element bearing
a short style; proboscis stoutish, about 5-6 \ mm. long; palps com-
paratively short and with some longish, bristle-like hairs on outer
lower side. Legs with dense shortish hair on femora, more con-
spicuous in $$, without any spines on front femora; middle femora
with 2-8 spines in front and 2-4 behind; hind femora usually with
numerous spines, 10-20, below from base to apex on outer side and a
few on inner side towards apex. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 6, showing
vol. xxxiv. 9
118 Annals of the South African Museum.
side and ventral views) with the beaked apical joints triquetrous or
triangular; aedeagus short and stumpy and without a ventral process.
Length of body: about 9J-15 mm.
Length of wing: about 13-17 mm.
Locality. — North Transvaal, South and North Ehodesia, and
Nyasaland. (In the Transvaal and South African Museums.)
B. analis F.
(Loew, p. 183, Dipt. Faun. Siidafr. i, 1860; Bezzi, p. 36, The
Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Eegion, 1924.)
This is one of the most conspicuous and easily recognisable species
in the southern Ethiopian Eegion. The body is usually predom-
inantly black, the scutellum dark ferruginous reddish and even the
abdomen and pleurae sometimes appearing dark ferruginous reddish
through the pubescence; legs usually entirely dark, but when denuded
the tibiae and tarsi are very dark reddish brown ; pubescence dense,
that on thorax in both sexes short and with a "shorn off" appearance,
predominantly sooty black in $$ and with a brownish tint in certain
lights, that on abdomen from apex of tergite 3 or from tergite 4 to
apex snow white in $$, but sometimes with an orange yellowish tint
at bases of these white hairs especially on sides of abdomen below,
that on frons, first antennal joints, face, entire thorax above and front
half of pleurae in $$ dull whitish, greyish white to ochreous yellowish,
that on disc of thorax usually with a slightly more yellowish tint even
in £$ with dull whitish pubescence, that on greater part of abdomen
and on scutellum in $$ black as in <$<$, but the pubescence on apical
part from tergite 4 to apex, as in $$, snow white but with distinctly
more conspicuous or even with entirely orange or reddish orange
pubescence ventrally and apically on each side, and sometimes even
the entire apical pubescence is yellowish or ochreous yellowish, with
the short bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle in some $$, the macrochaetal
bristles in front of wings, the post-alar bristles and the erect inter-
mixed hairs towards base of thorax above in all $$ black, and in some
forms there are numerous blackish hairs on thorax above, blackish
bristles on occiput and with much dark hair and black bristles on
pleurae, with the bristly hairs on front and hind coxae and sometimes
also on middle ones in ?$ predominantly black as in $<£, with the
metapleural tuft predominantly black; wings greyish hyaline and
e1 1 iiK-s with a distinct and faint yellowish tinge, with the base and
alula very dark blackish brown to almost black, with the basal comb
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 119
entirely black in $$, the spines black in $$, but with much whitish or
greyish yellow scaling above in $<j>, with the fringe of the alula brownish
to greyish brown in SS, much paler and more whitish to even snow
whitish in $$, with the veins pale reddish yellow to pale brownish
yellow in both sexes and thus enhancing the yellowish tinge of wings,
with the discal cross much beyond middle of discoidal cell, the short
apical cross vein of the latter usually present, with the squamae
opaquely almost black, fringed with dark hairs in $$ and pale or even
whitish hairs in $$; halteres dark and with dark knobs in both sexes.
Text -fig. 7. — Side and ventral views of hypopygium of $ of Bombylius
analis F.
Head with the eyes above in $3 in actual contact for a distance at least
equal in length to ocellar tubercle, separated on vertex in $$ by a space
a very little more than 2 times as broad as tubercle; antennae with
joint 1 short, only about 1J-2 times as long as 2, with 3 more than
2 times as long as 1 and 2 combined, much broadened basally, more
rapidly narrowed from about middle to apex, in some $$ almost club-
shaped in profile, in some $$ even narrowed rapidly only near apex,
ending apically in a nodular basal element, a second small conical
joint, itself passing into a shortish or blunt stylar element; proboscis
stoutish, about 6-7 mm. long. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 7) with
the basal parts more or less smooth, slightly shagreened above,
rugulose on narrow neck region, more so near apical part below, with
the inner apical angles or processes projecting bluntly beyond bases
of beaked apical j oints and with the spine-like bristles along its dorsal
120 Annals of the South African Museum.
margin stoutish; aedeagus with the apical part not reaching apex of
basal parts, the apex narrow and slightly bent downwards; beaked
apical joints triquetrous, the edges being carinate and with a crest of
dense setae-like spines on inner margin, longer basally, with the rest
of the dorsum of the joints above setiferously punctured.
Length of body: about 11-15 mm.
Length of wing: about 14-17 mm.
Locality. — Whole Southern Africa, including South West Africa.
(In the Imperial Institute, British, Transvaal, Natal, and South
African Museums.)
This common species, contrary to Bezzi's statement, is not constant
in the colour of the pubescence on the head, thorax above, and at apex
of abdomen. Some c?c? have the apical tuft of snow white hairs
entirely white, others have reddish or orange yellow developed to a
variable extent on sides of this tuft below, and in some the apical tuft
is almost predominantly fulvous (see below). Some $? have pre-
dominantly whitish to greyish white pubescence on thorax above, and
in others again the entire disc of thorax is distinctly more yellow-
haired even ochreous tinted. The apical tuft on abdomen may also
be distinctly yellowish or with much orange or reddish yellow tinted
hairs. One <J and two $$ from the Waterberg Dist. (v. Jutrzencka,
1898-99) in the Transvaal even differ so much from the more typical
forms that they may be considered as a distinct variety waterbergensis :
1 $ 2 $? B. analis var. waterbergensis n.
From the more typical analis this variety differs in having the
apical tuft of hair on abdomen entirely orange yellowish in both sexes,
in having the whitish pubescence on thorax and upper parts of pleurae
in $$ more greyish in appearance due to the presence of intermixed
black bristly hairs on occiput and all over the thorax above, the
bristles on mesopleuron also predominantly black, the greater part
of pleurae not white-haired in front half as in analis s.str. but dark,
consisting of brownish hairs intermixed with greyish ones, in having
the alular and squamal fringes dark or dark brownish in both sexes
and not white as in $$ of analis s. str.
Holotype in the Transvaal Museum, allotype in the South African
Museum.
B. haemorrhoidalis Bezz.
(P. 9, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This is a very characteristic species, superficially much resembling a
large analis F. and easily recognised by the predominantly sooty black
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 121
pubescence in both sexes, only the apical tuft on abdomen in both
sexes is golden orange yellowish. Wings greyish hyaline as in analis,
the basal comb, the alular, and squamal fringes in both sexes, however,
black or dark brownish, with the discoidal cell distinctly acute
apically. Moreover, the species is distinctly larger and bulkier, about
16J-17 mm. long and with a wing-length of about 18-19 mm. Hypo-
Text-fig.
-Side and half of ventral view of hypopygium of <$
Bombytius haemorrhoidalis Bezz.
of
pygium of 3 (text-fig. 8) with the aedeagus not reaching apex of basal
parts, the apical part straight and slender.
Locality. — S. Rhodesia. (In the South African Museum.)
Bezzi (p. 9, loc. cit.) mistook the ^-specimen from "Salisbury
(Jack, 20/3/14)''' for a $. On p. 33, in his key in the Bombyliidae of
the Ethiopian Region, he states that the ? has whitish hair on the
thorax, but on p. 36 he states that the $ is black-haired like the $.
B. fulvonotatus Wied.
(P. 332, Aussereurop. Zweirl. Ins., i, 1828.)
This species appears to be fairly common in the South Western and
Western parts of the Cape Province, in the Orange Free State, and is
also found in the Transvaal. Superficially it very closely resembles
analis in the general shape of the body and the black pubescence.
Both oo and 2$ are, however, at once distinguished from analis by
the presence of a central row of orange golden or fulvous spots on the
abdomen above and the absence of an apical patch or tuft of snow
white or extensive yellowish hairs. The pubescence on thorax above
122
Annals of the South African Museum.
in $$ appears bluish grey due to much intermixed black bristly hairs
and bristles, with the hair on first antennal joints and face in $$ also
black as in £$, the pubescence on pleurae in $?, but with some spots of
silvery scaling on each side of venter, black as in $$ ; wings as in analis,
greyish hyaline, with the base and to a certain extent the alula very
dark blackish brown, with the basal comb black in both sexes, with
the alular and squamal fringes dark, brownish to blackish brown in
both sexes, with the veins pale yellowish brown to pale reddish brown,
Text-fig. 9.-
-Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of £ of
Bombylius fulvonotatus Wied.
giving the wings a faint brownish or yellowish tinge, with the apical
cross vein of discoidal cell on the whole distinctly longer than in analis,
the cell thus more truncate apically ; halteres and their knobs dark in
both sexes; head much as in analis and the antennal joints also very
similar, but with the proboscis on the average longer even reaching
9 mm. in length in some specimens. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 9) differs
in many respects from that of analis, with a large patch of setae on
dorsum of basal parts and with long setae on outer ventral aspect of
neck region and along ventral margin to about the middle, with the
inner apical angles in neck region not projecting beyond bases of
beaked apical joints, provided along their dorsal edges with about
13-14 stouter spine-like setae; beaked apical joints also more or less
triquetrous, hollowed out basally below, the edges sharply carinate,
the dorsal edge slightly broader and provided with a feeble crest of
spines, with the beak smooth, comparatively broad, not very sharply
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 123
pointed; aedeagus with the apical part elongate, not reaching apices
of the inner apical angles of basal parts ; lateral struts short and broad;
basal strut fan-shaped.
In the Imperial Institute, the Transvaal and South African
Museums.
2 £$ B. vansoni Hesse.
(P. 161, Ann. Trans. Mus., vol. xvii, 1936.)
Black; integument of body above, anteriorly below on propleurae
and venter with a dark bluish submetallic sheen; legs shining black:
the hair on body and spines on legs velvety black ; the hairs towards
apex of abdomen from about segment 4 with whitish apices, only
sparsely so on segment 4; a spot of scale-like hairs at base of basal
comb of wings, five rounded spots of dense, scale-like hairs along mid-
dorsal line of abdomen above (one each on segments 2-6 on their
apical halves) and laterally below, on each side, four contiguous spots
of denser scale-like hairs in a row on segments 2-5 (thus forming an
elongate band), golden yellow or fulvous; palps blackish brown; eyes
purplish black; pulvilli pallid; wings with the basal parts up to basal
cross vein of fourth posterior cell and more or less in anal and axillary
cells infuscated dark blackish brown, darker towards the base, the
apical halves of anal and axillary cells and apical half of costal cell
being only slightly infuscated, very nearly hyaline, with the alula
duller, more lamp black, with the translucent spot near apex of second
basal cell and beyond base of discoidal cell slightly dull bluish white,
with the veins very dark brown, the second longitudinal vein being
more brown and the basal parts of the rest of the veins much darker,
with the rest of the wings hyaline; halteres dark brown, with the
edges of apical cup pallid inside.
Head with the narrow inner margins of the eyes above contiguous at
a point just before ocellar tubercle, then gradually diverging to a point
about as far forwards from anterior ocellus as length of ocellar tubercle,
from there the margins diverge more rapidly; frons with depressed
hairs, on each side along margins of eyes, projecting anteriorly as tufts
at bases of antennae; face bare medially and the hairs laterally not
too dense; antennae with joint 3 about twice as long as 1 and 2
combined, compressed laterally in basal half, broadest basally, thence
gradually narrowed to near apex, the apical third being still less
narrowed, nearly parallel and slender, with the style short and slender,
with joint 2 longer than broad; proboscis about 4J mm. long, straight;
palps with the hairs short.
124 Annals of the South African Museum.
Thorax with the anterior part above convex, the apical part being
very nearly perpendicularly declivous (as in analis F.), with the hair
dense, short, and furry as in analis, slightly less dense and shorter on
disc, but leaving no bare part, with numerous chaetae in front of wing
bases, of which a few are longer than the others and at least 2 are very
long; mesopleuron with numerous bristles; wings with the second
longitudinal vein straight, but less deeply sinuate at end than in
fulvonotatus Wied. and analis F., with base of second submarginal cell
much shorter than in the above-mentioned species, with the first
posterior cell comparatively more obtuse apically, with the discal
cross vein scarcely beyond middle of discoidal cell in type, at about
middle in paratype, with the apical cross vein of discoidal cell about as
long as discal cross vein and much longer than in fulvonotatus and
analis, with the third posterior cell comparatively much narrower, the
apex being much narrower than apex of fourth posterior cell, with the
basal vein of second posterior cell meeting base of second submarginal
cell nearer fork of third longitudinal vein and not at about middle as in
fulvonotatus, with the basal comb black; metapleural tuft black.
Abdomen with the hair denser apically, becoming longer and sparser
and more bristle-like towards apex and the sides apically, especially on
hind margins of segments, dense below on venter.
Legs with the depressed scales on femora and tibiae black and
shining ; front femora, apart from the slender hairs, with 4 to 7 short
spines on lower outer surfaces and 2 to 4 on the inner surfaces below ;
middle femora with numerous spines below, more or less in two rows,
the outer with about 9-10 long and short ones beginning near base and
an inner row with about 8-9 shorter spines beginning at about middle ;
hind femora with numerous spines below from near base to apex, more
or less also arranged in two rows ; tarsi with the pulvilli shorter than
the claws.
Hypopygium as shown in text-fig. 10, and compared with that of
fulvonotatus (text-fig. 9) it differs in that the basal parts are more
compact, the neck region of basal part shorter and less slender, with
the beaked apical joint having the beak more acute and more pointed,
with the aedeagus broadening more rapidly basally; lateral struts
longer and more slender and the posterior aedeagal struts better
developed and visible basally; basal strut is also different. Compared
with that of analis (text-fig. 7) it will be seen that the beak of beaked
apical joint is less slender, much shorter, and the apical spines less
developed ; the aedeagus is more slender and not bent downwards at
apex; the lateral struts are longer and narrower, etc.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 125
Type in the Transvaal Museum.
Length of body: about 10 mm.
Length of wing: about 10-1 0J mm.
Locality. — Gemsbok Pan (Vernay-Lang, Kalahari Exp., 23-4-5/5/30)
(Type); Kuke Pan (Vernay-Lang, Kalahari Exp., 21-30/3/30).
This species obviously belongs to the analis -section, yet it differs in
having the eyes in the $ very nearly touching at a point in front of
Text-fig. 10.
-Side and ventral views of hypopygium of $ of Bombylius
vansoni Hesse.
ocellar tubercle and the margins of the eyes from thence not parallel.
It is related to analis F. and fulvonotatus Wied., from both of which it
differs, apart from the differences in wing-venation already mentioned,
in not having the eyes contiguous above and in having the black basal
infuscation on the wings more extensive and not sharply demarcated
along bases of second basal and anal cells. From analis it differs in
having fulvous spots on the abdomen and no white tuft of hair at
apex; the front femora have short spines, etc. F 'rom fulvonotatus
it differs in being smaller, in having fulvous spots laterally on abdomen
below, a fulvous spot at base of wing comb, etc.
B. hypoxanthus Lw.
(P. 12, Wien. Ent. Monat., vii, 1863; syn. = plagiatus Bezz., p. 469,
Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
From Bezzi's description of the $ of plagiatus it is evident that he
had the same species as that of Loew before him, and there is no doubt
126 Annals of the South African Museum.
that plagialus Bezz. is a synonym of hypoxanthus Lw. The $ type of
plagiatus Bezz. is not in the South African Museum, but another $ in
the collection from the Eastern Province agrees in every respect with
Bezzi's description and also with that of Loew.
The species is briefly characterised as follows: Body, including
scutellum and legs, black, the tibiae and tarsi, when denuded, however,
very dark reddish brown; pubescence dense but on the whole shortish,
that on thorax above with a cropped-ofl appearance especially in the
<$ (as yet undescribed), predominantly white on body, that in a tuft on
each side of thorax in front of wings and in 3 longitudinal bands on
thorax in front (the greater part of disc being bare towards base), that
on ocellar tubercle, that to a large extent on scutellum, that on sides
of abdomen, more or less in tufts and the macrochaetal bristles, post-
alar bristles, scutellar bristles, and transverse bristles on abdomen
(where not denuded) black, the bristles towards apex of abdomen
whitish apically, with the white hair-like scaling, apart from white
pubescence on thorax, head, and pleurae, more or less arranged as 2
spots basally on thorax in front of scutellum, as a large patch basally
on each side of tergites 2 and 3, as a conspicuous elongate patch on
each side of tergites 2 and 3 (on ventral aspect), as a small central
patch apically on tergite 2, a larger one discally and also centrally at
apex of tergite 3, and then a broad transverse patch on tergites 4-5
and to a certain extent on 6, with the finer scaling on rest of abdomen
above in $$ at least dark or blackish, gleaming graphite-like, with the
pubescence on venter in both sexes gleaming golden or fulvous
yellowish, and with the pubescence on coxae in both sexes also fulvous
or gleaming golden yellowish, with the scaling on femora dark and
gleaming greasy brownish in certain lights; wings hyaline but with
the base, basal halves of marginal and first submarginal cells, and
slightly more than apical half of first basal cell, and a fainter infusion
along apical veins of second basal cell and down vein between fourth
posterior and anal cells brownish or brown, the costal cell, basal half
of first basal cell, and upper basal parts of second basal cell subopaquely
yellowish (the yellow thus separating the brown infuscations), with
the alula also more cinereous than more hyaline part of wing, with the
basal comb black-spined but covered with whitish scaling, with the
veins reddish brown, the apical cross veins of first and second basal
cells distinctly more darkened and spot-like, with the discal cross
vein very much beyond middle of discoidal cell and the latter truncate
apically, with the alular fringe and fringe of opaquely dark brownish
squamae pale or whitish; halteres dark brownish and with dark
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 127
brownish knobs in both sexes. Head with the eyes above in $ sub-
contiguous for a short distance, subequal in length to ocellar tubercle,
widely separated in $£ by a space quite 3 times as broad as tubercle;
antennae with joint 1 short, about 1J times as long as 2, with 2 longer
than broad, with 3 quite 1 J times as long as 1 and 2 combined, laterally
compressed, broadest a little before base, then gradually narrowed
apically, ending apically in a short basal joint-like element and a
second more conical joint which itself ends in a styler element;
proboscis about 4-5J mm. long. Legs without any visible spines on
Text-fig. 11. — Side and ventral views of hypopygium of $ of Bombylius
hypoxanthus Lw. ( —plagiatus Bezz.).
front femora below; middle ones with about 8-11 spines in front and
5-6 (usually small ones) behind; hind femora with about 15-17 spines
from base to apex below. Hypopygium of S (text-tig. 11) with the
neck region of basal parts not slender, short, and with the inner apical
angles projecting prominently, without a row of distinct spines above,
with fewer hairs on dorsum of basal parts than in acroleucus ; beaked
apical joints slightly thicker and more triquetrous basally, with the
apex more acute and longer; aedeagus with a more slender apical part,
extending almost to level of base of apical joints, straighter; lateral
struts broad, but shorter than in acroleucus.
Length of body: about 8-11 mm.
Length of wing: about 9^-12 mm.
Locality. — Eastern Cape Province, O.F.S., and Transvaal. (In the
Transvaal and South African Museums.)
128
Annals of the South Africa./} Museum.
B. acroieucus Bezz.
(P. 9. Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii. 1921.)
Bezzi based his description of this species on a somewhat denuded ?
in the South African Museum. With a series of Sd and 22 before me
I am able to supplement Bezzfs description. Superficially this species
resembles hypoxanth us Lw. in having an entirely black body., scutellum,
and legs, in having predominantly white pubescence on the body
which is practically distributed in the same way. that on abdomen
arranged in the same way: a large patch on each side of tergites 2
and 3 basally, a very large elongated patch on tergites 2 and 3 on
Text-fig. 12. — Side view and left ventral view of basal parts and ventral view
of genital armature of $ of Bombylius acroieucus Bezz.
ventral side, a central row of spots apically on tergites 2— t. and also a
patch on each side nearer middle on tergites 4 and 5: black bristles
distributed in the same way. those towards apex of abdomen as in
hypoxanthus with their apical parts also whitish, with the pubescence
on venter also fulvous, but the coxal bristles and hairs whitish and not
deep fulvous or golden; wings predominantly glassy hyaline and with
only the extreme base dark brownish and the costal cell and first
basal cell subopaquely yellowish, with the alula greyish hyaline, with
the veins distinctly much darker and more blackish brown than in
hypoxatUhus, with the discal cross vein much nearer middle of dis-
coidal cell, the dark brownish opaque squamae also white-fringed;
halteres also dark and with dark knobs in both sexes. Head with the
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 129
eyea above in £ £ as vet undescribed) in actual contact for a distance
subequal to length of ocellar tubercle, separated in 22 by a space
about 3 times as broad as tubercle: antennae with, joint 1 short, about
2 times as long as 2, with 2 slightly longer than broad, with 3 more
than 2 times as long as 1 and 2 combined, broadened basally, more
rapidly narrowed apicaily in o£, with the terminal elements as in
•: proboscis about 5-6 mm. long. Legs sometimes with
1 or 2 small spines on outer side of front femora: middle ones with
about 8-10 irregularly arranged spines on front side and about 4-6
behind: hind femora with about 12-22 spines below from base to apex
and arranged more or less in two irregular rows. Hypopygium of <$
(text-fig. 12) with the base of basal parts broad, the neck region
comparatively slender and narrow, the inner apical angles blunt,
i :ely projecting, with short dense bristly hairs on dorsum and no
distinct apical spines; beaked apical joints more or less flattened, the
dorsal edges slightly carinate, the basal half above of inner edges with
longish and dense hairs, denser than those at base, with the apex acute,
slightly curved downwards; aedeagus falling far short of inner apical
angles, the apical half slightly directed downwards ; lateral struts very
broad, their apices being very broad, flattened, and rounded.
Length of body: about 8|-11 mm.
Length of wing: about 9^-12 mm.
Locality. — Karoo: Tan Wyk's Ylei, Cradock, Murraysburg, Middel-
burg, Graafi - Eeinet, and Willowmore; Xaniaqualand: Bowes-
dorp. (In the Imperial Institute, Transvaal and South African
Museums.)
Skction 3.
± £f B. arnoldi n. sp.
Body, including scutellum, black: pleurae, where denuded, showing
through brownish to dark blackish brown: legs predominantly black,
but with the tibiae, when denuded, very dark reddish brown or
blackish brown and the basal parts of tarsi also obscurely very dark
reddish brown: pubescence on the whole dense, but shortish, that
on abdomen slightly longer than on thorax, that on face dense, but
distinctly shorter than in the ornatus-seTies, more like that of acro-
leumis and hypoxa -'.. s 3 :hat on thorax above, though shortish, not
with a cropped-orT appearance as in the analis-seiies. that on face, sides
of face, on first antennal joints below, in a scaly tuft on each side of
frons, that on occiput, thorax in front above, and also along sides above
130 Annals of the South African Museum.
wings, very sparsely on disc, that at base of thorax, that in a con-
spicuous tuft behind wing-bases on each side (upper part of meta-
pleural tuft), and that on abdomen above, more distinct towards
apex, white, appearing hoary or greyish white in certain lights, that on
face more distinctly gleaming sericeous or silvery whitish, with the
dense scaling behind eyes, a patch of more elongate scaling on each
side at base of tergite 2, a smaller and more indistinct patch on each
side at base of tergite 3 and a central row of sparse scales, aggregated
posteriorly into distinct round patches on tergites 5-7, gleaming
silvery white, with the pubescence on head below sparse and whitish,
that on pleural parts and on coxae dull brownish or coffee brownish
but sometimes with a dull greyish brown shade in certain lights, that
in lower part of metapleural tuft, that on sides of abdomen more or less
in basal half, and that on sides of venter to apex much darker, very
dark blackish brown to black, but having a distinct blackish brown
tint in certain lights, that on venter predominantly also very dark
brownish to blackish brown, but with some pale intermixed hairs or
even sparse tuft-like whitish hairs in basal half, with the bases of
individual hairs on abdomen above dark blackish brown and those
towards base and on sides basally with only the extreme tips pale or
whitish and those discally towards apex of abdomen almost or entirely
whitish, with the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle, those on each side
anteriorly on frons and the finer ones on first antennal joints above
blackish brown to black, the macrochaetal bristles in front of wings,
the post-alar bristles, and scutellar bristles black, the shortish hair on
femora below also very dark or blackish, with the scaling on legs dark
but gleaming greasily greyish brown or graphite-like in certain lights ;
wings vitreous hyaline, iridescent, with the base very dark brownish
to dark blackish brown, the alula more greyish cinereous, with the
basal comb very dark blackish brown to black, with the veins yellowish
brown, the costal veins and those in apical part usually darker
brownish and those at extreme base in dark basal part also dark
brownish, with the second longitudinal vein undulating, with the
(J i seal cross being only very slightly beyond middle of discoidal cell,
appearing almost at middle, with the discoidal cell itself subacute or
even acute apically, with the alular fringe dark and brownish, with
the squamae very dark opaquely blackish brown, but fringed with
conspicuous and contrasting almost silvery white hairs; halteres very
dark blackish brown, with dark knobs. Head with the eyes above in
contact for a distance at least \\ times as. long as ocellar tubercle;
frons with the centra] groove, vanishing anteriorly; antennae with
A Revision of the Bombyliidae iDiptera) of Souther r A 131
joint 1 short, about 2 times as long as 2, with 3 a little longer than
2 times as long as 1 and 2 combined, laterally compressed and in
profile gradually narrowed apically, broadest near base, the apical
part slender, ending apically in a conical basal element, bearing a short
style; proboscis al >ut lr-5 mm. long, even reaching a length of
- "in-* in zzz-zzz fruori r.rI-:~: nililr :zit = ~ il i-.~: iht 1 i: 2 sLorrisii
spines in front: hind ones with about 10-11 spines from near base t
apex of which 5 or 6 are more concenl
~L-/.z niir- riin-ri :i-:n:._ _ : -in - n - n~
!•: ~:-l :1t innri ;~:i;'_ i^lrE :: :m
parts only slightly projecting apically, w
i - .- -i::^t: margin. ~~i~_ "~_r !:•— -i: niirgi:
arcuately delated or broadened: beak
dorso-ventrally compressed, the edges
:-. iciisr z:~ :: ": :- z'sr^Lzilj iLirCT-r i =piz
— ::"_ t_t iTiiz-il :: •:" nri:~- :-i i~_ii. t_ :
side above the middle part; basal stn
bases of basal parts.
Type in the Rhodesian Museum, pai
Si"L Azzzzzzlzz Y~5t~izl..=
LriiriiL i:~:i:.- ' . z~ 'z^—h nzi
: JLTT.-.p-^i-izi :: : ::
w (text-fig.
on of basal
: Less
132 Annals of the South African Museum.
Locality.— S. Rhodesia: Sawmills (Rhod. Mus. 12/12/26) (Type);
Sawmills (Stevenson, 10/12/26).
This is an interesting species in that without doubt it belongs to the
or natus -section, but it also shows relationships with preceding series,
such as acroleucus and hypoxanthus in the analis-section. In certain
respects it seems to represent a sort of bridging species. With the
analis-section it agrees in the short first antennal joints, in the position
of the discal cross vein (which itself is thus in between the two sections),
and in the spines on hind femora beginning nearer base. With the
ornatus-sectiori it agrees in having an undulating second longitudinal
vein, in having distinct patches of silvery scaling on abdomen, and
in the marked dilation of lower margin in neck region of basal parts
of hypopygium. The species is named after Dr. G. Arnold, the
Director of the Rhodesian Museum, who kindly placed many interest-
ing Bombyliids at my disposal.
B. delicatus Wied.
(P. 640, Aussereurop. Zweifl. Ins. Nachtr. ii, 1830, and var. mutilatus
Bezz., p. 10, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
There seems to be no specific or structural difference between
mutilatus Bezz. and delicatus Wied., except that in mutilatus there is
no infuscation along the sixth longitudinal vein as in delicatus. A long
series, however, shows that this band is variable in its extent and
intensity, often being distinct as in delicatus s.str. (in specimens
from Portuguese East Africa, Zululand, Natal, Transvaal, and
S.W. Africa), and extending only slightly in certain specimens, which
may be considered as intermediate or transitional. It is, however,
entirely absent in the var. mutilatus (mostly from the Eastern Cape
Province, O.F.S., Natal, and even Zululand).
The species is characterised by a type of wing {see that of mutilatus
figured by Bezzi on PI. I, fig. 1, loc. cit.), the basal dark brownish
infuscation of which extends nearly to end of costal cell and then
obliquely hindwards to basal third of anal and axillary cells, including
also the alula and giving off a spot on discal cross vein and in delicatus
s. str., the infusion also extends to a variable extent down the vein
separating the fourth posterior and anal cells. Across the middle
part this dark infuscation is broadly more yellowish and there is a clear
spot at base of marginal cell and another near apex of second basal
cell; discoidal cell is rather truncate apically, the cross vein being
sometimes quite as long as discal cross vein. The pubescence on body
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 133
is predominantly black in both sexes, even anteriorly on thorax, with
the following spots of brilliantly shining silvery white scaling: a tuft
on each side of face, a smaller spot on each side of frons anteriorly, a
spot in slight sinuosity on eyes behind, larger in $$, a humeral spot on
each side of thorax and in line with them in $$ and some d<$ 3 2 adme-
dian elongated patches in front, a spot on each side in front of wings in
both sexes and in $$ and some $$ 2 discal spots more or less in line
with them, a spot (often absent or very small) on each side above
wings, sometimes a spot on post-alar calli on each side, a larger spot
Text-fig. 14. — Side view and ventral view in part of hypopygium of q
Bombylius delicatus Wied. (mutilatus Bezz.).
on each side at base of thorax in front of scutellum, a central row of
large spots at apices of abdominal tergites, conspicuous transverse
patches on each side at base of tergites 2-7 in both sexes and also with
some silvery gleaming scales on pleurae, with the scaling on legs dark
graphite-like, gleaming greyish, or greasy. Head with the eyes above
in $$ in actual contact for a distance subequal to ocellar tubercle,
the interocular space on vertex in $£ a little more than 2 times as
broad as tubercle ; frons in $$ tending to be shining black ; antennae
with joint 1 quite 5 times as long as 2, with 3 quite 1J times as long as
1 and 2 combined, somewhat laterally compressed and tending to be
broad and strap-like, ending apically on the outer aspect in a distinct
nodular or conical basal element, itself passing into a fine style;
proboscis about 3J-4 mm. long. Legs slender and with about 4-7 spines
in apical half below on hind ones. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 14)
vol. xxxiv. 10
134 Annals of the South African Museum.
with the basal parts in mutilatus having only a few long hairs;
aedeagus long, straight, and slender, projecting slightly beyond apices
of basal part; beaked apical joints long and slender.
Length of body: about 3J-6J mm.
Length of wing: about 4J-8 mm.
Locality. — Cape Province, O.F.S., Transvaal, Natal, Zululand,
Portuguese East Africa, Ehodesia, and South West Africa. (In the
Imperial Institute, British, Natal, Albany, Transvaal, and South
African Museums.)
B. plorans Bezz.
(P. 39, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Kegion, 1924.)
This species described, from the Chirinda Forest, by Bezzi is
characterised as follows : Entire body, scutellum, and legs black, the
tibiae may, however, be more blackish brown or very dark reddish
brown; pubescence on head and face rather long and dense, pre-
dominantly black, that across front part of thorax greyish to pale
greyish brown in 33, gleaming more brownish in $<j>, that in front of
wings in $$ on each side more tuft-like and more conspicuous, that on
middle part of pleurae in $$ also gleaming yellowish brown, with only
a few sparse greyish or pale greyish brownish ones on pleurae in 33,
that on rest of body above entirely black in both sexes, but with a
characteristic tuft of pale straw-coloured hairs on each side above
halteres and behind base of wings in both sexes, with a small spot of
silvery scaling on each side of frons and a larger one on each side of
face in both sexes, that in $$ being larger and more conspicuous, with
some sparse, almost silvery, scaling across front part of thorax in
both sexes, with some silvery scaling on each side of abdomen at
bases of tergites 2-5 in both sexes, the spot on tergites 2 and 4 and 5
more conspicuous, the latter two even tuft-like and with very narrow
cross bands of silvery scaling on venter; wings more greyish hyaline,
iridescent, with the base and alula very dark, almost sooty-black,
with the veins black, with the discoidal cell more or less acute or very
acute apically, the wings themselves narrowish, with the squamae also
black and fringed with entirely black hair; halteres black and with
black knobs. Head with the eyes in contact above in 33, the inter-
ocular space in $$ about 2 times as broad as tubercle; eyes in both
sexes with the hind margin slightly sinuate; antennae with joint 3
subequal in length to joints 1 and 2 combined, with 3 rod-like, ending
in a style on its outer apical aspect; proboscis about 3J-4 mm. long.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 135
Legs slender and longish; hind femora with about 3-4 spines below
in apical half. Hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 15) with rather longish
hairs on dorsum of basal parts, the neck region of basal parts
slightly arcuately produced (in profile); beaked apical joints some-
Text-fig. 15.
-Side and ventral views of hypopygium of <$ Bombylius
plorans Bezz.
what triangular, their upper, inner dorsal edge provided with a tuft of
longish hairs ; aedeagus slightly proj ecting beyond apices of basal parts.
Length of body: about 5-6 mm.
Length of wing: about 6-7 mm.
Locality. — S. Rhodesia. (In the Rhodesian and South African
Museums, in the Imperial Institute and Rhode sian Agricultural Dept.)
1 $ 1 ? B. melanolomus n. sp.
Body and scutellum entirely black; legs with the femora black, the
tibiae scarcely less black, but when denuded with a very dark blackish
brown tint; pubescence dense as in other species of the ornatus and
plorans series, that on antennae and face slightly shorter than in
plorans, that on thorax discally dense and shortish, that on sides of
abdomen long, dense, and shrggy as in other species in this series,
predominantly black above and below, that on thorax in front on <J
straw-coloured yellowish to obscure yellowish brownish, that in front
on thorax in £ almost entirely black, but with a few, scarcely per-
ceptible, gleaming brownish hairs on humeral part and medially in
136 Annals of the South African Museum.
front, with the shorter bristly hairs lower down on occiput in $
distinctly reddish brown or rufous brown in certain lights, with the
pubescence on pleurae in both sexes entirely black, but showing very
dark blackish brown or purplish tints in certain lights, without any
tuft of whitish hairs behind wings, with a small tuft of silvery white
scaling on each side of frons anteriorly in both sexes, another larger
tuft on each side of face, more conspicuous in $, a few silvery scales in
sinuosity behind eyes, especially in $, with a few silvery scales near
humeral part on each side and 2 admedian spots of very sparse silvery
scaling in line with them in $, but with only very sparse and feeble
scattered pale scales across middle of thorax in front in #, with some
silvery scaling apically and medially on abdomen above in both
sexes, a small patch of silvery scaling on each side basally of tergite 2
and a few silvery scales laterally on hind margins of tergites 3-5 in ?,
without any visible silvery scaling on venter in both sexes, with the
fine depressed dark scaling on abdomen above in $ at least glittering
and gleaming whitish or silvery in certain lights, with the dark scaling
on femora graphite-like, gleaming greyish, or greasy in certain lights ;
wings glassy hyaline, with the base and alula very dark blackish brown
or black, with the veins very dark brown, almost black in $, with the
apical part of discoidal cell subacute, a very short cross vein being
present, with the squamae black and the fringe entirely black;
halteres blackish and with blackish knobs. Head with the eyes in S
in contact above for a short distance a little shorter than ocellar
tubercle, the interocular space in $ about 2 times as broad as tubercle
on vertex, with the hind margins of eyes on side sinuous; antennae
with joint 1 quite 4 times as long as 2, with 3 less than If, about
1J times as long as 1 and 2 combined, more or less rod-like, but
slightly stouter in $; proboscis rather long, about 4J-5 mm. Legs
slightly stouter in <j>, with 4-5 spines in apical half below on outer side
on hind femora. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 16) similar to that of
plorans (cf. text-fig. 15), but beaked apical joints slightly shorter, neck
region of basal parts slightly more rounded, the aedeagus less rapidly
narrowed, and basal strut much less incised along its dorsal margin.
Holotype in the Rhodesian Museum, allotype in the Rhodesian
Agricultural Dept.
Length of body: about 6-7 mm.
Length of wing: about 7J-8J mm.
Locality.— S. Rhodesia: Cloudlands; Vumbu Mts. (6-17/4/23)
(cJ-type); Umtali (Agr. Dept., Dec. 1934) (?-type).
Notwithstanding the fact that the base of the wings in $ is slightly
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 137
more brownish and the veins are less black, I am of opinion that these
two specimens belong to the same species. From plorans this species
differs in having relatively shorter pubescence on face and antennae,
shorter first antennal joints, no tuft of whitish hans behind wings,
Text-fig. 16.
-Side and ventral views of hypopygium of <J of Bombylius
melanolomus n. sp.
relatively longer proboscis, entirely dark pubescence on pleurae and
relatively broader wings. From lugens Bezz. (p. 40, The Bombyliidae
of the Ethiopian Region, 1924) it differs, according to the description,
in having less silvery ornamentation on body in $ at least, no con-
spicuous humeral patch of fulvous hairs in <j>, and much darker to
black veins in wings in both sexes. The ^-holotype was labelled by
Brunetti as a $ of plorans Bezz.
6 <$3 1 $ B. lugens Bezz.
(P. 40, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Region, 1924.)
Provisionally these seven specimens from South West Africa are
referred to lugens with the description of which they agree more than
with any other species in this category. As these specimens are some-
what denuded, and the $ entirely denuded, undamaged material of the
same species may eventually prove to be separate from lugens, in which
case the species would, however, very closely resemble the latter.
The specimens are characterised as follows: — Body, including legs,
entirely black, only the tibiae, in the denuded state, are more dark
138
Annals of the South African Museum.
reddish brown; pubescence dense as in otter species in this series,
that on first antennal joints and face, however, markedly dense and
distinctly shorter than in plorans and much denser than in melano-
lomus, predominantly black above and below, that on front part of
thorax in $$ straw-coloured yellowish, with sericeous gleams in certain
lights, appearing greyish in certain positions and appearing paler
medially in front, that on pleurae entirely black but like that on sides
of abdomen and venter having a very dark blackish brown or purplish
brown tint in certain positions, without any whitish tuft behind wings,
Text-fig. 17. — Side and ventral views of bypopygium and apical or dorsal
view of beaked apical joint of $ Bombylius lugens Bezz.
with a small tuft of silvery scaling on each side and just in front of
ocellar tubercle in $, with a tuft on each side of frons anteriorly and a
larger one on each side of face in both sexes, the latter tuft more
conspicuous in $, without any silvery scaling visible on thorax in
front in $S ($ denuded), with a central row of small spots of silvery
scales at apices of tergites on abdomen above in $$, and also indica-
tions of silvery scaling on each side at bases of tergites 2-4 in some
$$ at least; wings glassy hyaline, iridescent, with the base and alula
pale yellowish brown to pale brownish, with the veins pale yellowish
and very much paler than in plorans or melanolomus , with the discoidal
cell acute or subacute apically, with the squamae opaquely dark
blackish brown and fringed with black hair; halteres very dark or
blackish and with almost black knobs. Head with the eyes also
sinuous behind as in other species in this category, in contact above in
cJc? for a distance subequal in length to ocellar tubercle, the interocular
pace in $ a little more than 2 times as broad as tubercle; frons in $
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 139
with the transverse depression rather pronounced; antennae with
joint 1 not quite 4 times as long as 2, thus relatively shorter than in
melanolomus and distinctly much shorter than in plorans, with joint
3 proportionally longer than in melanolomus and much longer in
relation to 1 and 2 than in plorans, but as in melanolomus not quite
1J times as long as 1 and 2 combined; proboscis about 3| mm. long
and thus much shorter than in melanolomus. Legs slender and also
with graphite-like or greasy greyish scaling ; hind femora with about
4-5 spines in apical half on outer side. Hypopygium of <J (text-fig. 17),
with the inner apical angles in neck region of basal parts not produced
beyond bases of beaked apical joints, apparently without a row of
stout spines along its upper edge; beaked apical joints with their
apices comparatively blunt and curved slightly outwards; aedeagus
with the apical part long, straight, and slender, reaching level of
apical processes of basal part.
Length of body: about 6-7 mm.
Length of wing: about 6J-7J mm.
Locality. — S.W. Africa: Kaokoveld; Cayimaeis (Mus. Exp. y
March 1925).
1 $ B. tucker i n. sp.
Black; pleurae, where denuded, more dark reddish brown; legs
with the femora black, the tibiae more dark blackish brown; pub-
escence as dense as in other species in this series, the bristles on
scutellum apparently more prominent than in the preceding three
species, the pubescence predominantly black above and below, that
on lower part of occiput, on thorax in front and to a certain extent
along sides above wings gleaming sericeous brownish or fulvous, but
intermixed with dark hairs, with the fine scaling on thorax above
especially in front and across base gleaming golden brownish, with
some sparse pubescence on pleurae also fulvous or brownish golden
in certain lights, with a small spot of silvery scaling on each side just
in front of ocellar tubercle, a larger spot on each side of frons anteriorly
and a more conspicuous silvery tuft on each side of face, with some
silvery white scaling on each side behind eyes, with a brilliantly
shining silvery white spot of scaling on each side at humerus and in line
with them 2 admedian patches in front, with a spot of silvery white
scaling on each side in front of wing-bases and in line with them 2
discal patches and with a roundish spot of brilliantly shining silvery
white scales on each side at base of thorax in front of scutellum, with
an elongated transverse patch of silvery white scaling on each side at
140 Annals of the South African Museum.
base of tergite 2, and much smaller patches on each side at base of
tergites 3-6, and also with indications of a central row of small silvery
white patches at apices of the tergites, with the fine, hair-like, de-
pressed scaling on abdomen above dark, but gleaming brassy or even
opalescent in certain lights, without any whitish tuft of hairs behind
wings, with the scaling on legs dark and graphite-like, gleaming
greyish; wings vitreous hyaline, iridescent, with the base and alula
blackish brown, with the veins brown to dark brownish, with the
discoidal cell subacute apically, the cross vein very short however,
with the squamae very dark blackish brown and fringed with black
hair; halteres dark brownish, with the knobs blackish. Head with
the eyes slightly sinuate behind, separated above on vertex by a space
about 2 times as broad as ocellar tubercle; frons rather rapidly
widening apically; antennae with joint 1 a little more than 4 times
as long as 2, with 3 only a little longer than 1 and 2 combined, subrod-
like, but apparently thickest at about middle, ending apically in a
small, conical basal element bearing a style; proboscis about 4 mm.
long. Legs with about 4 spines in apical half on hind femora.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 6 J mm.
Length of wing: about 7 mm.
Locality. — S.W. Africa: Grootfontein (Lightfoot, Dec. 1918).
B. ornatus Wied.
(P. 345, Aussereurop. Zweifl. Ins., i, 1828; Bezzi, p. 42,
The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Region, 1924.)
This species is apparently very common throughout Southern Africa
and South West Africa, and there is no doubt that it also appears to be
variable. According to Bezzi (pp. 42 and 43, loc. cit., and p. 11, Ann.
S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921), there seems to be very little difference
between the $$ of ornatus and kilimandjaricus Speis. From labelled
specimens in the South African Museum, the $$ of ornatus differ from
those of kilimandjaricus (as labelled by Bezzi) chiefly by having the
tuft of white scales on sides of tergite 4 slightly longer and more
brush-like, the apex of discoidal cell more subacute and the base of
wings usually slightly darker. The hypopygium shows practically no
differences, except that in that of ornatus there seem to be fewer and
shorter hairs on the beaked apical joints, the apices of the beaked
apical joints appear comparatively shorter, and the apical part of the
aedeagus also appears to be slightly shorter and less slender. The
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 141
chief difference between $$ of ornatus and kilimandjaricus, according
to Bezzi, is, however, the absence of fulvous hair on the occiput in
kilimandjaricus. Whether specimens labelled as kilimandjaricus by
Bezzi are specifically identical with the <$ -kilimandjaricus described by
Speiser from Kilimandjaro (see p. 75, Zool. Kilimandjaro-Meru.,
Exp. II, 1905-1906) is doubtful. Speiser states that the base of the
wings and including the alula is blackish grey, and the silvery scaling
on sides of abdomen is on last 2 tergites. In all the specimens before
me the alula is distinctly subopaquely whitish, only the squamae being
blackish, and the long white scaling on sides of abdomen is practically
confined on each side of base of tergite 4, though tergite 2 also has a
small patch of depressed silvery scaling on each side basally. Pro-
visionally I prefer to consider all the specimens before me as belonging
to ornatus, a species which is variable to a great extent. The species
ornatus is very characteristic and chiefly characterised by having an
entirely black body, scutellum, and legs in both sexes, by having the
pubescence in $3 predominantly black, but that on occiput, front
part of thorax, and to a certain extent sparsely on scutellum straw-
coloured whitish to yellowish, appearing greyish to even slightly more
fulvous in certain fights, that on occiput and front part in typical $$
also more or less fulvous or more straw-coloured yellowish, usually
more yellowish than in ^<J, with the following patches of brilliantly
gleaming and very conspicuous silvery scaling on body : a tuft on each
side of face in both sexes, but broader in $$, a small tuft on each side
of frons in $$, a tuft on each side of frons in front and another one
nearer middle and towards base of frons on each side in $$, a few
silvery scales on sides of head behind eyes in $£ and a much broader
and more conspicuous patch in $$, a humeral patch on each side and a
small patch on each side in front of wings in $$, a basal patch on
thorax on each side in front of scutellum in ?$, some scaling on
scutellum in $$, a central row of spots on abdomen above in both
sexes, becoming larger apically in $£, a spot on each side at base of
tergite 2 in both sexes, a conspicuous tuft of hair-like scales and
depressed scales on each side of tergite 4 in both sexes (extending
obliquely down on tergites 5 and 6), and the transverse scaling across
hind margins of sternites especially on sides and especially in $3,
with the pubescence on pleurae sometimes having a distinct coffee-
brownish tint in certain lights and with the fringe of the squamae
strikingly white in both sexes and the upper anterior part of meta-
pleural tuft also strikingly white ; wings vitreous hyaline but the base
yellowish brown, appearing more blackish at extreme base, with the
142
Annals of the South African Museum.
alula subopaquely whitish, with the veins yellowish to yellowish
brown, the costal vein darker, with the discal cross vein just before
the middle of discoidal cell and apex of discoidal cell either sub-
acute or very acute (an apical cross vein practically wanting), with
the halteres and knobs black; head with the hind margin of eyes on
side distinctly, though only slightly, sinuate or emarginate, the eyes
in actual contact above in <$<$ for a distance at least as long as ocellar
Text-fig. 18.-
-Side and ventral views of hypopygium of $ of Bombylius
ornatus Wied.
tubercle, separated in ?? quite 2 times as broad as tubercle, with the
third antennal joints more or less rod-like, not very much thickened
basally, with the proboscis long and slender 4J-6 mm. long. Hypo-
pygium of $ (text-fig. 18) more or less typical of this series, with the
hairs on dorsum of basal parts shorter than in plorans, the beaked
apical joints, as in other species of this section, provided with a crest
of bristly hairs on inner upper side.
Locality. — Cape Province, Natal, Zululand, Transvaal, O.F.S.,
S.E. Africa, and S.W. Africa. (In the Imp. Institute, the Deutsches
Entomologisches Institut, the British, Transvaal, Durban, Natal,
and S. Afr. Museums.)
One ^-specimen from Kimberley, which Bezzi referred to kili-
mandjaricus (see p. 11, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii), differs from the
more or less typical $$ of ornatus in having 2 shortened silvery stripes
discally and centrally on thorax in front, in having all the pubescence
on occiput and thorax in front black, in having the silvery scaling on
sides of tergites 4-6 shorter, and in having a conspicuous patch of
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 143
silvery white scaling on upper half of the sternopleuron. There is no
doubt that this specimen differs much from the typical forms and is
also different from the Nyasaland $ described as kilimandjaricus by
Bezzi (p. 43, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Region). In view of
the fact that the sternopleuron is adorned with a very conspicuous
patch of silvery scales, this specimen really ought to be referred to a
new species, but as the specimen is unique and <$<$ are wanting it is
provisionally referred to a variety of ornatus.
1 $ B. okahandjanus n. sp.
A somewhat denuded ^-specimen in the British Museum, obviously
belonging to the ornatus-series, is characterised by the following
characters : —
Body entirely black; legs with the femora black and the tibiae
very dark reddish brown, almost black; pubescence straw-coloured
whitish on antennal joint 1, thorax in front, on pleural parts, in
metapleural tuft and venter below laterally, some on occiput and that
towards disc of thorax inclining to yellowish, with the hairs on
antennal joint 1 comparatively short for this group, fine and not
dense, with the bristly hairs on tubercle, frons and genae, the bristles
in front of wing-bases and bristly hairs on abdomen above (as far as
these have not been denuded in this specimen) black, with silvery
white scale-like, flattened hairs in form of a tuft on each side of frons
anteriorly, on each side of face (densely), a few on each side of antennal
joint 1, a dense patch behind eyes, a spot or patch on humeral angles,
in an elongated patch in front of wing-bases, some finer ones towards
middle on each side of thorax anteriorly in form of a longitudinal band,
dense ones on mesopleuron, some on propleural parts, at base laterally
of abdominal segment 2, as tufts on sides of segments 4 and 5 and along
sides of venter, conspicuously present and even densely on coxae,
femora, and tibiae, especially along lower surfaces, with distinct
indications of, and some still adhering, resplendent greenish, bluish,
metallic and iridescent, broadish, flattened scales on thorax and
scutellum, and purplish red or pinkish ones on abdomen above; wings
glassy hyaline, with iridescence, the base, costal cell, and alula sub-
opaquely yellowish and the extreme base black, with the basal comb
black, but also showing yellowish scaling, the veins pale yellowish
brown, with the discal cross vein just before middle of discoidal cell,
and the discoidal cell acute apically, with the squamae opaquely
blackish brown basally and more whitish towards margin, fringed
144 Annals of the South African Museum.
with white hairs. Head with the interocular space about 2 times as
broad as tubercle; antennae with joint 1 about 5 times as long
as 2, with 3 subrod-like, thicker than 1, subequal to, or scarcely
longer than 1 and 2 combined. Legs with about 3-4 shortish
spines on hind femora below from just before or about the middle
to apex.
Type in the British Museum.
Length of body: about 6 mm.
Length of wing: about 6 mm.
Locality.— S.W. Africa: Okahandja (Turner, 12-18/12/27).
Easily recognised by the extensive silvery white scaling on legs and
front parts of pleural regions below and by the presence of greenish,
bluish, and purplish red, broadish scales on body above as in some
species of Chasmoneura. From ornatus it differs in the presence of
silvery white scaling on the legs, bluish, greenish, and purplish red ones
scattered on body above and also by the pale, short, and finer hairs on
first antennal joints.
B. rufiventris Macq.
(Macquart, p. 116, Dipt. Exot. Suppl. i, 45, 1846; Bezzi,
p. 12, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This species is easily recognised by the whitish hair on the thorax in
front in <£, the presence of reddish or reddish yellow, depressed scaling
on scutellum and disc of abdomen above, especially in $. The $ also
has conspicuous spots of silvery white scales on the thorax as well as
on the abdomen. Erom ornatus it may be distinguished by the paler
pubescence on body above, the less developed patch of white hair
laterally on the abdomen, and the presence of reddish scaling on
abdomen above. Hypojpygium of $ does not differ much from those
of the other species in this series, with the smooth basal parts provided
dorsally with a tuft of longish hairs, with the inner apical parts in neck
region not produced; beaked apical joints provided with longish
hairs above, longer on inner aspect and slightly longitudinally de-
pressed above; aedeagus projecting very slightly beyond apices of
basal parts; basal strut racket-shaped and not projecting beyond
bases of basal parts.
Locality. — S.E. Africa: Natal, Zululand, and East Transvaal. (In
the Transvaal, Natal, British, and S.A. Museums and in Imp.
Institute.)
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 145
B. elegans Wied.
(P. 342, Aussereurop. Zweifl. Ins., i, 1828; Paramonow, pp. 73 and 74,
Trav. Mus. Zool. Kiev. No. 11, 1931 ; syn. =furiosus Walk., p. 286,
Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond., vol. v (n. ser.), 1860.)
From both Wiedemann and Paramonow's descriptions there is no
doubt that furiosus Walk, is a synonym of elegans Wied. This species
is easily distinguished from all other species in the or natus -series by
the characteristic tuft of fulvous or orange yellow hairs on each side
of the abdomen, the yellowish brown pubescence on thorax in front,
and the extensive development of golden brown or reddish golden
scaling on scutellum and disc of abdomen, especially in $$, in addition
to the bright silvery white spots on thorax and abdomen in £$. It
can only be confused with auricomus Bezz. (p. 44, The Bombyliidae
of the Ethiopian Kegion), described from Abyssinia, but also reported
from Natal. This latter species, according to the short description,
is, however, entirely or predominantly yellowish-haired.
Locality. — S.E. Africa: S.E. Cape, Natal, and Zululand. (In the
British, Natal, Transvaal, and S.A. Museums and Imp. Institute.)
Section 4.
3 3$ B. permixtus n. sp.
Body, including proboscis, black; hind margins of abdominal
segments above, especially laterally, often obscure reddish, the hind
margins of ventral segments narrowly pallid to reddish, with the
apical parts of exposed genitalia reddish; legs yellowish, with the
basal half of front femora and extreme basal parts of middle and hind
ones dark brownish to blackish brown, the last 3 or 4 tarsal joints also
darkened, the apices of the claws and the spines on the legs black;
pubescence pale, soft yellowish white, that on occiput and front part
of thorax, in certain lights paler and more whitish, that on sides of
abdomen in basal half distinctly more pale yellowish, becoming very
pale yellowish white, almost white, apically; fine bristly hairs on
ocellar tubercle, sides of frons, on first antennal joints and on face
blackish, with a patch of depressed pubescent hair-like scaling, on
each side of antennal joints, shining silvery white; hair below head
and on pectoral regions whiter than above, that on sides of pleurae,
however, in front of wings a soft pale yellowish white, which, in cer-
tain lights, is distinctly yellowish, the metapleural tuft being almost
white, with the hair on venter laterally whiter than on abdomen
146 Annals of the South African Museum.
above; fine depressed pubescence on body above, especially on
abdomen, very pale yellowish white ; macrochaetae in front of wings
yellowish; wings hyaline, but with an almost imperceptible and very
faint yellowish tinge towards base, the costal cell, base, alula and part
of first basal cell being more distinctly yellowish, with the small spines
of basal comb brownish black and the hair-like scaling behind them
yellowish white, the squamae opaquely yellowish and with white
fringes, the veins yellowish to yellowish brown, becoming paler and
more yellowish towards base; halteres yellowish, with yellowish
knobs. Head with the inner margins of the eyes above in contact for
a distance subequal to or a little longer than length of ocellar tubercle,
diverging posteriorly and embracing the tubercle and very rapidly
anteriorly; eyes with the upper facets distinctly coarser and more so
anteriorly; frons with a distinct, central, and comparatively broad
depression; face with the mystax comparatively well developed;
occiput with the hair short; antennae with joint 1 comparatively
short and not thickened, about or nearly 2f times as long as 2, with
2 longer than broad, with 3 (terminal joints excluded) a little less or
about 1J times as long as 1 and 2 combined, slightly constricted at
base, compressed in basal half and, seen from side, club-shaped, being
broadest in basal half or third, broadest across basal fourth, more or
less rapidly narrowed to middle and from there parallel, the apex,
however, being broadened again, with the basal terminal joint com-
paratively long, narrower basally than apex of 3, gradually attenuated
and longer than the comparatively short and stout style ; palps dark
brownish, comparatively long and slender; proboscis about 4-5 mm.
long, the numerous spinules below distinctly visible. Thorax com-
paratively convex discally, with 3 or 4 distinct macrochaetae on each
side in front of wings, the bristles on posterior calli and scutellum very
feeble ; wings with a comparatively poorly developed basal comb, the
second longitudinal vein only slightly undulating, discal cross vein
very much before middle of discoidal cell (almost Systoechus-like, the
first basal cell being only slightly longer than the second), the discoidal
cell acute apically and the alula comparatively large. Abdomen with
the hair fine and soft and without any distinct stouter hairs or bristles
across hind margins. Legs with longish hair on front and middle
femora below and basally only on hind ones; front femora with an
insignificant spine on outer lower and apical aspect; middle ones with
1 or 2 feeble spines in front; hind femora with about 8-10 spines
below from near base to apex or at least from before middle and with
about 3-5, often pallid, spines on inner apical aspect below; claws
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 147
more or less rapidly curved downwards from about middle to apex and
the pulvilli just reaching curved apices. Hypopygium (text-fig. 19)
with the basal parts provided dorsally with hairs in punctures, with
the neck region narrow and not dilated along its lower inner margin,
with the inner dorsal margin raised slightly crest-like, produced
apically as long inner apical processes, projecting much beyond bases
of apical beaked joints, broad and strap-like with rounded apices
Text-fig. 19. — Side and ventral views of hypopygium, dorsal view of inner
apical process, and dorsal view of beaked apical joint of <J Bombylius permixtus
n. sp.
(shown also from dorsal aspect); beaked apical joints more or less
elongate, armed above with a crown of dense spine-like hairs, produced
apically into a long slender pointed beak; aedeagus not reaching bases
of apical joints, without any distinct ventral aedeagal process, but
with basal part below slightly projecting and raised, the basally
directed aedeagal struts visibly projecting; lateral struts shoe-horn
shaped; basal strut projecting beyond bases of basal parts, racket-
shaped, but with a deep dorsal sinuosity, the dorsal part of which is
pointed and projecting.
Type in the S. Afr. Museum.
Length of body : about 7J-8 mm.
Length of wing : about 8-8J mm.
Locality. — S.W. Africa: Kaokoveld; Cayimaeis (Mus. Exp.,
March 1925).
148 Annals of the South African Museum.
1 S 3 $$ B. subacutus n. sp.
Together with permixtus, there are a ^-specimen and 3 $? from
other localities, which also belong to this section. The $ differs from
permixtus in having a slightly more yellowish pubescence in certain
lights on the thorax and a distinctly more golden yellow patch on
each side of antennae, a few distinct dark hairs are present on each
posterior callus; first, second, and basal half of third antennal joints
are reddish yellow, the third joint is comparatively much less thickened
in basal half and there also less broad, more distinctly hairy, and the
apex less dilated than in permixtus; coarser facets on eyes above
slightly more extensive; palps yellowish, only the apices being
darkened; metapleural tuft distinctly more yellowish; wings with a
feeble cinereous or greyish tinge, with the costal cell, first basal cell,
extreme base and alula distinctly darker, more yellowish brown, and
there are distinct infuscations just below fork of second and third
longitudinal veins, on discal cross vein and on basal cross vein of fourth
posterior cell; the veins are also comparatively darker towards base,
the squamae also with a slightly more yellowish fringe, the apex of
discoidal cell much less acute and the cross vein distinct but short;
legs entirely yellowish, only the last two tarsal joints blackish, the
middle femora with 1 or 2 distinct apical spines above and the lateral
anterior ones insignificant, the hind ones with about 10-11 spines
below, the claws comparatively longer, not sickle-shaped and almost
straight, only very slightly bent ; pulvilli very small, confined to base,
almost invisible; abdomen with a few intermixed dark hairs laterally.
Hypopygium like that of permixtus, but the dorsum of basal parts
with comparatively fewer hairs; beaked apical joints with relatively
longer and sharper beaks; lateral struts comparatively narrower and
the basal strut more chopper-shaped, less broad, the dorsal sinuosity
less deep.
The three somewhat denuded ^-specimens, which I take to belong
to the same species, differ from the ^-holotype in having only the
extreme apex of third antennal joint blackish and the joint itself
comparatively more thickened in basal two-thirds; face reddish;
macrochaetae in front of wings and bristles on posterior calli stouter,
stronger developed and more reddish or orange golden; bristles on
scutellum stouter and blackish; abdomen above with distinct stouter
and longer bristles in transverse rows across hind margins ; these are
composed of yellowish and blackish ones intermixed, the venter with
blackish ones towards apex; interocular space less than 3 times, only
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 149
a little more than 2 times, as wide as ocellar tubercle ; f rons with more
extensive yellowish golden pubescence, more or less concentrated as a
more whitish patch on each side of antennae; the bristles on ocellar
tubercle, sides of frons, on antennae and in mystax yellowish, only a
few bristles blackish on sides of genae above ; wings with the cinereous
tinge more evident and the costal and basal infuscations slightly more
reddish brown; legs with the 10-11 spines below on hind femora
much stouter.
Types in the S. Afr. Museum.
Length of body: about 7-8 \ mm.
Length of wing: about 8-10J mm.
Locality. — S.W. Africa: Kaokoveld; Cayimaeis (Mus. Exp.,
March 1925) (Holotype); Kamanyab (Mus. Exp., March 1925)
(Allotype); Kaross (Mus. Exp., February 1925).
1 c£, 1 <j> 2?. cockerelli n. sp.
Black; narrow front margin of face and the buccal rims pale
yellowish brown; legs predominantly yellowish, the trochanters and
coxae being much darker and more brownish, with the upper apical
surfaces of the femora and upper parts of the tibiae more or less
blackish-scaled, with the spines black, the last 3 or 4 apical tarsal
joints as well as apices of the claws black; pubescence predominantly
whitish, with, however, some depressed and also shortish erect
yellowish or pale brownish golden pubescence on thorax above
towards front part and also basally in $ at least (as far as the hair
above has not been denuded in this $ specimen), with the short
depressed pubescence on abdomen above (as far as it is still visible) as
well as some longer hairs on sides of segment 3 and intermixed ones
towards apex on segments 5-7 in $, also pale brownish golden or
yellowish sericeous, with the pubescence on body below predominantly
and markedly whitish, with the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle, frons,
on antennal joint 1 above and intermixed on face and genae (denser
on genae) in both sexes, some intermixed bristly hairs on sides of
segments 1 and 2, distinctly more numerous and conspicuous ones on
sides of 3 and numerous transverse ones apically on 5-7 in $ at least,
black (most of the bristles on abdomen above have been denuded, but
apparently are dark posteriorly, becoming paler towards base and that
of <£ is entirely denuded), with the bristles in front of wing-bases
sienna brownish; wings vitreous hyaline, with the base, costal cell
and basal half of first basal cell subopaquely yellowish white, slightly
VOL. XXXIV. 11
150
Annals of the South African Museum.
more distinctly yellowish at base, with the basal comb black, the veins
dark brownish, becoming paler towards base, with the discal cross
vein a little before middle of discoidal cell, the squamae whitish
opaque, dark-bordered, and white fringed; halteres pale yellowish,
with the knobs dark blackish brown above and laterally. Head with
the interocular space, at narrowest part in $, about 2 times as broad as
tubercle, in <$ in contact
above; antennae black,
with joint 3 scarcely
broadened basally,
rapidly tapering only in
apical fourth, with
scattered short hairs
visible above in certain
positions, with at least
the first terminal joint
distinctly separately
visible and with 2 and
3 fused but prominent;
proboscis about 5 mm.
long and with the fine
spinules on its surface
rather distinctly visible.
Legs without any spines
on front femora below,
with about 1 spine on
middle ones in front
and with about 13 spines on hind ones below from near base to
apex and with rather numerous spines apically above on hind ones;
claws rather rapidly bent downwards apically and with the pulvilli
about reaching the apices of claws. Hypopygium of £ (text-fig. 20)
showing dorsal, lateral, and ventral views of the raised crest-like inner
apical dorsal margin (Cr.) in neck region of basal parts which is very
prominent in this species; dorsum of basal parts with setiferous
punctures; aedeagus with a bell-shaped base and no process below.
Types in the Imperial Institute of Entomology.
Length of body: about 9 mm.
Length of wing: about 9J mm.
Locality .— N.W. Karoo: Calvinia (Mrs. Cockerell, 11-16/11/31)
(Holotype). S. Karoo near Oudtshoorn (Mrs. Cockerell, 1/11/31)
(Allotype).
Text-fig. 20. — Side view and half of ventral view of
hypopygium of $ of Bombylius cockerelli n. sp.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 151
This species is easily recognised by its predominantly whitish
pubescence, yellowish legs, which have black spines, etc. It appears
to be a Karoo representative of this section with yellowish, but black
spined, legs and pale coloured pubescence to which permixtus and
subacutus from S.W. Africa also belong. The $ specimen, though
very much denuded, obviously belongs to this species.
1 $ B. karasanus n. sp.
Body, including scutellum and antennae, black; legs yellowish red,
the extreme apices of femora (or knees) and apical parts of tarsi,
however, darkened, with the spines on femora and the spicules on
tibiae and tarsi black and with a tendency for the minute scaling on
outer surfaces of the tibiae to be black, the scaling on femora, however,
sericeous whitish; pubescence not very dense and long, that on
abdomen towards apex the longest, that on frons, face, and genae not
very dense, predominantly sericeous whitish, the scaling along inner
margins of eyes more silvery, with the dense bristly hairs on occiput
appearing more whitish in certain lights, the hair on thorax above
comparatively sparse and whitish, but appearing greyish in certain
lights, that on sides in front of wings gleaming more sericeous, the
more woolly pubescence on pleurae duller and frosty white, the
bristly hairs on coxae, however, gleaming sericeous whitish, with the
sparse hair-like depressed scaling on thorax sericeous yellowish but
frosty whitish on the two whitish longitudinal lines over disc, with the
pubescence on abdomen (as far as this is not denuded) composed of
depressed, flattened, frosty white scaling and sericeous yellowish to
golden scaling and silvery or sericeous whitish, gleaming hairs and
bristly hairs the bases of which are distinctly golden yellow towards
apex at least and intermixed with which there are transversely
towards apex blackish hairs and also distinct blackish hairs on sides of
abdomen, on tergites 2 and 3, the short erect hair on sides of tergite 1
entirely white, with the dense scaling and hairs on venter pre-
dominantly white and that on extreme sides of abdomen also white,
with the macrochaetal bristles on each side in front of wings gleaming
reddish yellow, the feebler bristles on post-alar calli and across hind
margin of scutellum predominantly whitish, their bases however more
yellowish, without any distinct and stout transverse bristles across
hind margins of abdomen; wings rather elongate, having the shape
characteristic for permixtus, subacutus and cockerelli, glassy hyaline,
the base, alula, and costal cell more subopaquely whitish, with the
152 Annals of the South African Museum.
basal comb black, with the veins dark blackish brown, becoming more
brownish to yellowish brown towards base, the veins at base being
yellowish brown excepting the dark costal vein, with the discal cross
vein much before middle of discoidal cell, the discoidal cell subacute
apically, the apical cross vein short but distinct as in subacutus, with
the squamae subopaquely whitish and fringed with white hairs;
halteres pale yellowish brown, with the knobs very dark brown above.
Head with the interocular space on vertex about 2J times as broad as
ocellar tubercle; antennae with joint 1 slightly thicker apically than
basally, about 3 times as long as 2, with joint 3 (including terminal
elements) quite 2 times as long as 1 and 2 combined, broadest near
base (profile), then gradually narrowed apically, the apical half,
however, equally thick and rod-like, with the terminal elements well
developed as in subacutus and the other species in this series, composed
of more or less 3 distinct and separately visible elements, a short
basal joint, a longer second joint, and a bluntish short stylar element;
proboscis long, about 5 mm. long, the apical lobes of labella broadish
and rounded, the proboscis itself apparently less spinulose than in the
other species; palps dark, but whitish-haired. Legs without any
spines on front and middle femora ; hind ones with about 8-9 spines
from near base to apex on outer side below and 1 or 2 smallish ones
on inner side towards apex; claws curved down apically and the
pulvilli well developed, extending to middle, or even slightly beyond
middle, of claws.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 9 mm.
Length of wing: about 9^ mm.
Locality. — S.W. Africa: Great Namaqualand; Great Karas Mts.
(Mus. Exp., Nov. 1936).
This species is easily distinguished from subacutus by the black
antennae, black face, predominantly whitish pubescence, dark veins
in wings and claws which are distinctly curved down apically and
which have well developed pulvilli. From permixtus it may be
distinguished by the more whitish pubescence above and below, the
more rod-shaped third antennal joints, darker wing- venation, and less
acute discoidal cell. From cockerelli, which it more closely resembles,
it may be distinguished by having an entirely black face, absence of
black hairs on antennae, face, and genae, slightly broader interocular
space, slightly more basally thickened third antennal joints, and
slightly less obviously spinulated proboscis.
The above four species together show a mixture of characters,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 153
which show affinities with members of section 3, such as the presence
of silvery patches on each side of antennae (permixtus and subacutus),
the acuteness of the discoidal cell and the position of the discal cross
vein, which is even nearer the base of the cell. With members of
group 2, they agree in being yellow or whitish-haired, having yellow
legs, etc. To a certain extent they also show affinities with the
mollis-sexies in having black spines on the legs. The wings are
peculiar in that they are relatively elongate and narrowish in all
four species.
Section 5.
B. mollis Bezz.
(P. 15, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921; Bezzi, p. 54, The Bomby-
liidae of the Ethiopian Eegion, 1924; syn. = disjunctus Bezz.,
p. 15, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, and p. 54, loc. cit.)
In the collections before me there is, in addition to the c^-type
of mollis and a $ specimen from Salisbury (24/4/17) labelled as a
^-disjunctus Bezz. by Bezzi, a series of <£<J and $$ which obviously
belong to the same species. The $3 agree in every respect with the
c^-type of mollis and the $$ with the ^-specimen of disjunctus (mistaken
for a ^ by Bezzi) and also with the long description of disjunctus
(Bezzi, pp. 54-55, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Region). There
is no doubt that Bezzi did not examine the genital segment of the
^-specimen in the South African Museum, which he referred to a
S -disjunctus. Owing to the fact that in mollis the terminal abdominal
segments are somewhat telescoped, a mistake in distinguishing the
sexes is easily made. As this species is practically unique in having
the interocular space in $$ very narrow, there is no doubt that all
Bezzi's specimens of disjunctus from Nyasaland, Abyssinia, Kenya,
Uganda, and Natal described as $$ of disjunctus will, on examination,
prove to be $$ and moreover the $$ of mollis. The interesting com-
ments of Bezzi on p. 54 (loc. cit.): "... The following description
also applies in most points to the preceding species (i.e. mollis), and it
would seem that the two species exist side by side; yet it is very
curious to note that in both cases, as in all the known species of the
B. mollis-sexies, only males are known ..." seem to support my
contention that disjunctus Bezz. is a synonym of mollis Bezz. of which
it represents the female sex. This species, as based on the cJ-type and
the series of <$<$ and $? from southern Africa, is characterised as
follows: Body, including scutellum, black, with the pleurae some-
154 Annals of the South African Museum.
times infused with reddish brown or yellowish brown around the
sutures, with the abdomen characteristically cordiform in shape,
broad, its apical part appearing truncated due to the terminal seg-
ments being telescoped or tucked in under segment 5; legs yellowish,
only the knees on outer side may be darkened and the apical parts of
tarsi also darkened, with the spines on femora below and the spicules
on tibiae and tarsi black; pubescence dense, but not markedly long,
that on thorax above with a somewhat shorn off appearance, especially
in $$, that on sides of abdomen the longest and tuft-like opposite the
segments, that on body above predominantly creamy yellowish,
greyish yellow to pale golden yellowish, that on pleurae, especially
lower part, and on coxae paler, appearing more creamy whitish in
certain lights, that on face gleaming more sericeous yellowish, that on
genae more brownish, that on face in $$ with distinct dark or blackish
hairs projecting apically beyond apices of pale hairs, the hairs on lower
parts of genae in both sexes also predominantly dark, but more so in
eft?, and in £$ also with a row of dark hairs or some dark hairs on sides
of face, with the bristly hairs on first antennal joints in $S predom-
inantly dark blackish brown, in $$ with more numerous yellowish or
pale ones, the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle and on sides of frons in
both sexes very dark blackish brown or black, with intermixed fine
erect hairs on disc of thorax and basally, intermixed bristly hairs on
post-alar calli, on disc and across hind margin of scutellum and the
transverse bristly hairs across hind margins of abdominal tergites
from 2 to apex, denser, longer, and more conspicuously tuft-like on
sides of tergites 2-4, black, the bases of the black hairs on abdomen at
least paler and more yellowish in certain lights, with the 2 macrochaetal
bristles in front of wings yellowish, with the pubescence on venter
predominantly pale creamy yellowish, appearing whiter along sides
where the pubescence is also denser and longer, with the fine depressed
scaling on frons in $$ brassy or golden yellowish, that on thorax above,
on scutellum and much denser to very dense on abdomen above,
gleaming brassy to golden yellowish, with the scaling on legs dull
whitish, but with feeble yellowish tints in certain lights ; wings rather
narrowish and pointed, especially in gg, vitreous hyaline to even
slightly greyish hyaline, the basal part, costal cell, bases of marginal
and first submarginal cells, the greater part of first basal cell, to
a certain extent the second basal cell and extreme base of anal cell in
33 usually darker and tinged more subopaquely yellowish brown or
yellowish than in $$ where it is more subopaquely greyish, with the
basal comb poorly developed and blackish but with pale scaling above,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 155
with, the veins brownish yellow to dark brownish and even very dark
brownish in some specimens, the costal and first longitudinal veins
usually appearing darker, with the first posterior cell sharply and
angularly acute apically, the stalk shortish with the discal cross vein
before or even much before middle of discoidal cell, with the discoidal
cell subacute apically, with the alula more greyish hyaline than hyaline
part of wing, its fringe darkish, but the much longer hairs near base
yellowish, with the anal cell comparatively not very broad, with the
squamae subopaquely yellowish brown or pale yellowish brown and
fringed with creamy yellowish hair; halteres pale yellowish brown,
with very pale yellowish spherical knobs. Head with the eyes above
in (J(J in actual contact for a distance at least as long as length of
ocellar tubercle or at least subequal to its length, separated above on
vertex in $$ by a space which is remarkably narrow, at narrowest
part only about 1J-1J times as broad as narrowish tubercle, the inner
margins of eyes then subparallel for a distance nearly or quite 2 times
as long as ocellar tubercle before they gradually diverge apically, the
frons in $$ thus narrow and elongate; eyes in $$ with the facets in
upper anterior part very much coarser than on rest of eye, and also
unique in being distinctly coarser than in $$ ; face in $$ also remark-
able in being slightly narrower than in 3$; antennae with joint 1
about 3§— 4 times as long as 2, with 3 quite 1J times as long as 1 and 2
combined, broadest before middle, narrowed apically and slightly more
so dorsally, the joint in profile thus appearing slightly humped, the
apical part slender, ending apically in a distinct nodular and joint-like
basal element, passing into a second conical joint-like element which
itself passes into the somewhat blunt stylar element; proboscis long,
about 5J-6J mm. long; palps short, thick and with longish hairs on
side. Legs with sparse and longish hairs on femora below, without
any spines below on front femora ; middle ones with some minute ones
below; hind femora with from 5-11 spines below from just before, or
even from, middle to apex (the $$ usually with more numerous spines)
on outer side and a row of small ones on inner side; claws sickle-
shaped and the pulvilli well developed; anterior tarsi in $$ with the
joints not modified or thickened. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 21) is
characterised by the well-developed inner apical angles or processes
of basal parts, which are broad, flattened, projecting prominently
beyond beaked apical joints and are rounded apically, provided with
dense, short hairs along dorsal margins; beaked apical joints remark-
able in that they are more or less laterally compressed, flattened in
apical half, and their apices are bluntly rounded and not acutely
156
Annals of the South African Museum.
pointed as in other species of Bombylius ; aedeagus with the apex not
projecting beyond bases of beaked apical joints, broad in basal half.
In the Imperial Institute, British, Natal, Transvaal, and South
African Museums.
Length of body : about 8-10 mm.
Length of wing : about 8-9 mm.
Locality. — S.E. Cape Province, Karoo, Natal, Transvaal, Khodesia,
and, according to Bezzi, East and Central Africa.
The species is easily recognisable by its cordiform abdomen, its
narrow interocular space in $$, the tufts of black hair on sides of
Text-fig. 21. — Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of <$ of
Bombylius mollis Bezz.
abdomen, and by the apically acute first posterior cell. There is no
doubt that this species, which is so widely distributed in Africa and
southern Africa, is variable to a certain extent, especially in the
colour of its pubescence and the intensity of the darker basal infusca-
tion or tinge in the wings of the $$. Even the discal cross vein is not
always and constantly situated at one place. In one $ from the Karoo
the discal cross vein is even at about the middle and not just or even
much before middle of discoidal cell as in the majority of specimens.
The number of spines on hind femora is also variable. This species
is retained in the nubilus -section, to which Bezzi referred it, but as
there are no other species in the collections before me which can be
placed with it, mollis at present is the only South African repre-
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 157
sentative of this section. Whether it really does come in the same
category as the Palaearctic nubilus Mik. and pilirostris Lw. and the
Tropical African species erythrocerus Bezz., neithokris Jaenn., para.J-
lelus Bezz., terminatus Beck., femoralis Bezz., and melanopus Bezz.
I am not able to state without having seen representatives of these
species.
GBOUP 2.
B. globulus Bezz.
(P. 17, Ann. S. Air. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
A very long series of this species before me shows that it is subject
to local and regional variations, ranging from very small individuals
to comparatively fairly large specimens. The chief characteristics
of this small species are : —
Body appearing humped owing to the longish, shaggy pubescence
on anterior half of thorax, is predominantly black above and even
below, with the antennae or sometimes only joints 1 and 2, sometimes
the face, the greater part of proboscis, the sides of abdomen broadly
in #<£, the hind margins of apical abdominal segments in 22, the
pleural parts to a varying extent (more often only sutural parts),
and the legs yellowish to pale yellowish red or reddish: pubescence
rather long, dense, and shaggy, varying from silvery whitish on thorax
and abdomen above in <$o to sericeous yellowish or even distinctly
yellowish in some <$o and in majority of $$, that on pleurae and body
below paler and usually more distinctly whitish in both sexes, that on
abdomen above in some $$ also less yellowish than on thorax, that on
ocellar tubercle, frons, antennae, and face also ranging from straw-
coloured whitish to distinctly yellowish; wings rather narrowish and
elongate, apparently more so in £o, clear-hyaline in $2 or only very
slightly tinged yellowish at extreme base, distinctly and conspicuously
tinged yellowish to pale yellowish brown in oo, only the apical part
beyond or from apical part of first posterior cell being more hyaline,
the yellow also deeper towards base and sometimes very much so in
some S3, the veins brownish, becoming paler towards base, with the
discal cross vein distinctly before middle of discoidal cell. Head with
the eyes in <$<$ separated above by width of ocellar tubercle, in $2 by
a space a little less than 3 times as broad as tubercle: eyes usually
reddish or purplish red; antennae with joints 1 and 2 combined
subequal to or even distinctly shorter than 3, with 3 often darkened,
158
Annals of the South African Museum.
broadest nearer base, not compressed, rapidly narrowed apically,
the apical part or half being slender, often giving the joints a distinct
club-shape, with the terminal style slender and straight; proboscis
varying in length from 2-4 mm., the labella usually blackened; palps
shortish and pallid. Legs with about 3-5 slender spines in apical half
on hind femora. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 22) with the beaked
apical joints having their apices usually bent downwards and then
Text-fig. 22. — Side and ventral views of hypopygium, dorsal view of beaked
apical joint, and side view of base of basal strut of $ Bombylius globulus Bezz.
outwards, and basal strut long and bat-shaped and with a distinct
dorsal process at base (shown between the two figures).
Length of body : about 3J-6 mm.
Length of wing : about 4-6J mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand, Nieuwveld Karoo, South and South
Eastern or Little Karoo. (In the Imperial Institute, British,
Transvaal, and South African Museums.)
The typical form from Namaqualand usually has the pubescence on
body of 3$ above silvery or silky whitish, the antennae usually
entirely pallid or yellowish, and the reddish on sides of abdomen,
especially in S3, very extensive, and the proboscis tends to be shorter.
A series of specimens from "Teekloof" in the escarpment between
Nieuwveld Karoo and Gouph Karoo differs in having the pubescence
in both $S and $$ yellowish to pale golden yellowish, darkish third
antennal joints, and more extensively red or even entirely reddish
pleurae and venter. Specimens from Worcester and Matjiesfontein
in the British Museum differ from the typical Namaqualand form in
having the abdomen in $$ less extensively reddened on the side, and
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 159
the apex is also less conspicuously red, the dark third antennal joints
appear to be slightly shorter, the pubescence is also more yellowish, and
the proboscis is on the whole longer as in the Teekloof series. Finally
there is a very small form, 3J-4 mm. long, having yellowish pubescence
in both sexes, almost entirely black abdomen in both sexes, black
pleurae and apparently slightly longer wings. B. globulus is one of
the commonest Bombyliids in some parts of Namaqualand and
the Karoo. It usually settles on the sand and is also very fond of
frequenting the flowers of Mesembryanthemums.
B. eurhinatus Bezz.
(P. 16, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This species was described by Bezzi from three $$ in the collection
of the South African Museum, one ? of which was named eurhinatus
by Bigot but was not described. In the material before me there are
both $$ and S3, the latter as yet undescribed. The characters of this
interesting species are as follows: Body black, but with the occiput
just behind ocellar tubercle in $$, the frons, antennae, face, genae,
head below, greater part or entire proboscis, palps, to a certain extent
propieural part in both sexes, mesopleural and metapleural infusions
especially in $?, the humeral part on each side especially in $$, the
post-alar calli and the greater part of scutellum in both sexes, the sides
of abdomen very broadly in #<£, margins on sides of tergites in some
$$, the last tergite in both sexes or in some $$ at least greater part of
last tergite, the greater part of venter in #<£, the broadish hind margins
of most of the sternites in $$ or at least basally or apically, the coxae
and legs yellowish to pale reddish yellow, the apical part or apical
undersurface of the proboscis and the last tarsal joints may be
darkened, the apical part and in $$ the front femora are sometimes
darkened basally; pubescence on the whole sparse and shortish on
head in both sexes, predominantly yellowish to fulvous yellowish, that
towards apex of abdomen both on sides and above becoming paler,
more creamy yellowish to whitish, that on thorax in front and on sides
in front of wings with reddish or pale purplish reddish gleams in certain
lights, that on pleurae with distinct pale pink mauvish gleams
especially along middle, that on head below paler and more whitish,
that on coxae more pale yellowish, but also with admixed pale pink
mauvish elements in some specimens, that (slightly tuft-like) above
front coxae and sometimes extending on to sternopleuron gleaming
more whitish in some specimens, that on venter pale pink mauvish
160 Annals of the South African Museum.
or pale reddish mauvish to fulvous, but with the bristly hairs basally
gleaming more whitish, with the shortish ocellar bristly hairs, the short
bristles on frons laterally, the bristly hairs on first antennal joints, the
sparse and short bristles on sides and front part of face, the macro-
chaetal bristles in front of wings, the mesopleural bristles, the longish
post-alar bristles, longish scutellar bristles, and the transverse ones on
abdomen gleaming pale reddish yellow, those on abdomen, however,
paler and more sericeous yellowish and even paler apically, the short
and fine depressed pubescence on head gleaming sericeous yellowish
to pale golden yellowish, the scaling on legs gleaming very pale
yellowish white to whitish; wings glassy hyaline, but with the
base, costal cell, basal half of marginal cell, base of first submarginal
cell, more than basal half of first basal cell, and greater part of second
basal cell tinged subopaquely brownish, ochreous yellowish to brownish
yellow, the base being more or paler yellowish, with an indication of
a darker brownish infusion in first basal cell opposite base of third
longitudinal cell and darker spot-like infuscations on apical cross veins
of first and second basal cells, with the basal comb predominantly
yellowish or reddish yellow, with the veins yellowish to pale reddish
yellow, becoming slightiy darker towards apex of wing, with the discal
cross vein much before middle of discoidal cell and apical cross vein of
discoidal cell quite as long or even longer than discal cross vein, with
the squamae opaquely yellowish to yellowish brown and fringed with
yellowish or fulvous hairs; halteres pale yellowish brown, with very
pale yellowish knobs in both sexes. Head with the eyes above in $$
separated at narrowest part by a space a little narrower than ocellar
tubercle, sometimes only as broad as front part of tubercle or even as
broad as large front ocellus, very broadly separated in $$ by a space
on vertex quite 3J, or even a little more, times as broad as tubercle;
antennae with joint 1 from 4-4 \ times as long as 2, with 3 quite
\\ times as long as 1 and 2 combined, almost rod-like, very gradually
narrowed apically, ending in a small basal element passing into a short
stylar part; face well developed, somewhat prominent, projecting
spout-like; proboscis remarkably long, about 6-10 mm. long, usually
projecting straight forwards, spinulated below, especially basally;
palps distinctly and visibly two-jointed, the apical joint shorter and
the basal joint somewhat arcuately curved inwards, its apical part
broadened and flattened. Legs with some hairs basally below on
femora in $S\ middle femora with about 1-3 spines in front below
and sometimes with 1 spine behind; hind femora with about 7-10
spines below from near base to apex; front tarsi in $£ with joints 2-5
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 161
slightly thicker and more hairy than middle tarsi or front ones in $$.
Hypopygium of <J (text-fig. 23) is slightly different from the usual type
in that the aedeagus has a ventral aedeagal process (V.Ae.Pr.) which
is narrowed apically and projects downwards, the slender apical part
of the aedeagus itself is bent upwards and projects much beyond the
beaked apical joints, the aedeagal strut on each side above middle
part is long and strap-like, projecting visibly basally above lateral
Text-fig. 23.-
-Half of ventral view and side view of hypopygium of <§ of
Bombylius eurhinatus Bezz.
struts; beaked apical joints without visible bristles; basal strut pole-
axe shaped. In the Imperial Institute and South African Museum.
Length of body : about 7-12 mm.
Length of wing : about 7-J-— 12-J- mm.
Locality. — West Cape Province and Namaqualand.
This species is very easily recognisable by its remarkably long
proboscis, basally infuscated wings, reddish antennae, etc. From
Macquart's description of rufus Macq. (p. 91, Dipt. Exot. ii, Tab. VI,
fig. 5, et Tab. VII, fig. 3, 1840) it appears that either rufus is very
near this species or may even be the same, in which case eurhinatus
Bezz. would become a synonym of rufus. The species appears to be
slightly variable in size and in the length of the proboscis. A $
specimen from Kasane in Bechuanaland does not differ much from
the typical Namaqualand forms, except that the dark brown infusca-
162 Annals of the South African Museum.
tion basally on the wings is less diffuse, more perceptibly demarcated,
the basal half of marginal cell and first submarginal cell being almost
hyaline and the infuscations on the cross veins less diffused; spines
on hind femora below more numerous (11-12); the erect hair on body
is also slightly less golden, more pale yellowish white or creamy
whitish above in certain lights, and those at apex of abdomen are also
more white, those on face slightly more dense and the bristly hairs on
ocellar tubercle and in a tuft on each side of frons anteriorly and even
on first antennal joints above slightly darker and more brownish;
proboscis is only about 6 mm. long. This specimen was described by
me as a distinct variety bechuanus Hesse (see p. 163, Ann. Trans. Mus.,
vol. xvii, 1936), and is in the Transvaal Museum.
B. braehyrrhynchus Bezz.
(P. 16, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This species is very near eurhinatus, differing, however, in having
more extensive yellowish infusions on the pleurae, the entire pleurae
in both sexes sometimes extensively yellowish and more so than in
eurhinatus, in having the third antennal joints distinctly darker,
usually blackish or very dark reddish brown, the proboscis is more
extensively darkened or blackened below and in having the sides of
abdomen or at least the hind margins on sides of the tergites even in $$
distinctly and broadly reddish or yellowish; pubescence on frons and
face distinctly denser and slightly longer in both sexes, even that on
occiput relatively longer, that on abdomen above, in ?? at least,
distinctly less dense and shorter, with much fewer erect hairs, com-
posed of transverse rows of gleaming bristles across hind margins and
depressed deep golden yellowish fine hairs and scaling, which even on
sides of body are not so long as the bristles and as in eurhinatus, with
the colour of the general pubescence the same as that of eurhinatus
but on the whole paler and more whitish on pleurae and body below
especially on coxal parts, though also with a feeble pinkish mauve tint
as in eurhinatus, with the bristles on body more gleaming whitish at
their apices ; wings with the basal darker part much paler yellowish,
and this subopaque yellowish practically absent from basal parts of
marginal and first submarginal cells, thus less diffuse, with the darker
spot-like infuscations also indicated as in eurhinatus and with a
tendency for first posterior cell to be more acute apically than in
eurhinatus ; head with the eyes above in <$<$ separated by a space about
as broad as front ocellus, the interocular space in $£ relatively broader
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 163
than in eurhinatus and quite 4-4J times as broad as tubercle, with
antennal joint 1 about 4 times as long as 2, but with 3 relatively
shorter, only a little longer than, and not 1\ times as long as, 1 and 2
combined, with the proboscis usually more extensively darkened
below and very much shorter, only about 3-5 mm. long, with the face
on the whole less produced, with the palps as in eurhinatus and with
the basal joint also arcuately curved inwards, the palps, however,
more slender; legs with the last 2 tarsal joints darkened, with 2-3
— >
Text-fig. 24. — Half of ventral view and side view of hypopygium of $
Bombylius brachyrrhynchus Bezz.
spines on middle femora in front and 1-2 behind, with 5-8 more slender
spines on hind femora below and with the front tarsi in $$ also slightly
thickened but less conspicuously hairy than in eurhinatus. Hypo-
pygium of $ (text-fig. 24) is different from that of eurhinatus in that
the apical part of aedeagus is shorter, projecting only slightly beyond
the inner apical angles of basal parts; aedeagus with the base com-
pressed, with a ventral aedeagal process in form of a platform-like
plate with a small process on each side projecting backwards, with
the dorsal basally directed aedeagal strut on each side above middle
part elongate, strap-like, projecting basally, but this strut narrower
than in eurhinatus] basal strut is shorter, broader posteriorly, and
more fan-shaped.
In the South African Museum.
Length of body : about 6-8 mm.
Length of wing : about 7J-9 mm.
164 Annals of the South African Museum.
Locality. — Namaqualand, Bushmanland, and Gouph Karoo.
Both eurhinatus and brachyrrhynchus differ from all other species of
Bombylius in this section in certain salient features, such as the
infuscation in basal and costal parts in wings, the presence or indica-
tions of spot-like infuscations on the cross veins, and the peculiar
structures of the hypopygium. A separate section should really be
established to contain them.
1 <J B. rhomboidalis n. sp.
Black, with dull whitish bloom on integument, more evident below ;
hind margin of scutellum indistinctly, hind margins of abdominal
segments above and below and the genital segment reddish, the apical
Text-fig. 25. — Wing of Bombylius rhomboidalis n. sp.
margins medially on venter more ivory whitish; legs with the femora,
tibiae, and basal halves of tarsi yellowish, the apical parts of tarsi
more brownish; pubescence dense on thorax, somewhat sparse and
shortish on face, predominantly white, that on thorax above gleaming
silvery white, that on abdomen more sericeous whitish, with the
depressed pubescence on frons gleaming more sericeous yellowish, the
hairs on face also with more sericeous yellowish gleams in certain
lights, the pubescence on body below duller and frosty white, with
the macrochaetal bristles in front of wings, the post-alar bristles and
the scutellar bristles gleaming sericeous yellowish, those on abdomen
sericeous white, with the fine depressed hair-like scaling on body above
pale sericeous yellowish, but gleaming more brassy yellowish in certain
lights and much denser on abdomen above, the depressed pubescence
and scaling on venter whitish, the scaling on legs whitish; wings
(text-fig. 25) feebly greyish hyaline, with the base and costal cell
subopaquely whitish, with the veins brownish, becoming pale yellowish
in basal half, the costal and first longitudinal veins yellowish, the veins
at extreme base even paler yellowish, the apical cross veins of basal
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 165
cells slightly but distinctly darkened, with the basal comb very poorly
developed and yellowish, with the discal cross vein at about middle
of discoidal cell, with the second longitudinal vein undulating, with
the first posterior cell (I) much longer than discoidal cell, attenuated
apically, sessile on hind border apically and not stalked, with the third
posterior cell (III) rhomboidal, its four sides being more or less equal
in length, with the second and fourth posterior cells equal in length
on hind border of wing, with the squamae opaquely whitish and white-
fringed; halteres very pale yellowish white, with almost white knobs.
Text-fig. 26. — Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of $ of
Bombylius rhomboidalis n. sp.
Head with the eyes above separated by a space about as broad as front
part of ocellar tubercle for a distance subequal in length to tubercle ;
face rather short; antennae with joint 1 short, only about 2 times as
long as 2, with 3 nearly or quite 2 times as long as 1 and 2 combined,
broadest just before middle (view in profile), from there narrowed
apically along lower edge, the upper edge being almost straight, the
joint thus appearing humped below, ending apically in a conical basal
element passing into a bluntish style; proboscis about 3 mm. long.
Legs without any distinct hairs on femora below, with 1 or 2 spines
below on each side near apex on middle femora; hind femora with
about 8 pallid spines below from near base to apex; claws curved
downwards apically and the pul villi nearly as long as claws. Hypo-
pygium (text-fig. 26) with the basal parts compact and broad, the
inner apical angles or processes of basal parts inconspicuous, with
vol. xxxiv. 12
166 Annals of the South African Museum.
inconspicuous hairs on dorsum, but longer ones around base of beaked
joints; beaked apical joints considerably flattened, depressed or
hollowed out above, smooth, the pointed apex directed upwards and
outwards; aedeagus with the slender apex flattened, straight, pro-
jecting much beyond beaked apical joints, the basal part produced
apically into a downwardly directed, flattened, tongue-like ventral
process, the apical part of which is slightly narrowed and recurved,
with the dorsal basally directed strut on each side above middle part
flattened, pointed, and visibly projecting basally above lateral struts;
lateral struts shoe-horn shaped; basal strut ham-shaped, the dorsal
margin more rounded than the ventral one.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 7 mm.
Length of wing: about 6^ mm.
Locality. — South West Africa : Kaokoveld; Kamanyab (Mus. Exp.,
March 1925).
This species differs from related species in this category and all
the other species in this group in having the first posterior cell almost
opening on the hind border of the wing. There is no stalk apically
to this cell. The second posterior cell is rhomboidal. The black
antennae, predominantly black scutellum, shorter face, peculiar first
posterior cell, and silvery pubescence on thorax separate it from
sessilis Bezz.
B. sessilis Bezz.
(P. 19, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This interesting species was described by Bezzi from a single $
from Bushmanland. As I have before me a long series of $$ from
S.W. Africa and also a single ^-specimen from the Karoo, I am able
to give a fuller description. As this $ shows the characteristic
features of this species, I have no doubt that it belongs to this species.
Body black; face and head below, antennal joint 1 in $<j>, coxae and
legs yellowish to pale ochreous yellow, the last 3 or 4 tarsal joints
blackish brown, and apices of claws black; scutellum, excluding the
narrow black base, and the narrow hind margins of abdominal seg-
ments 3 or 4-7 in $$ (broader laterally and even on segment 2), and
broader lateral margins of segments in $, as well as broader hind
margins of venter in both sexes and often infusions on pleurae pale
yellowish red to reddish ; wings hyaline, but with a faint subopaquely
whitish tint in certain lights, the base, costal cell, and basal half of first
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 167
basal cell slightly more subopaquely yellowish, the base being more
distinctly yellowish, with the veins reddish brown to dark brownish,
becoming paler and more yellowish towards base and along first
longitudinal vein, especially in <£, with the basal comb well developed
and yellowish, the spines often more brownish, with the first posterior
cell markedly elongate and attenuated apically, provided with a very
short stalk, slightly longer in $, with the discal cross vein much beyond
middle of discoidal cell, with the squamae comparatively large,
subopaquely yellowish white and white-fringed; halteres yellowish,
with whitish knobs; pubescence straw-coloured yellowish to creamy
yellowish on body above in ??, slightly more straw-coloured yellowish
on thorax in <$, that on abdomen in $ more white and in $<j> only more
whitish along sides, with the transverse bristles on abdomen in $$
more creamy yellowish, but with sericeous whitish gleams towards
their apices, with the short, depressed pubescence on thorax and
abdomen above creamy whitish to creamy yellowish and more evident
in $$, with the pubescence on frons in $$ deep ochreous yellow, almost
white in #, that on body below entirely chalky or cretaceous white
and comparatively dense, with the bristles in front of wings and on
scutellum slightly more pale sericeous yellowish in $ and almost
whitish in $$, with the pubescence on entire body above and on
pleurae appearing considerably paler owing to pale greyish white
or whitish integumentary bloom. Head markedly broad, distinctly
more apparent in $ ; eyes in $ very large, the inner margins above in
S in contact or contiguous for a little distance, slightly less than length
of tubercle, then rapidly diverging apically, with the interocular space
in $$ very broad, about 3-3J times as broad as tubercle on vertex and
then gradually diverging apically; frons in $ distinctly depressed and
only slightly so in $$; face and genae almost entirely bare, short
bristly hairs being present only on sides above; antennae with joint
1 short, about 2 times as long as joint 2 in $ and not quite 2 times in
$$, with joint 3 remarkably broadened in basal half and conspicuously
thin and slender in apical half in $, more gradually attenuated in $
and also less broad basally, often distinctly covered with fine, whitish,
depressed, scale-like pubescence above; proboscis about 4-5 mm.
long, entirely black and comparatively stout; palps pallid, the apical
joint short and directed upwards. Legs with white scaling on femora
and without long pubescent hairs below; front femora unarmed
below; middle ones with about 4-5 small spines below; hind ones with
about 7-9 longer spines below from near base to apex ; claws slightly
longer in S, rather rapidly curved downwards apically in both sexes.
168
Annals of the South African Museum.
Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 27) with the basal parts compact and
broad, the dorsum with fine and longish hairs, the inner apical
processes of basal parts just visible, with the inner apical part in neck
region, bounding the beaked apical joints basally, with a distinct
downwardly directed spine or spine-like process (Sp.) on its ventral
apical aspect, on each side, of apical part of aedeagus; neck region
round base of beaked apical joints slightly produced lip-like outwardly
Text-fig. 27.
-Half of ventral view and side view of hypopygium of <$ of
Bombylius sessilis Bezz.
and there punctured and covered with short spine-like hairs; beaked
apical joints feebly developed, much reduced, flattened, and with
inconspicuous spinules above, punctured, and with some hairs below
near base, the apex feebly pointed; aedeagus with the apical part
projecting beyond basal parts, the basal part produced forwards and
downwards into a ventral aedeagal process, slightly carinate centrally
in front, with the dorsal aedeagal struts broad and shoe-horn shaped;
basal strut very narrow.
Length of body: about 8-12 mm.
Length of wing: about 8-10 mm.
Locality — Central Karoo, Bushmanland, N.W. Cape, and Great
Namaqualand (from Aus.). (In the British and S.A. Museums.)
This is a very characteristic and remarkable species, easily recog-
nised by the attenuated and very acute first posterior cell, remarkably
broad head, almost bare face and genae and peculiar hypopygium.
Like some other species of Bombyliidae, it is widely distributed in
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 169
the dry and semi-arid parts of S. Africa and S.W. Africa, somewhat
similar to the distribution of Systoechus xerophilus n, sp., which is
known to parasitise the egg-pods of the brown locust.
B. mundus Lw.
(P. 13, Wien. Ent. Monat., vii, 1863; Bezzi, p. 18, Ann.
S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
A few specimens in the S. Afr. Museum were referred to mundus by
Bezzi. One $ was labelled as picticornis by Bigot. It is very doubtful,
indeed, whether these specimens belong to the same species as that
described by Loew. Loew's very short description is in this case
unsatisfactory and practically useless for purposes of determination.
Bezzi's identification also rests mostly on assumption, and at present
I can only redescribe this species and retain it provisionally in mundus.
Black; frons, antennal joints 1 and 2, face, proboscis below, head below,
propleural part, a longitudinal band across pleurae, the sutural parts
of pleurae or even the greater part of pleurae, the postalar callosities,
the scutellum, the hind margins of the abdominal tergites, the sides
broadly of abdomen, almost entire apical tergites and the venter pale
yellowish red to salmon pinkish, even the entire body below some-
times reddish; legs, including coxae and trochanters, predominantly
yellowish or pale reddish yellow, only a spot on trochanters black, the
last or two last tarsal joints darkened and apices of claws blackish;
pubescence dense, rather shortish in both sexes, with a cropped-ofr"
appearance on thorax, more evident in <$<$, that on occiput even in $$
also shortish, with the transverse bristles on abdomen, even in $$,
short and scarcely longer than the pubescence, with the pubescence
above pale creamy yellowish to pale golden in $$, gleaming pale
golden yellowish even to deeper golden in $$, that on occiput, front
part of thorax and towards apical part of abdomen, in some <$<§
distinctly more sericeous whitish in certain lights, in fact that towards
apex of abdomen in $$ distinctly gleaming whitish, that on head and
face in $$ also paler and more sericeous whitish or pale sericeous
yellowish, more gleaming pale golden yellowish in $$, that on body
below in both sexes only very slightly or scarcely paler than above,
only duller, even that on venter only slightly paler yellowish, that on
sides of abdomen basally shghtly richer yellowish than discally, with
the stoutish macrochaetal bristles, the post-alar ones, those on
scutellum and the transverse ones on abdomen gleaming yellowish in
c?c?5 to gleaming deep golden in $$, their apices gleaming more whitish,
170
Annals of the South African Museum.
those on venter also yellowish to golden; wings hyaline, with the base
and costal cell slightly more subopaquely whitish, with the basal
comb small and yellowish, the veins usually yellowish, but sometimes
more reddish and even brownish in some specimens, all becoming
paler basally, with the discal cross vein tending to be nearer middle,
slightly beyond or even a good distance beyond middle of discoidal
cell, with the first posterior cell markedly acutely pointed apically as
Text-pig. 28. — Side and ventral views of hypopygium and dorsal or apical
view of beaked apical joint of $ Bombylius mundus Lw.
in sessilis and provided with a short stalk, with the squamae opaquely
pale yellowish, its fringe pale creamy or whitish; halteres pale
yellowish, with almost white knobs. Head with the eyes above in $3
contiguous for a little distance in front of ocellar tubercle, then at
first gradually diverging apically, the interocular space in 2$ about 3,
or a little more, times as broad as tubercle; antennae with joint 1
about 2 times as long as 2, with 3 quite 1\ times as long as 1 and 2
combined, gradually narrowed apically, the first terminal joint conical
and bearing an equally long style; proboscis about 4-5 mm. long;
palps yellowish, with short apical joints. Legs without any spines on
front femora below; middle ones with about 4-6 anteriorly below;
hind ones with about 8-10 from near base to apex below; claws
slender, curved downwards, and with the pulvilli extending to beyond
middle of claws ; front tarsi thickened in $?. Hypopygium of $ (text-
fig. 28) with the beaked apical joints comparatively small ending in a
sharp downwardly and outwardly directed apical beak, the outer
apical angle prominent; aedeagus with the slender apical part pro-
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 171
jecting slightly beyond beaked apical joints (when retracted), provided
ventrally with a very remarkable ventral aedeagal process, the basal
part of which is directed downwards as a vertical, lamellate plate or
keel, the base of which is connected on each side with fche lateral rami,
the apical part, again, is in the shape of a broad, flattened, slightly
bilobate, horizontal plate, projecting forwards and hiding the aedeagus
and beaked apical joints, its lower surface is roughly shagreened, even
minutely spined laterally; dorso-basal aedeagal struts broad, strap-
like, but attenuated towards their apices and do not quite reach bases
of basal parts; basal strut comparatively narrow and bat-shaped.
In the South African Museum.
Length of body : about 7-9J mm.
Length of wing : about 7-8 mm.
Locality. — North Namaqualand, Bushmanland, and Karoo.
Easily recognised by the shape of first posterior cell in wing, the
extensive red on body, and the yellowish pubescence.
1 $ B. atronotatus n. sp.
Body with the occiput, eyes, frons, third antennal joints, proboscis,
thorax above, parts of pleurae and a central row of large, triangular
spots (narrowed apically) on abdomen above, to a certain extent
tergites 5-7 and infusions on venter, black, with antennal joints 1 and
2, face and head below, sides of thorax above wings, to a certain
extent transversely across base of thorax, the entire scutellum, the
humeral part of thorax, propleural part, pteropleural and metapleural
infusions, the greater part of abdomen above and hind margins of
sternites and the genital segment pale yellowish red or reddish; legs,
including coxae, almost entirely yellowish, only apical parts of tarsi
more brownish and apices of claws black; pubescence shortish on
front part of body, that on thorax above with a slightly cropped-ofr"
appearance, that on face also shortish, very pale sericeous yellowish
above, that on sides of thorax appearing almost whitish in certain
lights, that on disc of thorax and scutellum gleaming more golden,
that on abdomen above more gleaming golden yellowish, the macro-
chaetal bristles, post-alar bristles, scutellar bristles, and those trans-
versely across abdomen deep golden yellowish, the depressed hair-like
scaling on body above gleaming pale golden yellowish, but apparently
more whitish on thorax in front, the pubescence on head below,
pleurae, coxae, in metapleural tuft, sides of abdomen basally and on
venter basally more whitish, that on head below, coxae, and lower
172 Annals of the South African Museum.
parts of pleurae distinctly more frosty whitish, with the scaling on
legs whitish but showing yellowish tints in certain lights; wings
greyish hyaline, the base, costal cell and to a certain extent first basal
cell more subopaquely yellowish whitish, with the basal comb ochreous
yellowish, the veins reddish brown, becoming more yellowish basally,
with the discal cross vein very much beyond middle and nearer apex
of discoidal cell, with the first posterior cell sharply angularly acute
apically, provided with a shortish apical stalk, which is much shorter
than rest of this vein separating the second submarginal cell from first
posterior cell, with the squamae subopaquely yellowish and fringed
with whitish hair which gleam sericeous yellowish in certain lights;
halteres yellowish, with very pale yellowish knobs. Head with the
eyes rather large, prominent, and convex, with the interocular space
on vertex remarkably narrow, about subequal to combined length of
antennal joints 1 and 2, or scarcely a little more than 2 times as broad
as ocellar tubercle; frons thus also narrowish, its sides only very
gradually diverging apically; face short and shorter than combined
length of antennal joints 1 and 2; facial and buccal regions also
remarkably narrow; antennae with joint 1 very short, only about
1J times as long as 2, with 2 elongate and longer than broad, with 3
more or less spindle-shaped, broadest at about basal third, narrowed
basally, but more rapidly and attenuately towards apex, ending
apically in a conical basal element bearing a short stylar element;
proboscis stoutish, about 4 mm. long, its labial part below finely and
visibly strigilose; palps short and yellowish. Legs with about 3 or 4
spines on each side below on middle femora; hind ones with about
12 spines from near base to apex below, which appear to be alternately
long and short; front tarsal joints slightly thickened; claws dis-
tinctly rapidly bent down, almost at right angles, nearer apex and the
pul villi just reaching bent down apices of claws.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body : about 11 mm.
Length of wing : about 9J mm.
Locality. — South West Africa : Kaokoveld; Kaross (Mus. Exp.,
February 1925).
This species is easily recognised by the almost entirely reddish
abdomen which has a central row of black triangular spots, by the
comparatively narrow interocular space and frons and by the acutely
pointed first posterior cell. The narrow interocular space is reminis-
cent of the $ of mollis. From other species with much red on the
abdomen it differs in this narrow type of interocular space, more
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 173
angularly acute first posterior cell and the row of triangular black spots
on abdomen above. From an unknown locality Walker (p. 278,
List. Dipt. Ins. Brit. Mus., pt. ii, 1849) described a species inornatus
which, according to his description, has also a series of black spots on
the abdomen above. From his vague description it is, however,
impossible to identify his species or to state whether atronotatus is
identical with inornatus. In the former species antennal joint 3 is,
however, spindle-shaped and not linear, and is distinctly much more
than 2 times as long as joint 1, and the knees and tarsi are not piceous,
as in Walker's species.
B. impurus Lw.
(P. 12, Wien. Ent. Monat., vii, 1863; Bezzi, p. 18,
Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
For the identity of this species I have to rely on a specimen labelled
as impurus Lw. by Bezzi. This ^-specimen also agrees with Loew's
very brief description. As Loew's description may be applicable to
other species as well, and as neither Loew nor Bezzi had a series of
both $S and ?? to describe from, it is advisable to redescribe these
specimens which I am also provisionally referring to as impurus.
Black; antennae also entirely black, but joint 1 in some ?$ some-
times slightly dull brownish below or on inner sides; extreme front
edge of face sometimes slightly dull brownish or yellowish brown;
slightly inflated sides of buccal cavity dull yellowish ; palps yellowish
brown; extreme base of proboscis below slightly or obscurely reddish,
and greater part of scutellum and to a certain extent posterior calli
ferruginous red; abdomen entirely black, only hind margins of
sternites pallid or yellowish, less so in some specimens ; legs yellowish,
with the femora blackened to beyond or much beyond the middle in gg
and in some $$, the greater part of the hind ones being dark, in other $?
femora are blackened in at least the basal halves, with the hind tarsi
sometimes more brownish than yellowish in both sexes, and with the
last two joints of all the tarsi and apices of the claws distinctly black
or very dark; pubescence on the whole markedly dense and short,
that on thorax above very dense, fine, and shortish, with a cropped-ofr
or shorn-ofi appearance, more evident in $$, that on abdomen, especi-
ally in S$, fine and dense and not markedly long, distinctly longer and
slightly more shaggy in $$, with the transverse rows of bristles across
hind margins of tergites well developed, dense and close together, only
narrowly interrupted discally and even there arranged in more than
174 Annals of the South African Museum.
one row, only those towards apex in $$ slightly longer than the rest of
pubescence, with the pubescence on frons and face also tending to be
shortish, that on frons and face in $$ sericeous to almost silvery
whitish, that on face in $$ whitish, the bristly hairs and bristles and
depressed pubescence on frons in $$ sericeous yellowish to gleaming
golden, the pubescence on antennal joint 1 in $$ also yellowish and
the longer hairs on joint 1 below in <$<$ pale sericeous yellowish, the
pubescence on body above pale creamy yellowish to pale soft yellowish
in gg, more yellowish to gleaming golden yellowish in $?, that on
occiput in $$ at least more sericeous whitish and even that on front
part of thorax appearing more whitish in certain lights, that on each
side just below posterior calli and behind wings whitish, more frosty
whitish in $$, that towards apex and on sides of abdomen from
segment 4 to apex whitish even in $$ and that on rest of abdomen
above in $$ with sericeous whitish gleams, especially discally, in
certain lights, that on sides of abdomen basally, in $$ especially, more
yellowish even orange yellowish in some specimens, that on body
below much paler than above, white on head below, on coxae and
pectoral regions and basal part of venter, becoming more creamy
yellowish to yellowish along upper parts of pleurae, that in front and
just below wing-bases appearing deeper yellowish, that in metapleural
tuft almost white again in certain lights, that on venter dull whitish,
becoming slightly more straw-coloured yellowish to yellowish apically,
with an elongated patch of dense, woolly, or crinkly frosty white hair
on each side of venter showing through the hairs, with the macro-
chaetal bristles, those on posterior calli and across hind margin of
scutellum very deep yellowish, reddish, reddish brown to brownish,
their tips gleaming sericeous, with the transverse bristles on abdomen
from segment 2 to 7 very dark blackish brown to black and pale-
tipped, flanked in front of each row by reddish brownish or deeper
yellowish bristly hairs and bristles especially in $$, with the bristles
on venter sparser but also blackish and pale-tipped; wings rather
narrowish, hyaline but with a slight milky whitish tint in certain
positions in some specimens, with the basal comb yellowish, yellowish
brown to even brownish in some $$, with the veins reddish brown or
brownish becoming paler towards base, with the base and costal cell
subopaquely very pale yellowish or yellowish white, with the discal
cross vein much beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the squamae
opaquely very pale yellowish white and fringed with creamy hairs;
halteres with yellowish to yellowish brown knobs. Head with the
eyes in S3 contiguous or touching for a short distance in front of front
A Revision of the Bombyliidae {Diptera) of Southern Africa. 175
ocellus subequal or nearly as long as tubercle; with the interocular
space in $$ about 3-3f times as broad as tubercle; eyes in <$<$ slightly
flattened above and with very coarse facets above; antennae with
joint 1 short, about 3, or a little more (even less), times as long as 2,
with 3 stoutish, broadest in basal half nearer base, subspindle shaped,
gradually narrowed apically and also slightly narrowed at base, with
the first terminal joint conical and distinctly visible, ending in the
style; proboscis long, about 5-8 mm. long, with the labella elongate;
palps well developed
and with the apical
joints short. Legs with-
out any spines on front
femora below; middle
ones with about 1-3
spines in front below;
hind ones with about
9-15 spines below from
near base to apex,
sometimes irregularly
arranged in large $$;
claws arcuately curved Text-fig. 29. — Side view and half of ventral view of
, ., hypopygium of $ Bombylius impurus Lw.
downwards apically
and with the pulvilli just falling short of the middle in both sexes.
Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 29) with the inner apical angles or
processes of basal parts prominent, projecting and flattened; aedeagus
straight, its apex sharp, provided at base below with a conical
ventral aedeagal process on each side in the form of a downwardly
and apically projecting plate, the outer edge of which is carinate
and arcuate (side view in text-fig. 29) and the apex of which is rather
acute.
In the Albany and South African Museums.
Length of body: about 9-14 mm.
Length of wing: about 8-13 mm.
Locality. — Bushmanland: Jakhals Water (Lightfoot, October 1911).
Namaqualand : Kamieskroon (Mus. Exp., September 1930). Nieuw-
veld Karoo: Victoria West Distr. (Mus. Staff, March 1931). Karoo:
Murraysburg Distr. (Mus. Staff, March 1931). N.E. Karoo: Aliwal
North (Leppan, April 1904). O.F.S. (according to Loew). S. Karoo:
Montagu (Barnard, October 1919). E. Karoo: Grahamstown
Region.
176 Annals of the South African Museum.
2 33 9 $$ B. tinctipennis n. sp.
Body black; antennal joint 1 in $, face and head below in $, extreme
base of proboscis, greater part of scutellum (excepting the black base
and hind border) yellowish red, reddish, or ferruginous red ; antennal
joint 1, face and head below in 3 very dark reddish brown to blackish;
legs reddish yellow to yellowish, the coxae obscure reddish to blackish,
the bases of the femora in <J distinctly blackened, the last 2 tarsal
joints blackened and the last one entirely black; pubescence above
comparatively long, dense, and shaggy, especially on the abdomen,
in both sexes, pale sericeous yellow, yellow, deep yellow to deep
golden, almost orange golden, often with a slight brownish yellow
tint in certain lights, that on thorax in front in 3 slightly paler
sericeous yellowish, that towards apex of abdomen scarcely paler
than on rest of body, that on head coloured like rest of body above,
with the macrochaetae on thorax and bristly hairs transversely on
abdomen slightly longer than the long recumbent hair and scarcely
darker, or only very slightly deeper golden yellowish, than rest of hair,
with the pubescence on body below not much paler than that above,
appearing paler in specimens which are also paler above, with, however,
the hair on head below, just above coxae, sometimes on the pectus and
at base of venter distinctly more whitish, especially in g, the meta-
pleural tuft and upper parts of pleurae inclining to colour of body
above, with the short depressed hair on body above sparse and paler
yellowish, that on f rons in $ slightly more yellowish ; wings distinctly
and comparatively deeply tinged mauvish brown, slightly deeper in 3
and only the apical and posterior parts in both sexes slightly less deeply
tinged, with the base, costal cell, basal half of first basal cell and even
base of second basal cell more subopaquely yellowish brown, with the
veins dark reddish brown, becoming more reddish along chief longi-
tudinal veins and towards base, with the basal comb well developed,
yellowish to deep yellowish or pale reddish yellow, with the squamae
opaquely brownish, pale yellowish haired and with a fairly con-
spicuous tuft of pubescent hair at base of wings above, with the discal
cross vein much beyond the middle of discoidal cell and with the
second longitudinal vein comparatively straight; halteres yellowish
to pale reddish brown, with pale yellowish brown to pale brownish
knobs. Head with the eyes in 3 separated above by width of ocellar
tubercle, in $ a little more than 3 to even 3 J times as broad as tubercle ;
antennae with joint 1 a little more than 4, to almost 5, times as long
as joint 2, with joint 3 comparatively slender and rod-like, more so
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 177
in <$, not straight, but gradually curved; proboscis comparatively
stout, about 3J-5 mm. long; palps yellowish, with the shorter apical
joint darkened and with some very long hairs on sides of joint 1.
Legs with comparatively dense, but fine, hairs on femora below; front
femora unarmed; middle ones with about 1-3 fairly long spines
below; hind ones with about 6-12 long spines below, the basal ones
often exceptionally long, often irregularly in 2 rows towards base and
with about 3-6 spines in apical part on outer upper aspect; claws
(a) (b)
Text-fig. 30. — (a) Side view and part of ventral view of hypopygium of $
Bombylius tinctipennis n. sp. (6) Side view of that of <$ Bomhylius tinctipennis
var. thornei n.
gradually curved downwards and with the pulvilli extending to middle
or a little beyond middle of claws. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 30, a)
with the inner apical angle or process of basal parts prominently
produced and elongate; beaked apical joints as shown in figure,
slightly depressed above and with a crest of longish hairs, more
prominent along outer dorsal part, the beak directed slightly down-
wards and outwards; aedeagus with a prominent ventral, vertical,
flattened, shell-like process on each side, convergent anteriorly and
there fused under apical part of aedeagus, continuous posteriorly
with the lateral ramus, on each side, to basal parts; basal strut
bat-shaped.
Types in the British Museum, paratypes in the Transvaal and
South African Museums.
Length of body: about 7-9 \ mm.
Length of wing: about 8-10J mm.
178 Annals of the South African Museum.
Locality. — S.W. Cape Province: Cape Town; Lion's Head
(Turner, August 1920) (Types); Stellenbosch (Theron, Brauns, and
Lightfoot) ; Malmesbury (Brauns, October 1926) ; Hottentot's Holland
Mts. (Barnard, 4000 feet alt., January 1933). S. Karoo: Swartberg
Pass (Barnard, 5000-6000 feet alt., November 1929).
An easily recognisable species by the mauvishly tinged wings, dense
and long yellowish to deep golden pubescence, slender and rod-like
third antennal joints, and long spines on hind femora. There is no
doubt that the species shows colour variations and slight structural
aberrations in the various areas of its distribution, and quite a distinct
variety seems to occur along the Western Coastal region up to Nama-
qualand and in Northern Karoo, viz. : —
10 33 28 $$ B. tinctipennis var. thornei n.
This variety is without doubt the western, north western, and
northern representative of tinctipennis s.str., from which it is super-
ficially almost indistinguishable. It differs, on the whole, in being
smaller and less bulky; head with the face and head below dark or
blackish in both sexes, with antennal joint 1 darker, less vividly
reddish even in $$, with more black above, even entirely black, also
distinctly more slender and even comparatively longer, quite 6 times
as long as joint 2, with joint 3 relatively shorter, less rod-like, and more
attenuated apically and slightly straighter, with the proboscis usually
entirely black, at least less constantly reddish at base below, less stout
and about 3-4 mm. long, with the interocular space in $ slightly
broader, often quite 4 times as broad as tubercle, with the palps
entirely dark; pubescence on body above having a slightly darker
and more yellowish brown tint, that on antennae, face and genae
distinctly more golden brownish in both sexes, that on abdomen not
entirely golden, but with distinct transverse rows of darker, sometimes
very dark blackish brown to black, bristly hairs across hind margins of
segments in both sexes, that on body below slightly darker and less
pale, the whitish hair above coxae less evident and that on pectus
even more yellowish and with numerous dark or blackish hairs on
venter as well; wings tinged to the same extent, but in $ slightly less
so towards base than in typical form, without or with only a few and
insignificant and shorter pubescent hairs above basally on middle
vein, with the first posterior cell tending to be even more subacute
apically, with the squamae even darker opaquely brownish ; legs with
Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa.
179
the coxae and trochanters darker and more often black, the femora
more distinctly and extensively blackened basally even in $$, and the
front and middle ones in $ blackened to at least the middle and even
beyond, with the tarsi also more extensively darkened apically, with
about 2-4 spines on
middle femora below and
about 5-9 on hind ones
below. Hypopygium of <$
(text-fig. 30, b and fig. 31)
scarcely different from
that of tinctipennis s.str.
(cf . text-fig. 30, a), with the
lateral struts, however,
slightly narrower, the
basal strut also narrower.
Types in the South
African Museum.
Length of body: about
6-8 j mm.
Text-fig. 31. — Half of ventral view and side view
of hypopygium of J Bombylius tinctipennis var.
thornei n.
Length of wing: about
7-9 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Kamieskroon (Mus. Exp., September
1930) (Types); Garies (Mus. Exp., June 1930). Western Cape
Province: Citrusdal; Modderfontein (Brauns, 15/10/28). N. Karoo:
Venterstad and Burghersdorp (Mus. Staff, October 1935). Nieuwveld
Karoo: Beaufort West Distr. (Mus. Staff, October 1935).
1 $ B. turner i n. sp.
This species resembles tinctipennis, with which it may be compared.
From the $ of tinctipennis it differs in being smaller, narrower, and less
bulky; head with the front part of face and anterior lower part of
head below paler and more yellowish brown, with the eyes separated
above by width of front part of tubercle, with the first antennal joints
comparatively shorter, only about 4 times as long as joint 2, with
joint 3 less rod-like, slightly more thickened basally, with the pro-
boscis slender, even slightly more reddened below towards base, about
4 J mm. long, with the pubescence on antennae and face much shorter
and less shaggy; wings entirely greyish hyaline, not deeply tinged
mauvish brown, only the costal cell and base being slightly more
subopaquely whitish, with the veins dark blackish brown, becoming
180
Annals of the South African Museum.
paler towards base and along main longitudinal veins, with the dis-
cal cross vein also much beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the
basal comb distinctly smaller; scutellum with the red less extensive,
only present discally towards hind part; pubescence on body slightly
more vividly golden when seen from side, apparently slightly shorter
on occiput and abdomen, that on abdomen not entirely yellow, but
with conspicuous and numerous black bristles
across hind margins, more evident towards
apex, with the rest of the abdominal hair
becoming distinctly paler laterally and towards
apex, that on head and thorax below dis-
tinctly more extensively white, even the
metapleural tuft being more whitish; legs
with the pubescent hairs on femora below
distinctly shorter and less dense, with the
front and middle femora more extensively
blackened basally to about the middle, the
hind ones also blackened at base, with the
tarsi more extensively darkened, especially
Text-fig. 32. — Side view the hind ones, with only 1 spine on middle
dL S ai y v^ew gl of m beaked ones below and with about 7-8 shorter spines
apical joint of $ Bom- on hind femora below and without any lateral
y %ns umen n. sp. spines apically on outer aspect. Hypopygium
(text-fig. 32) is, however, entirely different from that of tinctipennis
(cf. text-figs. 30 and 31), with the beaked apical joints elongate
and slender, longer and more slender than in tinctipennis; aedeagus
without any ventral process, with the dorsal basally directed aedeagal
struts short; basal strut bat-shaped.
Type in the British Museum.
Length of body: about 7 mm.
Length of wing: about 7 mm.
Locality. — S.W. Cape Province
(Turner, 1/20/1920).
Cape Peninsula ; Camps Bay
B. marginellus Bezz.
(P. 20, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
In addition to the $-type, from Matjiesfontein, there are a $ and
what I take to be the undescribed $ before me. Bezzi's description
may be supplemented by the following fuller description: —
Body black; scutellum reddish, but with a large basal black spot
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 181
and black hind part, especially in $; antennal joint 1 reddish, some-
what linearly darkened above in ?, entirely dark above in #; face and
head below dark reddish brown; legs pale ochreous yellow to pale
reddish yellow, the extreme bases of femora darkened, more brownish,
especially in $, with the last 2 tarsal joints also darkened; proboscis
distinctly reddish brown below; pubescence above, from side, creamy
yellowish to pale yellowish on thorax in $, much paler and more creamy
in S, becoming more whitish towards occiput and in front, that on
abdomen above very
pale creamy whitish to
yellowish in <£ and also
slightly paler than on
thorax in 2, even paler
apically, that on thorax
below straw-coloured
yellowish to pale yellow-
ish white, that along
middle parts of pleurae
above coxae whitish, the
metapleural tuft straw-
coloured whitish to
whitish, the hair on
pectus straw-coloured
yellowish that on venter Text-fig. 33. — Half of ventral view and side view of
., . . , , hvpopvgium of <$ Bombylius marqinellus Bezz.
whitish at base and
distinctly yellowish on rest, that on sides of venter more creamy, with
the dense, short, depressed pubescence on sides of venter, especially
in £, showing through as snow white hair, with the hairs on head above
in $ pale yellowish and with a slight rufous tint in certain lights, that
on face and genae comparatively dense, longish, and yellowish, more
creamy whitish in $, with the macrochaetal bristles and also bristles on
upper part of mesopleuron in $, the posterior callar bristles and those
on scutellum pale rufous yellow in $, more pale yellowish in <$, with
the long transverse bristles across hind margins of abdomen very dark
reddish brown in $ and even blackish in <$> more conspicuous and
longer laterally and towards apex in both sexes; wings greyish
hyaline, with a distinct subopaque tint, with the base, costal cell, and
basal half of first basal cell more subopaquely pale yellowish brown,
the base being more yellowish, with the veins reddish brown, becoming
paler and more reddish along main longitudinal veins, with the basal
comb pale yellowish in $ and slightly more reddish yellow in $, with
vol. xxxiv. 13
182 Annals of the South African Museum.
the opaquely whitish squamae margined blackish brown and fringed
pale yellowish to whitish or creamy; halteres yellowish, with whitish
knobs. Head with the eyes in $ separated above, at narrowest part,
by front part of ocellar tubercle, with the space in $ about 3J times as
broad as tubercle; antennae with joint 1 slender, about 4, or even a
little more, times as long as 2, with joint 3 almost rod-like, only
slightly, or scarcely, broader basally and more so in <J; proboscis
about 4 mm. long; palps with some long hairs on basal joints, the
apical joints darker. Legs with longish pubescent hairs basally below
on femora in both sexes and with the front femora unarmed below;
middle ones with about 2-3 spines below; hind ones with about 6-8
comparatively long spines below from near base to apex. Hypo-
pygium of $ (text-fig. 33) with the basal parts inconspicuously haired,
the side feebly striate, the inner apical angles only slightly projecting;
beaked apical joints comparatively elongate, the apex acutely pointed
downwards ; aedeagus with the very slender apical part not reaching
inner apical angles, feebly bent upwards apically, without a ventral
aedeagal process; lateral struts broad and flattened; basal strut
comparatively small, racket-shaped, and projecting a little beyond
base of basal parts.
Length of body: about 8-9 mm.
Length of wing : about 8-9 mm.
Locality. — S. Karoo: Matjiesfontein and Hopefleld. (In the South
African Museum.)
B. fucatus Bezz.
(In key, p. 14, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921; note on p. 72,
Broteria (Ser. Zool.), vol. xx, Fasc. II, 1922; in key, p. 47,
The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Eegion, 1924.)
Nowhere, except in keys and notes, does Bezzi give any description
of this species. In " Broteria" (loc. cit.) he states that he intended to
describe it in his work "No. 4" on the Bombyliidae of the Hungarian
Museum, and, moreover, states that the species is represented in the
Budapest Museum and in his own private collections. Apart from
the vague references to it in keys (loc. cit.), this species appears to me
to exist only as a name, and its intended description has never been
published. The Transvaal Museum is in possession of 4 $$ and 1 <$,
of which 3 $$ and the $ were formerly in the possession of the late
Dr. Brauns, and which he collected at Willowmore. The # is labelled
"38 Bezzi" and also as " Bombylius fucatus" in Brauns' handwriting.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 183
The 3 $$ were included in this species but were unlabelled, except for
one specimen which had a small label " Bezzi I. 5." The other £ from
" Bloemfontein, 25/3/21," collected by H. E. Irving, was formerly in
possession of Mr. Munro of the Government Entomological Depart-
ment and is labelled " Bombylius fucatus Bezz." This latter $ is,
however, entirely specifically different from the ^-specimen ("38
Bezzi") and does not run down in Bezzi's keys to fucatus. It is in
fact a separate species, which is described in this paper as transitus
n. sp. It has distinct very broad red in the sides of the abdomen and
an apically acute first posterior cell. The small $, labelled "Bezzi I.
5." and placed with fucatus ($ "38 Bezzi"), is also a different species
and is in fact a $ of paterculus Walk., as defined by Bezzi and myself
in this paper. We are thus left with 2 $$ and the labelled $ ("38
Bezzi"), which obviously belong to the same species. In addition,
there are also present 2 other $$ from Willowmore and 2 $$ in the
British Museum which are also referable to this species. It is thus
evident that Bezzi included no less than 3 specifically different species
in fucatus. In view of this the only procedure is either to take the
labelled ^-specimen from Bloemfontein as the typical fucatus, in which
case my transitus n. sp. becomes a synonym, or to take the ^-specimen
and $$ from Brauns' collection as representing fucatus. As Bezzi
himself refers to this species as coming from Willowmore (Broteria,
loc. cit.), and as the $ was labelled by Bezzi as "38 Bezzi" it appears
more than likely that these specimens constitute part of the original
batch forwarded to Bezzi. These specimens are thus taken as
representing fucatus Bezz. and as having the following characters: —
Body black, with antennal joint 1 and to a certain extent 2 in $$,
the face, genae, and head below in ?£, the narrow front margin of face
and anterior part of head below in <$, the base of proboscis below, the
greater part of scutellum in both sexes, sometimes the narrow hind
margins of tergites 4-7 or 5-7 in $$, the hind margins of the sternites
and sometimes the sutural parts of the pleurae in 2$, yellowish red or
reddish, with the antennae in <J entirely dark or black; legs, including
coxae, almost entirely yellowish in both sexes, the bases of femora in
$ slightly darkened, only the last 2 tarsal joints darkened and apical
parts of claws black; pubescence rather longish and shaggy, without a
shorn-ofT appearance on thorax even in <$, that on antennae and face
in $ sericeous yellowish and pale sericeous yellowish to golden
yellowish in $$, that on occiput and thorax in front in $ gleaming
sericeous and almost silvery whitish, distinctly more yellowish and
sericeous yellowish to even pale golden in $$, that on disc of thorax,
184
Annals of the South African Museum.
scutellum, and abdomen above distinctly deeper sericeous yellowish
in both sexes but slightly paler sericeous yellowish in $ and in some
$£ even with more golden gleams, that on head below, body below, in
metapleural tuft, and basally on each side of venter frosty whitish in
both sexes, contrasting with that on body above, with, the bristly
elements on frons, on mesopleuron in front of wings, the macrochaetal
bristles, those on post-alar calli and on scutellum in $$ gleaming deep
sericeous yellowish, golden yellowish to even fulvous golden, with the
transverse bristles across
hind margins of abdomen
above distinctly darker,
more dark brownish, be-
coming even dark blackish
brown towards apex of
abdomen, the apices of
individual bristles gleaming
whitish in certain lights,
with the fine, depressed,
hair-like scaling on abdomen
above straw-coloured
yellowish in $, more seri-
Text-fig. 34.— Side view and half of ventral ceous yellowish to pale
view of hypopygium of $ Bombylius fucatus brassy yellowish in ?$, that
on frons in $$ slightly gleam-
ing whitish to sericeous yellowish, with the scaling on legs whitish;
wings shining and with a distinct whitish subopacity, the base and costal
cell more subopaquely pale yellowish whitish, with the basal comb
creamy yellowish, the veins brownish or dark brownish, becoming
more yellowish basally and along first longitudinal vein, with the discal
cross vein beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the squamae opaquely
pale yellowish white to yellowish, narrowly dark-bordered and fringed
with white hair; halteres yellowish, with ivory whitish knobs. Head
with the eyes in $ touching above just in front of ocellar tubercle, then
gradually diverging for a little distance before rapidly diverging
apically, the eyes slightly flattened above, with the interocular space
in ?$ on vertex about 3J-4 times as broad as ocellar tubercle; face
a little longer than combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2;
antennae with joint 1 about 3, or a little more, times as long as 2, with
2 rather transverse, with 3 about, or a little less than, 1 J times as long
as 1 and 2 combined, rod-like, cylindrical, and only gradually tapering
apically, ending in a very minute basal element bearing a slender style,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 185
directed upwards; proboscis about 3-4 mm. long. Legs with longish
hairs on femora below, with about 2-3 spines in apical half below on
middle ones ; hind femora with about 5-9 spines below from near base
to apex below; claws sickle-shaped, gradually and arcuately curved,
the pulvilli not reaching bent down apices of claws; front tarsal joints
in $$ slightly thickened and hairy. Hypopygium of <J (text-fig. 34)
with the inner apical parts of basal parts projecting slightly; beaked
apical joints elongate, narrowish, and sharply pointed apically, the
apices bent downwards; aedeagus without any ventral process below;
basal strut with a deep sinuosity along its dorsal edge.
In the Transvaal, British, and South African Museums.
Length of body: about 6-7 J mm.
Length of wing: about 6-8 mm.
Locality. — Little Karoo and South Cape Province.
The species is easily recognised by the dark transverse bristles on
abdomen and the slightly whitish subopaque wings. From other
species with darkish bristles it is separated by the characters given in
the key.
2 ## 7 $$ B. imitator n. sp.
Body black, with the anterior part of frons, the entire face, genae,
and head below, antennal joints 1 and 2, base of proboscis below,
greater part of scutellum, hind margins of tergites 3-7 or at least 5-7,
hind margins of sternites and a longitudinal band along pleurae above
coxae reddish or reddish yellow; legs, including coxae, entirely
yellowish, only a spot on trochanters, the last 2 tarsal joints and
apices of claws black; pubescence rather longish, dense and shaggy,
longer on abdomen, that on occiput and thorax above gleaming
sericeous whitish in S3 and also in some $$, but other $$ with a more
sericeous yellowish to even more pale golden sheen, that on disc of
thorax, on scutellum, and on abdomen in S3 gleaming slightly more
sericeous yellowish than in front, that on abdomen discally even more
distinct, more distinctly and deeper sericeous yellowish in $$, even
that on sides of thorax above wings in $$ sericeous yellowish, that on
sides of abdomen in some $$ in certain lights appearing deep sericeous
yellowish, that on head below, body below, in metapleural tuft and at
base of venter laterally contrastingly frosty whitish, that towards
apex of abdomen in S3 also apparently more whitish, that on antennae
and face sericeous whitish in S3, sericeous whitish to sericeous
yellowish, and even pale golden in $$, with the frontal bristles, the
macrochaetal bristles, those on post-alar calli and on scutellum
186 Annals of the South African Museum.
gleaming sericeous yellowish to golden yellowish in $$, with the
transverse bristles across abdomen deeper golden to reddish or
brownish golden, becoming even more blackish brown towards apex
in some specimens, those discally above in basal half at least tending
to be paler and more yellowish, with the bristly elements on each
side of venter apically also dark, especially in $$, with the fine,
depressed hair -like scaling on frons in $$ gleaming sericeous yellowish,
that on abdomen above more whitish to pale yellowish, the scaling on
legs whitish; wings vitreous hyaline, iridescent, but with a very feeble
and almost imperceptible subopacity in certain lights, with the base
costal cell, and basal half of first basal cell subopaquely whitish to
pale yellowish whitish, with the basal comb yellowish, the veins dark
brownish, becoming yellowish at base, with the discal cross vein a
little to quite a good distance beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the
squamae subopaquely pale yellowish or pellucid yellowish, narrowly
dark-bordered and fringed with whitish hair; halteres yellowish,
with almost whitish knobs. Head with the eyes in $$ separated
above by a space about as broad as front part of ocellar tubercle, with
the interocular space in $$ quite 3|-, or a little more, times as broad as
tubercle; face a little longer than combined length of antennal joints
1 and 2; antennae with joint 1 about 3, or very little more, times as
long as 2, with 2 shortish and transverse, with 3 about 1J, or a little
less, times as long as 1 and 2 combined, gradually narrowed apically,
the basal part in some $$ slightly thicker than in £$ where the joint
is almost rod-like, ending apically in a small conical element passing
into a short style; proboscis about 3-4 mm. long. Legs with sparse
but longish hairs on femora below in S3 especially, with 2-3 spines on
middle femora in front ; hind femora with about 6-8 spines below from
near base to apex; claws slender, gradually and arcuately curved, the
pulvilli not reaching their bent down apices; front tarsal joints in $$
only slightly thickened. Hypopygium of $ much like that oifucatus
(cf . text-fig. 34) but with much fewer and finer hairs above on basal
parts; beaked apical joints also elongate and narrowish, but slightly
shorter than in fucatus; aedeagus slightly longer and the apex extend-
ing slightly beyond apices of inner apical angles of basal parts; basal
strut slightly shorter, less broad and less deep and angularly incised
along its dorsal edge.
Types in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 6-8 mm.
Length of wing: about 6-8 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Garies Distr.; Klip Vlei (Mus. Exp.,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 187
November 1931) (Types); Namaqualand: Bowesdorp (Mus. Exp.,
November 1931).
This species is very near fucatus Bezz., from which it may be
distinguished by the much clearer and more hyaline wings, the fewer
or less dark blackish brown bristly elements on abdomen, more
conspicuous red on abdomen and on pleurae, and distinctly more
broadly separated eyes in $$.
1 $ B. aurimystax n. sp.
Black; antennal joints 1 and 2, face, base of proboscis below,
greater part of scutellum and narrow hind margins of venter reddish;
legs predominantly
yellowish, the apical part
of tarsi blackened and
apices of claws black;
pubescence dense, that
on abdomen somewhat
shaggy and that on disc
of thorax appearing
slightly cropped off, that
on occiput, thorax in
front and sides very
pale sericeous whitish,
appearing whiter in
certain lights, that on
disc of thorax with a
slightly more sericeous
yellowish gleam, that
on abdomen whitish or
sericeous whitish, without any dark bristles on sides or apically, that
on frons, antennal joint 1, face and genae sericeous yellowish, becom-
ing more golden yellowish on frons, apical part of face and on genae,
the mystax, in fact, markedly gleaming golden with even a touch of
orange, that on head below and body below more obviously white
than above, that on venter very pale yellowish, whiter on sides but
even slightly ochreous apically; wings greyish hyaline, with a slight
yellowish tinge which becomes more evident and distinct basally, the
base, costal cell, with the basal comb pale yellowish, the veins yellowish
brown, becoming more yellowish towards base, with the discal cross
vein just at about middle of discoidal cell, with the squamae opaquely
Text-fig. 35. — Side view and half of ventral view
of hypopygium of $ Bombylius aurimystax n. sp.
188 Annals of the South African Museum.
yellowish, brownish-bordered, and fringed with white hair; halteres
yellowish, with almost whitish knobs. Head with the inner margins
of eyes above subcontiguous for a short distance subequal to length of
tubercle, the narrow space narrower than front ocellus ; f rons slightly
depressed centrally; face tumidly prominent and produced ; antennae
with joint 1 about 3 times as long as 2, with 3 broadest just before
middle, gradually narrowed apically, and also slightly narrowed at
base; proboscis about 3J mm. long. Legs with longish hairs basally
on the femora, without any spines below on front femora; middle
ones with about 2 spines in front in apical part; hind femora with
about 9 spines from near base to apex; claws slender, gradually
curved downwards apically, with the pulvilli not reaching apices of
claws. Hypopygium (text-fig. 35) like that of latipectus, the long and
slender beaked apical joints, however, relatively slightly longer;
aedeagus slightly shorter and the apical part more slender and much
shorter; basal strut slightly narrower, longer, and projecting con-
siderably beyond bases of basal parts.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 9 mm.
Length of wing: about 9 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Garies (Mus. Exp., June 1930).
2 3$ B. pseudopsis n. sp.
Body predominantly black, with antennal joint 1 yellowish, but
darkened above, with only front part of face tending to be yellowish,
the head below black or very dark, with the base of proboscis below
yellowish, with the hinder part or half of scutellum ferruginous
reddish and hind margins of sternites also reddish ; legs predominantly
yellowish, but bases of front and middle femora blackish or darkened
and last two tarsal joints and apical part of claws also darkened;
pubescence dense, tending to be shortish and with a slightly shorn off
appearance on thorax, that on first antennal joints and face rather
dense, that on body above predominantly pale, gleaming sericeous
whitish and with scarcely any touch of sericeous yellowish, that on
abdomen also very pale, almost whitish, that towards apex even more
apparently whitish, that on sides towards base with a more straw-
coloured yellowish tint to even creamy yellowish, that on head below,
pleurae, pectus, and sides of venter basally frosty whitish, that in
front of wings tinted slightly more yellowish in certain lights, that on
face distinctly more yellowish and gleaming sericeous yellowish to very
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 189
pale golden, that on venter laterally also more yellowish, with some
or a few or even without any darker and more brownish bristly
elements transversely across abdomen, especially towards apex on
side; wings greyish hyaline, with the basal two-thirds distinctly,
though faintly, tinged yellowish, the base and costal cell being more
subopaquely yellowish whitish, with the basal comb ochreous
yellowish, the veins brownish but becoming yellowish towards base,
with the discal cross vein tending to be at about middle of discoidal
cell, with the squamae opaquely
yellowish, narrowly dark-bordered
and fringed with whitish hair;
halteres yellowish, with very pale
and almost whitish knobs. Head
with the eyes subcontiguous above,
the narrow space scarcely as broad
as front ocellus, the length of
space even shorter than length
of ocellar tubercle; face rather
conically prominent, much as in
aurimystax, distinctly longer than
combined length of antennal joints
1 and 2; antennae with joint 1
quite 3 times as long as 2, with Text -fig. 36.— Dorsal view of beaked
. • , n , .,-, i , apical joint and side view of hypopy-
joint 2 transverse, with 3 about, g f um Q J f ^ BombyUus pseu dopsis n. sp.
or even a little more than, 1J
times as long as 1 and 2 combined, slender and rod-like, gradually
tapering apically, ending in a small conical terminal element bearing
a short style; proboscis about 3 J mm. long. Legs with fine and
longish white hairs on femora below, with about 7-9 spines on
hind ones below; claws gradually and arcuately curved, the pul villi
not reaching their bent-down apices. Hypopygium (text-fig. 36) very
much like that of aurimystax, but with the aedeagus not so bent
downwards apically and with the apices of beaked apical joints more
bent downwards and with a smaller basal strut.
Type in the South African Museum and paratype in the Imperial
Institute.
Length of body : about 8J mm.
Length of wing : about 8 mm.
Locality.— Namaqualand: Bowesdorp (Mus. Exp., November 1931)
(Type). Karoo: Graafi-Eeinet (Ogilvie, 24-27/10/31).
Almost inseparable from aurimystax, but differing, however, in not
190
Annals of the South African Museum.
having subspindle-shaped third antennal joints, in having a darker
head below, and in having a slightly less prominent face. From
icteroglaenus it differs in having a longer face, much paler pubescence,
and much fewer dark hairs on abdomen and more gradually curved
claws.
1 $ B. icteroglaenus n. sp.
Body black, with the first antennal joints yellowish, but darkened
above, the face dark, but front margin or front part more brownish,
Text-fig. 37. — Side and ventral views of hypopygium of <$ of Bombylius
icteroglaenus n. sp.
the head below also obscurely dark brownish, with the base of pro-
boscis below also obscure reddish brown, the hinder half of scutellum
ferruginous reddish and hind margins of sternites yellowish; legs
predominantly yellowish, the bases of front and middle femora slightly
darkened or blackened and last two tarsal joints also blackened;
pubescence dense on thorax and shortish, with a slight shorn off
appearance, that on thorax in front gleaming very pale sericeous
yellowish, that on disc, sides of thorax above wings, on scutellum and
predominantly on abdomen above pale golden to even deep golden
yellowish, that on abdomen especially gleaming deep golden yellowish,
that on first antennal joints and face with slight sericeous yellowish
gleams, that on head below and body below frosty whitish, that on
sides of venter basally more straw-coloured, that towards apex of
venter more yellowish, with the transverse bristly elements across
tergites, especially on sides, distinctly darker and more brownish
golden to even blackish brown or dark reddish brown; wings greyish
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 191
hyaline, with the basal two-thirds very faintly tinged yellowish, the
base and costal cell more subopaquely yellowish whitish, the basal
comb yellowish, with the veins dark brownish, slightly more reddish
or yellowish brown basally, with the discal cross vein at about middle
of discoidal cell, with the squamae opaquely yellowish, narrowly
dark-bordered and fringed with creamy hairs; halteres yellowish
brown, with very pale yellowish knobs. Head with the eyes narrowly
separated above by a short space about as wide as front ocellus; face
subequal in length to combined antennal joints 1 and 2, not prominent;
antennae with joint 1 a little more than 3 times as long as 2, with 2
transverse, with 3 not quite 1 J times as long as 1 and 2 combined, very
slender and rod-like, only gradually tapering apically, ending apically
in a small conical element bearing a short style; proboscis about
3 J mm. long. Legs with sparse hairs on femora below and with about
7 spines below on hind ones; claws distinctly more rapidly bent
down, almost at right angles, near apex, and the pulvilli reaching their
bent-down apices. Hypopygium (text-fig. 37) with the beaked apical
joints also elongate and pointed.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 8 mm.
Length of wing: about 7 \ mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand : Bowesdorp (Mus. Exp., November 1931).
This species differs from aurimystax in having a very much shorter
and darker face, more slender third antennal joints, more golden or
yellowish pubescence on abdomen, and more rapidly curved claws.
It is nearer to pseudopsis, from which it differs by the more golden
pubescence, shorter face, and claws which are more rapidly bent down
nearer apex.
1 <J 4 ?? B. meltoni n. sp.
Body entirely black; hind part of scutellum (excepting black
triangular basal spot) reddish brown; antennal joint 1 obscurely
reddish below; legs yellowish, the coxae, trochanters, and extreme
bases of the femora black, the last 2 tarsal joints and apices of claws
also black; pubescence rather dense and shaggy on front part of
thorax, that on occiput, front part and humeral part of thorax
markedly gleaming silvery or silky whitish, especially in S, thus con-
trasting collar-like with the more yellowish pubescence on disc of
thorax, that on rest of thorax above and on abdomen above pale
sericeous yellowish to golden yellowish, especially on base of thorax
and on scutellum in $$, that on frons anteriorly in $$ whitish, with
192
Annals of the South African Museum.
the hairs on face predominantly pale yellowish, the hair on head
below, pleural regions, in metapleural tuft, sides of tergite 1, on venter
and even sides towards apex of abdomen in both sexes white and
contrasting with that on body above, the hair and bristly hairs on
coxae also white, with the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle, on antennae
below, the bristles on face in front and upper parts of genae dark even
slightly brownish in $$, slightly paler and only those on face brownish
basally in $, with the bristles or bristly hairs on sides of thorax in
Text-fig. 38.
-Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of $
Bombylius meltoni n. sp.
front of wing-bases, including macrochaetae, the post-alar bristles,
those across hind margin of scutellum distinctly much darker than
rest of pubescence, brownish to blackish brown, especially those on
posterior calli and scutellum; all these bristles are usually much
darkened towards their bases, with the transverse bristles across hind
margins of abdominal tergites from 2 to apex and especially on sides
conspicuously black, those towards apex tipped whitish; wings greyish
hyaline, the base and costal cell subopaquely yellowish white, with the
veins dark blackish brown, becoming slightly paler and more yellowish
basally, with the second longitudinal vein slightly undulating and only
very gradually bending upwards at its end, with the first posterior cell
more or less subacute apically, with the discal cross vein just beyond
middle of discoidal cell, with the squamae subopaquely dirty yellowish
white, dark margined and fringed with white hairs; halteres with
whitish knobs. Head with the eyes in $ above separated by a space,
at narrowest part, as broad as front part of ocellar tubercle, the
interocular space in $$ a little less than 4 times as broad as tubercle;
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 193
antennae with joint 1 a little more than 3 times as long as joint 2,
with joint 3 almost rod-like only a little thicker at base, with their
terminal styles slightly bent upwards hook-like and showing a small
but distinct basal joint or element from which they arise; proboscis
about 2J-3J mm. long; palps with the basal joints pallid and longer
than apical ones. Legs with spines apically above on the femora;
front femora without any spines below; middle ones with about
2 spines in apical part in front ; hind ones with about 4-7 spines from
just before middle to apex, the basal ones more or less slender, bristle-
like, and long; claws slender and gradually curved to apex, the pulvilli
reaching or extending a little beyond middle. Hypopygium of S
(text-fig. 38) with the beaked apical joints elongate and narrowish,
without any ventral aedeagal process and with the lateral struts
broadish.
Types in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 6-7-J mm.
Length of wing: about 6J-8J mm.
Locality. — Nieuwveld Karoo: Beaufort W. to Victoria West
Distr.; Melton Wold Estate (Mus. Staff, October 1935) (Types).
Namaqualand: Nieuwoudtville (Mus. Staff, September 1936).
This species is peculiar in the series with black transverse bristles
on abdomen in having the second longitudinal vein slightly undulating
and only gradually bent upwards at its end.
1 $ B. kaokoensis n. sp.
Body, including antennae, face, head below, proboscis, and scutellum
black, with the hinder part of scutellum, however, very obscurely
darkly rufous and the abdomen entirely black; legs with the femora
darkened or blackish to much beyond the middle, even the hind ones
predominantly blackish, the apical parts of the femora and the tibiae
and tarsi yellowish, the apical parts of the tarsi more brownish;
pubescence rather longish and shaggy, predominantly straw-coloured
yellowish above and with sericeous gleams, that on abdomen with
slightly more sericeous yellowish gleams discally in certain lights,
that on occiput appearing almost whitish in certain lights, that on
body below distinctly more frosty whitish, with the scaling on legs
whitish; wings hyaline, with the costal cell and basal two-thirds
faintly, but distinctly, tinged yellowish, with the basal comb yellowish
and very poorly developed, with the veins brownish, becoming more
yellowish towards base, with the discal cross vein a little beyond
194
Annals of the South African Museum.
middle of discoidal cell, the first posterior cell normal apically, with
the squamae subopaquely yellowish whitish and fringed with whitish
hair; halteres with very pale yellowish knobs. Head with the eyes
slightly flattened above, in actual contact above for a short distance
in front of ocellar tubercle, then gradually diverging for a very short
distance before more rapidly diverging apically; face subequal in
length to combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2; antennae with
joint 1 quite 2 J times as long as 2, with 2 subglobular, with 3 more or
Text-fig. 39.
-Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of
Bombylius kaokoensis n. sp.
less spindle-shaped but broadest nearer base, more rapidly attenuated
apically than basally, ending apically in a small conical element
bearing a short style ; proboscis slender and about 2 mm. long. Legs
slender and with only about 4 or 5 slender spines on hind ones below;
claws distinctly rapidly curved down, almost at right angles, nearer
apex, with the pulvilli long and reaching bent-down apices of claws.
Hypopygium (text-fig. 39) resembles that of tinctipennis (cf. text-figs.
30 and 31), with the inner apical angles of basal parts triangularly
projecting; beaked apical joints not elongate, but not very broad
basally, leaf-shaped and depressed above; aedeagus with the apical
part slender, just about reaching apices of inner apical angles of basal
parts, with a large, lamellate ventral process on each side and pro-
j ecting vertically downwards ; basal strut more or less chopper-shaped.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 6 mm.
Length of wing: about 6 J mm.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 195
Locality. — South. West Africa: Kaokoveld; Kaross (Mas. Exp.,
February 1925).
This species differs from inermis iu having longer and more shaggy
pubescence., black scutelluni, more extensively blackened femora, and
entirely different type of hypopygium.
1 o B. extraneus n. sp.
Black, even antennae, face and proboscis entirely black; scutellum
with only the hinder part discally reddish, the red, however, less
extensive than is usual in this series: legs with the coxae, trochanters,
basal halves of front and middle femora and bases of hind ones
blackened or black, and the last two tarsal joints also darkened;
pubescence rather shaggy, not with a cropped appearance on thorax
above, fairly dense, predominantly straw-coloured yellowish above,
appearing more sericeous whitish on thorax in front when viewed
from in front, but also appearing more yellowish on disc of thorax in
certain lights, that on abdomen above even distinctly more sericeous
yellowish in certain lights, especially that towards apex, without any
dark transverse rows of bristles on abdomen above, with the pubes-
cence on frons and face pale yellowish, that on face tending to be
deeper sericeous yellowish, that on head below, pleurae and pectus,
and base of venter white, the longish hairs on femora also whitish,
with the scaling on legs very pale yellowish white, appearing almost
white on dark parts, the spines and spicules pale yellowish; wings
greyish hyaline, becoming slightly subopaquely yellowish whitish in
costal cell and base, with the veins blackish brown, becoming paler
towards base, with the discal cross vein distinctly just before middle
of discoidal cell, with the first posterior cell tending to be narrow, with
the basal comb small and yellowish, with the squamae opaquely
yellowish and fringed with almost whitish hairs; halteres yellowish,
with almost white knobs. Head with the eyes above almost touching,
separated by a very narrow space, even narrower than front ocellus,
the inner margins at first gradually diverging for a short distance, then
rapidly: antennae with joint 1 quite 3 times as long as 2, with 3
subrod-like, gradually thickened basally, the terminal style short
and straight: proboscis about 2-j- mm. long. Legs without any spines
on front femora below: middle ones without any or apparently with
only 1 spine apically on anterior aspect, hind femora with about 4-5
slender spines from about middle to apex; claws slender, gradually
curved downwards apically, the pulvilli not reaching the apices.
196 Annals of the South African Museum.
Hypopygium resembles that of meltoni (cf. text-fig. 38), with the
beaked apical joints also elongate and similarly shaped, with the
aedeagus, lateral struts, and even basal strut similarly shaped, only
the inner apical parts of basal parts bounding the beaked apical
joints on the inside distinctly longer and more projecting, and also
with slightly denser hairs on the basal parts.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body : about 5J mm.
Length of wing : about 5J mm.
Locality. — Escarpment between Nieuwveld and Gouph Karoo:
Fraserburg Distr., Teekloof (Mus. Staff, November 1935).
This species is peculiar in that the discal cross vein is a little, but
distinctly, before the middle of discoidal cell in this specimen. In
this respect it should really be included in the globulus and eurhinatus
series. It may, however, be easily separated from the former series
by the predominantly black body, entirely black antennae, black
proboscis, black abdomen, black face, etc.
1 $ B. anomalus n. sp.
Body, including face and head below, black; scutellum ferruginous
reddish on hinder half, and first antennal joints yellowish, though
darkened above, the narrowish hind margins of sternites also reddish
and proboscis below reddish brownish ; legs with the femora blackened
at bases, and apical parts of tarsi brownish; pubescence dense and
shortish on thorax above and with a shorn-off appearance, longer on
abdomen, predominantly whitish sericeous on occiput and thorax in
front, becoming more gleaming yellowish sericeous on abdomen above,
even more golden on abdomen, but paler again towards apex, with the
transverse bristly elements on abdomen slightly deeper golden and
even tending to be darker on sides towards apex, the pubescence on
face and antennae more pale golden to golden, that on body below, in
metapleural tuft and on sides of venter basally more whitish to frosty
whitish, the hair on sides of tergite 1 also more whitish, the scaling on
legs whitish; wings vitreous hyaline, with the basal two-thirds faintly
tinged yellowish, the costal cell and base more subopaquely yellowish
whitish, with the basal comb small and yellowish, the veins reddish
brown, paler basally, the first longitudinal vein reddish yellow, with the
discal cross vein only a little beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the
second longitudinal vein only gradually curved up at its end, with
the squamae subopaquely yellowish, dark-margined and fringed with
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 197
creamy yellowish hairs ; halteres yellowish brown and with very pale
knobs. Head with the eyes contiguous above for a short distance
scarcely as long as ocellar tubercle ; face slightly longer than combined
length of antennal joints 1 and 2; antennae with joint 1 about 3 times
as long as 2, with 2 globular, with 3 about 1 J times as long as 1 and 2
combined, gradually narrowed apically, ending in a conical terminal
element bearing a style; proboscis about 3 J mm. long. Legs with
about 2 spine& in front on middle femora below and with about 6 spines
Text -fig. 40.
-Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of <$
Bombylius anomalus n. sp.
on hind ones below; claws gradually and arcuately curved, the
pul villi not reaching their apices. Hypopygium (text-fig. 40) with the
inner apical angles or processes of basal parts only slightly projecting:
beaked apical joints elongate, narrowish, their apices acute and bent
downwards, pubescent above; aedeagus without a ventral process
below, the apical part straight; lateral struts comparatively broad
and short; basal strut bat-shaped.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body : about 6| mm.
Length of wing : about 7| mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Garies Distr.; Klip Vlei (Mus. Exp.,
November 1931).
This species resembles aurimystax, but is slightly smaller, with the
wings more hyaline in apical part, with the discal cross vein distinctly
beyond middle of discoidal cell, the eyes are more subcontiguous
vol. xxxiv. 14
198 Annals of the South African Museum.
above, the face is very much shorter and not so conically produced,
and the femora are more distinctly darkened basally.
1 $ B. calviniensis n. sp.
Body black; antennal joints 1 and 2, face, genae, front part of head
below, base of proboscis below, greater part of scutellum, propleural
part above front coxae, and to a certain extent sutural parts of pleurae
above middle coxae ferruginous red; legs reddish yellow, only the
last 2 tarsal joints darker and more brownish, with the claws black
from before middle ; pubescence fine and dense, not with a very close
shorn-off appearance on the thorax, rather long on abdomen, that on
face not very dense and not very long, that on front coxae dense and
shaggy, that on occiput and body above yellowish, gleaming sericeous
yellowish, but becoming distinctly paler and more whitish towards
apex of abdomen, that on ocellar tubercle, antennae, face, and genae
deeper yellowish and gleaming more golden, that on head below more
contrastingly whitish, that on pleurae duller than above but straw-
coloured yellowish, the hair below wing-bases and in metapleural tuft
being distinctly more whitish, the yellowish hairs on coxae, especially
front ones, and on the trochanters with intermixed dark or brownish
ones, with the pubescence on venter dense and paler than on thorax
in front, more straw-coloured, that on sides appearing very pale and
becoming distinctly more whitish apically, with the fine but dense
hairs on front and middle femora below predominantly straw-coloured
yellowish but with intermixed darkish or more brownish ones, especi-
ally near base, with the macrochaetal bristles (2) on each side in front
of wings pale yellowish and without any distinct stout transverse
bristles on abdomen; wings vitreous hyaline, with the costal cell, first
basal cell, base and alula subopaquely pale yellowish, with the basal
comb yellow and appearing golden in certain lights, with the veins
dark brownish, becoming more yellowish basally, the costal vein and
first longitudinal vein being more reddish yellow, with the discal cross
vein a little beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the squamae sub-
opaquely yellowish and fringed with almost whitish hairs which gleam
creamy yellowish in certain lights ; halteres yellowish, with very pale
yellowish knobs. Head with the eyes above narrowly separated by
a short space about as wide as front ocellus just in front of ocellus;
face slightly conically prominent from side; antennae with joint 1
short, only a very little longer than 2 times as long as 2, with 3 at least
\\ times as long as 1 and 2 combined, gradually narrowed apically,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 199
ending apically in a short joint-like basal element bearing a fine style,
with the bases of first antennal joints situated on a slightly raised
front part of frons; proboscis about 4 mm. long. Legs slender,
without any spines on front femora ; middle ones with about 3 slender
bristle-like spines in apical half in front and 2 behind; hind femora
with about 9 slender spines from just before middle to apex on outer
side below; claws gradually curved down apically, with the pulvilli
just about reaching middle of claws. Hypopygium (text-fig. 41)
Text-fig. 41.
-Side and ventral views of hypopygium of $ of Bombyli
calviniensis n. sp.
with the beaked apical joints narrow and elongate as in the other
species in thib series.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body : about 7 mm.
Length of wing : about 8 mm.
Locality. — N. Western Karoo: Calvinia (Mus. Exp., September
1936).
This species very closely resembles such species as aurimystax,
pseudopsis, and anomalus. From the latter it may at once be dis-
tinguished by having the face and lower part of head reddish, shorter
first antennal joints, less whitish pubescence on pleurae and pectus,
paler pubescence on abdomen, and the wings less distinctly tinged
yellowish in basal half. From pseudopsis it differs in having no trace
of transverse blackish or dark bristly hairs or bristles on abdomen,
more yellowish pubescence on pectus and pleurae, and the wings not
distinctly tinged yellowish in basal half. From aurimystax it differs
200 Annals of the South African Museum.
in not having the basal two-thirds of wings tinged yellowish,
discal cross vein not at about middle of discoidal cell, more yellowish
pubescence on pectus, slightly broader interocular space which is also
much shorter and a less conical face.
B. xanthocerus Bezz.
(P. 19, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This species, the 3 of which Bezzi described very shortly, is also
represented in the still undescribed $-sex. The species is character-
ised as follows: —
Body predominantly black; the entire antennae, the face and head
below, sometimes extreme base of proboscis below, the entire scutellum
slight sutural infusions on pleurae, especially in ?$, the narrowish hind
margins of tergites 4-6 in some $$ especially and hind margins of
sternites yellowish ; legs almost entirely yellowish, even the coxae are
yellowish, only the trochanters have a black spot, and last 2 tarsal
joints and apices of claws are blackish; pubescence dense and shortish,
that on thorax, especially in 33, with a shorn-off appearance, that on
abdomen also not shaggy in both sexes, predominantly gleaming
sericeous yellowish to pale golden yellowish above, that towards apex
of abdomen in 33 not much paler, that on first antennal joints and
face in 33 even more sericeous whitish, more sericeous yellowish in
?$, that on sides of abdomen basally, especially in $?, deeper golden
yellowish, that on head below, pleurae, pectus, and on each side of
venter basally paler yellowish than above, the palest pectoral pubes-
cence gradually grading into the yellowish hair on body above, with
the bristly elements on body yellowish like rest of pubescence ; wings
glassy hyaline, iridescent, with the base, costal cell, and basal part of
first basal cell subopaquely whitish yellowish, with the basal comb
small and yellowish, the veins brownish, becoming paler and yellowish
basally, with the discal cross vein a little beyond middle of discoidal
cell, with the second longitudinal vein gradually curved up at its end,
with the squamae subopaquely pale yellowish and fringed with pale
yellowish hair, which appear more creamy in certain lights ; halteres
yellowish and with almost whitish knobs. Head with the eyes above
in 33 in contact for a short distance, subequal in length to ocellar
tubercle, with the interocular space on vertex in $$ rather narrowish,
only about 1\ times as broad as combined length of antennal joints
1 and 2, the inner margins gradually diverging apically; face rather
short and shorter than combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2;
A Revision of the Bombyliidae {Diptera) of Southern Africa. 201
antennae with joint 1 shortish, only about 2§ times as long, with
2 slightly longer than broad, with 3 quite, or even a little more
than, 1J times as long as 1 and 2 combined, more or less spindle-
shaped, broadest just before middle
and more slender apically, the joint
appearing slightly humped above at broad-
est part, ending apically in a distinct
conical element bearing an upwardly
directed short style; proboscis about
3-4 mm.; palps slender, with the apical
joint rather long and slender. Legs with
longish hairs on femora below, with about
2 slender spines on middle femora in front
and about 4-6 slender spines on hind ones
below; claws rapidly bent down, almost
at right angles, nearer apex, and the
pulvilli reaching their bent-down apices;
front tarsal joints in $$ hairy and only
very slightly thickened. Hypopygium of
$ (text-fig. 42) with the inner apical
angles of basal parts somewhat angularly
acute; beaked apical joints not slender
and very elongate, slightly depressed above
process ventrally below.
In the South African Museum.
Length of body : about 6J-7 mm.
Length of wing : about 6-7 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand : Bushmanland.
Easily distinguished by the entirely reddish or yellowish antennae,
the slightly humped third antennal joints, the short face, and pale
yellowish pubescence on body. Except in the colour of the pub-
escence this species has no connection with mundus Lw.
Text-fig. 42. — Side view of
hypopygium and dorsal view
of beaked apical joint of $
Bombylius xanthocerus Bezz.
aedeagus without a
1 $ 5 $? B. harooensis n. sp.
($yn.= ruficeps Bezz. nee Macq. <$.)
The $ of this species was referred to ruficeps Macq. (pp. 88 and 89,
Dipt. Exot. ii, Table VII, fig. 5, 1840) by Bezzi (p. 21, Ann. S. Afr.
Mus., vol. xviii). Macquart's poor description of a $ gives no clue
to the identity of this species, except its large size, and his figure of a
wing does not refer to his ruficeps, but to Fabricius' micans, a species
202 Annals of the South African Museum.
referred to group 3 in this paper. This species of Macquart, as well
as other large S. African species of his, such as albiventris, flaviceps,
aurantiacus, and rufus (pp. 87, 88, 89, and 91, loc. cit.), are all in-
determinable from his brief and vague descriptions and confused
figures. Unless Bezzi has had access to Macquart's type, I fail to see
how he was able to refer this ^-specimen to ruficeps. In view of the
fact that all these specimens are from the Karoo and the N.W. Cape
Province, localities where the Bombyliid-fauna is poorly known, even
at present, it is improbable that Macquart's species can be referred
to a typical Karoo-species, such as this. The characters of this
species are: —
Black; antennal joint 1 (also 2 in ?), face and front part of head
below, basal joints of palps, proboscis below, and scutellum pale
yellowish, pale reddish yellow to reddish, the scutellum being more
ferruginous red; pleurae, especially in £, often slightly reddish above
the coxae, and first abdominal segment on side reddish to obscure
reddish, with the apical segment in $ often also reddishy and hind
margins of ventral segments 1-3 more or less broadly pale yellowish
white, but the apical sternite in $ more reddish; coxae and legs pale
ochreous yellow to reddish yellow, the coxae in $ being slightly more
obscure reddish, and the bases of the femora in the £ slightly darkened,
with the last tarsal joints also distinctly blackened in both sexes;
pubescence on body above, from side, creamy yellowish, pale yellowish
to pale golden yellow in $, paler and more creamy yellowish in <$, that
on occiput and thorax in front in $ almost gleaming sericeous whitish,
that on abdomen in $ creamy yellow, distinctly yellow to golden
yellow, much paler and almost white apically in $, but more yellowish
basally on each side, with the bristles in front of wing-bases, those on
mesopleuron in $, the scutellar bristles and the transverse bristles on
abdomen in $ pale yellowish to pale golden yellow, paler in $, with the
pubescence on frons, antennae, and face pale sericeous yellowish to
pale golden in <j>, almost sericeous white in $, that on head below in
both sexes sericeous white, that on pleurae creamy yellowish, slightly
paler in <$, that on upper parts of pleurae in both sexes slightly more
yellowish, the entire pleural parts in <$, however, appearing paler and
more sericeous in certain lights, that on venter creamy yellowish
in <$ and some $?, and slightly more yellowish to even ochreous
yellowish in $, with the short and depressed pubescence on body above
pale sericeous yellow in $ and more sericeous whitish in <$, more or less
arranged densely and transversely across bases of segments and along
dorsal line in $ especially; wings hyaline, but with a distinct feeble
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 203
subopaquely milky whitish tint, with the base, costal cell, basal half
of first basal cell, and extreme base of second basal cell more sub-
opaquely yellowish, with the basal comb large and well developed,
sericeous yellowish to yellow, with the veins pale reddish yellow,
especially along main veins and towards base, often more brownish
towards their apices, with the opaquely yellowish squamae fringed
with pale creamy whitish hair, with the discal cross vein much beyond
middle of discoidal cell and with the second longitudinal vein slightly
Text-pig. 43. — Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of <$
Bombylius karooensis n. sp.
undulating; halteres yellowish and with almost white knobs. Head
with the eyes in $ above just touching in front of tubercle, then
gradually diverging for a short distance before a more rapid divergence
in front, with the interocular space in $ about 3, or a little more, times
as broad as tubercle; eyes in $ more or less slightly flattened above;
antennae with joint 1 very short, about 2J-3 times as long as joint 2,
with joint 3 broadest near base, more so in $, then rapidly attenuated
apically, the apical slender part being markedly slender and also
slightly longer in <J, with the terminal joints not distinctly separately
visible, but conically broadened at base and ending in a short style;
proboscis about 5-5J- mm. long, comparatively stout. Legs with
fairly longish pubescent hairs on femora below basally; front femora
with about 2-3 spines below and often with 1 spine on outer hind part ;
middle ones with about 5-6 spines in apical half below and 2-4 on
outer apical aspect; hind ones with about 10-15 fairly stout spines
below from near base to apex, with the 2 towards base often placed
204 Annals of the South African Museum.
transversely as a pair; front tarsal joints in $ compact and hairy, but
not markedly thickened; claws only gradually and slightly curved
downwards apically, with the pulvilli shortish and not extending
much beyond middle of claws. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 43), with
the inner apical angles of basal parts prominent, projecting and pro-
vided dorsally with short hairs; beaked apical joints comparatively
long and slender; aedeagus with the slender apical part projecting
slightly beyond the apical angles of basal parts, without a ventral
process.
Types in the South African Museum ; paratypes in the Transvaal
Museum, Imperial Institute, and British Museum.
Length of body : about 10-11 mm.
Length of wing : about 10-11 mm.
Locality. — N.W. Cape Province : Bushmanland; Jakhals Water
(Lightfoot, October, 1911) (Types). Karoo: Graaff-Keinet (Mackie,
24-27/10/31) (Imp. Institute). S. Eastern Karoo: Willowmore
(Brauns, October 1921). S. Karoo: Worcester (Turner, September
1928 (British Museum).
Easily recognised by its large and bulky size, its dense yellowish
pubescence, attenuated third antennal joints, only slightly curved
claws, and short pulvilli. It is one of the largest species of Bombylius
in this group.
1 $ 1 $ B. aemulus n. sp.
Body predominantly black, with antennal joint 1 and to a certain
extent 2, the face and head below in $, the face in front and head
below in $, the base of proboscis below obscurely, the greater hinder
part of scutellum, the hind margins of sternites in both sexes, and an
obscure infusion on pleurae in $ reddish yellow or yellowish; legs
almost entirely yellowish in both sexes, only the last 2 tarsal joints
blackish; pubescence somewhat dense and shaggy, that on thorax
above not with a shorn off appearance, that on abdomen also longish,
that on face dense and longish, with the bristly elements poorly
developed, no distinct stoutish macrochaetal bristles being evident
and rest of bristles not very stiff or stoutish, more like rest of pub-
escence, predominantly gleaming sericeous whitish above in $ and
scarcely less whitish, feebly sericeous yellowish in $, that on abdomen
and towards apex, in <$ especially, almost white, that on scutellum and
disc of thorax in $ with a very faint sericeous yellowish tint, that on
face also with a very feeble sericeous yellowish tint in certain lights,
that on body below frosty whitish in both sexes ; wings glassy hyaline,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 205
iridescent, with the basal two-thirds in $ very delicately and feebly
tinged yellowish, the base and costal cell in both sexes subopaquely
yellowish whitish, with the basal comb very feebly developed and
yellowish whitish, the veins brownish in apical half but pale yellowish
in basal half including costal veins, with the discal cross vein just
beyond, or a little beyond, middle of discoidal cell, with the squamae
subopaquely pale ochreous yellowish like base of wing and fringed
with white hairs; halteres yellowish, with very pale yellowish or
almost whitish knobs. Head
with the eyes above in $
separated by a space about
as broad as front part of
tubercle, the interocular space
in $ about 3 times as broad
as ocellar tubercle; face
shortish, a little shorter than
combined length of antennal
joints 1 and 2; antennae
with joint 1 slender, quite
3, or even a little more, times
as long as 2, with 2 globular,
with 3 a little less than 1J
times as long as 1 and 2
combined, slender, almost
rod-like, tapering apically and ending in a very small conical
terminal element bearing a minute style; proboscis about 2 mm.
long. Legs with fairly longish hairs on femora below, especially
in (J, with about 3-7 spines on hind femora below; front tarsi
in $ slightly thickened; claws rapidly bent down, almost at right
angles, nearer apex, and pulvilli reaching their bent-down apices.
Hypopygium of <J (text-fig. 44) with the inner apical angles or processes
of basal parts projecting slightly; beaked apical joints elongate,
narrowish, acutely pointed; aedeagus without a ventral process
below; basal strut not very broad and more or less racket-shaped.
Types in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 5 mm.
Length of wing: about 6 mm.
Locality. — ■ Western Cape Province: Olifant's Kiver Valley
(between Citrusdal and Clanwilliam) (Mus. Exp., November
1931).
This species resembles globulus in the rather convex thorax which,
Text-fig. 44. — Side view and half of ventral
view of hypopygium of $ Bombylius aemulus
n. sp.
206 Annals of the South African Museum.
together with the pubescence, appears subglobular. It differs, how-
ever, in not having a reddish proboscis, its less yellowish wings, and
entirely different type of hypopygium.
3 ?$ B. montivagus n. sp.
Black; antennal joint 1, face in front, genae and head below and
scutellum yellowish to pale reddish yellow, the scutellum being more
ferruginous red and blackened at base; antennal joint 2 obscurely
reddish brown to blackish; pleurae often with a reddish infusion
above coxae and the posterior calli obscure reddish; venter with the
narrow hind margins of segments pallid and often with the last tergite
yellowish and pale reddish yellow apically; legs, including the coxae
and trochanters, pale yellowish to pale yellowish reddish, the last 2
tarsal joints and apices of claws blackish brown to black; pubescence
on body above long and recumbent, that on occiput and thorax in
front being long, straw-coloured yellowish above, that on antennae
and face being more pale sericeous yellow, with the tuft in front of
wings more creamy yellowish in certain lights, that on abdomen
laterally towards base also more creamy yellowish, that towards apex
laterally and above more straw-coloured, that on head below, on
pleural and pectoral parts and base of venter sericeous whitish,
becoming duller whitish and more straw-coloured whitish towards
upper parts of pleurae, the metapleural tuft being more straw-
coloured whitish, that on greater part of venter straw-coloured
yellowish, inclining to creamy yellowish laterally, with the bristles in
front of wings straw-coloured yellowish to whitish, with apparently
no stiff er bristles on upper part of mesopleuron; wings hyaline, but
with a very faint milky whitish tint in certain lights, with the costal
cell, basal half of first basal cell, and base more subopaquely whitish
to very pale yellowish white, with the basal comb small and whitish,
with the veins dark brown, becoming paler and even more yellowish
towards base and along main longitudinal veins, with the second
longitudinal vein more or less straight, with the discal cross vein
beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the opaquely whitish to faintly
yellowish squamae fringed whitish; halteres yellowish, with almost
white knobs. Head with the interocular space, at narrowest part,
about 3, or even more, times as broad as ocellar tubercle; antennal
joint 1 slender, comparatively long, at least 3| times as long as the
subglobular second joint, with joint 3 slender, not much thicker than
joint 1, at least 1J times as long as 1 and 2 combined, almost rod-like,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 207
broadest just before middle, but not much broader than rest of the
joint, very gradually more narrowed apically, with the conically
thickened basal part of terminal joints about as long as the style (the
different joints not being separately visible); palps with the basal
joints pallid; proboscis about 2-2 J- mm. long. Legs with longish and
slender hairs on femora basally below, without any spines on front
and middle ones below, and with about 3-5 slender spines in apical half
below on hind femora; claws with the apices rather rapidly bent
downwards and the puivilli as long as claws.
Type in the British Museum.
Length of body: about 5J-6 mm.
Length of wing: about 6 mm.
Locality. — S. Western Cape Province: Ceres (Turner, 1500 feet alt.,
January 1921) (Type); Ceres (Turner, November 1920); Worcester
(Turner, December 1933).
A smallish species which resembles the $ of aemulus to such an
extent that it is almost inseparable, but as the $ is still unknown these
specimens are provisionally referred to a separate species. From the
aUotype-aemulus these $$ differ in having slightly more yellowish
pubescence, in having distinctly more yellowish hair in front of wings,
less convex thorax, more reddish on pleurae, and darker wing-venation.
From $$ of imitator they differ in having an entirely black abdomen,
longer first antennal joints, more slender third antennal joints, and no
dark or blackish transverse bristles on abdomen.
2 ?$ B. damarensis n. sp.
Body black; antennal joint 1, front part of face, genae, head below,
the very narrow hind margins of last few tergites, the extreme sides
of tergites (seen from below), and the narrow hind margins of sternites
pallid or yellowish; scutellum pale yellowish red, the base black;
legs very pale yellowish, the coxae obscurely reddish brown and last
2 or 3 tarsal joints blackish brown; pubescence comparatively short,
pale sericeous yellowish to very pale golden yellowish above, that on
frons more pale golden to ochreous yellowish, that on abdomen above
more distinctly golden yellowish, that on head below whitish, that on
pleurae only a little paler yellowish than on body above, becoming
slightly paler towards pectus and appearing more whitish when
viewed from obliquely in front, with the thoracic, scutellar, and
abdominal bristles coloured like rest of pubescence; wings hyaline,
but with a faint whitish subopacity, the base being more subopaquely
208 Annals of the South African Museum.
whitish to pale yellowish white and the costal cell more whitish, the
veins brownish, more yellowish basally, the basal comb yellowish
and small, with the discal cross vein tending to be at about the middle
or slightly beyond the middle of discoidal cell, with the squamae
opaquely pale yellowish white and fringed with very pale yellowish
or creamy yellowish hair; halteres yellowish, with almost white
knobs. Head with the interocular space on vertex, at narrowest
part, about 3, or very little more, times as broad as ocellar tubercle ;
antennae with joint 1 short, only about 2 J times as long as the trans-
verse joint 2, with joint 3 comparatively stoutish, broadest a little
before middle and then more gradually narrowed apically than
basally, the apical part not being very slender, quite 2 times as long as
joints 1 and 2 combined, with the terminal elements in form of a
conical element bearing a short style ; face somewhat sparsely haired,
short, and subequal in length to combined antennal joints 1 and 2;
proboscis comparatively stout, about 2 mm. long, and entirely black.
Legs with some sparse hairs on femora below basally, without any
spines on front femora below; middle ones with about 1 spine below;
hind femora with about 3-4 slender, pallid spines in apical half below ;
claws rapidly bent down, almost at right angles, nearer apex, and the
pul villi reaching their bent-down apices; front tarsal joints slightly
thickened, more compact, and hairy.
Type in the British Museum.
Length of body: about 6|-7 mm.
Length of wing: about 7 mm.
Locality. — South West Africa: Damaraland; Okahandja (Turner,
1-12/1/28, and the Type, 13-19/1/28).
2 (J(J B. simulans n. sp.
Body black, with the thorax somewhat convex, with the face and
head below also predominantly black, with the first and to a certain
extent second antennal joints yellowish, the first sometimes slightly
darkened above, with the proboscis yellowish below and even above
basally, with the greater part of scutellum ferruginous reddish and
hind margins of sternites yellowish, the abdomen above entirely
black; legs predominantly yellowish, only the last two tarsal joints
and apices of claws blackish; pubescence dense and longish, that on
abdomen more shaggy, that on first antennal joints and face dense,
that on body above predominantly pale creamy yellowish and with
sericeous gleams, that on each side on thorax in front sometimes even
A Re.
of the Bombijliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 209
gleaming more sericeous whitish in certain lights, that on abdomen
becoming paler and more whitish towards apex, but on sides basally
more sericeous yellowish, that tuft -like on each side in front of wings
also appearing more sericeous yellowish in certain lights, that on face
with yellowish or faint sericeous yellowish gleams, that on body below
contrastingly frosty whitish, without any dark bristly elements on
abdomen: wings greyish hyaline, with the basal two-thirds very
faintly but distinctly tinged yellowish, the costal and basal part more
subopaquely yellowish, with
the basal comb yellowish,
the veins dark brownish,
becoming paler and more
yellowish towards base and
along costal and subcostal
veins, with the discal cross
vein a little beyond middle
of discoidal cell, with the
squamae subopaquely pale
yellowish, narrowly dark-
bordered and fringed with
creamy hairs: halteres yel-
lowish and with almost
white knobs. Head with
the eves narrowlv separated Text-pig. 45.— Side view and half of ventral
, * -. " , , view of hvpopvsium of £ Bombylius simulans
above by a space as broad n< sp _
as front half or part of
ocellar tubercle; face about as long as or slightly shorter than com-
bined length of antennal joints 1 and 2; antennae with joint 1 nearly
or about 3 times as long as 2, with 2 transverse, with 3 a little less than
H times as long as 1 and 2 combined, slightly thickened just before
middle and more rapidly narrowed apically than basally, ending
apically in a rather distinct conical terminal element bearing a short
style; proboscis about 3 mm. long, slender. Legs with rather dense
hairs on femora below, with about 1-2 spines in apical half on middle
femora below; hind ones with about 5-8 slender spines below: claws
rapidlv bent down, almost at right angles, nearer apex, and with the
pulvilli reaching their bent-down apices. Hypopygium (text-fig. ±5)
with the inner apical angles of basal parts slightly projecting; beaked
apical joints elongate, narrowish, and acutely pointed apically, their
apices bent downwards. The hypopygium much resembles those of
other species in which the beaked apical joints are elongated.
210 Annals of the South African Museum.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 6-7 mm.
Length of wing: about 7J-8 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Kamieskroon (Mus. Exp., September
1930).
Superficially this species resembles aemulus in the subglobular
thorax, from which it differs in having more yellowish pubescence
above, more distinctly tinged wings, larger basal comb, and less
slender third antennal "joints.
1 <J 4 $$ B. auriferus n. sp.
Body, including proboscis, antennal joint 3, narrow base of
scutellum and the coxae in part, black; antennal joints 1 and 2,
greater part of face, scutellum, hind margins of abdominal segments
above, fairly broad in some $?, broader in <$, slightly broader on sides
in some $$, and distinctly broader on sides of tergite 2 in 3, and broad
hind margins of sternites and genital segment, pale reddish; legs,
excepting only brownish coxae and last 2 tarsal joints, pale yellowish;
pubescence with characteristic and peculiar, crinkly or woolly, some-
what matted, white hair on occiput, thorax anteriorly and on sides, on
abdomen, and on pleurae, much denser in cT, especially on front and
sides of thorax and on abdomen, the pubescence on disc of thorax,
especially in <$, with a cropped appearance, with the hairs on frons,
antennal joint 1 below, on face and genae silvery whitish, the short
bristly hairs and bristles on occiput and on disc of thorax in <$ also
gleaming silky whitish, the hairs on coxae also gleaming silky whitish,
with the shortish bristles on occiput, ocellar tubercle and sides of frons,
on thorax above and sides of thorax, the macrochaetal bristles, the
post-alar bristles, the longer bristles on hind part of scutellum and
fairly densely and transversely across hind margins of tergites in $?
gleaming golden to reddish golden, those on abdomen especially
reddish golden, with the macrochaetae, post-alar, and scutellar bristles
and dense transverse bristles on abdomen in the <$ paler golden yellow,
their apices more silvery in certain lights and even the short ones on
disc of thorax in $ with slightly golden bases, with the pubescence on
venter in both sexes silvery or silky whitish, the hair-like scaling on
legs white, and the spines on femora and spicules on tibiae yellowish
with slight golden gleams ; wings hyaline, the base, costal cell, and base
of first basal cell very pale subopaquely yellowish, the veins pale
yellowish, becoming slightly darker apically and with a distinct
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 211
blackish, infuscation on discal cross vein and on apical cross vein of
second basal cell and indications at base of vein between discoidal and
third posterior cells and at apex of first posterior cell, with the discal
cross vein just beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the squamae
opaquely pale yellowish, almost whitish and fringed with white hair;
halteres yellowish, with almost white knobs. Head with the eyes in <$
separated above, at narrowest part about as broad as ocellar tubercle,
the inner margins rapidly diverging apically, with the interocular
space in $ nearly 3 times as broad as tubercle; antennae with joint 1
about 3 times as long as 2, with joint 3 about \\ times as long as 1 and
2 combined, broadest near base and then gradually narrowed apically,
the terminal style short and straight; proboscis about 3-5 mm. long
(slightly longer and more slender in $) ; palps distinctly 2-jointed, the
apical joint shorter and slightly clavate apically, the basal joint
stouter. Legs with about 2-3 spines on lower front face in apical
half of middle femora ; hind femora with about 5-6 spines below from
near base to apex ; pulvilli shorter than claws, the latter gradually and
arcuately curved. The hypopygium of this single ^-specimen is
unfortunately damaged.
Types in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 7-8 J mm.
Length of wing: about 6-7 mm.
Locality. — Bushmanland; Jakhals Water (Lightfoot. October
1911) (Types); Henkries (Lightfoot, October 1911). Namaqualand:
Kamieskroon (Mus. Exp., November 1936). Little Karoo: Willow-
more (Brauns, 25/11/21). (In the Transvaal Museum.)
This beautiful species is very characteristic and may be easily
recognised by its crinkly, woolly, white hair and slight infuscations on
cross veins. From paterculus Walk, it may be distinguished by all
these characters and also by the front tarsi which in the ?? are not
visibly thickened.
1 $ B. auriferus var. nigripes n.
A ^-specimen from Van Bhynsdorp (Brauns, ix/1928) in the Trans-
vaal Museum, which is unfortunately a bit damaged, differs from the
type £ in having the interocular space comparatively slightly broader,
joints 1 and 2 of the antennae also black, joint 1 relatively longer, the
femora are black, the red on hind margins of abdominal segments less
distinct, the black infuscations on cross veins very distinct and
striking and also with an infuscation at base of second longitudinal
212 Annals of the South African Museum.
more distinct, the base of vein between axillary and anal cells also
distinctly infuscated, the discal cross vein is distinctly much beyond
middle of discoidal cell, the cell is also longer than first posterior cell,
the legs with about 9 spines on hind femora below, bristles on abdomen
above are slightly paler, more yellowish, less golden, and hair on body
below more yellowish. Owing to the lack of more material and as
this specimen does not differ structurally from the $ allotype and
paratypes, I prefer to regard it at present as only a new variety. A
^-specimen from Murraysburg in the South African Museum is much
like var. nigripes, but has predominantly yellow legs but black antennae
and black face.
1 $ B. auriferus var. melanus n.
Similarly there is in the British Museum a very denuded ^-specimen,
from Prince Albert Eoad (Turner, November 1931), which, in the
absence of a $, can be regarded at present as still another variety of
auriferus. This specimen differs from the $-types of auriferus s. str.
and its var. nigripes in having the femora, and especially the hind
ones, more extensively blackened, the tibiae also darkened above and
the hind ones almost entirely so, the hind tarsi too are entirely
darkened, with the spines on the legs whitish, not yellowish ; face and
head below dark; scutellum much more blackened, only the hind part
being reddish; reddish hind margins of abdomen narrower and much
less conspicuous; antennal joints 1 and 2 also darkened as in var.
nigripes, but joint 1 is distinctly shorter, only about 3 times as long as
joint 2; wings more like that of auriferus s. str., with the blackish or
dark spots much less distinct than in var. nigripes, with the veins,
however, slightly darker than in type form; pubescence (as far as this
is not denuded) apparently more uniformly white above, that on
tubercle, frons, and face, including bristly hairs, entirely white, very
shining and gleaming silvery whitish in certain lights, that on body
above apparently also whiter and not golden or deep golden and with
the hair on coxae also silvery whitish as in the type form.
Type in the British Museum.
1 $ B. latipectus n. sp.
Body black, with antennal joints 1 and 2 yellowish, the face above
and front part of head below yellowish, the base of proboscis below also
yellowish reddish, with the greater part of scutellum, the hind margins
of tergites on sides and the hind margins of sternites more broadly
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 213
reddish; legs almost entirely yellowish, only the coxae to a certain
extent, the last 2 tarsal joints, and apical parts of claws black;
pubescence dense, rather longish on thorax, slightly longer and
more shaggy on abdomen, predominantly gleaming pale sericeous
yellowish above, scarcely paler sericeous yellowish towards apex of
abdomen, that on sides of abdomen and in front of wings appearing
more pale golden only in certain lights, that on head below, pectus,
pleurae, and to a certain extent base of venter on each side con-
trastingly frosty whitish,
with the macrochaetal
bristles, post-alar bristles,
scutellar bristles, and those
across tergites coloured
like rest of pubescence
above, with the hairs on
femora and scaling on legs
whitish ; wings greyish
hyaline, with the basal
two-thirds distinctly
tinged yellowish, the base,
costal cell, basal half of
marginal cell, and part of
the first basal cell more Text-fig. 46. — Half of ventral view and side view
t n , , . , of hypopygium of <$ Bombylius latipectus n. sp.
subopaquely yellowish J * ™ B * F v
whitish, with the basal comb rather strongly developed and yellowish,
the veins dark brownish apically, becoming yellowish to pale yellowish
reddish towards base, the first longitudinal vein yellowish, with the
discal cross vein at about middle of discoidal cell and discoidal cell
rather truncate apically, with the squamae subopaquely yellowish and
fringed with whitish hair; halteres pale yellowish brown, with very
pale yellowish knobs. Read with the eyes separated above by a space
about as broad as narrow front part of ocellar tubercle or broad front
ocellus, with the eyes rather large and upper facets rather coarse;
face longer than combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2; antennae
with joint 1 short, only a little more than 2, or about 2J times as long
transverse joint 2 (with 3 missing in specimen) ; proboscis rather long,
about 5 \ mm. long; palps with the shorter apical joint clavate.
Thorax comparatively large and well developed, much longer than
broad, nearly as long as combined scutellum and abdomen. Legs with
longish hairs on femora below ; middle femora with about 4-7 spines
in front below and about 2-3 behind; hind femora with about 11
vol. xxxiv. 15
214 Annals of the South African Museum.
gleaming golden spines below from near base to apex; claws rather
strongly developed, rather rapidly bent down, almost at right angles,
nearer apex and with the pulvilli extending beyond middle of claws,
but not reaching their bent down apices. Hypopygium (text-fig. 46)
with the inner apical angles of basal parts angularly projecting;
beaked apical joints elongated, narrowish, with acute apices which
are directed downwards and outwards and with longish hairs on
beaked joints above towards their bases; aedeagus without a ventral
process below; basal strut somewhat racket-shaped.
Type in the South Africa Museum.
Length of body: about 10 mm.
Length of wing: about 9 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Kamieskroon (Mus. Exp., September
1930).
This species is recognised by its rather large and well-developed
thorax, somewhat subopaquely greyish hyaline and yellowish-tinged
wings, reddish hind margins on sides of tergites, long proboscis and
strong claws. From aurimystax it differs in having a shorter and less
produced face and separated eyes, reddish hind margins on sides of
abdomen, and more rapidly bent-down claws.
\ 3 B. inermis n. sp.
Body black, with the face, entire antennae, proboscis and head
below also black; scutellum, hind margins on sides of tergites 2, 3,
and to a certain extent 4, hind margins of sternites 1-3 and apical
part of genital segment reddish; legs with the coxae and bases of
femora and at least basal half of front femora blackish, the apical
parts of femora, the tibiae, and tarsi yellowish, the hind tarsi and
apical parts of the others slightly more brownish ; pubescence shortish
on occiput and thorax above, where it is dense and with a shorn-off
appearance, not very long on abdomen, pale yellowish on body
above, gleaming sericeous yellowish in certain lights, becoming paler
towards apex of abdomen, that on face and antennae also yellowish,
that on pleurae, head below, and coxae only paler than above and
more straw-coloured yellowish, becoming distinctly more whitish on
pectus, that on venter paler yellowish, but slightly more whitish on
sides basally, with the sparse and fine depressed pubescence above
gleaming whitish or sericeous yellowish in different lights, the scaling
on legs whitish, with the bristly elements, excepting only post-alar
bristles, poorly developed and not differing from rest of pubescence;
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 215
wings vitreous hyaline, with the costal cell and base subopaquely
yellowish whitish, with the basal comb yellowish, the veins dark
brownish, paler basally, with the discal cross vein beyond middle of
discoidal cell, the first posterior cell rather acute apically, with the
squamae subopaquely yellowish white and fringed with creamy
yellowish hairs; halteres pale yellowish brown, with very pale
yellowish knobs. Head with the eyes contiguous above, at least
inner margins are contiguous, but nevertheless appearing narrowly
separated by a narrow space
about as broad as front ocellus
for a distance at least as long
as ocellar tubercle; face rather
short and shorter than com-
bined length of antennal joints
1 and 2; antennae with joint
1 shortish, only about 2 times
as long as 2, with 2 longer
than broad, with joint 3 spindle-
shaped, broadest just before
middle, more rapidly narrowed
apically than basally, ending
apically in a very small conical text-fig. 47.— Side view and half of ven-
element bearing a short style ; * ral view of hypopygium of <$ Bombylius
-. . , , inermis n. sp.
proboscis about 4 mm. long,
its labial part below finely but visibly strigilose. Legs with shortish
hairs on femora below, without any spines on front femora below;
middle ones with about 2-3 short spines on each side below
nearer apex; hind femora with about 10 spines below from near
base to apex; claws distinctly rapidly bent down, almost at right
angles, nearer apex, with the pul villi reaching apices of claws.
Hypopygium (text-fig. 47) with the basal parts rather broadish in neck
region, with longish hairs dorsally on each part, with the inner apical
angles of basal parts projecting prominently, with the beaked apical
joints broad and leaf -like, their apices curved downwards and slightly
outwards ; aedeagus with scarcely a distinct ventral process below.
Type in the Transvaal Museum.
Length of body: about 7 mm.
Length of wing: about 6 J mm.
Locality. — Little Karoo: Willowmore (Brauns, 25/11/22).
216 Annals of the South African Museum.
2 $£ B. rufescens n. sp.
Body with the eyes, greater part of occiput, third antennal joints,
proboscis above and apically below, thorax above, base of scutellum,
and basal parts of tergites 2-3 or 4 black, with a spot on each side
of ocellar tubercle, anterior part of frons, entire face, genae and head
below, antennal joints 1 and 2, greater part of proboscis below,
humeral part and even sides of thorax above on each side above and
in front of wings, the post-alar calli, obscurely across base of thorax,
greater part of scutellum, the very broad hind margins of all the
tergites and even greater part of apical half of abdomen above, the
entire sides of abdomen, the greater part or entire pleurae and greater
part or entire venter reddish yellow to reddish; legs, including
coxae, entirely yellowish or reddish yellow; pubescence shortish,
predominantly straw-coloured to whitish on thorax above, that on
abdomen slightly more yellowish to sericeous yellowish, the macro-
chaetal bristles, post-alar bristles and those on scutellum and trans-
versely on abdomen above even deeper yellowish, gleaming more
golden to deep golden yellowish, the pubescence on head above,
antennae and face golden yellowish to yellowish sericeous, that on
head below and body below whitish, that on sides of abdomen basally
sometimes also whitish in certain lights, that on venter whitish,
especially towards base, with the depressed, fine scaling on abdomen
above whitish to pale sericeous yellowish, even more golden towards
apex, sericeous yellowish to golden on frons, more distinctly whitish
on thorax above ; wings hyaline, but with a slight whitish subopacity
in certain lights, with the base, costal cell, and basal half of first basal
cell more subopaquely very pale yellowish whitish, with the basal
comb very small, reduced and yellowish, the veins reddish or reddish
brown and paler, more yellowish reddish basally, with the discal
cross vein at about, or just beyond, middle of discoidal cell, with
the squamae opaquely yellowish white and fringed with creamy or
sericeous hairs; halteres yellowish and with very pale yellowish
knobs. Head with the interocular space comparatively narrow,
about 3 times as broad as ocellar tubercle or about 2 times as broad
as combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2; face shortish and
subequal in length to combined antennal joints 1 and 2; antennae
with joint 1 short, only about, or scarcely, 2 J times as long as joint 2,
with 2 transverse, with 3 subspindle-shaped, broadest near base,
gradually narrowed apically, ending apically in a small conical basal
element, somewhat on dorsal side of apex of joint 3, which terminates
• A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 217
in a style; proboscis about 2 J mm. long. Legs with sparse and
shortish hairs on femora below, with about 2 spines in front on middle
femora and about 4-5 spines more or less in apical half on hind ones
below; front tarsal joints hairy but not appreciably thickened;
claws rapidly bent down, almost at right angles, nearer apex,
and with the pul villi reaching their bent-down apices.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 6-7 mm.
Length of wing: about 7 mm.
Locality. — South West Africa: Kaokoveld; Warmbad (Mus. Exp.,
Feb. 1925).
Easily recognised and distinguished from all other species by the
extensive red on body and especially on abdomen and pleurae. From
atronotatus it differs in being smaller, in not having the black on
abdomen in a series of spots, and in not having an angularly acute
first posterior cell.
2 33 9 $$ B. muscoides n. sp.
Body black, with antennal joints 1 and 2 in 33 sometimes blackish or
dark, with antennal joints 1 and 2 in $$, front margin or front part of
face in both sexes, front part of head below, especally in females, greater
part of or entire scutellum, hind margins of all the tergites in $$ and
some 33, or at least hind margins of tergites 2-7 in $$, much broadened
on sides and even very broad, the broad sides of tergites 2 and 3 in
some 33 or obscure sides of tergites 2 and 3 in 33, the hind margins
of the sternites in both sexes, and infusions on the pleurae to a variable
extent, especially on metapleurae and especially in some $$, but also
in some 33, yellowish red or pale reddish; legs with the coxae,
femora, tibiae, and greater part of tarsi in $$ yellowish, the apical
half of hind tarsi or even entire hind tarsi and the last 2 joints of
the others darkened and more brownish, with the coxae, trochanters,
and femora to very much beyond the middle, and almost entire hind
femora distinctly blackened in some 33, only the apices of femora,
the tibiae, and basal parts of tarsi being yellowish, with the femora
and especially the hind ones in some 33, however, less extensively
darkened, with almost entire hind tarsi in 33 usually more brownish,
with the spines and spicules in both sexes usually almost pallid, even
tending to be whitish; pubescence shortish, denser on thorax in
33 and with a cropped off appearance, that on abdomen in 33 denser
and longer than in $$, that on antennal joint 1 below tending to be
218 Annals of the South African Museum.
long in both sexes, that on face not very dense and even sparser in
$$, with the transverse bristles across hind margins of tergites in
$$ more distinct and conspicuous and longer than rest of shortish or
the depressed pubescence on abdomen, with the pubescence on body-
above gleaming sericeous whitish in some £$ to pale sericeous
yellowish in others, that in $$ pale sericeous yellowish to almost
pale golden yellowish, that on head below and body below whitish
to frosty whitish, distinctly contrasting in whiteness with that on
body above, that on venter straw-coloured to whitish, with the
macrochaetal, post-alar, scutellar, and transverse bristles on abdomen
in $$ especially deeper yellowish or gleaming golden yellowish, with
the depressed, fine scaling on frons, thorax, and densely on abdomen
above in $$ pale, gleaming pale sericeous yellowish to brassy yellow-
ish, that on venter more whitish, the scaling on legs whitish; wings
vitreous hyaline, with a very faint whitish subopacity in certain
lights in some specimens, with the basal part up to end of costal
cell in some $$ with a very faint touch of yellowish, with the base,
costal cell, and basal half of first basal cell in both sexes subopaquely
whitish to pale yellowish whitish with the basal comb yellowish,
the veins brownish, becoming paler and more yellowish basally, with
the discal cross vein a little or even a good distance beyond middle
of discoidal cell, and with the first posterior cell distinctly angularly
acute in some specimens and more so in $$, with the squamae opaquely
pale yellowish white to pale yellowish and fringed with whitish to
creamy hairs; halteres yellowish and with whitish knobs. Head
with the eyes in <$$ in contact above for a short distance, slightly
less than, or about, length of ocellar tubercle from where the inner
margins diverge gradually at first and then more rapidly, with the
interocular space on vertex in $$ rather narrow and less than 2 times
as broad as combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2, the inner
margins only gradually diverging apically, the frons thus also com-
paratively narrow; facial region comparatively narrowish, the face
shortish and shorter than combined length of antennal joints 1 and
2; antennae with joint 1 shortish, only about 1\ times, sometimes a
little longer and almost 2 times, as long as 2, with 2 rather elongate
and distinctly longer than broad, with joint 3 more or less distinctly
spindle-shaped, broadest just before middle, then less narrowed
basally than apically, more attenuately narrowed apically, especially
in <J<J, ending apically in a distinct conical element bearing a short
style; proboscis rather stoutish, about 3 mm. long, entirely black
or dark, its labial part distinctly and visibly finely strigilose. Legs
A Revision of the
(Diptera) of Southern Africa. 219
with only shortish hairs on femora below, without any visible spines
on front femora below, with about 2-4 on middle ones in front and
with about 7-9 spines on hind ones from near base to apex; claws
rapidly bent down, almost at right angles, nearer apex, and with the
pulvilli reaching their bent-down apices; front tarsal joints in $$
comparatively conspicuously thickened. Hypopygium of <J (text-fig.
48) with the inner apical angles or processes of basal parts prominently
projecting apically and provided with setae above and below; beaked
Text-fig. 48. — Half of ventral view and side view of hypopygium of ^
Bombylius muscoides n. sp.
apical joints leaf -shaped, broadish, their apices acute and directed
slightly outwards and downwards, slightly depressed above ; aedeagus
with the slender apical part not reaching apices of inner apical angles
of basal parts, the aedeagus with a median ventral lobe-like process
which is bluntly pointed apically.
Types in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 6-9 mm.
Length of wing: about 6J-8 mm.
Locality. — South West Africa: Kaokoveld; Kamanyab (Mus. Exp.,
March 1925) (Holotype); Kamanyab (Mus. Exp., Jan. 1925);
Cayimaeis (Mus. Exp., March 1925) (Allotype); Kaross (Mus.
Exp., Feb. 1925): Ovamboland; Ondongua (Mus. Exp., Jan.
1923): Damaraland; Outjo (Mus. Exp., Jan. 1925).
This species is easily recognised by its spindle-shaped third antennal
joints, narrow interocular space and frons in $$, red hind margins
220 Annals of the South African Museum.
of tergites, blackened femora in SS, apically acute first posterior
cell, etc. The species appears to be slightly variable, especially in
the (J<J, in the colour of the pubescence, blackened femora, and in
the extensiveness of the red on abdomen. The $$ bear some super-
ficial resemblance to members of Muscid-flies.
B. paterculus Walk.
(P. 196, Insect. Saund. Dipt, iii, Tab. V, fig. 8, 1852.)
Walker's original description of this species is so vague and un-
satisfactory that it is impossible to determine his species. It was
referred by him to Parisus, a genus which he erected to contain it
and which was subsequently sunk as a synonym of Bombylius. For
the identity of this species there is nothing to rely upon except a
^-specimen, in the South African Museum, labelled and determined by
Bezzi as paterculus, and also from the keys and short notes in the
Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, pp. 14 and 20 and in The Bombyliidae
of the Ethiopian Region, p. 47. The identity of this species is thus
very doubtful, and what is referred to it in this paper may prove to
be an entirely different species from that described by Walker. In
view of the fact that there are several species in South Africa with red
hind margins to the abdomen, reference to this character, as a dis-
tinguishing feature of paterculus, is valueless. According to Walker's
description, apparently only the tip of the abdomen of his specimen
is reddish ("tawny"), and he states nothing about the hind margins
being red. Walker's description may thus refer to any of the species
with reddish hind margins and reddish apices to the abdomen
dealt with in this paper, including even the specimens referred to
fucatus Bezz. and imitator n. sp. The specimens, which are pro-
visionally referred to paterculus in this paper and agreeing with
Bezzi's labelled specimen, agree in the following particulars: —
Body black; antennal joint 1 and often 2, face and head below, the
proboscis below, the scutellum, posterior calli, the propleurae, upper
part of sternopleuron on to hypopleuron and the posterior part of
mesopleuron to a variable extent, the narrow or broadish hind margins
of abdominal segments above, the sides of abdomen fairly broadly
and constantly, and the hind margins of ventral segments reddish;
legs entirely yellowish in both sexes, excepting only the black two
last tarsal joints and apices of claws; pubescence somewhat shortish
and shorn off in appearance above in 33, with distinct transverse
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 221
rows of bristles visible on the abdomen in $$ at least, yellowish
sericeous, pale golden yellow to deep golden, that on body below
slightly paler than above, especially just above the coxae, but often
scarcely whitish even there, that on face yellow to deep golden
yellowish even in some 3$, often, however, more sericeous yellowish,
with the bristles on body yellow or slightly more golden yellow than
the rest of the hair, with the depressed pubescence on abdomen
above also yellowish; integument usually with a slightly bluish
submetallic sheen, shining through under
the greyish bloom; wings tinged distinctly
yellowish to pale yellowish brown in gg,
leaving only the apices and hind border
more hyaline, more hyaline in ?$, with
the veins reddish yellow to even dark
brownish, becoming paler towards base,
with the squamae opaquely yellowish to
pale yellowish brown and fringed with
yellowish hairs. Head with the eyes in
S3 separated above, at narrowest point,
about as broad as narrow front part of
tubercle or as broad as front ocellus, then
rapidly diverging anteriorly, in $$ about, An ^7T • *
r J ° & . Text-fig. 49. — Side view of
or even more than, 3J times as broad hypopygium and ventral
as tubercle; proboscis about 3-4 mm. ™»w, f aedeagus of S
' r . Bombylius paterculus Walk,
long; antennae with joint 1 shortish,
about 2 J to 3 times as long as joint 2, with joint 3 about, or a
little less than, \\ times as long as 1 and 2 combined, broadest in
basal half, gradually tapering apically, but not markedly broadened
basally as in transitus n. sp., with the style short and often yellowish.
Wings with the discal cross vein just beyond middle of discoidal
cell and with the second longitudinal vein more or less straight and
the first posterior cell usually more obtuse than in transitus apically.
Legs with pubescent hairs on femora below, especially in £, without
any spines on front femora below, with about 1-2 spines on anterior
lower face of middle ones and with about 5-9 (usually about 5-7)
spines on hind ones below; front tarsal joints in $ distinctly, though
slightly, thickened; claws rather rapidly curved downwards at their
apices, and the pulvilli extending a little beyond middle of claws.
Hypopygium of S (text-fig. 49) with a slight process below aedeagus.
Length of body: about 5-8 mm.
Length of wing: about 5J-8 mm.
222 Annals of the South African Museum.
Locality. — Cape Province to Port Elizabeth, Southern Karoo,
Western Cape Province to Namaqualand and even south O.F.S. (In
the Imperial Institute, Transvaal, British and South African Museums.)
An attempt is made in the key to distinguish this species from
nearly related species such as transitus n. sp. and pruinosulus n. sp.
described below.
9 $? B. transitus n. sp.
Body black, with antennal joints 1 and 2, face, genae, head below,
sometimes extreme base of proboscis obscurely, post-alar calli, entire
scutellum, hind margins of tergites, discally narrow and very broad
on sides and more extensively so on sides of tergites 1-4, a more or
less longitudinal band along pleurae above coxae, the greater part
of metapleural part and the broad hind margins, or even entire
sternites reddish or reddish yellow; legs, including coxae, almost
entirely yellowish, only apical parts of tarsi more brownish; pub-
escence shortish but not with a closely cropped appearance on thorax,
predominantly pale sericeous yellowish to golden yellowish above,
that on abdomen even more yellowish, that on frons, antennae, and
face pale sericeous yellowish to deeper sericeous yellowish, that on
sides of abdomen appearing deeper yellowish to slightly fulvous, due
to the reddish integument showing through, that on head below and
body below whitish to straw-coloured whitish and contrasting with
that on body above, that on venter basally also whitish, with the
bristly elements on abdomen gleaming pale golden yellowish to even
deep golden, with the fine, depressed, dense scaling on abdomen
above sericeous yellowish to golden yellowish, gleaming sericeous
yellowish on frons, and paler or more whitish on thorax in front,
with the scaling on legs whitish; wings vitreous hyaline, with the
base, costal cell, and basal half of first basal cell subopaquely whitish
to yellowish whitish, the basal comb yellowish, the veins dark
brownish to reddish brown, paler and more pale yellowish red to
yellowish basally and along first longitudinal vein, with the discal
cross vein much beyond middle of discoidal cell, with a tendency for
first posterior cell to be acute or angularly acute apically in some
specimens, with the squamae opaquely yellowish and fringed with
creamy yellowish to pale sericeous yellowish hairs ; halteres yellowish
and with very pale yellowish knobs. Head with the interocular space
on vertex a little more than 3 times as broad as ocellar tubercle or
only a little more than 2 times combined length of antennal joints
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 223
1 and 2 ; face short and subequal in length to, or even shorter than,
combined antennal joints 1 and 2; antennae with joint 1 short, only
about 2, or a little more, times as long as 2, with 2 tending to be a
little longer than broad, with 3 almost spindle-shaped, broadest
a little before middle, narrowed basally but more attenuately apically ;
proboscis about 3J-4J mm. long, its labial part very finely strigilose.
Legs with only shortish hairs on femora below; middle femora with
about 4 spines in front below; hind ones with about 8-12 spines
below from near base to apex ; front tarsal joints rather conspicuously
thickened; claws rapidly bent down, almost at right angles, nearer
apex and pul villi reaching their bent down apices.
Type in the Transvaal Museum, para types in the British and
South African Museums.
Length of body: about 6|— 9 mm.
Length of wing: about 6-7 \ mm.
Locality.— West Transvaal: Delarey (Brauns, Jan. 1917) (Type).
Great Karoo: Murraysburg Distr. (Mus. Exp., March 1931). N.E.
Karoo: Aliwal North (Turner, Dec. 1922); Lady Grey (Nel, Dec.
1924). O.F.S.: Bloemfontein (Irving, 25/3/21). South West Africa :
Outjo (Mus. Exp., Jan. 1925).
This species is quite distinct and easily recognisable by the extensive
red on the sides of abdomen, which is usually conspicuous as a broad,
conspicuous, quadrangular red patch on each side from tergite 2-4,
the red even sometimes extending on to disc. The red if not in a
quadrangular patch is at least broad and extensive on these tergites.
The species is fairly widely distributed and is thus to a certain extent
slightly variable, the red on sides being more extensive in some speci-
mens. The red appears to be more extensive in specimens from the
Transvaal, O.F.S., and South West Africa, and in these specimens the
first posterior cell is also more acute apically.
The $-paratype from Bloemfontein was labelled " Bombylius
fucatus" by Bezzi. This specific determination is obviously wrong,
for fucatus, according to Bezzi in his keys, has no red hind margins
on the abdominal segments. In Bezzi's keys it runs down to pater-
culus Walk, and not fucatus Bezz. From $$ of pater cuius Walk., as
defined in this paper and according to Bezzi, it differs in having a
distinctly narrower interocular space, which is only about 2 times as
broad as combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2 or slightly less
than \\ times as long as antennal joint 3 (slightly more than 2 times
as broad as joints 1 and 2 combined or as broad as about \\ times
length of joint 3 in pater cuius), in having antennal joint 1 distinctly
224 Annals of the South African Museum.
shorter and not quite 2J-3 times as long as 2, in having joint 3
distinctly broader just before middle and thus more subspindle-
shaped, in having the proboscis entirely black and more visibly
finely strigilose below, in having the red on sides of tergites 2-4
broader and more conspicuous, the first posterior cell on the whole
more acute apically and the front tarsal joints on the whole more
thickened. From the $ of pruinosulus n. sp. (below) it differs in
having more extensive red on sides of abdomen, narrower interocular
space, shorter first antennal joints, more spindle-shaped third antennal
joints, claws which are more rapidly bent down near apex, etc.
1 $ 1 $ B. pruinosulus n. sp.
Black, with a pale bluish grey bloom, especially on thorax, above;
anterior part of face in both sexes and to a certain extent front part
of head below in $, antennal joint 1 and to a certain extent 2, the
scutellum (excepting only a broadish black basal macula), the narrow
hind margins of abdomen above, which are more broadened on sides
and the hind margins of ventral segments reddish, the extreme
apical margins of the segments above, however, more ivory whitish
and the hind margins on venter in $ at least more distinctly ivory
yellowish; proboscis below and the palps also yellowish or pale
yellowish brown; legs yellowish, with the coxae and basal parts of
front and middle femora in <$, however, more brownish or darkened,
with the apices of the tarsi also brownish in both sexes; pubescence
short and with a shorn-off appearance above on thorax in $ especially,
pale sericeous or silvery whitish above on front part of body in <J,
more straw-coloured in $, that on scutellum and abdomen above
gleaming pale sericeous yellowish in #, tending to be more yellowish
laterally and becoming more whitish apically, slightly more yellowish
in $ due to the more yellowish transverse bristles on abdomen,
especially on the sides, that on face gleaming whitish sericeous in #,
slightly more yellowish sericeous in $, and that on frons in $ more
yellowish, with the bristles in front of wing-bases in <j>, and on scutellum
in both sexes more distinctly yellowish, with the hair on head below
and thorax below markedly white, almost frosty white, especially in
<£, contrasting much with that above, that in metapleural parts also
markedly whitish, and that on venter whitish in <$, becoming more
yellowish towards apex in $ ; wings slightly subopaquely whitish, but
distinctly tinged yellowish at base, in costal cell, and across to apex
of second basal cell and including second basal cell in g, more hyaline
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Biptera) of Southern Africa. 225
in <j>, squamae opaquely pale yellowish white and fringed with whitish
hairs; halteres yellowish, with almost white knobs. Head with the
eyes in $ in contact above in front of tubercle for a distance less than
the length of tubercle, then rapidly diverging anteriorly, the eyes
somewhat flattened above and with the upper facets much coarser
than lower ones, with the interocular space in $ a little more than 3
times as broad as tubercle; antennae with joint 1 about 3, or a little
more, times as long as joint 2, with joint 3 tapering gradually to
Text-fig. 50. — Ventral and side view of hypopygium and dorsal view of
beaked apical joint of <J Bombylius pruinosulus n. sp.
apex; proboscis about 3J-4J mm. long. Legs with longish white
hairs on femora below, especially in <J, without any spines on front
femora below, with about 2 or 3 spines on middle ones below and
with about 8-9 spines on hind ones below from near base to apex;
claws rather slender in $, rather gradually curved downwards apically
in both sexes, with the pulvilli extending to beyond middle of claws.
Hypopygium of S (text-fig. 50) resembles that of marginellus, aemulus,
anomalus, etc., in the long and slender-beaked apical joints and in
having no ventral aedeagal process.
Types in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 8-9 mm.
Length of wing: about 8-9 mm.
Locality. — Bushmanland: Jakhals Water (Lightfoot, Oct. 1911).
The S of this species is certainly distinct from that of the species
which I referred to paterculus in having the eyes in actual contact
above and in the silvery whitish pubescence above. The $ is not
226 Annals of the South African Museum.
very easily separated from pater cuius. It appears to differ in having
a darker face, predominantly black pleural parts, no extensive broad
red on sides of abdomen, claws which are gradually and arcuately
curved, in having a larger basal comb to wings and in being slightly
larger.
1 ^ 5. pallescens n. sp.
Entire body and to a certain extent proboscis below muddy or
sienna brownish, the scutellum and abdomen above slightly paler and
more ochreous brownish, with the hind margins of the tergites showing
narrowly through more dark brownish; face, antennal joints 1 and 2,
genae, head below, and venter even paler and more yellowish brownish,
the "hind margins of sternites pale yellowish whitish; antennal joint
3, greater part of proboscis above, and to a certain extent the eyes
black; legs with the coxae brownish yellow, the bases of front and
middle femora pale brownish yellowish, their apical parts, the hind
femora and the tibiae and tarsi more yellowish, only the last 2 tarsal
joints and apical part of claws blackish, with the spines and spicules
gleaming golden; pubescence dense and shortish, that on thorax
above with a more or less shorn-off appearance, that on abdomen
dense, predominantly gleaming velvety sericeous whitish on body
above, that on sides of thorax above wings and on scutellum with
very faint sericeous yellowish gleams in certain lights, that on
abdomen tending to become more distinctly snow whitish apically,
that on ocellar tubercle, antennal joint 1 and face gleaming pale
sericeous yellowish, that tuft or puff-like on mesopleuron in front of
wings appearing more yellowish than pubescence on thorax above,
the pubescence on head below and on entire body below and in
metapleural tuft more contrasting and frosty whitish though gleam-
ing sericeous, with the scaling on legs whitish ; wings shining, with a
distinct whitish subopacity which is more pronounced than in any
of the preceding species, with the base and costal cell more distinctly
subopaquely whitish, with the basal comb well developed and yellow-
ish but gleaming whitish in certain lights, the veins very pale brownish
yellowish or appearing pallid, with the discal cross vein a good distance
beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the second longitudinal vein
not very rapidly bent up at its end, with the squamae opaquely
pale yellowish and densely fringed with almost snow white hair;
halteres very pale yellowish white and with whitish knobs. Head
with the eyes narrowly separated above by width of front ocellus for
A Revision of the Bombyliidae {Dipt era) of Southern Africa. 227
a very short distance, the inner margins then rapidly diverging
apically; face rather longish and niuch longer than combined length
of antennal joints 1 and 2; antennae with joint 1 short, only about
3 times as long as 2, with 2 transverse, with 3, including terminal
elements, quite 2 times as long as 1 and 2 combined, slightly curved,
gradually narrowed apically, but rod-like to much beyond middle,
ending apically in a rather conspicuous conical basal element passing
into a shortish style; proboscis about 5 mm. long. Legs with dense
hair on front and middle
femora below, with 1
spine below towards
apex on front femora;
middle ones with about
3 spines in apical half
below in front; hind
femora with about 13-14
spines below from near
base to apex, those be-
fore middle tending to
be arranged in 2 rows,
with 7-8 more widely
separated spines in a
row on inner side below ;
Claws graduallv and T ext-fig. 51— Half of ventral view and side view
° " oi hvpopvgmm of $ Bomoyhus pallescens n. sp.
arcuately curved, the
pul villi rather shortish just about reaching, or extending a little
beyond, middle of claws. Eypopygium (text -tig. 51) with the beaked
apical joints elongate and narrowish, their apices acute and bent
downwards, their dorsal surfaces not very hairy; aedeagus with the
apical part slender and without any ventral process below.
Type in the Transvaal Museum.
Length of body: about 10 mm.
Length of wing: about 9 mm.
Locality. — Little Karoo: Calitzdorp Distr. ; Matjesvlei (Brauns,
Oct. 1921).
This unique specimen differs from all the preceding species in its
muddy brownish or sienna brownish integument and subopaquely
whitish wings. The integumentary colour appears to be natural
and not due to the incomplete chitinisation or oxidation of teneral
forms.
228 Annals of the South African Museum.
1 <£ 1 $ B. annuliventris n. sp.
Integument of body more or less castaneous brownish; the thorax
and pleural parts dark brownish; the scutellum and abdomen paler
and more reddish or sienna brownish, the posterior calli on thorax
and hind margins of scutellum even slightly paler; antennal joints
1 and 2, face, genae, and head below yellowish, the face being slightly
darker than the pallid antennal joints; antennal joint 3, eyes and
proboscis black, the latter slightly tinted reddish brown below;
hind margins of abdominal segments above ivory-whitish, more
distinct and conspicuous from segment 3 to apex, the margins on
last 3 or 4 segments being also broader, all slightly more broadened
on extreme sides where fold, between tergites and sternites, is also
very pale, pallid to yellowish, with the hind margins of ventral
segments also more broadly ivory whitish to yellowish; legs almost
pallid, very pale yellowish, with a very slight pale yellowish brown
tint towards bases of femora in <$, with the spines pallid and the last
2 tarsal joints and apex of claws brownish; pubescence comparatively
short, pubescent, and not very long on occiput and thorax, soft pale
yellowish from side, that on occiput and thorax in $ slightly paler
and, in certain lights, more creamy, that on antennae and head in
front on both sexes very pale sericeous yellowish to straw-coloured
yellowish, that on thorax above in $ with a slightly more golden tint,
that on abdomen above distinctly deeper yellowish to golden yellow
and with golden gleams in $, much paler and more creamy yellowish
in <$, with whitish gleams in certain lights and with that towards
apex distinctly paler, the sides also appearing paler in certain lights,
that on body below distinctly more whitish, becoming almost white
on head below and pectus, that towards upper parts of pleurae and
in metapleural tuft and on venter inclining to creamy yellowish,
appearing even paler in certain lights, that on sides of venter in $
being distinctly more whitish, comparatively sparse on venter in both
sexes, with the bristly hairs and bristles on thorax in front of wings,
on posterior calli, on scutellum and transversely on abdomen coloured
like the hair and more distinct in <j>, with the shorter, fine depressed or
subdepressed pubescence on body above very pale and sparse, almost
whitish in <j; much denser, especially on abdomen, in <j> and distinctly
more yellow, that on frons in $ pale golden, more whitish sericeous
in (J; wings vitreous hyaline but with a distinct subopaque milky
whitish tint, the base, costal cell, and basal half of first basal cell slightly
more subopaquely whitish, the base being even very pale yellowish
white, with the basal comb yellowish, the veins brownish, becoming
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 229
more pallid or yellowish towards extreme base, with the first posterior
cell tending to be acute apically in <$, with the discal cross vein a
little beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the opaquely yellowish to
pale yellowish brown squamae fringed with creamy yellowish hair;
halteres yellowish, with whitish knobs. Head with the eyes in $
contiguous above for a distance about as long as ocellar tubercle,
then diverging apically for a slightly shorter distance before diverging
more rapidly, in ? slightly more than 3 times as broad as tubercle;
antennae with joint 1 com-
paratively short, and in g
only about 2 times as long
as joint 2 and about 2 J
times as long as 2 in <j>, with
joint 3 almost 2 times as
long as 1 and 2 combined,
broad basally, but broadest
just before middle and
broader in <j>, then rapidly
attenuated apically, with
indications of fine whitish
pubescence above towards
base, with the first terminal
joints situated obliquely on Text-fig. 52.— Side view of hypopygium and
apex of 3, scarcely narrower ventr 7 al view of aedea g us of <? of Bombylius
x J annuhventris n. sp.
than apex of 3, rapidly pro-
longed into a slender style, the other joints (2 and 3 itself) not separately
visible; proboscis comparatively stoutish, about 2-2J mm. long. Legs
with only shortish and not conspicuous or long hairs basally below on
femora ; front femora unarmed below ; middle ones with about 1 or 3
spines below; hind ones with about 4 spines below from about the
middle to apex; front tarsal joints in £ compact and hairy, but not
much thickened ; claws with the apices rather rapidly bent downwards
and with the pulvilli reaching apices of claws. Hypopygium of <$
(text-fig. 52) with the beaked apical joints broad and flattened,
slightly depressed above, the beak curved downwards and outwards;
aedeagus with a medial lobe-like ventral aedeagal process below.
Types in the British Museum.
Length of body: about 7-8 mm.
Length of wing: about 7 mm.
Locality. — South West Africa: Damaraland; Okahandja (Turner,
1-12/1/1928).
VOL. XXXIV.
16
230 Annals of the South African Museum.
This species is easily recognised by its castaneous brown colour,
more reddish brown abdomen, of which the hind margins are ivory
whitish or yellowish, the shortish, soft, and pale yellowish to pale
golden yellow hair. From pallescens it differs in being smaller, in
having the eyes contiguous above in $, shorter face, more spindle-
shaped third antennal joints, shorter proboscis, more rapidly curved
claws, etc.
GROUP 3.
B. micans F.
(Loew, p. 184, Dipt. Faun. Siidafr. i, 1860; Bezzi, p. 25,
Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This and the following species are easily recognisable and character-
ised by the long sericeous or silvery gleaming, dense, and shaggy
pubescence and well-developed bristles on the body and the more or
less dimidiate wings, in which the anterior half is reddish brown,
yellowish brown to brownish. They are also fairly large and striking
Bombyliids, with predominantly yellowish femora and with fewer
black hairs or bristles on body.
B. micans is characterised by having predominantly pale sericeous
yellowish to very pale ochreous yellowish, gleaming pubescence above,
which shows more or less three gleaming ochreous brownish or golden
stripes on disc of thorax, with few black hairs or bristles on body,
and these only on frons, sides of face above, on antennal joint 1 below,
and sparsely intermixed tuft-like on sides of abdomen towards apex ;
wings with the basal comb yellowish and anterior yellowish brown
infuscation extending into and occupying even greater part of
marginal cell; legs entirely "or predominantly yellowish, the femora
not distinctly blackened at base.
Hypopygium of # (text-fig. 53) is chiefly distinguished by the very
prominent basal, somewhat indented, ridge on ventral part of
aedeagus; beaked apical joints broad and foliate in basal half,
deeply and foveately depressed above; inner apical part of basal
part on inner side of beaked apical joints prominent; basal. strut has
a distinct ledge-like lateral process on each side near base.
The species appears to be slightly variable, and there appears to be
a West Coast form, from Namaqualand, characterised by having more
ochreous pubescence, no black bristles on ocellar tubercle, no black
ones intermixed on frons, on sides of face or below joint 1 of the
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 231
antennae, with the hair on coxae also more ochreous, and the legs
entirely yellow. A southern more typical form has paler and more
sericeous yellowish or lemon yellowish pubescence, with distinct
black intermixed bristles on tubercle, frons, antennae below, and on
Text-fig. 53. — Side and ventral views of hypopygium and apical view of
beaked apical joint of <$ Bombylius micans F.
sides of face, with paler hair on coxae, and with the bases of femora
sometimes darkened at extreme bases.
Locality. — Western Cape Province to Namaqualand. (In the
Transvaal and South African Museums.)
B. purpureus Bezz.
(P. 23, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This beautifully coloured species has been fully described by Bezzi.
It is very near micans, but is chiefly characterised by its beautiful
livery, which consists of gleaming sericeous yellowish to pale golden
yellowish pubescence of which 3 bands on disc of thorax, the bristles
on genae, intermixed ones on face, on antennal joint 1, on frons, on
232 Annals of the South African Museum.
ocellar tubercle, on occiput, front part of thorax, those on sides of
thorax, on mesopleuron, on posterior calli, on scutellum and the
transverse bristles on abdomen (especially in $$) and to a certain
extent those in upper part of metapleural tuft, on coxae and venter
gleaming orange red, blood red to purplish red and with even trans-
verse hairs on disc of abdomen in $$ gleaming fiery red, with only a
few black hairs on antennae below and some tufts on side of abdomen;
wings with the basal comb also red, with the anterior infuscation on
wings more uniformly ochreous brownish than in micans, and the
squamae fringed with much reddish hair; legs entirely yellowish,
without any black on femora, and with the spines reddish. Hypopy-
gium of $ like that of micans, with the beaked apical joints, however,
more flattened, only flattened above and not deeply foveately
depressed, also more gradually narrowed to a downwardly and
outwardly directed beak; basal strut is longer.
In the South African Museum.
Locality. — Namaqualand.
B. hypoleucus Wied.
(P. 340, Aussereurop. Zweifl. Ins., i, 1828; Loew, p. 185, Dipt. Faun.
Siidafr., i, 1860; Bezzi, p. 25, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This is a very common species in the Western Province, Karoo, and
Namaqualand, and may easily be confused with micans. Super-
ficially it is almost indistinguishable from the latter. It differs,
however, in important details. The general pubescence is paler,
more gleaming sericeous or silvery whitish, with the brownish golden
gleaming bands on thorax in $$ at least more conspicuous, with the
bristles on thorax usually darker yellowish and even more brownish,
especially in $$, with distinctly more numerous black bristly hairs
and bristles on head, and with more numerous and more conspicuous
tufts of black hairs and bristles on sides and apex of abdomen; wings
with the basal comb black and not yellowish or ochreous, the brownish
infuscation in anterior part also darker and not so extensive in
marginal cell, the apical part of this cell hyaline ; legs with the bases
or even greater part of femora always blackened, sometimes even
extensively. Hypopygium of $ differs from that of micans in that
the hairs on basal parts are distinctly longer, the apical part of
aedeagus is also longer and stouter and the basal strut is comparatively
longer.
From Macquart's description of dimidiatus (p. 90, Dipt. Exot. ii,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 233
1840), it is almost certain that he had before him a form of hypoleucus
or melanurus Lw. From the long series of hypoleucus before me it
is evident that this widely distributed species is variable in the colour
of its pubescence and the intensity or extensiveness of the black on
the femora. Present in most of the collections.
1 <$ 1 $ B. darlingi n. sp.
According to Loew's description of micans F., it is evident that
these specimens, labelled by Bezzi as micans (p. 25, Ann. S. Afr. Mus.,
vol. xviii), do not belong to micans in the strict sense. I prefer to
refer them to a separate species, which, however, does not differ very
greatly from ochreous-haired forms of micans.
Body black, but with a bluish metallic and slightly bronzy sheen,
especially on thorax and scutellum; bristles on sides of frons, on
sides of face, and on joint 1 of antennae below, on anterior parts of
thorax above, on sides in front of wing-bases (especially in $) more
ochreous or reddish yellow, that on sides of frons and face with the
tips slightly inclining to brownish, those on occiput, some on thorax
and behind wing-bases as well as those on scutellum yellowish, those
on abdomen much paler, more yellowish white and more whitish
in <$, hairs of mystax and bristles on genae pale yellowish white,
those on thorax and abdomen above and on sides or upper parts of
pleurae rich ochreous yellow, with a golden sheen, but more whitish
in S and also more pale yellowish white on abdomen of $, with a
tendency for those on sides of thorax and along upper parts of pleural
regions as well as in distinct stripes above on thorax of $ to be more
orange yellow or more orange golden; flat scale-like pubescence
around margins of eyes posteriorly and hair on lower parts of genae
and head below snow white, those above front coxae on propleurae
and to a certain extent on meso- and meta-pleurae in the middle and
metapleural tuft, whitish, with the bristles and hairs on coxae and
pectoral regions more yellowish, some long hairs on side of abdomen
and below near apex in $ black and intermixed with dense yellowish
ones, in $ with only a few scattered and scarcely visible black ones;
wings hyaline, but with the anterior half up to discal cross vein and
apex of second basal cell infuscated with pale yellowish brown, the
infuscation not reaching the apex of marginal cell, with the base of
costal cell and basal part of first basal cell and a roundish spot near
apex of second basal cell feebly shining through opaquely whitish,
with the basal comb yellowish and the fringes of squamae and alulae
234
Annals of the South African Museum.
whitish, with the infuscation on discal cross vein and basal cross vein
of fourth posterior cell slightly darker than the rest of wing and these
parts of the veins distinctly darker brownish black, with the rest of
the veins dark brown, becoming paler and more yellowish basally;
halteres yellowish, with the knobs paler and more whitish; legs and
spines entirely yellowish, only the apical parts of tarsi dark blackish
brown. Head with the interocular space in $ about subequal to
length of antennae or a little more than 3 times as broad as tubercle,
in <J much narrower, only about half as broad and only slightly
broader than ocellar tubercle; an-
tennae with joint 3 scarcely longer
than 1 and 2 combined in $, a little
longer in $, broadest just before
middle in $, then gradually narrowed
basally, slightly more rapidly ap-
ically, with the apical part slender
and less than a third the length of
joint and feebly dilated at apex, in
the $ the broadest part is about at
middle and the joint is comparatively
shorter, more gradually narrowed
Text-fig. 54.-Side view and half of ^ally, with the style very slender
ventral view of hypopygium of <j and feebly curved ; proboscis slender
Bombylius darlinqi n. sp. -i , • 1 , n 1
* r and straight, more so and longer
in c?, about 4-4 J mm. long; genae with stout bristles and shorter, more
slender ones on its lower parts, better developed in $ ; occiput with the
bristles longer and stouter in the $. Legs with 3-4 spines in apical
anterior part of middle femora ; hind ones with 7-9 spines below from
near base to apex ; claws in $ slightly longer and more slender than in
?. Hypopygium (text-fig. 54) with the lower margin of neck region of
basal parts dilated, with dorsum of basal part finely haired; beaked
apical joint hollowed out above, the apex acute, not very long,
directed outwards and slightly upwards; aedeagus with the slender
apex directed downwards, without a ventral aedeagal process, but
the base subquadrate and the rim, continuous with the rami, not so
prominent as in micans, with the dorsal basally directed aedeagal
struts just visibly projecting; lateral struts narrow, slightly broadened
apically; basal strut racket-shaped, projecting some distance beyond
bases of basal parts.
Types in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 9-10 mm.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 235
Length of wing: about 10 mm.
Locality. — Cape Province: Darling (L. P. 1905).
From micans it is distinguished by the ochreous, more orange
yellow pubescence, by not having any black hairs on head, by the
shorter proboscis, the absence of extensive black hair on the abdomen,
the shape of third antennal joints, which are broadest before middle or
at middle and with a very short apical slender part as in melanurus
and hirtus, and which is also much shorter than in micans. The
hypopygium also differs in that the basal parts are more slender,
the beaked apical joints smaller and with their apices shorter, directed
outwards and upwards, the aedeagus with the apical part more
slender and directed downwards and the basal strut comparatively
longer. From melanurus it differs by not having black hair or
bristles on the head, by its deeper ochreous and more orange
yellow pubescence, and without any extensive black hair on sides of
abdomen, etc.
B. hirtus Lw.
(P. 185, Dipt. Faun. Siidafr., i, 1860.)
Specimens in the South African Museum, from Namaqualand and
N.W. Karoo, labelled by Bezzi as hirtus, do not strictly agree with
Loew's description. A long series of specimens from George District,
however, seems to agree much better with this description. It is
thus evident that at least two distinct forms are found in South
Africa: a western form occurring more or less in Namaqualand,
N.W. Karoo, Central Karoo and the Western Province, and an
Eastern form from the S.E. Coastal regions towards the Eastern
Province. These two forms are roughly separated by the characters
given in the key. The Western form differs from the Eastern form
in having paler, more yellowish white hair on the head, also less black
hair on the sides of frons and face, with the hair on thorax above
comparatively paler and without any dark brownish golden stripes,
the bristles on thorax pale yellowish and not dark reddish brown;
the pectoral and pleural regions with less white hair ; hair on abdomen
above in $ more whitish sericeous, not subgolden or bronzy; wings
with the infuscation in front half more yellowish, the basal part of
costal cell and first basal cell not distinctly shining through whitish
opaque and, moreover, first posterior cell is comparatively narrow
and elongate and much longer than second posterior cell, whereas
in hirtus (Eastern form) it is distinctly and comparatively broader
236
Annals of the South African Museum.
and shorter, only very slightly longer than second posterior cell.
Hypopygium (text-fig. 55) with the beaked apical joints depressed
above, but not roundly foveate, the apices bent downwards and
slightly outwards, acute; aedeagus with the slender apical part not
reaching inner apical processes, the basal rim, continuous with rami,
Text-fig. 55. — Side view and part of ventral view of hypopygium of $
Bombylius hirtus Lw.
not very prominent, with posterior aedeagal struts visibly projecting
posteriorly; lateral struts slender, rod-like; basal strut projecting
considerably beyond bases of basal parts. The hypopygium of the
Western form has slightly shorter hair on basal parts, and lower apical
margin of neck region is more dilated, and the neck region is com-
paratively more slender, with the aedeagus more powerful, its basal
rim more prominent.
In the Transvaal, British and South African Museums.
B. melanurus Lw.
(P. 186, Dipt. Faun. Siidafr., i, 1860; Paramonow, p. 73,
Trav. Mus. Zool. Kiev., No. 11, 1931.)
A series of c?c? and $$ from Calvinia, Namaqualand and the Western
Province, in the Transvaal, British and South African Museums,
agree very well with Loew's description of this species, not recorded
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 237
by Bezzi in his two monographs. The smaller forms resemble hirtus
and can be distinguished from forms of this species by the characters
given in the key. It is easily recognised by the predominant golden
yellowish hair and by the more conspicuous and denser black hair on
the sides, apex, and venter below of abdomen, by the more yellowish
hair on head below and pectorial regions, by the darker brownish
infuscation on anterior
part of wings, compara-
tively short and broad
first posterior cell, etc.
Larger specimens re-
semble forms of hypo-
leueus, from which they
may, however, be at
once distinguished by
the shape of the third
antennal joint, which is
thickest just before or
at about the middle,
the apical part being
slender, more slender
and much shorter than
in hypoleueus, where the
broadest part is in basal
half and near base; infuscation on front part of wing being more
uniform, leaving very little of apical part of marginal cell hyaline
and by the opaque whitish spot at base of first basal cell being absent
or obsolescent (very conspicuous in hypoleueus), etc. Hypopygium
(text-fig. 56) with the beaked apical joints flattened, only slightly
hollowed out above, with the beak relatively short, bent downwards
and slightly outwards; aedeagus with the apical part projecting
slightly beyond inner apical processes and with the apex slightly
bent upwards, the base very prominent ; lateral struts comparatively
broad, the apices broadened; basal strut comparatively long, pro-
jecting considerably beyond bases of basal parts.
Text-fig. 56. — Half of ventral view and side view
of hypopygium of $ Bombylius melanurus Lw.
[P.
B. servillei Macq.
Dipt. Exot, ii, Tab. VII, fig. 5, 1840, and Bezzi,
p. 25, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This species, characterised by the black spines on the legs and
blackish brown infuscated anterior part of wings, as well as 3 constant,
238 Annals of the South African Museum.
rounded black spots on hind border of infuscated part and by the
predominantly white and black pubescence, is a variable species, and
at least three forms are distinguishable in the long series before me.
The three forms are separated by the characters given in the key, but
these characters are by no means typical for any form, bridging and
transitional forms being frequent. There is a Northern and Karoo
form, in Namaqualand, the N.W. Karoo and also Central Karoo,
without any or with only very feeble indications of infuscations on
Text-fig. 57. — Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of $
Bombylius servillei Macq.
the hyaline part of wing, with numerous, but variable, black or
blackish bristles on genae, lower parts of genae, and anterior coxae.
The two other, or Southern and Eastern forms, from the Western
and Eastern Provinces, Southern Karoo and South Coastal regions,
have more distinct infuscations on posterior half of wings, which are,
however, more constantly present as 3 spots in some Western Province
and coastal forms, without any black bristles on genae and front
coxae and with an entirely white upper part of metapleural tuft,
whereas in the third form there are usually only 2 infuscations, of
which the one at the base of fourth posterior cell is larger and more
constant than small one at apex of first posterior cell, with often a
few black bristles on lower parts of genae and front coxae, with the
bristles on abdomen above in the middle usually yellowish (in some
Eastern Province specimens there is a tendency, in individuals of this
third form, to be without black bristles on lower parts of genae and
the front coxae, to have a slightly smaller spot at base of fourth
posterior cell, and to have the bristles on abdomen above slightly
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 239
darker). Hypopygium (text-fig. 57) of the Southern form (Western
Province form with large spot at base of fourth posterior cell) with
the beaked apical joint like that of micans, hypoleucus, etc., but much
less, and only feebly, depressed above and also more dorso-ventrally
compressed; aedeagus more or less as shown in figure, with the
apical part slender and reaching inner apical processes, with the
ventral basal part prominent, projecting downwards as a lamellar,
central carinate, ploughshare-like process, bearing a few very short
setae anteriorly, with a prominent sharp process on each side towards
anterior part of basal part; lateral struts comparatively slender,
rod-like, the apices slightly bent downwards.
In the Transvaal, British and South African Museums and Imperial
Institute.
B. pentaspilus Bezz.
(P. 29, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, PL I, fig. 5.)
The undescribed $ resembles the <$ in all respects except that the
eyes above are separated by a space about 3J, or a little more, times
width of ocellar tubercle, the third antennal
joint has the apical part less slender and
comparatively shorter and more gradually
narrowed apically; the occipital bristles
and bristles on thorax distinctly longer
and the bristles on abdomen above slightly
darker, and the claws, as in $$ of servillei,
much shorter.
This species is without doubt very closely
related to servillei and cannot be con-
us and punctifer as Bezzi
has done in his keys and descriptions.
The species, as a matter of fact, may be easily confused with
servillei and can only be separated by the characters given in the
key. Hypopygium (text-fig. 58) differs from that of servillei in that
the beaked apical joints are less depressed above; aedeagus with
the central lamellar ploughshare-like process longer and much
produced anteriorly, somewhat like that of fenestralis n. sp.
(cf. text-fig. 63), with more and longer setae at its apex and the
lateral carinate ridge on each side on bases of rami more prominent;
lateral struts a little shorter; basal strut slightly longer.
Text-fig. 58. — Side and ven-
tral views of aedeagus of <? tragted -^
Bombytius pentaspilus Bezz.
240 Annals of the South African Museum.
B. megaspilus Bezz.
(P. 26, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, PL I, fig. 3, and p. 59,
The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Region, fig. 3.)
This species, although easily recognised by its characteristically
mottled or spotted wings, may easily be confused with very similarly
spotted, but entirely different species, such as ammophilus n. sp. and
hottentotus n. sp. described and distinguished below. The species
megaspilus itself is unstable in certain characters, wing-pattern, etc.,
and at least one of these forms may almost be considered as a separate
species. This unstability is most likely due to the fact that the
species probably parasitises more than one host, even in the same
area or region. In the series before me there are no less than 3
more or less distinct forms, which, however, are by no means constant
in their characters. These are: (a) The type form, ^ and $$,
from "Giftsberg, Van Rhynsdorp, S. Namaqualand," described and
figured by Bezzi; (b) a Namaqualand form from "Kamieskroon,"
which is distinctly more whitish than the type form, with feebler
and much less distinct yellowish hair on the disc of the thorax above
and on sides in front of wings, with distinctly darker, even blackish
bristles on scutellum and often distinctly black ones on hind margins
of abdomen above, with the black hair on sides of abdomen and
towards its apex much less extensive, with the spines on the legs
often paler, more brownish, with a tendency for the large spot at
base of fourth posterior cell to be more often confluent and continuous
with infuscation at base of first basal cell and anterior basal part,
with the infuscations along veins separating posterior cells 2 and 3
and 3 and 4 smaller, spot-like, and less developed, with the interocular
space in 3$ slightly, but distinctly, broader than in type forms, the
third antennal joints distinctly more slender, less thickened, in basal
half, more rod-like in <$£ and also more slender in $$, with the claws
in 33 slightly shorter, gradually curved to apex from about the
middle and not rapidly curved downwards at apex only, and with the
pulvilli also slightly shorter, with the hypopygium as shown in text-
fig. 59, differing from that of the type form in having slightly shorter
and fewer hairs on basal parts, with the ventral basal ridge or rim
of the aedeagus, continuous with the rami on each side, more promi-
nently and angularly produced forwards, inverted V-shaped; (c) a
form, extending from the Western Province on the West to Namaqua-
land, is chiefly distinguished by the more extensive black hair on
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 241
the abdomen, darker bristles on body, slightly darker and larger
spots on wings, of which the confluent spots at apex of anal and
axillary cells and at base of fourth posterior cell are continuous with
the anterior and basal infuscation, etc. In all other respects this
last form differs very little from the typical form. These forms are
more or less distinguished in the key, and do not show constant
differences but grade into each other. Hypopygium is like that of
6.
Text-fig. 59. — (a) Side and half of ventral views of hypopygium of $ Bombylius
megaspilus Bezz. (6) Aedeagus from below and side of the typical form.
the form shown in text-fig. 59, a, with the basal parts sometimes
fairly long-haired, with the lower apical margin of neck region promi-
nently dilated and the inner apical processes projecting; beaked
apical joint longitudinally depressed in basal half, the acute apical
part sharp, comparatively short; aedeagus of typical form (text-fig.
59, b) with the slender apical part not reaching apex of inner apical
processes, with the ventral basal ridge or rim, continuous with the
rami, more blunt and less produced than in the Namaqualand form.
In the Transvaal and South African Museums.
3 <$<$ 16 $$ B. hottentotus n. sp.
This species resembles megaspilus very closely, and may easily be
mistaken for a small specimen of the latter. Compared with mega-
spilus, it is very much smaller, and is as follows: —
Body, like that of megaspilus, black; legs yellowish, with the
242 Annals of the South African Museum.
bases of the femora or their basal halves and the spines black;
general effect of pubescence on body darker, more pale brownish,
due to pale brownish yellow or subgolden hairs intermixed with
black ones, the white hair above antennal joint 1, on occiput,
anterior parts of mystax, genae, head below, on thorax and
especially sides of abdomen much less extensive and less evident,
with the hair on disc of thorax slightly darker, more brownish,
the whitish hair on pleural regions less extensive, appearing
more greyish, the scutellar bristles dark brownish or blackish, not
yellowish, the black hair on abdomen comparatively more extensive,
the white hair above of megaspilus being replaced by more pale
yellowish brown to pale brownish sericeous hair, with the transverse
bristles on hind margins above much darker, dark brownish or blackish,
those towards apex tipped whitish, the hair and bristles on abdomen
as a whole comparatively less dense and shorter; venter with the
bristles darker and not distinctly or prominently yellowish laterally,
with the central tuft of white hair at apex of abdomen shorter and
not so conspicuous; wings with the same pattern of blackish brown
spots (cf. fig. 3, p. 59, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Eegion),
but the spots are comparatively larger and more confluent and with
the following differences: spot at apices of anal and axillary cells
more transversely situated (i.e. more or less in line with long axis of
wing) and more often in form of 3 confluent or contiguous spots,
usually smaller than in megaspilus and more often distinctly separated
from large spot at base of fourth posterior cell, with this large spot
confluent and continuous with infuscation at base of discoidal and
first basal cells, with the clear area near apex of second basal cell
usually small, even minute, and not continuous with clear area in
anal cell, with the large rounded spot at base of third posterior cell
confluent and continuous with large one on discal cross vein and
anterior infuscated part of wing, with the large rounded spot on base
of vein between submarginal cells confluent with spot at apex of
first posterior cell and rounded spot at about middle of hyaline part
of marginal cell, with this latter spot almost always rounded and not
connected with small rounded spot at end of second longitudinal vein
by an extensive infuscation along the vein as in megaspilus, with the
spot at apex of vein between submarginal cells usually rounded and
not elongate (the large spots on the wing are thus more or less arranged
in 3 transverse bands across wing). Head with the eyes in SS
separated above by a space a little more than width of ocellar tubercle,
but less than 1-| times as wide, in $$ about 3J, or even a little more,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 243
times as wide as tubercle; antennae with joint 3 in <$$ comparatively
shorter than in megaspilus, slender, almost rod-like, slightly thickened
at about middle and there often slightly bent, about 1J times, or a
little less as long as 1 and 2 combined, often with conspicuous flat
white scaling, in $$ comparatively less slender and more conspicuously
thickened at about middle, much less than 1J times as long as 1 and
2 combined, more often subequal to them, with the style slender and
straight; proboscis about 3-5 mm. long, relatively shorter than in
megaspilus. Wings with
-Side view and half of ventral view
of hypopygium of <$ Bombylius holtentotus n. sp.
the vein between discoidal
and third posterior cells
constantly more or less
bent at right angles at its
base to meet the fourth
posterior cell and provided
at the bend with a short
stump. Legs with 6-9
spines on hind femora be-
low near base to apex,
those towards base being
often very long and slender,
more slender than in ^
megaspilus ; claws gradu-
ally curved from about middle in the <J<J, not bent down apically
only as in megaspilus (type form) ; pulvilli well developed, extending
beyond middle of claws in <J#, in ?$ much shorter and confined
to base. Hypopygium (text-fig. 60) differs specifically from that
of megaspilus (see text-fig. 59) chiefly in the structure of the
ventral aedeagal process, which is in the form of a central arch-like
process bearing two flattened spine-like setae * on each side
apically and connected on each side with the lateral rami, which
project as flattened lobe-like processes on each side and which
are also fused on each side to basal part of aedeagus, with the
slender apical part of aedeagus projecting beyond level of inner
apical processes, with feeble dorsal basally directed aedeagal struts
just visible projecting; lateral struts short and lobe-like; basal
strut feeble, racket-shaped, and not projecting beyond bases of
basal parts. (In the structure of the ventral aedeagal process this
species comes in the category of ammophilus, zoutpansbergianus, and
to a certain extent capensis.)
* Setae slightly exaggerated in figure. — (Author.)
244: Annals of the South African Museum.
Types in the Transvaal Museum and some paratypes in the South
African Museum.
Length of body: about 5-8 mm.
Length of wing: about 5-8 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Van Ehynsdorp (van Son, July- Aug.
1927) (Types); Van Ehynsdorp (Brauns, Aug. 1927); Garies (S. Afr.
Mus. Staff, June 1930); Kamieskroon (Mus. Staff, June 1930 and
Sept. 1930); O'okiep. Saldanha Bay (Sept. 1913, L. P.).
This species is very variable in size and also in the nature of the
vein between the discoidal and third posterior cells, which in a few
specimens tend to be normal. The size is probably dependent upon
the amount and nature of the larval nutrition during its parasitic
existence, an existence which in itself is precarious in a desert, dry,
and drought-stricken area. A $ and $ from " ? O'okiep" differ from
the types in being slightly more distinctly whitish haired on the body,
the black hair on abdomen is less extensive, with the vein between
the discoidal and third posterior cells without an appendix at base.
It probably only represents a local form.
1 £ 6 $$ B. ammophilus n. sp.
This species also closely resembles megaspilus, but is even closer to
hottentotus.
Body black; legs yellowish, the femora either entirely yellowish or
blackened basally or even beyond middle ; pubescence in $ on occiput,
on joint 1 of the antennae above, face anteriorly, sides of genae,
head below, anterior parts and sides of thorax above, on practically
the entire abdomen above and on the pleural regions in part white,
that on disc of thorax (in form of 3 short and broad stripes) and on
scutellum and sides above wings pale brownish golden, with the
bristles and hairs on propleurae and lower parts of metapleurae
yellowish brown, the rest of the bristles on head, frons, sides of face,
on antennae below, on genae, thorax above, coxae, the transverse
bristles on hind margins of abdomen above black, only those towards
the apex tipped with white, with the hair on sides of abdomen and
at apex black, with the short pubescence on venter white, the other
hairs being black, only those on sides more brownish; the ?? with
the hair on head is as in the <£, but the bristles on occiput more pale
yellowish brown, the bristles on genae often paler too, with some
bristles on lower parts of genae also brownish to blackish, with the
hair on thorax above whitish anteriorly, yellowish to brownish on
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 245
disc, that on scutellum and greater part of abdomen above pale
yellowish white, having a sericeous golden or bronzy sheen in certain
lights, the hair on sides below and at apex of abdomen black, with
the bristles on the thorax above and scutellum more yellowish brown,
intermixed antero-laterally with dark brownish ones, those on pro-
pleurae very pale reddish brown, those on abdomen above yellowish,
brownish to dark brownish, those near apex and on the sides darker
brown and tipped yellowish, with those on sides of venter yellowish
or ochreous and intermixed with black ones, the hair on abdomen
comparatively shorter and less extensive than in megaspilus; wings
with the anterior infuscation and spots slightly darker than in
megaspilus, more blackish brown, with a pattern similar to that of
megaspilus (see text-fig. 3 in The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian
Region, p. 59), but even more like that of hottentotus, with the spots
larger and more confluent like that of the latter, with the spot at
apices of anal and axillary cells also smaller than in megaspilus, more
or less in form of 3 contiguous spots, situated in line with the long
axis of wing, scarcely touching and never confluent with large spot at
base of fourth posterior cell, with this latter spot larger and also
confluent and continuous with infuscation at base of discoidal and
basal part of first basal cells and with anterior infuscation as in
hottentotus, with the clear area near apex of second basal cell com-
paratively small and more often not confluent with clear area in
anal cell as in megaspilus, with the large rounded spot at base of third
posterior cell larger and never widely separated from large spot on
discal cross vein, but just touching, even confluent with it in some
specimens as in hottentotus, with the large rounded spot at base of
vein between submarginal cells joined to large rounded spot at about
middle of hyaline apical part of marginal cell and just touching or
even connected with a spot (much larger than in megaspilus) at apex
of first posterior cell, with the spot at apex of second longitudinal
vein more often rounded as in hottentotus and more often not connected
to the middle spot by an extensive infuscation along apical part of
the vein; basal comb black; squamae in $ with very pale yellowish
white fringes, in <J more whitish. Head with the eyes in the $
separated above by a space a little wider than ocellar tubercle, about
as wide as in some forms of megaspilus, in $$ about 3J times as wide
as ocellar tubercle; antennae with joint 3 a little longer than 1 and 2
combined in $, subequal in $$, more thickened basally in $ than in
megaspilus, broadest in £ nearer base, the apical third more slender
than in megaspilus, in $$ thickest at about middle and the apical
vol. xxxiv. 17
246 Annals of the South African Museum.
part more slender than in the latter, the style is slightly longer;
proboscis about 5-6 mm. long, with a tendency to be bent downwards
apically. Wings with the vein between discoidal and third posterior
cells not bent sharply at right angles at its base and not provided with
a stump. Legs with 3-6 black spines on anterior lateral surface of
middle femora in apical half; hind femora with 8-12 black spines
below from near base to apex, with those nearer base longer and in $
slightly more slender; claws in $ comparatively more slender and
shorter than in megaspilus, more like that of hottentotus, more or less
gradually curved from about middle, whereas in megaspilus (type form)
only the apex is curved downwards; pulvilli shorter, but extending
slightly beyond middle of claws, in $$ confined to base. Hypopygium
also different from that of megaspilus, almost identical with that of
hottentotus, with the lower apical margin of the neck region more
dilated than in the latter; aedeagus with the same ventral aedeagal
process, but the anterior process of the lateral rami on each side
slightly more bluntly rounded and the apical slender part of aedeagus
shorter; lateral struts also slender and rod-like; basal strut slightly
narrower and less broad towards the apex.
Types in the Transvaal Museum and some paratypes in the South
African Museum.
Length of body: about 10-12 mm.
Length of wing: about 10-12 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Van E-hynsdorp (van Son, July- Aug.
1927) (Holotype); Van Rhynsdorp (Brauns, Aug. 1927) (Allotype);
Klipfontein (Lightfoot, Aug. 1890); Garies (Mus. Staff, June 1930).
This species is so closely related to hottentotus that it may almost
be considered as a variety or race of this species. The characters
given in the key, and especially the size and the paler bristles and
more pale yellowish pubescence, however, separate it from hottentotus.
7 $$ B. braunsi Bezz. (as labelled by Brauns from material
sent to Bezzi).
As in the case of some other species of Bombyliidae of Bezzi,
this specific name has a shadowy existence in keys and short notes,
without any detailed description existing. In the Ann. S. Afr. Mus.,
vol. xviii, it is mentioned in the key on p. 23 and its description is
forecasted on p. 27 (loc. cit.). Again in 1922, in Broteria, vol. xx,
fasc. II (Ser. Zool.), p. 72, it remains still undescribed, but apparently
some specimens have now been named as such, while in "The Bomby-
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 247
liidae of the Ethiopian Region" it once more enters the keys as an
already described species on p. 57. I can find no reference in literature
that the material in the Hungarian Museum was ever described, as
forecasted. The keys are of no use in running down suspected
specimens of this species, so I am forced to rely on specimens labelled
as such by Brauns and Bezzi. Some of these specimens mentioned
in Broteria in Brauns' private collection, now housed in the Trans-
vaal Museum, are now before me in the form of two distinctly and
obviously different species, both $$, and both from "Willowmore
(collected in Aug. 1921 and Sept. 1919)." The labelled $, collected
in August 1921, is apparently the undescribed species braunsi, but
the other $ agrees in every respect with the $ type of punctifer Bezz.
in the South African Museum. This latter $ may be made to run
down to braunsi in Bezzi's keys, but the former $, as well as 5 other
specimens, all have a distinct and large spot at apex of anal and
axillary cells, and the hind border of the wing has distinct infuscations
on the veins. In view of this, there remains no other way but to
describe these specimens as braunsi unless the type exists somewhere
and may prove to be yet another species, such as a race of capensis
or some other undescribed form.
This species is so near megaspilus that a comparative description
will suffice to make its identity clear. Compared with the typical
form of this species the general pubescence on the body is of the same
colour and sheen, the brownish golden stripes on the thorax above
are not present or evident, the bristles on occiput and antero-lateral
parts of thorax darker, more blackish, a few along the sides in front
of wings and intermixed with the other pale reddish brown like those
on scutellum, the bristles on abdomen above distinctly black, the
posterior ones long and also tipped whitish, but the white tips shorter,
the white hair on the abdomen much more extensive and denser, and
the black hair above and below and along sides towards apex much
less conspicuous, less developed and shorter, the hair on venter
comparatively darker, less yellowish or pale brownish, the bristles on
middle and hind coxae predominantly black; wings as shown in *
text-fig. 61, with the middle spot in apical part of marginal cell
comparatively larger, the spot at apex of anal and axillary cells
slightly smaller, but constantly present and not fused or confluent
with large rounded spot at base of fourth posterior cell, this spot
* The outline and shape of the wing are not correctly shown in this figure;
the outline and shape in reality being more like that of megaspilus. (See Bezzi's
text-fig. 3.)— (Author.)
248 Annals of the South African Museum.
moreover is always confluent with basal infuscation of first basal
cell (usually separated in megaspilus), with the spot on discal cross
vein and at base of third posterior cell confluent or contiguous, not
separated, with the infuscation along veins separating posterior cells
2 and 3 and 3 and 4 variable, but less distinct and smaller. Head
with the interocular space 3, or a little more, times as broad as tubercle,
with joint 3 of the antennae straighter and comparatively shorter,
with the apical fourth, or often a little more, distinctly more slender
(joint being more rapidly narrowed to this slender part); proboscis
much shorter, about 4 mm. long; genae with fewer black bristles.
Text-fig. 61. — Wing of Bombylius braunsi Bezz.
Wings with the vein between the discoidal and third posterior cells
sharply bent at right angles at its base and there usually provided
with a distinct stump or appendix. Legs with 8-12 spines below
from near base to apex on hind femora, those near base also a little
longer.
Labelled specimen in the Transvaal Museum.
Length of body: about 8J-11 mm.
Length of wing: about 8-11 mm.
Locality. — Southern Karoo: Willowmore (Brauns, Aug. 1921, 1925,
and Sept. 1921); Kobertson (Nothling, Oct. 1930); Worcester (Turner
3-4/10/1928) (British Museum).
This species may prove to be only a variety of megaspilus, and it
is necessary to examine the hypopygium of a S in order to settle this.
The constancy of the appendix at base of the vein separating the
discoidal and third posterior cells, as well as other characters, however,
definitely separate it from megaspilus.
3 <$<$ B. fenestralis n. sp.
This species is also very near megaspilus as far as external characters
are concerned. Compared with this latter species, it is found to be
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 249
comparatively larger ; the colour and general effects of the pubescence
on the body are more or less the same, the sheen of the hairs on the
thorax above is more silvery and sericeous white in certain lights,
with the brownish golden stripes on the thorax above scarcely visible
or only feebly developed, with the hair on each side in front of wing
bases not brownish, but whitish, with that on pleural and pectoral
regions more whitish, the white hair on abdomen more conspicuous
and more extensive and the black less extensive, the hair on the
whole comparatively less dense on the abdomen and mystax with
more white hair and the black bristles and hairs on frons stouter,
Text-fig. 62. — Wing of Bombylius fenestralis n. sp.
the bristles on thorax anteriorly, antero-laterally, and behind wing
bases and on scutellum pale reddish brown or yellowish red, but
paler and not dark brownish as in megaspilus; bristles laterally on
sides of thorax, or along upper parts of pleurae also black, the bristles
on abdomen above across hind margins of segments 1-3 pale yellowish
or brownish and those from segment 4 to apex black, but tipped with
whitish or yellowish white, all much longer than the hair and com-
paratively longer than in megaspilus, with a central tuft of white
hairs at apex of abdomen; wings as shown in text-fig. 62, with
the anterior dark brownish black infuscation extending to apex of
marginal cell, only the medial part of this apical part being slightly
less infuscated, more translucent, but not hyaline, without any
middle spot or infuscation, only the end of second longitudinal vein
being infuscated, with the infuscation at apices of anal and axillary
cells smaller, less spot-like and more diffuse, and not contiguous or
scarcely confluent with large spot at base of fourth posterior cell,
with a larger hyaline area in anal cell and only a small hyaline spot
near apex of second basal cell, with the large spot at base of fourth
posterior cell confluent with basal infuscated part of anterior part of
250
Annals of the South African Museum.
wing, with the spots on apical cross vein of discoidal cell and base
of third posterior cell comparatively smaller and either more feebly
or faintly continued along veins separating posterior cells, but not
so distinctly as in megaspilus, with the discoidal cell very broad and
anal cell more broadly open on hind border; legs with the femora
comparatively less darkened in basal half. Head with the inter-
ocular space in $$ much broader than in megaspilus, very nearly 2
times as broad and thus much broader than width of ocellar tubercle ;
Text-fig. 63. — Side view, half of ventral view and dorsal view of beaked
apical joint of hypopygium of <$ Bombylius fenestralis n. sp.
antennae with joint 1 relatively shorter and thicker, with the slender
apical part of joint 3 longer, slightly less slender, with the slender
style also long and straight; proboscis a little longer, about 5-6 mm.
long. Legs comparatively much longer; femora with 3-5 black
spines on anterior lateral aspect in apical half of middle ones and
8-10 comparatively stouter and shorter spines below on hind ones
from near base to apex; claws comparatively shorter and less stout
and more or less curved from near base to apex, not straight for more
than two-thirds of its length as in megaspilus; pulvilli shorter, only
a little longer than half the length of claws. Hypopygium (text-fig.
63) with the outer lower margin of neck region of basal parts dilated,
with the inner apical processes flattened and somewhat concave
towards beaked apical joints; beaked apical joint more or less sunk
in apical part of basal part, foveately hollowed out above, the apex
acute and slender, slightly bent downwards, the fovea elongate and
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 251
bounded by carinate or ridge-like edges which, along the outer side,
are broad and produced apically into a blunt process, not bent down-
wards (the joint is thus bifid apically); aedeagus with the apical part
short, about reaching apex of inner apical process, with its base
prominently projecting downwards and provided with a central
forwardly and upwardly directed ventral aedeagal process, latterly
compressed and ploughshare-like, with the basal dorsal aedeagal
struts visibly projecting basally; lateral struts narrow, almost rod-
shaped, but broadened basally; basal strut almost bat-shaped.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 10-12 mm.
Length of wing : about 11-12 J mm.
Locality. — Nieuwveld Karoo: Beaufort West. Distr. (Mus. Staff,
Oct. 1935). Namaqualand: Kamieskroon (Mus. Staff, Sept. 1930)
(Type).
This species, owing to its distinct structural differences in the more
widely separated eyes, broader thorax, different claws and differently
shaped aedeagus and beaked apical joints of the hypopygium, can-
not even be considered as a variety of megaspilus; it is an entirely
different species.
B. capensis Linn.
(P. 1009, Syst. Natur. Ed., xii. II. 3, 1767; Wiedemann, p. 351,
Aussereurop. Zweifl. Ins., i., 1828; Bezzi, p. 26, Ann. S. Afr.
Mus., vol. xviii, 1921, PL I, fig. 2.)
Descriptions of capensis Linn, are so unsatisfactory that deter-
minations from them are impossible, and I have to take Bezzi's
labelled specimen as a representative of this species. The identity of
this species thus remains very doubtful, especially when it is evident
that the descriptions of Linnaeus and Wiedemann are also applicable
to several other species with spotted wings such as servillei Macq.,
pentaspilus Bezz., braunsi Bezz. (in lit.), punctifer Bezz., etc. The
chief characteristics of capensis, as defined here, are : —
Body entirely black; legs with the tibiae and more than basal
parts of tarsi yellowish, with the extreme apices of femora also
yellowish, with the 6-9 slender, bristle-like spines on hind femora
below black or blackish, the spicules on tibiae predominantly or
entirely yellowish, yellowish brown or pale brownish; pubescence
long, dense and shaggy as in other species in this group, predominantly
whitish or silvery whitish, that on disc of thorax more or less gleaming
252
Annals of the South African Museum.
sericeous yellowish or brownish golden in certain lights, more so on
sides, but sometimes scarcely discernible, with the tuft of hairs on
post-alar calli on each side almost always gleaming golden or brownish
golden in certain lights, with the bristly hairs and bristles on head,
thorax and abdomen predominantly black, the dense tuft-like hairs
on sides of abdomen towards apex and also on each side of a silvery
white apical tuft black, with, however, much dark brownish or
blackish brown ones on
^.J\i*M\ ' l\p sides of venter apically,
with some or numerous
intermixed bristles on
occiput, on humeral
part on each side, the
entire metapleural tuft,
some or numerous
bristles on coxae and
many on each side of
venter or sides of ab-
domen yellowish, with
pale intermixed hairs
and bristles on venter;
wings as figured by
Bezzi (loc. cit., PL I, fig. 2) but usually without spots at ends of
posterior veins, but always with a diffuse spot at apex of anal and
axillary cells, with the anterior infuscation and spots yellowish brown
to coffee brownish and with the first longitudinal vein and bases of
the others usually pale brownish or pale reddish brown, with the spots
on apical cross veins of first and second basal cells, at base of third
posterior cell and at base A vein separating submarginal cells usually
large, rounded and conspicuous, the one on apical cross vein of
discoidal cell also large but those at end of second longitudinal vein
and at about middle of apical part of marginal cell smaller, that at
end of somewhat acute first posterior cell minute or small, and that
at end of vein separating submarginal cells very faint. Hypopygium
of $ (text-fig. 64) resembling that of hottentotus, ammophilus, and
zoutpansbergianus, where the rami on each side are continued apically
and where a central, raised or arch-like ventral aedeagal process is
present; inner apical part of basal parts slightly projecting; aedeagal
process shaped as shown in figure and with 4 spines on it.
Length of body: about 6-12 mm.
Length of wing: about 7-13 mm.
Text-fig. 64. — Side view and half of ventral view
of hypopygium of $ Bombylius capensis Linn.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 253
Locality. — Namaqualand, S. Karoo and Little Karoo. (In the
Transvaal and South African Museums.)
There is no doubt that the species is slightly variable, the large
specimens from Namaqualand having larger spots on the wings and
also with indications of distinct spots at ends of some of the posterior
veins. The spicules on the tibiae in some specimens are also pre-
dominantly or entirely dark or black.
2 $$ 11 $$ B. nieuwveldensis n. sp.
It is with much hesitation that I refer these insects to a separate
species. Externally there is very little to distinguish them from
Text-fig. 65. — Side view and part of ventral view of hypopygium of $
of Bombylius nieuwveldensis n. sp.
capensis, but as the hypopygium of the $ is structurally slightly
different, showing specific differences, they are referred to a separate
species.
From capensis these specimens differ in having the pubescence on
body above markedly gleaming silvery whitish, without any yellowish
sericeous gleaming pubescence on disc of thorax or in a tuft on
post-alar calli, with all the bristly hairs and bristles on head, thorax,
scutellum and abdomen above black, without any or with very
much fewer yellowish bristles on occiput, humeral region and coxae,
with those in metapleural tuft also yellowish, with the hair on sides
of abdomen and towards apex of venter more intensely black, having
254 Annals of the South African Museum.
no dark coffee brownish sheen, but also with intermixed pale bristles,
with the dark parts and spots on wings much darker and sooty black,
without any spot at apex of anal cell and without even indications of
spots at ends of posterior veins, with all the veins much darker and
very dark blackish brown or black and with the first posterior cell
tending to be less markedly acute apically, with the tibiae slightly
darker and more brownish, not pale yellowish and with the spicules
on the tibiae entirely black, the spicules on hind tibiae also appearing
denser. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 65) differs from that of capensis
(cf. text-fig. 64) in having the inner apical parts of basal parts not
distinctly produced and not projecting beyond beaked apical parts;
ventral aedeagal process also slightly shaped differently and having
only 1 spine on each side and not 4 as in capensis.
Types in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 6-10 mm.
Length of wing: about 6-10 mm.
Locality. — Nieuwveld Karoo: Beaufort West. Distr. ; Leeukloof
(Mus. Staff, Oct. 1935).
B. punctifer Bezz.
(P. 28, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921, and p. 59,
The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Kegion, fig. 4.)
This species can be easily recognised by the characters given in
the key, namely: —
The wings are not extensively mottled, with the dark brownish
infuscation in anterior costal and basal parts distinctly less marked
off from hyaline part, without any infuscations at ends of second
longitudinal vein and vein separating submarginal cells and with the
apical part of marginal cell more hyaline than in other species in
this category, there being also no spot or infuscation at apices of
anal and axillary cells; pubescence, excluding black or yellowish
bristles on thorax and scutellum, entirely silvery whitish, even discally
on thorax, with that on abdomen above also entirely silvery white,
the black hair on extreme sides and sides of venter being less exten-
sively developed and scarcely visible from above, with transverse
rows of whitish or pale-tipped black bristles across segments 2 to
apex. The $ of this species has not yet been taken.
Locality. — Southern and South-Eastern Karoo and Namaqualand.
In the Transvaal, British and South African Museums.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 255
B. punctatellus Bezz.
(P. 27, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This small species is represented by the unique c?-type specimen in
the South African Museum. It is easily distinguished from all other
species, with more or less mottled wings, by the characters given in
the key, but chiefly by the infuscation of the wings, which super-
ficially resembles that found in servillei Macq. and pentaspilus Bezz.
The wings have the same anterior dark blackish brown infuscation,
extending up to end of marginal cell, 3 similar large, rounded spots
along the posterior border of the infuscation and 3 much smaller
spots in posterior part ; the more hyaline part of wings is, however,
not entirely hyaline but slightly cinereous greyish and the anal cell
is very acute apically, provided with a very short stalk and thus not
opening widely on hind border. The abdomen, in this insect, has
extensive chocolate brown hair laterally, especially towards apex,
with the pale-tipped, transverse bristles, as well as those on sides of
thorax and on scutellum, brownish, becoming darker towards apex
of abdomen. The third antennal joints are broadest at about the
middle, scarcely more narrowed apically than basally and the face
is poorly developed; the head itself is somewhat dorso-ventrally
compressed. The spines on legs are comparatively slender and poorly
developed for this group, there being only about 4 spines on hind
femora below.
Locality. — No locality label, but probably Karoo or N.W. Cape
Province.
B. punctatelloides n. sp.
(Syn. = punctatellus Bezz. in part.)
There is no doubt that this ^-specimen, referred to by Bezzi on
p. 28, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921, as belonging to punctatellus,
is specifically distinct from punctatellus. From the type of the latter
species it differs in the following points : —
Pubescence on body more predominantly silvery whitish, there
being no dark intermixed hairs on disc of thorax and that on abdomen
with distinctly less chocolate brown ones laterally and apically,
being more extensively whitish above, that on sides of thorax in
front of wings, in mesopleural tuft and even in upper parts of meta-
pleural tuft more whitish, with the slender bristles on head, thorax,
scutellum and transversely on abdomen much darker, deeper chocolate
256 Annals of the South African Museum.
brown; wings (figured by Bezzi as that of punctatellus on PL I,
fig. 4, loc. cit.) differing in having the spots at apex of first posterior
cell, on apical cross vein of discoidal cell and at base of third posterior
cell very large and rounded, as large as the 3 anterior spots, also
with a much more distinct infuscation at apex of anal cell and even
with faint indications near ends of veins separating second, third, and
fourth posterior cells, with the second longitudinal vein not undulating
and only very slightly sinuous above last spot in the first row, with
the discal cross vein only very little beyond middle of discoidal cell
and with the anal cell normally opening on the hind border. Head
with the interocular space slightly broader, quite 2 times as broad as
ocellar tubercle, with the third antennal joints distinctly longer,
more slender and rod-like, tapering gradually from a slightly broader
base. Legs with about 7 (not 4) longer spines from near base to apex
on hind femora below, with the basal ones remarkably long and
slender, almost bristle-like, with the claws distinctly shorter and less
slender, more gradually curved downwards from about middle to
apex and not rapidly bent downwards near apex, with the pulvilli
distinctly shorter, only extending a very little beyond the middle of
claws. The apical part of the abdomen was unfortunately damaged,
so the hypopygium cannot be described for this specimen.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 5 mm.
Length of wing: about 6 mm.
Locality. — No locality label, but probably also from the Cape
Province.
B. obesus Bezz.
(P. 29, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
From several specimens of both sexes before me and some named
specimens in the Transvaal Museum, I am able to identify this species
correctly. The ^-specimen from "Isipingo" to which Bezzi refers is,
however, not from that locality in Natal but from "Upington"
in the N.W. Cape Province. The writing on the label is quite legible.
Moreover it is not obesus, but an entirely different species. It is a
variety of a new species, zoutpansbergianus, described by me in this
paper. B. obesus is a fairly bulky species, superficially resembling
hypoleucus, and is characterised by having predominantly sericeous
whitish, gleaming pubescence above and also across pleural parts,
with numerous intermixed black bristles on frons, antennae below,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 257
sides of face, on genae, on sides of thorax in front of wing-bases and
tufts of black hair on sides of abdomen and at apex, where they are
very dense and conspicuous, with the bristles on occiput, on thorax
in front, on sides of thorax and intermixed on mesopleuron, on posterior
calli, on scutellum, the long ones transversely across abdomen above,
some on genae and front part of face, those on coxae and some on
venter yellowish, ochreous yellow to reddish yellow, those in $$
usually more reddish yellow, with the pubescence on abdomen above
more conspicuously gleaming sericeous, with a few darkish bristles on
Text-fig. 66. — (a) Half of ventral view of hypopygium of <$ Bornbylius
Bezz. (b) Half of dorsal view of hypopygium of <$ Bornbylius obesus Bezz.
(c) Side view of hypopygium of $ Bornbylius obesus Bezz.
coxae and some on venter; wings greyish hyaline, with the base,
costal cell, greater part of marginal cell, base of first submarginal
cell, basal half of first basal cell, upper part of second basal cell,
extreme bases of anal and axillary cells and the alula brownish to
dark brownish, this infuscation not well marked off from more hyaline
part of wing, with distinct dark spots on apical cross vein of second
basal cell, on apical cross vein of first basal cell, at base of vein between
submarginal cells, at apex of first posterior cell, on apical cross vein
of discoidal cell and at base of third posterior cell, with the basal
comb black, the veins very dark blackish brown or almost black,
the discal cross vein much beyond middle of discoidal cell. Head
with the interocular space in <$<$ broad, quite 2 times as broad as
tubercle, in <j>$ also broad and about 4 times as broad as tubercle.
Legs with the femora black in 3$ and in $$ also black or much
darkened; claws slender and long in <£<£, gradually curved, with the
258 Annals of the South African Museum.
pulvilli flattened and well developed in <£#, reaching middle of claws,
confined to base in $$. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 66, a, b, and c)
with the basal parts compact, broad, and short, with much hair,
dorsally more or less convexly raised along line of junction (text-fig.
66, b), the neck region markedly short and broad, with the inner
dorsal margin in neck region very broad, concave on side of beaked
apical joints, rounded apically, the lower apical part of neck region
projecting lobe-like; beaked apical joints sunk in basal part, with a
large, deep, rounded foveate depression on upper inner aspect, their
apices not very acute; aedeagus with the apical part slender, the
base prominent and medially conically produced forwards; lateral
struts comparatively short.
Locality. — Namaqualand, Central and Southern Karoo. (In the
Transvaal and South African Museums.)
1 $ B. mollihirtus n. sp.
Body black ; hind margins of ventral segments and genital segment
pale yellowish white ; pubescence on occiput, thorax above, scutellum,
abdomen above and upper parts of pleural regions soft and furry,
very pale greyish white, with a dull whitish sericeous or silvery sheen
in certain lights, that on disc of thorax with a feeble yellowish sheen,
that on abdomen above, on sides and towards apex more silvery
white in certain lights, that in mystax, on genae, head below, near
pectoral regions, in metapleural tuft, on venter and centrally above
at apex of abdomen white, the bristly hairs on frons, sides of face,
below joint 1 of antennae, a few on genae and its lower parts, the
bristles along upper parts of mesopleuron, basal comb of wings,
some hairs intermixed on sides of abdomen and the denser and longer
tuft-like hair towards apex and on sides below black, those towards
end of abdomen with a dark blackish brown sheen in certain lights,
the hairs on ocellar tubercle, antennae above and the bristly hairs or
bristles on occiput very pale yellowish, the bristles on genae, anterior
part of thorax and laterally behind wings, on scutellum, the transverse
rows on hind margins of abdomen, on posterior part of mesopleuron,
those below on metapleural tuft and the spines on legs deeper
yellowish, the bristles towards apex of abdomen black or dark brown-
ish black with paler, more yellowish tips and those on sides of venter
whitish, the bristly hairs on coxae yellowish and intermixed with the
others ; wings faintly inf uscated on anterior half up to end of costal
cell, discal cross vein and up to apex of second basal cell with pale
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 259
greyish brownish, with the costal cell shining through more sub-
opaquely whitish, with the rest of the wing translucent and with a
feeble milky white tint in certain lights, with the veins dark brownish,
paler brownish basally, with faint, diffuse and indistinct infuscations
on apical cross vein of second basal cell, discal cross vein, base of
vein between discoidal and third posterior cells, apical cross vein of
discoidal cell, base of vein between submarginal cells and an evanes-
cent one at apex of first posterior cell, with the parts of the veins
on these sites distinctly
darkened, more black-
ish brown, with the
fringes of the squamae
and alulae whitish ;
halteres brownish; legs
yellowish brown, with
the femora blackish to
beyond the middle and
the apical parts of tarsi
more brownish, the
apical two-thirds of
claws black. Head with
the eyes broadly separ-
ated above, very nearly
2 times as broad as ocellar tubercle; antennae with joint 3 only a
little longer than 1 and 2 combined, distinctly broadened in basal
half, broadest nearer base, thence fairly rapidly narrowed to straight
and slender apical half, with the style slender and feebly curved,
with the upper apical part of joint 2, as in many other species in
this section, more or less prominent, almost projecting; genae with
a few bristles or bristly hairs along its lower part; proboscis about
4 mm. long. Legs with a longish spine beyond middle along posterior
face and a shorter one opposite on anterior face of front femora;
middle femora with 2 or 3 spines anteriorly beyond middle and a
single long one posteriorly; hind femora with 5-6 spines below from
near base to apex; claws comparatively short and slender, curved
from near base, with the pulvilli scarcely reaching the middle of
claws. Hypopygium (text-fig. 67) with the lower apical part of neck
region of basal parts subangularly dilated; beaked apical joint
flattened, depressed above, but not foveately hollowed out, the apex
acute, bent downwards (more slender than is shown in figure);
aedeagus with the slender apical part hidden and above ventral
Text-fig. 67. — Side view and half of ventral view of
hypopygium of $ Bombylius mollihirtus n. sp.
260 Annals of the South African Museum.
aedeagal process, which, is in the form of a medial forwardly projecting
pointed process, armed with setae apically and almost reaching level
of inner apical processes, with the base flattened and broad, continuous
on each side with the rami, with the dorsal basally directed aedeagal
struts just visibly projecting; lateral struts feeble; basal strut small,
bat-shaped.
Type in the Transvaal Museum.
Length of body: about 9 J mm.
Length of wing: about 8J mm.
Locality. — Karoo: Willowmore (Brauns, Oct. 1911).
This species resembles a small specimen of obesus, from which it is
separated by the characters given in the key. From zoutpansbergianus
n. sp. it differs chiefly in the more broadly separated eyes, less spotted
wings, and other characters given in the key.
3 S3 9 $$ B. zoutpansbergianus n. sp.
Body black, with the hind margins of ventral segments pallid or
pale ochreous yellow to yellowish white, more extensive in $S, the
entire venter in the holotype being yellowish ; pubescence on occiput,
thorax above, scutellum and abdomen above whitish, with a silvery
sheen when viewed from the side or in front, from above with a greyish
tint, more distinctly white in ##, and in $£ with a feeble indication of
yellowish stripes on disc of thorax, the sides of thorax in front of
wings also with a feeble yellowish tint, that above on antennae, in
mystax, on face, sides of genae, head below, pleural regions, meta-
pleural tuft, sides of venter in basal half snow white, that on sides
of abdomen, sides towards apex and in apical tuft with black hair,
denser, longer and more distinct towards apex and in apical tuft and
in certain lights with a distinct blackish brown tint, with the black
hair in basal half of abdomen more extensive in the $$, the bristles
and bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle, below joint 1 of antennae, sides
of face, on genae pale yellowish white, yellowish to pale yellowish
brown, with the fine bristles on sides of frons often much darker,
more brownish black, the bristles on occiput, thorax above, scutellum,
mesopleuron, in metapleural tuft below, on coxae, the longer ones
on basal comb of wings, on abdomen above and below and the spines
on legs deeper yellowish to reddish yellow or pale brownish yellow,
slightly paler, more whitish in the $ holotype, with the bristles
towards apex of abdomen and venter distinctly more whitish in S3,
with the tips of bristles towards apex distinctly more whitish, with a
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 261
few bristles on genae often distinctly whitish ; wings with the anterior
half, even up to end of marginal cell, basal half of first submarginal
cell, basal three-quarters of first basal cell, second basal cell (excepting
clear spot towards apex) and base of anal cell tinged pale yellowish
brown or pale brownish, with the rest of wing translucent, subhyaline,
the apical part of marginal cell being slightly less hyaline, with a
large rounded spot on basal cross vein of fourth posterior cell, on
discal cross vein and a very distinct one at base of vein separating
submarginal cells, with a slightly smaller spot on apical cross vein of
discoidal cell and at base of third posterior cell, with a diffuse spot
at end of second longitudinal vein and at end of vein separating
submarginal cells, with a variable infuscation at apices of anal and
axillary cells, and smaller, indistinct, and often absent, spots at apex
of first posterior cell and at ends of veins separating posterior cells
2 and 3 and 3 and 4, with the veins dark brownish to brownish black,
the basal parts being paler, more reddish brown, with the bristles
on basal comb predominantly black, with the fringes of squamae and
alulae white; halteres pale yellowish brown, with dark brownish
black knobs; legs with the femora black to much beyond middle,
covered with whitish scales ; claws in the $? almost entirely black, in
cJ<J with blackish apices. Head with the eyes in <$<$ separated above
by about 1J times width of ocellar tubercle, a little more than 3,
nearly 4 in some $$, times width of tubercle in $$ and about 3 times
as broad as in $$; antennae with joint 3, often with white scales,
comparatively longer in $£, slender, almost rod-like in some $$,
scarcely broadened basally, in $$ more distinctly broadened in basal
half and in some $$ being broadest a little before middle, gradually
narrowed apically, with the apical slender part more distinct in
some (J(J, with the dorsal apical part of joint 2 bluntly projecting,
almost spine-like in some specimens; genae with a few distinct but
slender bristles on lower aspect; proboscis more or less straight,
only the apex slightly bent upwards, about 4 mm. long in <$<$ and 4-5
mm. in $$-. Wings with a tendency for vein between discoidal and
third posterior cells to be slightly or sharply bent at right angles at
base in some specimens and there to be provided with an indication
of a short stump (with this is also correlated a similar tendency for
vein between the submarginal cells to be bent at right angles at its
base), with the discal cross vein a little beyond middle of discoidal
cell. Legs with about 3-4 spines on anterior face from middle to
apex and 1 spine on postero-lateral aspect of middle femora; hind
femora with about 6-8 spines below from near base to apex, stouter
vol. xxxiv. 18
262
Annals of the South African Museum.
and longer in $$, the ones nearer base being longer and more slender ;
claws much longer and comparatively more slender in <$<$, curved
from about middle; pulvilli long in $$, reaching and extending
beyond middle of claws, feeble and scarcely visible in $<j>. Hypo-
pygium of <J (text-fig. 68) with the basal parts compact, but not
to such an extent as in obesus, with the lower apical margin of
neck region dilated, the inner apical processes projecting distinctly,
the hairs on dorsum sparse and short; beaked apical joints slightly
elongate, flattened and
depressed above; aede-
agus with the slender
apical part not reaching
the level of inner apical
processes and not visible
from below, hidden by
the basal part of
aedeagus, which is de-
veloped as a ventral
aedeagal process, pro-
jecting downwards and
slightly apically in form
of a central inverted
U-shaped arch, pro-
vided apically with flattened spines and connected laterally with the
rami, which are also produced on each side anteriorly into a pointed
process, the outer side of which is higher and slightly carinate;
lateral struts comparatively short and rod-like, projecting backwards;
basal strut not projecting beyond bases of basal parts.
Types in the Transvaal Museum and some paratypes in the South
African Museum.
Length of body: about 6-11 mm.
Length of wing: about 6-11 mm.
Locality. — N.E. Transvaal: Zoutpansberg Distr. (Breyer, 7 and
8/1916).
Text-fig. 68. — Side view and half of ventral view
of hypopygium of $ Bombylius zoutpansbergianus
n. sp.
2 $$ B. zoutpansbergianus var. occidentalis n.
(Syn = obesus Bezz. in part.)
Two $$, in the South African Museum from "Keimoes, Gordonia
(K. Barnard, July 1925)" and "Upington" (this latter labelled by
Bezzi as obesus and mentioned as coming from "Isipingo" on p. 29,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 263
Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii), agree in every respect with zoutpans-
bergianus except for the following details, mentioned also in the key :
The bristles and bristly hairs on sides of frons, on antennae below,
sides of face and mystax, all the longer bristles on genae, sides of
thorax and along upper parts of mesopleuron black; basal comb
predominantly black and with few yellowish bristles; thorax above
with 3 distinct pale brownish golden stripes; bristles on thorax
slightly more reddish brown and the bristles on abdomen also
distinctly darker, more reddish brown; evanescent spot-like infus-
cations on veins separating posterior cells 2 and 3 and 3 and 4 much
smaller or wanting, and the body is slightly longer, about 12 mm.
This form can scarcely be elevated to specific rank, and I refer it
to a new Western variety occidentalis occurring in the extreme N.W.
Cape Province and Southern Kalahari. The wing-pattern of zout-
pansbergianus resembles that of punctifer Bezz., but the anterior
infuscation is slightly less dark, the ends of second longitudinal vein
and vein between submarginal cells with a distinct spot, apices of
anal and axillary cells with a faint spot and ends of veins separating
posterior cells 2 and 3 and 3 and 4 often with faint spots.
B. spinibarbus Bezz.
(P. 30, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This striking species, described by Bezzi from 2 $$ in the South
African Museum, is represented by both 33 and the as yet undescribed
$$ in the collections before me. The species may be easily recognised
by the following characters : —
Body black, with the greater part of scutellum, the hind margins
of the tergites, broader on sides in both sexes, but apparently broader
on sides of abdomen in 33 and the hind margins of sternites red
or reddish, with antennal joint 1 sometimes also tending to be partly
reddened and even with the sutural parts of pleurae sometimes
reddish; legs entirely yellowish in both sexes, only the apical parts
of tarsi becoming darker and the apical parts of claws blackish;
pubescence dense, long and shaggy on abdomen, that on thorax
above very dense and shorter than on abdomen, that on head dense
and bushy, the stouter and conspicuous bristles well developed on
occiput, antennae below, on face in front and brush-like on lower
parts of genae, the bristly elements on rest of body and especially
on abdomen also prominent, the entire pubescence on body above
and below golden yellowish to deep golden and gleaming golden,
264
Annals of the South African Museum.
that on abdomen in certain lights appearing paler and gleaming
more sericeous yellowish, the dense scaling along anterior and hind
margins of eyes and the pubescence on head below more dull whitish
or creamy, the pubescence on body below scarcely paler yellowish
than on body above, the bristly elements on coxae and pubescence
on sides of venter and sides of abdomen above, especially in $$,
even more ochreous yellowish; wings greyish hyaline posteriorly
and apically, but the costal cell and basal half from end of costal cell
Text-fig.
). — Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of <£
Bombylius spinibarbus Bezz.
across to middle region of anal cell tinged yellowish to ochreous
yellowish, being more subopaque towards base and in costal cell,
with the basal comb yellowish to ochreous yellowish, the veins
yellowish, becoming more brownish in apical part of wings, with
distinct darker and more brownish spot-like indications at base of
third longitudinal vein, on apical cross veins of basal cells, and at
base of vein between submarginal cells, with the discal cross vein a
little beyond middle of discoidal cell, with the first posterior cell
tending to be somewhat acute apically and sometimes with a tendency
for vein between discoidal and third posterior cells to be sharply
bent at its base and there to be provided with an insignificant stump ;
halteres yellowish and with almost whitish knobs. Head with the
eyes in £<$ rather broadly separated above by a space nearly or
quite 2 times as broad as ocellar tubercle, with the interocular space
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 265
on vertex in $$ a little more than 3 times as broad as tubercle;
antennae with joint 1 thickened, incrassate or barrel-shaped, quite
2J times as long as 2, with 2 longer than broad, its upper apical part
slightly projecting, with 3 club-like, thickened and knob-like at base,
then slender and rod-like to apex, the apex itself slightly broadened
and ending in a slender style; proboscis about 4-6J mm. long.
Legs without any bristly hairs on femora below; front femora with
2 or 3 spines in front in some specimens; middle femora with about
3-6 spines in front and about 2 behind; hind ones with about 8-10
longish spines from near base to apex below and a few on outer side
apically, those below sometimes irregularly arranged; tibiae with the
spicules, especially on front and middle ones, rather numerous and
not widely separated; claws gradually curved and with the pulvilli
in $$ extending to about middle of claws, in $$ slightly shorter;
front tarsal joints in $$ hairy but not much thickened. Hypopygium
of <$ (text-fig. 69) with the neck region of basal parts slightly arcuately
broadened along its lower margin; beaked apical joints ovate, their
apices curved downwards and slightly outwards, their upper surfaces
slightly depressed; aedeagus with the apical slender part slightly
curved upwards, the basal part broad and bell-shaped, its basal
rim continuous on each side with ramus from each basal part;
lateral struts slender; basal strut somewhat bat-shaped and elongate.
In the Transvaal and South African Museums.
Length of body: about 8|-13J mm.
Length of wing: about 8J-13 mm.
Locality. — South Western Cape Province.
B. angulosus Bezz.
(P. 31, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This species is so closely related to spinibarbus that a full description
is unnecessary. Compared with spinibarbus it differs as follows : —
Pubescence on the whole distinctly paler yellowish, gleaming much
paler and more pale velvety sericeous yellowish, appearing even
more creamy yellowish in 3$, that on abdomen in $$ especially
becoming distinctly paler yellowish towards apex, the general effects
above in both sexes more resplendent and gleaming pale sericeous
yellowish in certain lights, that on body below distinctly more dull
whitish, more chalky whitish and distinctly contrasting with yellowish
pubescence above, that in metapleural tuft and sides of venter more
distinctly whitish, the bristly elements on coxae are, however, also
266 Annals of the South African Museum.
deep yellowish and contrasting with white pubescence on pleurae
and head below, with distinct tufts of blackish brown or chocolate
brown hair along extreme sides of abdomen (seen from ventral view)
in $$, these however sometimes very sparse or even wanting in some
$$; wings relatively longer, on the whole more extensively tinged
yellowish brownish or reddish brownish, becoming fainter and more
hyaline apically and posteriorly and darker basally, with the same
spot-like, but darker and more distinct, infuscations and in addition
also spot-like infuscations on apical cross vein of discoidal cell, at
base of vein between discoidal and third posterior cells and some-
times even at apex of first posterior cell and with the vein between
discoidal and third posterior cells more constantly bent at right
angles at its base and provided with a more constant and longer
stump; head with antennal joint 1 slightly longer and quite 3, or
even a little more, times as long as 2, with 2 less elongate and more
subglobular and with slender part of 3 apparently slightly longer,
with the proboscis about 3J-6 mm. long. Hypopygium of $ differs
from that of spinibarbus practically only in that the hair on basal
parts is longer and denser and the basal strut slightly broader. The
species is very variable in size, some specimens being quite smallish
and some specimens have even paler and more sericeous whitish
gleaming pubescence.
In the British, Transvaal and South African Museums.
Length of body: about 7J-14 mm.
Length of wing: about 8-15 mm.
Locality. — Nieuwveld Karoo, Karoo and Namaqualand.
13 SS 36 $$ B. minusculus n. sp.
Body, including scutellum, black, with whitish bloom on integu-
ment above; antennal joints 1 and 2 in some specimens, the palps,
basal half or two-thirds of proboscis, extreme sides of abdominal
tergites, very narrow and almost indistinct hind margins of tergites
towards apex, especially in ££, broader and sometimes very broad
hind margins of sternites and the genital segment pallid or yellowish ;
legs pale yellowish to even almost pallid, the bases or basal halves
of femora in some specimens and especially in <$<$ darkened, with
the last 2 or 3 or even 4 tarsal joints dark brownish to black and the
apical halves of claws black, with the spines on legs whitish; pubes-
cence relatively sparse but long and shaggy, especially in $$, where
it is very long and shaggy on occiput, thorax in front, on scutellum
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Dijptera) of Southern Africa. 267
and abdomen, that on front part of body in $$ distinctly much-
shorter than in $$, that on occiput in $£ very shaggy, long and
conspicuous, the pubescence rather coarse and entirely dull snow or
chalky white above and below, without any or a feeble sheen and
tending to be erect on scutellum and abdomen, without any distinct
differentiation into stouter elements such as bristles, but with a
shorter sparse pubescence visible on abdomen and also with distinct
flattened scaling along hind margins of eyes and along sides of genae,
with the individual hairs on body distinctly fimbriate apically, giving
the entire pubescence a " singed off " appearance, with the hairs on
ocellar tubercle and a few on sides of frons in $$ yellowish to brownish,
those on ocellar tubercle in $3 yellowish, the pubescence on face and
genae also not differentiated into stouter and finer elements, but all
the hairs equally coarse and fimbriate apically, with the scaling on
legs cretaceous whitish and dense; wings hyaline, iridescent and
with a feeble milky whitish tint in certain lights especially in costal
cell and at base, where they are subopaquely whitish, rather feebly
developed, the base narrowish, with the alula somewhat reduced
and not very lobate, the axillary lobe also narrowish and not so
arcuately lobate as in other species of Bombylius, with the basal
comb vestigial and represented only by a small tuft of white hairs,
with the veins dark blackish brown, the costal and first longitudinal
veins yellowish or yellowish brown, with the discal cross vein at
about middle, or just before middle or even much before middle,
of discoidal cell, the discoidal cell truncate apically, with the second
longitudinal vein tending to be undulating, with the squamae rather
small, opaquely whitish. Head with the eyes in $$ separated above
by about the width of ocellar tubercle, with the interocular space in
$$ about, or slightly less than, 2 times as broad as broadish tubercle;
antennae with joint 1 visibly thickened to even slightly barrel-shaped,
quite 3 times as long as 2, with joint 3 about as long as, or slightly
longer than, joints 1 and 2 combined, thickened in basal half or
more, broadest just before base, rather rapidly narrowed apically,
the apical part being slender and straight, often pallid at tip and
ending in a relatively long, slender stylar element; proboscis shortish
and about 1-1 J mm. long; palps slender and shortish, visibly 2-
jointed. Legs comparatively slender, without any hairs on femora
below and with only 2 or 3 feeble, separated spines from about middle
to apex on hind ones below; tibiae with the spicules on front and
middle ones very feebly developed or wanting and those on hind
tibiae much less and more sparsely developed than in other species;
268
Annals of the South African Museum.
claws arcuately curved and with, the pulvilli extending to about
middle of claws in S3 and slightly shorter in $$; front tarsal joints
in $£ slightly more hairy than middle ones but scarcely thicker.
Types in the South African Museum and paratypes in the British
Museum and Imperial Institute.
Length of body: about 3-5 J mm.
Length of wing: about 3-5 mm.
Text-fig. 70. — Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of $
Bombylius minusculus n. sp.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Kamieskroon (Mus. Exp., Nov. 1936)
(Types); Bowesdorp (Mus. Exp., Nov. 1931); Nieuwoudtville
(Ogilvie, 18-22/11/31). S.W. Karoo: Ceres, 1500 ft. alt. (Turner,
Dec. 1920).
This species is apparently slightly variable in size and colour
characters, but these differences are negligible except in the case of
a (J in the British Museum which appears to represent a distinct
variety as follows : —
1 <$ B. minusculus var. pallidiventris n.
This single ^-specimen can only represent a variety of minusculus.
It differs from the typical form in the following points: — The entire
abdomen is very pale brownish yellow, slightly more yellowish on
sides, with the hind margins of the segments above broadly ivory
whitish to yellowish, broader laterally and on venter; thorax and
scutellum even more brownish than black; face, antennal joint 1
and front part of frons pallid. Head with antennal joint 1 slightly
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 269
more thickened and joint 3 slightly longer, broadest nearer base,
distinctly more gradually narrowed apically, the apical slender part
distinctly less slender than in the typical form, with the proboscis
slightly longer, about 2 mm. long. Wings distinctly slightly more sub-
opaquely tinted milky whitish, with the veins slightly paler and
more pallid, even the costal veins paler, with the alula and axillary
lobe slightly broader and more normally lobe-like and the wings also
apparently broader. Legs also with about 3 spines on hind femora
below, with the pulvilli a little more evident, extending a little beyond
the middle of claws. Hypopygium of $ of variety (text-fig. 70),
and of the typical form, with the basal parts compact, very broad and
short, somewhat like that of obesus, with the neck region very short,
practically absent, with the dorsum covered with very fine hairs
which are somewhat sparse, with the inner apical angles of basal
parts broad and truncated; beaked apical joints comparatively
very small, insignificant, scarcely depressed above, their apices
slender and bent downwards; aedeagus with the slender rod-like
apical-part slightly extending beyond level of apical angles of basal
parts, with the dorsal basally directed aedeagal struts visibly pro-
jecting on each side of basal strut, with the basal part of aedeagus
broad and bell-shaped and without a ventral process below; lateral
struts narrow and basal strut as shown in figure.
Type of variety in the British Museum.
Length of variety: about 5 J mm.
Length of wing: about 5 mm.
Locality.— S. Karoo: Matjiesfontein (Turner, 6-15/10/1928).
This species, including the variety, is very remarkable in many
respects and ought strictly to be separated from the genus Bombylius
s. str. or at least referred to a subgenus of the latter. The peculiar,
coarse, fimbriate hairs on its body constitute a remarkable character
only developed in another species of a new genus described further on.
The feeble wings with a reduced alula and axillary lobe constitute
still another aberrant character. These insects are feeble fliers and
are usually found hovering over and settling on the warm sand during
the hottest part of the day.
12 $$ 9 $$ B. volucer n. sp.
Body black, with the scutellum almost entirely reddish or reddish
only across hinder part or even entirely black in some specimens,
with the sides of hind margins of tergites more or less broadly reddish
270 Annals of the South African Museum.
in <$£, black in $$ or with only sides of tergite 2 reddish, with the
hind margins of sternites in $$ broadly or sometimes even predomin-
antly yellowish or reddish, the extreme edges being more ivory
whitish, with the yellowish hind margins of sternites in $$ narrower,
with the genital segment also yellowish or reddish yellow to brownish
in both sexes; legs yellowish, the femora almost entirely yellowish
or only darkened at extreme bases in both sexes, but especially in
some 33, in others darkened to near middle and with the apical
parts of tarsi dark brownish and the apical parts of claws black;
pubescence dense, and shaggy shortish on thorax above and more so
in $$ than in $$, that on abdomen longer, recumbent and shaggy
in appearance, that on face dense and bushy as in other species in
this series, the stouter bristly elements long and conspicuous on
antennal joint 1 below, face and genae and in a brush-like tuft on
lower parts of genae, the pubescence above and below on entire
body silvery whitish and gleaming silvery or sericeous whitish, only
that on body below less gleaming, with all the bristly elements on
thorax and across abdomen also entirely white, with the pubescence
on ocellar tubercle and on sides of frons in both sexes yellowish to
brownish, sometimes even darker in $$, with the scaling on legs
white; wings vitreous hyaline, with the base, costal cell, basal part
of marginal cell, basal half of first basal cell, second basal cell, base
of anal cell and alula tinged subopaquely pale yellowish whitish to
yellowish in both sexes, with the parts of veins in this area yellowish,
becoming more brownish to very dark brownish towards apical part
of wings, the base of first longitudinal vein and that of costal vein,
however, also brownish, with distinct and dark spot-like infuscations
at base of third longitudinal vein, on apical cross veins of basal cells,
at bases of veins separating discoidal and third posterior cells and
submarginal cells, on apical cross vein of discoidal cell and to a
variable extent at apex of first posterior cell, with the basal comb
white, with the discal cross vein at about middle, or slightly beyond
middle, of discoidal cell, with a tendency for vein between discoidal
and third posterior cells to be sharply bent at its base and sometimes
provided where with an indication of a stump, with the squamae
opaquely yellowish and fringed with white hair; halteres yellowish
to yellowish brown, with very pale yellowish to almost whitish knobs.
Head with the eyes in $$ separated above on vertex by a space
nearly or quite 2 times as broad as ocellar tubercle, with the interocular
space in $$ on vertex a little more than 3 to about 3J times as broad
as tubercle; frons not depressed in $?; antennae with joint 1 in-
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Afr
271
crassate, sub-barrel-shaped or spindle-shaped, slightly knobbly below
where bristles are inserted, sometimes more so towards apical part
below, with the upper apical part of the joint slightly produced,
quite 4, or even a little more, times as long as 2 along dorsal part,
with 2 produced apically above to a variable extent, with joint 3
subequal to or slightly longer than joints 1 and 2 combined, distinctly
club-shaped, markedly thickened basally and broadest just before base,
then rapidly narrowed apically into a long slender part, which is slightly
Text-fig. 71.
-Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of $
of Bombylius volucer n. sp.
dilated and pallid at apex, the apex ending in a slender style; pro-
boscis about 3-4 mm. long. Legs without any hairs on femora below
and with the front femora unarmed below; middle ones with 2 or
3 spines on antero-lateral aspect; hind femora with about 6-9 slender
spines below from near base to apex; claws gradually arcuately
curved, with the pulvilli in $<$ just about reaching or just falling
short of middle of claws, shorter in $$ and more confined to base;
front tarsal joints in $$ hairy and scarcely much thicker than middle
ones. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 71) with the basal parts fairly
densely, but not long, haired above; beaked apical joints broad in
basal half, leaf-shaped, tapering to a slender beak which is directed
downwards and slightly outwards; aedeagus with the apical slender
272 Annals of the South African Museum.
part projecting very slightly beyond the inner apical angles of basal
parts, broad and bell-shaped basally as in spinibarbus ; lateral struts
slender; basal strut elongate and bat-shaped.
Types in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 7-10 J mm.
Length of wing : about 7-10 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Bowesdorp (Mus. Exp., November
1931) (Types); Garies Distr.; Klip Vlei (Mus. Exp., November
1931).
This species is easily recognised by its entirely gleaming silvery or
sericeous whitish pubescence, in which respect it can only be confused
with leucolasius n. sp. (below) and the various forms of molitor Wied.
From leucolasius it may at once be distinguished by the absence of
a yellowish or brownish tuft at apex of abdomen, the characteristically
club-shaped third antennal joints, longer pulvilli, etc. From molitor
it differs in having club-shaped third antennal joints, incrassate
first antennal joints, a tuft of distinct bristles on lower parts of
genae, more widely separated eyes in 3$, more distinct spots on wings,
longer pulvilli, more recumbent and not fine and erect bottle brush-
like or puff-like pubescence on abdomen, etc. In nature this species
is a very rapid flier. It has the habit of hovering in the air, about
four to seven feet above the ground, producing a very high-pitched
monotonous hum, darting away with almost lightning rapidity to
some other position a little farther away and remaining there station-
ary again while producing this hum. When settling in the warm
sand or on the flowers of Mesembryanthemums it is a very conspicuous
insect.
1 $ 3 $$ B. leucolasius n. sp.
Body black ; scutellum in this <$ also entirely black, but more than
hind half in ?$ ferruginous red; legs with the femora predominantly
black in both sexes, only the extreme apices or knees yellowish
brown, with the tibiae dark or darkish in both sexes, almost entirely
blackish in <$, more dark brownish in $$, or the undersurfaces in $$
may be even yellowish brownish and the upper surfaces blackish,
with the tarsi very dark in $ and sometimes more dark brownish
in $$ but becoming darker apically in both sexes; pubescence very
dense, fluffy and shaggy, especially in <$, long, shaggy and dense on
abdomen, with distinct and longish bristles on first antennal joints
below, on face, genae and lower parts of genae, the latter, however,
not so prominent as in volucer, on occiput, thorax in front, sides of
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 273
thorax, on upper part of mesopleuron, on post-alar calli, across hind
margin of scutellum and across hind margins of abdomen, where
they are very long especially towards apex, with the pubescence
predominantly silvery white above and less gleaming and more
frosty white below, with the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle and
basal part and sides of frons very dark blackish brown or coffee
brownish in both sexes, with the bristles and hair in $ predominantly
white, the bristles on post-alar calli and those towards apex of abdomen
slightly yellowish or appearing more yellowish in certain lights,
and with the hairs at apex of abdomen in £ also yellowish, with
the stoutish bristles on thorax in front and on sides, on post-alar calli
and on scutellum in $$ even distinctly more reddish yellow, those
transversely on sides of abdomen in $$ and especially apically con-
spicuous, dark blackish brown and tipped yellowish and with the
apical tuft of hairs in $$ also dark blackish brown, with the rest of
the pubescence in $$ as in $ silvery whitish, with the scaling on legs
silvery whitish and with the spines and spicules in both sexes very
pale, pallid or very pale yellowish and in some specimens the spicules
on tibiae are almost whitish; wings vitreous hyaline, becoming
milky whitish in basal half, the base, costal cell and alula being more
subopaquely whitish, with basal comb black, but with white scales
above and a tuft of longish white hairs over it, with the veins very
dark blackish brown, becoming black towards apical parts of wings,
with black spot-like infuscations at fork of second and third longi-
tudinal veins, on apical cross veins of basal cells, at base of second
submarginal cell and a very faint one at base of third posterior cell,
with the discal cross vein very much beyond middle of discoidal cell,
with the squamae subopaquely whitish, black-bordered and fringed
with long and dense sericeous white hairs; halteres yellowish brown
to brownish, with very dark blackish brown knobs in both sexes.
Head with the interocular space on vertex in $ broad, at least 1J
times as broad as broad tubercle, about 3 times as broad as tubercle
in $$ ; frons slightly convex in $ and with a slight medial depression
in $$; face broadish, but not projecting, densely covered with hairs
and intermixed bristles; antennae with joint 1 distinctly thickened
and in $ even distinctly incrassate, thickest across middle, about 3,
or a very little more, times as long as 2, with the lower surface of it
in (J knobbly or tubercular, the tubercles bearing long stoutish
bristles, less knobbly in $<j>, with joint 2 slightly longer than broad,
with at least one blackish short bristle above in addition to white
hairs, evident in the $?, with joint 3 slender, elongate, quite 1\ times
274
Annals of the South African Museum.
as long as 1 and 2 combined and more slender in #, relatively shorter
in $$, arising from a broadish base in both sexes, then narrowed,
becoming broader again at about the middle before gradually narrow-
ing to apex, ending in a shortish and feeble style, with the upper
surface showing traces of white scaling; proboscis about 3|-4 mm.
long, rather stoutish; palps short, black and distinctly 2-jointed.
Abdomen in $ with the apical angles of last sternite angularly produced.
Legs with longish hairs on femora below, especially in $, without any
Text-fig. 72.
-Side and ventral views of hypopygium of $ of Bombylius
leucolasius n. sj).
spines on front femora below but with some lateral spines apically
on each side; front and middle femora also narrowed apically;
middle femora in addition to subapical spines with 1 or 2 spines in
front; hind femora with about 10-11 long, slender spines from about
middle to apex in # more or less arranged in two irregular rows, in
$$ with about 5-7 longish spines in a single row; tibiae with the
spicules markedly long; claws slender, long, almost straight, with
the pulvilli wanting in $$, vestigial and scarcely visible at extreme
base of claws in #. Hypopygium of <J (text-fig. 72) with a distinct
and conspicuous lobe-like or tongue-shaped, apically projecting,
ventral process below aedeagus; beaked apical joints slightly
broadened, shaped as shown to right of middle figure and depressed
above.
Types in the South African Museum.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 275
Length of body: about 8-11 mm.
Length of wing : about 7-10 mm.
Locality.— N.W. Karoo: Calvinia (Mus. Exp., Sept. 1936).
This beautifully white-haired species can only be confused with
volucer n. sp., molitor Wied. and its varieties and with minusculus n. sp.
From minusculus it may at once be distinguished by its very much
larger size, non-fimbriate hairs and black legs. From volucer, which
it resembles in the incrassate first antennal joints in $ and broad
interocular space in $, it may be readily distinguished in both sexes
by its almost entirely dark or black legs, black femora at least, non-
club-like third antennal joints, black basal comb, black veins in
wings, a discal cross vein which is very much beyond middle of
discoidal cell, different hypopygium, more reduced pulvilli and
distinctly more produced apical angles of last sternite in $. From
molitor and its varieties it may be distinguished by the broader
interocular space in #, more incrassate first antennal joints, pre-
dominantly black femora and even darker tibiae, much darker and
black veins in wings, the discal cross vein much beyond middle of
discoidal cell, black basal comb, dark blackish brown knobs to halteres
and more angularly produced apical angles of last sternite in $.
B. peringueyi Bezz.
(P. 33, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, PI. I, fig. 6, 1921.)
This and the following two species with their varieties are peculiar
in that the pubescence on abdomen is very dense and fine, standing
up erect, puff-like or bottle brush-like, that on facial region, though
dense and shaggy, has fewer bristles on face in front and on lower
parts of genae. There are no distinct and stout projecting bristles.
The first antennal joints are not markedly incrassate and the third
joints are not club-shaped. The discal cross vein is much before
middle of discoidal cell and the spot-like infuscations on cross veins
and other veins are fewer and less conspicuous and the pulvilli are
almost invisible or wanting in both sexes. In all these characters
these species differ from the previous spinibarbus, angulosus and
volucer-seiies.
This species peringueyi is one of the most beautiful species of
Bombylius and is easily recognised by the fine puff -like pubescence on
the abdomen, which is for the greater part strikingly snow or frosty
white, but that on tergite 1 and at apex of abdomen in $$ and on
tergite 1 and at apex and also on tergites 4 and 5 in $$ deep chocolate
276
Annals of the South African Museum.
brownish, that on thorax above and scutellum in 33 appearing
chocolate brown from above, more gleaming pale golden brownish
from side, that on front part even more gleaming whitish in some
specimens, that on thorax above in ?$ appearing more greyish brown
from above, but from side that in front is more gleaming whitish
and that discally more gleaming fulvous, that on pleurae in 33
fulvous, more brownish on coxae and touched with whitish along
middle, in $$ with distinctly more whitish pubescence on pleurae,
that on facial region and
head below in both sexes
chalky or cretaceous white,
with the bristles on thorax
in front and sides in front of
wings reddish or reddish
brown in both sexes, those
on posterior calli and on
scutellum darker and more
chocolate brownish, those on
occiput yellowish in $$ and
more whitish in 33, those on
face in 33 gleaming whitish,
more yellowish in $$, those
Text-fig. 73.— Side view and half of ventral transversely across hind
view of hypopygium of 3 Bombylius perin- marg i ns f tergites gleaming
gueyi Bezz. ° .
whitish in white-haired parts
and dark brownish or chocolate brownish across tergites with chocolate
coloured pubescence, the bases of individual dark coloured bristles
being, however, yellowish, those on venter whitish in basal part and
yellowish, but brown-tipped, on sides and towards apex; wings
greyish hyaline, but with a faint, but distinct, greyish reddish tinge
in certain lights due to reddish brown veins, the costal cell and base
subopaquely pale yellowish, the basal parts in 33 with even a more
distinct pale yellowish brownish tinge, with very faint and scarcely
perceptible spot-like infuscations at base of third longitudinal vein
and on apical cross veins of basal cells, with the basal comb chocolate
brownish in 33 and sometimes more fulvous brownish in $?, with the
discal cross vein much before middle of discoidal cell, with the
squamae opaquely yellowish brown to yellowish and fringed with
fulvous hairs in 33 and paler, more yellowish hair in $$; halteres
with pale yellowish knobs, sometimes more yellowish brown in 33-
Head with the eyes in 33 separated above by a space a little broader
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 277
than the ocellar tubercle, the interocular space on vertex in $$ quite
3 times as broad as tubercle; antennae with joint 1 slender, quite
3 times as long as 2, appearing slightly longer in <j>$, with joint 3
rod-like, gradually tapering apically, broadest a little before base
and ending apically in a minute stylar element; proboscis about
4-5 mm. long. Legs with the femora darkened in $£ to beyond or
much beyond middle, only basally in $$, the hind ones being pre-
dominantly dark in both sexes, with the tibiae and tarsi predominantly
yellowish in both sexes, with about 2 or 3 spines on inner side and
2 or 3 on outer side apically on front femora ; middle ones with about
2-4 spines in front and some apical spines on sides ; hind femora with
about 8-11 well-developed spines below from near base to apex in
addition to lateral apical spines ; claws slender, almost straight and
in both sexes without any distinctly visible pulvilli ; tibiae with rather
numerous spicules; front tarsal joints in $$ not modified. Hypo-
pygium of $ (text-fig. 73) with the inner apical angles of basal parts
very prominent, rounded apically; beaked apical joints, elongate,
but broadened and leaf -like, acute apically; aedeagus without a
process below.
In the Transvaal and South African Museums.
Length of body: about 10-12 mm.
Length of wing: about 10J-11J mm.
Locality. — Karoo, Namaqualand and Bushmanland.
B. nigripecten Bezz.
(P. 32, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
In addition to the ^-type there are 3 $$ in the South African
Museum. As the $ of this species is still undescribed, the following
supplementary description may be added to Bezzi's description: —
Body in $$ black as on <$, the abdomen above, however, entirely
black and without red on the sides as in <$; legs with the femora
blackened to much beyond middle in both sexes, only the apices
yellowish, the tibiae and tarsi predominantly yellowish, only apical
parts of tarsi darkened and claws predominantly black; pubescence
dense and fine, that on abdomen, as in peringueyi, dense, fine, erect
and puff-like, the bristles on antennae below and on face in front
not very long as in spinibarbus-seiies and without a tuft of bristles on
lower parts of genae, pubescence predominantly gleaming sericeous
or silvery white above on occiput and thorax in both sexes, that on
face, genae, head below, entire pleural parts and base of venter on
vol. xxxiv. 19
278 Annals of the South African Museum.
each side snow or frosty whitish, that on tergites 2, 3 and 6 in $$
conspicuously sericeous white, that on scutellum in both sexes gleaming
pale yellowish brown or fulvous, that across tergite 1 in both sexes
slightly more fulvous brownish, that across tergites 4, 5 and 7 in
$$ pale yellowish, but tipped dark chocolate brownish, with, however,
shortish snow white, erect hair-like scaling across the hind margins
of most of the tergites visible as a sort of undergrowth, with the
pubescence on abdomen in $ more predominantly whitish, only that
across tergite 5 tipped chocolate brownish, the pubescence on ocellar
tubercle and sides of frons basally in both sexes yellowish brownish,
with the bristly elements on antennae below and face in both sexes
gleaming whitish, those on thorax in front and sides, on upper parts
of mesopleuron, post-alar calli and scutellum very pale yellowish or
tinted yellowish in #, deeper golden yellowish to reddish golden in
$?, with the stoutish bristles on abdomen in $ on tergites 3 to 5
yellowish and with their apical halves brownish, those across basal
tergites much paler and tinted pale yellowish and those apically
more whitish, with all the transverse bristles across hind margins of
all the tergites from 2 m $$ chocolate brown, only their bases yellowish,
these bristles longer towards apex of abdomen, with the bristles on
venter also chocolate brown, their bases yellowish and more so in <£,
the scaling on legs dense and gleaming white; wings in £ tinged
rather deeply yellowish brownish up to end of costal cell and across
middle of marginal, first submarginal and first posterior cells, across
apical part of discoidal cell to anal cell, the infuscation, however, not
well marked off but imperceptibly merging into more hyaline apical
and posterior parts, the base of costal cell and base of wings more
subopaquely yellowish brown, the wings more greyish hyaline in $$,
only the base, costal cell, and basal half of first basal cell being more
subopaquely tinged yellowish, with distinct brownish spot-like in-
fuscations at base of third longitudinal vein, on apical cross veins of
basal cells and indistinctly at bases of the veins separating discoidal
and third posterior cells and the 2 submarginal cells and sometimes
even faintly on apical cross vein of discoidal cell, all these infuscations
apparently more distinct in <£, with the veins reddish brown, slightly
darker towards apical part of wings, with the discal cross vein just
before middle of discoidal cell sometimes tending to be even at about
middle, with the basal comb black, with the squamae opaquely
yellowish, dark bordered and fringed with whitish to pale creamy
hairs, including a few brownish bristly elements; halteres yellowish
brown to brownish and with pale yellowish to sometimes slightly
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 279
yellowish brownish knobs. Head with the eyes in S separated above
by the width of ocellar tubercle, the space in $$ about 3J-3J times as
broad as tubercle; antennae with joint 1 slender, not thickened,
quite 4, or even a little more, times as long as 2, with 3 only about
1J times as long as 1 and 2 combined, almost rod-like, the apical
third being more slender; proboscis about 4 mm. long. Legs with
longish hairs on femora below basally, longer in £, without any
visible spines on front
ones below ; middle
femora with about 2
spines in front below
and hind femora with
about 7-9 spines below
from near base to apex;
claws slender, substraight
and with the pulvilli
wanting in both sexes;
front tarsal joints in $$
slightly more hairy than
middle ones but scarcely
thicker, practically un-
modified. Hypopygium
of <$ (text-fig. 74) re-
sembles that oiperingueyi
and molitor in having
comparatively elongate beaked apical joints and prominently
rounded and slightly produced inner apical angles of basal parts;
aedeagus with the slender apical part nearly reaching level of the
inner apical angles of basal parts, with the basal rim, connecting
the rami on each side, sharply and flatly projecting like a ventral
aedeagal process.
In the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 9-10 mm.
Length of wing : about 8f -9 J mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand : Bushmanland.
Text-fig. 74. — Side view and half of ventral view
of hypopygium of $ Bombylius nigripecten Bezz.
3 <$<$ 5 $$ B. nigripecten var. cinctutus n.
From the typical forms of nigripecten this new variety differs in
being smaller, in having the entire abdomen black, without even an
indication of reddish on sides in <$£, with the venter also much darker
280 Annals of the South African Museum.
and only obscurely brownish along middle in gg; scutellum in both
sexes also less extensively reddish, only obscurely dark reddish
discally or towards hind margin; pubescence with the bristles on
sides of thorax darker, deeper or more brownish yellow to even dark
brownish, those on abdomen chocolate brownish but with less of
their bases yellowish and with some discally on tergite 2 yellowish
and not dark brownish, with the hair or bristly hairs on frons,
scutellum, sides of tergite 1 and sides of tergites 4 and 5 slightly
darker and more chocolate brownish than in nigripecten, those on
tergites 4 and 5 distinctly tipped more brownish ; wings less distinctly
tinged yellowish brownish in <$<$, less subopaque, more greyish hyaline,
only slightly subopaque towards base and subopaquely yellowish in
costal cell, the infuscations on cross veins also much less distinct in
(£(J, only the basal 3 and the one at base of vein separating the sub-
marginal cells being perceptible, with the discal cross vein also
tending to be nearer base than middle of discoidal cell. Head with
antennal joint 1 about 4 times as long as 2, with joint 3 slightly more
slender and rod-like than in the typical form and with the interocular
space in $$ sometimes quite 3J times as broad as tubercle ; proboscis
slightly shorter, only about 2-2J mm. long (3-4 mm. in typical
nigripecten). Legs with about 5-7 spines on hand femora below
(7-9 in nigripecten).
Types in the South African Museum, paratypes in the Imperial
Institute of Entomology and in the British Museum.
Length of body : about 7-7 \ mm.
Length of wing: about 6J-7 mm.
Locality. — Nieuwveld Karoo: Victoria W. — Beaufort West. Distr.
(Mus. Staff, Oct. 1935) (Types). C. Karoo: Graaff-Keinet (Ogilvie,
24-27/10/31). S. Karoo: N.E. of Touw's Biver (Turner, 26/10/28).
B. molitor Wied.
(P. 632, Aussereurop. Zweifl. Ins. Dipt, ii, 1830; Bezzi, p. 34, Ann.
S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921; Paramonow, p. 73, Trav. Mus.
Zool. Kiev, No. 11, 1931; as syn. argentifer Walk., p. 276, List.
Dipt. Brit. Mus., part ii, 1849; Bezzi according to specimens
labelled by Bigot, p. 34, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii.)
Wiedemann's description of this species, supplemented by Para-
monow's description of Wiedemann's type $ and other specimens,
shows beyond doubt that Walker's argentifer is a synonym of molitor.
Bezzi (p. 61, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Region, 1924) also
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 281
refers in a footnote to Speiser's contention that the two species are
identical. The species is easily recognisable by its entirely snow
white pubescence and milky whitish tinted wings, only the hair on
ocellar tubercle and base of frons on each side being slightly brownish
in <$$ and the pubescence on tergites 4-7 in some ^-varieties is slightly
yellowish or tipped brownish. The pubescence on abdomen is
characteristic for this series, and is dense, fine, erect and puff-like or
bottle brush-like. The spot-like infuscations in wings at base of
third longitudinal vein and
on apical cross veins of basal
cells are fainter and much
less distinct than in other
white-haired species of Bom-
bylius. The legs have the
femora entirely yellowish or
they may be darkened or
blackened to beyond middle
in both sexes, their apices
and the tibiae and tarsi being
yellowish, with the claws sub-
straight and the pulvilli
wanting in both sexes. The
head has the eyes in $$
separated above by width of
ocellar tubercle, the inter-
ocular space in $$ quite 3 times as broad as ocellar tubercle; antennae
with joint 1 slender, slightly more than 3 times as long as 2, with
3 rod-like and only slightly tapering apically; face and antennae
below with stoutish bristles, but without a brush or tuft of stout
bristles on lower parts of genae; proboscis about 3-4J mm. long,
entirely black. Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 75) is much like that of
nigripecten, but the hair on basal parts is slightly more dense and
longer towards the neck region above; beaked apical joints slightly
shorter and their apices shorter and less sharp ; aedeagus slightly
shorter and its basal part less elongate, the lip-like process below
projecting slightly more and the basal strut slightly narrower and
more rounded posteriorly.
The species appears to be slightly variable especially in the presence
or absence of yellowish pubescence on abdomen or yellowish bristly
elements on body. Some $$ especially differ from the typical and
entirely white-haired $$ in having some yellowish and dark-tipped
Text -fig. 75. — Side view and half of ventral
view of hypopygium of Bombylius molitor
Wied. ( —argentifer Walk.).
282 Annals of the South African Museum.
pubescence at apical part of abdomen and in some specimens especi-
ally on tergites 4 and 5 or 4-7. The wings in some $$ with such
dark hairs also show more distinct and slightly more conspicuous
spot-like infuscations, and in addition to the usual three spots also
faint ones at bases of veins between discoidal and third posterior
cells and the 2 submarginal cells and the basal comb may be slightly
yellowish. The sides of abdominal segments may also be reddish
in such $$ as they may be in some $$, the femora being entirely
yellowish in both sexes. There is also a single $ specimen from
Okahandja in the British Museum which differs from the typical $$
in having the bristles in front of wings on each side, those on post-
alar calli and on scutellum distinctly tinted yellowish, in having the
spines on legs also slightly more yellowish, the extreme sides of
abdomen and venter apically tending to be reddish, etc. The slight
varieties are separated by the essential characters given in the key.
This species can only be confused with minusculus, volucer and
leucolasius. From minusculus it can at once be distinguished by its
much larger size, non-fimbriate and gleaming pubescence, more
slender first antennal joints and absence of pul villi. From volucer
it is distinguished by the slender first antennal joints, the rod-like
and not club-like third antennal joints, the absence of stoutish
bristles on lower parts of genae, the less spotted wings in which discal
cross vein is before middle of discoidal cell and the absence of pul villi.
From leucolasius it may be distinguished by the non-incrassate first
antennal joints, the absence of long bristles on first antennal joints
below, the much paler wing-venation, the fewer and less conspicuous
spots in wings in which the discal cross vein is also before middle,
not very much beyond middle, of discoidal cell, the absence of black
transverse bristles on abdomen in ?$, and the paler or yellowish
tibiae, etc.
In the British and South African Museums.
Length of body: about 7-10 mm.
Length of wing: about 7-10 mm.
Locality. — South Western Cape Province, Karoo, Namaqualand
and South West Africa.
I $ 1 $ B. bezzii n. sp.
(Syn. = molitor Bezz. nee Wied., p. 34, Ann. S. Afr. Mus.,
vol. xviii, 1921.)
These specimens were referred to molitor Wied. by Bezzi. A
careful comparison of these specimens with Wiedemann's description
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 283
of molitor (p. 632, Aussereurop. Zweifl. Ins. Dipt., ii, 1830) shows
that these insects are entirely different. Wiedemann states that his
^-specimen is entirely covered with white hair, has ochreous yellowish
legs and uninfuscated wings, whereas in the above specimens there
are dark bristles across the tergites, tufts of chocolate brownish
hair on sides of abdomen, the entire femora are blackened and the
wings in the $ are tinged yellowish brownish in costal cell and more
or less in the basal half. In view of these differences and other
important characters, I propose to refer these specimens provisionally
to Bombylius and to a separate and distinct species bezzii having the
following characters: —
Body black, with the hind part or half of scutellum reddish brown,
the medial part of sternites reddish brown, more extensive in $,
with the hind margins of sternites ivory whitish, with the apical
parts of third antennal joints yellowish; legs with the femora in
both sexes black, only their apices yellowish, the tibiae and tarsi
yellowish, but the hind tibiae tending to be more brownish yellow
above, the apices of tarsi also slightly more brownish and the greater
part of claws blackish, with the spines and spicules on legs pallid or
very pale yellowish; pubescence on the whole shortish, that on
thorax above, apart from the bristly elements, fine, shortish and
recumbent, sparse discally, that on abdomen denser and slightly
longer in <$ than in $, the bristles on abdomen in $ longer than pub-
escence and apically even longer, the fine hairs towards apex in both
sexes longer than basally, with the pubescence on facial region dense
and predominantly in form of scales or scale-like hairs, the pub-
escence on face relatively shortish, the bristly elements round upper
part of buccal cavity fewer and shorter than in the spinibarbus,
angulosus and volucer -series, and the lower parts of genae with only
hairs and without a brush of stiff bristles, the pubescence on body
predominantly white, dull cretaceous or chalky whitish on face and
head below and on pleurae and sides of abdomen basally, more gleaming
sericeous or silvery whitish above, that basally on tergite 1 tinted
yellowish, that in tuft-like patches on sides of tergites 2 and 3 in $
and 2-4 in $ dark chocolate brownish, slightly paler and more fulvous
in (J, with the fine hairs across hind margins discally on tergites 2-3
in <J pale yellowish brownish, in $ much paler discally and with a
more silvery sheen, the pubescence on venter in $ fulvous brownish,
but much paler in $ and with denser snow whitish pubescence on
each side of venter basally, with the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle
and basal part of frons yellowish in <£, much darker and chocolate
284 Annals of the South African Museum.
brownish in $, with the bristles on thorax in front in $ yellowish or
gleaming pale golden yellowish, those on post-alar calli and scutellum
in c? slightly deeper yellowish, the bristles on occiput, thorax and
scutellum in $ reddish brown and those transversely on all the tergites
in $ dark reddish brown to chocolate brownish, those towards apex
being intermixed with white ones, with the transverse bristles across
tergites 2 and 3 in $ pale yellowish brown and those towards apex
entirely white like rest of pubescence there, with the bristles on
venter very dark chocolate brown in both sexes, with the scaling along
the centre of abdomen above and concentrated in apical part in $ snow
white, visible as a central stripe, with the dense scaling around eyes
chalky whitish, the finer scaling across vertex in $ dull yellowish
brownish, with the dense scaling on legs chalky or cretaceous whitish ;
wings vitreous hyaline, more extensively so in $, with the base,
costal cell and from its end obliquely across to about middle of anal
cell in ^ distinctly tinged subopaquely pale yellowish brownish,
but with only the base, costal cell and more or less basal half of first
basal cell in $ subopaquely yellowish, with the basal comb yellowish
in <$, chocolate brownish in $, with the veins reddish brown, but
paler and more yellowish in infuscated area, the first longitudinal
vein yellowish, with distinct dark brownish spot-like infuscations at
base of third longitudinal vein, on apical cross veins of basal cells,
at bases of veins separating the discoidal and third posterior cells
and submarginal cells, on apical cross vein of discoidal cell and faintly
at apex of first posterior cell, with the discal cross vein very near
base of discoidal cell, making first basal cell only a little longer than
second one, with a tendency for vein between submarginal cells to
be sharply bent at its base and there with an indication of a short
stump, with the squamae opaquely yellowish and fringed with white
hair; halteres yellowish brown or brownish and with pale yellowish
knobs. Head remarkably broad, quite as broad as or even slightly
broader than broadest part of thorax, rotundately rounded in front,
especially in ? ; eyes comparatively large and convex in $, the inter-
ocular space at narrowest part above about as broad as front part
of ocellar tubercle, the upper facets markedly coarser than lower
ones and rather well marked off from finer ones in lower part, with
the eyes smaller in $ and remarkably broadly separated on vertex, the
interocular space being quite 6 J times as broad as tubercle; frons
remarkably broad in £, transverse and convex; facial region very
broad in $ and in $ also relatively broader than in other species of
Bombylius; antennae with joint 1 slender, quite 4 times as long as 2
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 285
and without long and stoutish bristles below as in preceding species,
with 2 only slightly longer than broad, its upper apical part only
slightly prominent, with 3 more or less club-shaped, thickened in
basal half, the apical half being slender, ending in a fine, slender
stylar element; proboscis about 4 mm. long; palps shortish and
slightly clavate apically, separate joints not being visible. Legs
with shortish, but distinct, hairs on femora below basally, apparently
without any spines below on front femora; middle ones with about
3 spines in front; hind ones
with about 5-6 spines below
from just before middle to
apex; claws gradually arcu-
ately curved, the pulvilli in $
just falling short of middle of
claws, confined to base in $.
Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 76)
with the inner apical angles
of basal parts prominently
projecting and the outer
apical angles equally pro-
minent; beaked apical joints
broadened in basal half,
leaf-shaped, tapering apically,
the apical beak turned out-
wards, with a foveate depres-
sion above in basal half of joints; aedeagus with the apex not
reaching level of inner apical parts of basal parts, with the basal half
more or less tumid on each side ; lateral struts slender and rod-like ;
basal strut feebly developed.
Types in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 9-10J mm.
Length of wing: about 9-10 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand (Bushmanland) :
foot, Oct. 1911) (Holotype); Henkries
(Allotype).
This is a very remarkable species of Bombylius and is easily recog-
nised by the very broad head, very broad interocular space in $,
broad facial region, the chocolate brownish transverse bristles across
entire abdomen in $ and across tergites in basal half in $ and tufts
of dark pubescence on sides of abdomen in both sexes and by the
discal cross vein which is nearer base of discoidal cell than in the
Text-fig. 76. — Side view and half of ventral
view of hypopygium of $ Bombylius bezzii
n. sp.
Jakhals Water (Light-
(Lightfoot, Oct. 1911)
286 Annals of the South African Museum.
majority of other species of Bombylius. This species and the following
species anastoechoides n. sp. appear to represent bridging or transi-
tional species between Bombylius and Anastoechus, agreeing with the
former in having the first basal cell not exactly equal to second basal
cell in length and with the latter in having a broad head, broad
interocular space in $, broad frons and the general nature of the
pubescence which is distinctly more like that of Anastoechus. There
is even a superficial resemblance between these species and species
of Anastoechus, such as erinaceus and macrophthalmus . In fact if
characters, such as a remarkably broad head, frons and interocular
space and general nature of pubescence alone be taken as diagnostic
characters of Anastoechus and not the position of the discal cross
vein in wings, both this and the following species ought to be included
in the genus Anastoechus. Both these species are found in a very
interesting ecological environment in which the vegetation is pre-
dominantly or almost entirely composed of succulents, Mesembry-
anthemums and xerophytic plants, usually of small stature, where
there is much aridity and barrenness, high diurnal temperatures,
a low humidity and a very low rainfall.
1 $ B. anastoechoides n. sp.
Black; antennal joint 1 to a large extent especially below, face,
more than hind half of scutellum, the hind margins of tergites on
extreme sides of abdomen below and the hind margins of venter
ferruginous or reddish yellow; legs with the femora black, their
apices yellowish, with the front and middle tibiae predominantly
yellowish, the hind tibiae predominantly dark brownish or blackish,
only the bases slightly more yellowish, with the hind tarsi pre-
dominantly dark, the greater part of front and middle ones yellowish,
only the apical part dark and the claws dark, with the spicules and
spurs on tibiae pallid and the spines on the femora more golden
yellowish; pubescence very dense and shortish, very dense and
Anastoechus-like on facial region, body below and on venter, that on
face, sides of face and genae frosty white and in form of distinct
white bristles on first antennal joints below, on face and genae inter-
mixed with denser scale-like hairs, with the flattened scaling behind
eyes and dense pubescence on head below also frosty white, the
dense woolly pubescence on pleurae, coxae and the pubescence on
venter frosty white, the hairs on occiput, the more or less depressed
ones on thorax in front, sides of thorax, on scutellum and on tergite 1
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 287
also white but distinctly gleaming silvery whitish, the dense erect
hairs on ocellar tubercle and basal part of frons dark cofTee brownish,
with the shortish depressed pubescence on disc of thorax (where not
denuded), especially along sides and also along extreme sides in front
of wings gleaming brownish golden, with the stoutish bristles on
occiput, front part and sides of thorax, on upper part of mesopleuron
in front of wings, the macrochaetal bristles, a few bristles on each
side above wings and the last two bristles on post-alar calli dark
reddish brown, one macrochaetal bristle in front of wing-base and
most of those on post-alar calli, however, white, with the mesopleural
bristles just below wing-base predominantly whitish but with some
pale yellowish intermixed ones, with the metapleural tuft pale
yellowish, with the pubescence on abdomen dense and long, long and
tuft-like apically, predominantly white, but with a tuft of pale
yellowish brown hair and blackish brown bristly hairs on each side
across hind margins of tergites 2 and 3 and a transverse band of
gleaming brownish golden hair-like scaling across hind margins of
tergites 2 and 3, with the stoutish transverse bristles across hind
margins of tergites white, but those on sides of tergites 2 and 3 and
some on sides of 4 dark blackish brown, with the bristles on venter
whitish and with the flattened scaling on legs white; wings with the
well-developed basal comb blackish brown but covered with white
hair-like scaling, with the basal half of wings up to end of costal
cell and across apical cross veins of basal cells to apical part of anal
cell yellowish brownish, becoming more subopaquely whitish towards
base and in costal cell, with the rest of the wings milky whitish, the
milky white occurring broadly along each side of the veins, the
middle parts of the cells thus appearing darker and more greyish,
with the veins blackish brown, becoming more brownish or yellowish
along apical part of costal vein, along first longitudinal vein, at base
and along vein between second basal and anal cells, with faint, but
distinct, spot-like darkish infusions at apex of costal cell, on apical
cross veins of basal cells, at apex of anal cell, at base of third posterior
cell, on apical cross vein of discoidal cell, at base of second sub-
marginal cell and to a lesser extent at end of second longitudinal
vein, with the discal cross vein much before middle of discoidal cell,
the discoidal cell narrowish and truncate apically, with a tendency
for vein between submarginal cells to be rapidly bent down at right
angles at its base to meet the first posterior cell and to be provided
at this bend with a short stump, the alula yellowish brown like basal
half of wing, but fringed with white hairs, with the squamae sub-
288
Annals of the South African Museum.
opaquely pale yellowish, brownish-bordered and fringed with white
hairs which gleam creamy yellowish in certain lights; halteres
yellowish brown, with the cup of knob ivory yellowish, but lower
part of knob more brownish. Head very broad and across eyes
scarcely narrower than across broadest part of thorax, with the eyes
broadly separated above, much broader than the ocellar tubercle,
about 2 times as broad as tubercle, with the upper facets of eyes
only a little coarser than those in lower half; frons large, rapidly
Text-fig. 77. — Side and ventral views of hypopygium of <$ Bombylius
anastoechoides n. sp.
broadening apically; sides of face and upper parts of genae very
broad; face broad and rounded; buccal cavity broad; proboscis
longish and stoutish, about 6 mm. long; palps yellowish, short and
stoutish; antennae with joint 1 shortish, only about 2 times as long
as 2, with 3 constricted ring-like at base, club-shaped, broadest in
slightly less than basal half, then narrow straight and slender to
apex, the terminal style fine and directed upwards. Legs without
any spines below on front femora; middle femora with about 3
spines in apical half in front and 1 small one behind; hind femora
with about 7 spines on outer side below from near base to apex and
1 or 2 on inner side apically, the apical one of which is prominent
and with sometimes 2 subapical spines on outer side above; claws
substraight, only slightly curved, slender, with the pulvilli much
reduced, vestigial and confined to base of claws and scarcely visible.
Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 77) differs from that of bezzii in having
the beaked apical joints differently shaped, the outer apical part
being angularly produced, giving the joint a spanner-like shape,
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 289
and the inner and outer apical angles of basal parts not so produced
as in bezzii.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 10 mm.
Length of wing: about 10J mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Knersvlakte, between Van Rhynsdorp
and Nieuwe Rust (Mus. Exp., Nov. 1936).
Superficially this insect bears a marked resemblance to species of
Anastoechus, from which genus it may, however, be at once dis-
tinguished by the longer first basal cell. Its position in the genus
Bombylius is nevertheless anomalous, and together with bezzii it
appears to be transitional between Bombylius and Anastoechus, and
is provisionally placed in the former. From the $ of bezzii it differs
in having a broader interocular space on vertex, shorter first antennal
joints, in having the basal halves of wings more distinctly yellowish
brown and the apical halves more milky whitish along the veins, in
having distinctly more reduced pulvilli, etc.
The following species, described from Southern Africa, have not
been included in the above key and descriptions, owing to the fact
that they are either not represented in any of the collections before
me or, if represented, have been unwittingly redescribed by me and
other authors, due to the very unsatisfactory and misleading original
descriptions. The descriptions of older authors, such as Walker and
especially Macquart, who described quite a number of Cape species,
are so brief and inadequate that identification of their species is
impossible without an examination of the original types, if these are
still in existence. There is no doubt that many of Macquart's
descriptions of large and bulky Cape species may possibly refer to
some of the more common forms referred to group 3 and which have
been described by Eabricius, Wiedemann, Loew and Bezzi: —
B. albiventris Macq., p. 87, Dipt. Exot. ii, Table VI, fig. 5 and
Table VII, fig. 5, 1840.
B. aurantiacus Macq., p. 89, Dipt. Exot. ii, Table VI, fig. 2 and
Table VII, fig. 5, 1840.
B. bifidus Bezz., p. 61, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian Region,
1924.
B. dimidiatus Macq., p. 90, Dipt. Exot. ii, Table VII, fig. 5,
1840 (? = hypoleucus Wied. or melanurus Lw.).
B. fiaviceps Macq., p. 88, Dipt. Exot. ii, Table VI, fig. 4 and
Table VII, fig. 5, 1840.
290 Annals of the South African Museum.
B.flavus Macq., p. 96, Dipt. Exot. ii, Table VII, fig. 5, 1840.
B. inornatus Walk., p. 278, List. Dipt. Brit. Mus., ii, 1849 (? S.
Africa).
B. ruficeps Macq., p. 88, Dipt. Exot. ii, Table VII, fig. 5, 1840,
B. rufus Macq., p. 91, Dipt. Exot. ii, Table VI, fig. 5 and Table
VII, fig. 3, 1840 {%=eurhinatus Bezz.).
B. simplicipennis Bezz., p. 59, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian
Region, 1924.
B. tinctus Walk., p. 277, List. Dipt. Brit. Mus., ii, 1849 ( ? S. Africa).
Gen. Anastoechus Ost. Sack.
(P. 251, Bull. U.S. Geol. Surv., iii, 1877; Becker, p. 50, Ann. Mus.
Nat. Hung., vol. xiv, pt. i, 1916; Bezzi, p. 46, Ann. S. Afr.
Mus., vol. xviii, 1921 and p. 72, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian
Region, 1924; Paramonow, p. 74, Mem. Acad. d. Sc. de l'Ukraine,
torn, xv, livr. 3, 1930; Engel, p. 287, Die Fliegen. d. Pal. Reg.
Lief., 87 (Bombyliidae), 1935.)
This genus is based on an American species and was first established
by Osten Sacken in 1877. Subsequently Becker and Paramonow
referred certain European and Palaearctic species, originally described
as species of Systoechus or Bombylius, to Anastoechus. Becker
especially recapitulated a list of differences, based on Osten Sacken's
definition, between Systoechus and Anastoechus (loc. cit., 1916).
Wiedemann was the first to describe a South African species, which
is referable to Anastoechus (see under rubricosus (Wied.)). Loew
(p. 188, Dipt. Faun. Siidafr., i, 1860) described a species cervinus as
belonging to Systoechus and Bezzi subsequently described 10 species
from the Ethiopian Region. Together with the new species described
in this paper, there are at least 20 species of this genus known from
Southern Africa and the Ethiopian Region. Whether the African
species are strictly generically identical with the North American
ones, on which the genus is based, is a point which can only be cleared
up by a comparative study of representatives from not only America
but the Palaearctic region as well. Authors, such as Loew and
Becker, were at first not at all sure whether Anastoechus should be
placed as a synonym of Systoechus or not. Becker (loc. cit., 1916)
gave a list of differences between the two genera but also stated that
these differences were not always constant in the Palaearctic forms
at least. The African forms before me are sufficiently distinct in
certain essentials that they may easily be separated from both Bomby-
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 291
lius and Systoechus. From Bombylius this genus may at once be
separated by the position of the discal cross vein in the wing, which
is very near base of discoidal cell, making the first basal cell equal in
length to the second basal cell, by the broad and squat head, which
across the eyes is comparatively broader, as broad or even broader
than broadest part of thorax and which is rotundately rounded in
front, by the very broad interocular space in many $$ and by the
presence of more conspicuous contrasting cretaceous white or chalky
white, woolly or scale-like pubescence on body below and by the more
conspicuous and longer bristles towards apical part of abdomen.
The beaked apical joints of the hypopygium are also more constantly
broad and leaf-shaped, their dorsum foveately hollowed out or
depressed. If the wing character be not taken as an essential differ-
ence it is evident that there are species of Bombylius which cannot
satisfactorily be separated from Anastoechus by the other characters
alone. Under Bombylius I have provisionally placed two species
bezzii and anastoechoides which in most of the characters agree with
Anastoechus, but in the position of the discal cross vein they agree
with some species of Bombylius. They may even be taken as species
transitional between Bombylius and Anastoechus. Strictly speaking
they should be included in Anastoechus but this would entail a modifi-
cation of the generic character relating to the position of the discal
cross vein which is constant in position in all the other known
Ethiopian and Palaearctic species.
From the following genus Systoechus, the genus Anastoechus is
more easily separated. Compared with Systoechus it differs in the
following essentials: — The head is distinctly broader, at least as
broad, or slightly broader than broadest part of thorax, with the
interocular space in $$ usually much broader relative to breadth of
ocellar tubercle, with the frons in $$ convex and without any trans-
verse depression and without a distinct central furrow in $$, these
latter two characters have not been mentioned as differences by
previous authors; legs with the claws more often almost straight or
only feebly or slightly curved, rarely much curved and with the
pulvilli in both sexes never extending beyond middle of claws,
usually confined to base, but in some ^ just falling short of middle
of claws; wings with the discoidal cell usually broader and more
truncate apically, the sides of the cell almost parallel, with the
squamae more distinctly bilobed; pubescence on head below and on
body below always markedly and contrastingly chalky or cretaceous
white. Hypopygium of $g with the aedeagus never falcate or sickle-
292 Annals of the South African Museum.
shaped, its lower part not produced into a sharp keel and never with
a stylet-like or rod-like process on each side below (see text-figs.
78-91).
Gen. Systoechus Lw.
(P. 34, Neue Beitr., iii, 1855; Becker, pp. 50 and 60, Ann. Mus.
Nat. Hung., vol. xiv, pt. i, 1916; Bezzi, p. 36, Ann. S. Afr. Mus.,
vol. xviii, 1921 and p. 62, The Bombyliidae of the Ethiopian
Eegion, 1924; Engel, p. 278, Die Fliegen. d. Pal. Keg. Lief., 87
(Bombyliidae), 1935.)
This genus differs from Bombylius chiefly in having the discal cross
vein nearer base of discoidal cell so that the first basal cell is equal in
length to the second basal cell in all the known species. In other
characters it differs from Bombylius only relatively; the pubescence
on body being relatively shorter, less shaggy or bushy, that on
abdomen on the whole shorter and less shaggy or tuft-like, the trans-
verse bristles less conspicuous and less developed ; f rons in $? always
with a distinct transverse depression and in $$ with a central furrow
developed to a variable extent; claws on the whole more constantly
curved down apically nearer apex and with the claws more constantly
extending beyond middle in both sexes. From Anastoechus it is
separated by the essentials given above and in the key. From both
Bombylius and Anastoechus it differs by the entirely different type
of aedeagus or structures associated with the aedeagus in the hypo-
pygium of the g$. These differences are very characteristic and
very constant in the genus (see text-figs. 92-142). The aedeagus is
either sickle-shaped and with a characteristic flattened keel below
or the eadeagus is normal but has on each side a stylet-like, rod-like,
clavate or even racket-shaped process projecting apically from a
girdle-like or bridge-like basal part which is continuous on each side
with the lateral ramus to each basal part. The beaked apical joints
are usually elongate, narrowish, somewhat laterally compressed and
not foveately depressed above. In the following key the species of
both Anastoechus and Systoechus are dealt with under separate
divisions in the same key, and to make certain that some variable
species will be recognised they sometimes occur in different parts of
the key. The characters of species of Systoechus are so uniform
that even the best of keys are very unsatisfactory, and unless the
couplets are practically descriptive it is almost impossible to separate
species which are very constant and uniform in external characters.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Dipt era) of Southern Africa. 293
The genus Systoechus in Southern Africa is remarkably rich in species,
and some species, such as xerophilus n. sp., acridophagus n. sp. and
icaltoni n. sp., are of economical importance in that their larval
stages feed on the eggs in the egg-packets of the Brown Trek-locust
or Swarm-locust, Locustana pardalina, which has become a serious
problem in this country.
Key to the S. African species of Anastoechus and Systoechus.
A. (B) Head across eyes markedly broad, at least as broad, or slightly broader
than broadest part of thorax, with the interocular space in $$ usually
conspicuously broad, the frons in $9 without a transverse depression
or furrow and without a distinct central furrow in <$$ ; first terminal
joint at apex of antennal joint 3 usually not visible, either minute or
wanting; legs with the spines and spicules, especially on tibiae, entirely
pallid or yellowish, with the claws more often almost straight, only
feebly or slightly curved, rarely distinctly much sickle-shaped and with
the pulvilli always short, either confined to base, basal third or fourth
or in some <$<$ just reaching middle of claws; pubescence on head below
and body below markedly and contrastingly frosty or chalky white;
proboscis without any distinctly visible spinules on labium below;
wings with the discoidal cell very broad apically, truncate, the apical
cross vein always long and usually longer than the discal cross vein
and with the sides of the cell almost parallel; squamae more distinctly
bilobed, the smaller lobe, nearest thorax, being often conspicuous and
comparatively large; hypopygium of $<$ (text-figs. 78-91) with the
beaked apical joints in many species very broad in basal two-thirds,
leaf-shaped, the narrow and pointed beak being very rapidly narrowed
from the broadened part, the dorsum of beaked joints foveately hollowed
out or depressed, with the aedeagus never falcate and the lateral rami
never produced anteriorly on each side of aedeagus into rod-like or stylet-
like processes, but only with or without a ventral forwardly produced
process at base below and continuous with the lateral part
{Anastoechus Ost. Sack.) (p. 347).
1. (36) Pubescence on body not very short, usually long and shaggy in appearance,
often long, that on thorax longer, at least not with a very short closely
cropped-off appearance, that on occiput, head above, antennal joints
and face longer and distinctly more shaggy, more puff-like, not in form
of broadish, short and scale -like hairs, and the bristly hairs and bristles
on abdomen also longer and more recumbent; antennal joint 1 in <$<$
distinctly longer, more than 2 or 2^ times as long as joint 2 and in $$
usually more than 3 times as long as 2; face in front distinctly less
conically produced, more rounded and always with longish hairs, bristly
hairs or even stoutish bristles on face in front and often also on genae;
proboscis usually shorter and not much longer than 5 mm.; wings
with the vein between anal and axillary cells tending to be straighter
for the greater part of its length, with the squamae smaller, less developed
VOL. XXXIV. 20
294 Annals of the South African Museum.
and the fringe more conspicuous, consisting of longer hairs, as long as,
or even much longer than, squamae ...... 2.
2. (23) Antennal joint 3 either club-shaped, the base being equally broadened, or
rod-like, slender, or merely tapering to apex, not more rapidly narrowed
below than above from the broad base to give it a characteristically
curved or slightly humped appearance; pubescence on body markedly
long and shaggy, that on occiput, frons, antennae and especially on face,
sides of face and lower parts of genae shaggy and longish, with numerous
long and often stout curved bristles on face in front and on genae and
with long bristly hairs or distinct bristles on lower parts of genae, the
hair on thorax above with a less obvious cropped-off appearance especially
in 3$; hypopygium of <$<$ (text-figs. 78-84) usually with the beaked
apical joints broad in basal two-thirds, depressed or foveately depressed
dorsally and not deeply sunk in between the outer apical and inner apical
parts of neck region of basal parts . . . . . .3.
3. (6) Wings with more or less the anterior half pale yellowish brown to brownish
yellow up to end, or slightly beyond apex, of marginal cell, with this
infuscation extending posteriorly across base of second submarginal
cell to include greater part of first posterior cell, extreme base of discoidal
cell, into base of fourth posterior cell and basal half of anal cell; pubes-
cence predominantly straw-coloured yellowish, creamy yellowish to
golden yellow above, with the bristles on face, sides of face and lower
parts of genae distinctly more numerous and those on lower parts of
genae markedly developed and stout, with the bases of the brownish or
purplish brown bristles on abdomen more extensively yellowish ; antennal
joint 1 and entire legs pale yellowish to pale reddish yellow, the sides of
abdomen extensively and broadly, even the hind margins, red, even in
$$; interocular space in $$ comparatively narrow, only about 3 times,
or only very slightly more, as broad as ocellar tubercle; hind femora
with more numerous and often irregularly disposed spines below . 4.
4. (5) Larger forms, about 6-14 mm., mostly golden yellow haired, the body less
elongate; red on sides of abdomen and across hind margins more
extensive and broader; wings vitreous hyaline in posterior half, with
the lower apical part or half of first posterior cell and apical half of
anal cell distinctly clear hyaline, without even a faint infuscation along
apical stalk of first posterior cell and along vein between third and fourth
posterior cells, and the apical part of fourth posterior cell is clear hyaline ;
legs with more spines, 7-19, on hind femora below; hypopygium with
longer and denser hairs along dorsal apical part of basal parts
cJ $ deserticolus n. sp. (and
forms of it) (p. 347).
5. (4) Smaller form, about 5^-7 mm., mostly whitish to pale yellowish haired
above, the body more elongate; red on sides of abdomen and across
hind margins more reduced, the red margins towards apex less con-
spicuous; wings darker, the posterior half distinctly more greyish or
cinereous, with a faint infuscation along apical stalk of first posterior
cell and along vein between third and fourth posterior cells, with the
first posterior cell almost entirely infuscated and apical half of anal cell
less clear, the infuscation at apical part of second basal cell, basal half
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 295
of fourth posterior cell and base of third posterior cell more diffused,
almost the entire fourth posterior cell being tinged; legs with apparently
fewer spines, 5-8, on hind femora below; hypopygium of <$ with shorter
and less dense hairs along dorsal apical part of basal parts
<$ $ deserticolus var. coloratus n. (p. 352).
6. (3) Wings not so infuscated, either entirely hyaline, vitreous hyaline or infus-
cated in basal half in $<$ or with a darker yellowish or yellowish basal
and costal part not distinctly dimidiately marked off; pubescence either
frosty or silvery white or sericeous yellowish above or appearing greyish
due to an admixture of brownish bristles, with the bristles on face, sides
of face, though also dense, slightly less numerous, those on lower parts
of genae especially less conspicuous and stout, with the bristles on
abdomen either entirely white or less extensively pale at their bases when
dark; antennal joint 1 dark or black, rarely entirely pallid or yellowish
and when so the hair on body is white; legs usually with the femora
blackened or darkened towards bases or even entirely blackish and if
not black then at least much darker than tibiae; abdomen entirely
black in both sexes or with the red usually confined to sides above in 3$
or it may even be only obscurely visible apically; interocular space
in $$ broader, distinctly very much more than 3 times as broad as
tubercle; hind femora with fewer spines below and these usually in a
single row .......... 7.
7. (14) Pubescence entirely gleaming silvery white or frosty white, only the bristly
hairs on ocellar tubercle, the bristles on frons being dark blackish brown
or deep yellowish, all the bristles on body being silvery whitish; scutellum
entirely black or at least obscure brownish and not distinctly ferruginous
reddish; wings either hyaline and with a milky whitish tint or when with
darker basal hah then at least with the rest more hyaline . . 8.
8. (13) Antennal joint 1 longer, more than 3 or 4 times as long as joint 2 and
with joint 3 subequal to joints 1 and 2 combined and not tending to be
distinctly broadened just before middle; squamae dark or black-bordered
and halteres rarely with yellowish knobs ; abdomen in both sexes entirely
black or dark above; interocular space in $?, in relation to tubercle,
about 4-4J times as broad as tubercle; bristly hairs and bristles on face
in front longer, more conspicuous and more shaggy; hind femora usually
with more than 5 spines below and these nearer together . .9.
9. (12) Interocular space in £$ very much narrower, much less than 2 times as
broad as ocellar tubercle, in ?$ quite 4£ times as broad as tubercle;
wings in <$$, as in $$, entirely hyaline, only the costal cell, base and
first basal cell subopaquely whitish . . . . . .10.
10. (11) Body above entirely black; antennal joints 1 and 2 blackish or at least
very dark blackish brown; frons and face black; wings with the veins
dark brownish to blackish brown; legs with the femora blackened to
near apices; interocular space in <$£ only very slightly broader than
ocellar tubercle; halteres dark brown and with dark knobs; face in
cJcJ, from in front, apparently narrower; hypopygium of <$ (text-
fig. 79, a) c? $ argyrocomus n. sp. (p. 353).
11. (10) Body above dark brownish; antennal joints 1 and 2 yellowish, the third
black but tipped brownish; frons and face, scutellum and pleural parts
296 Annals of the South African Museum.
more reddish brown; wings with the veins more yellowish; legs with the
upper surfaces of the femora brownish; interocular space in <$ about
1^ times as broad as tubercle; halteres yellowish, with ivory whitish
knobs; face from in front much broader . <J nitens n. sp. (p. 355).
12. (9) Interocular space in $$ remarkably broad, at least 2 times as broad as
broadish tubercle, in ?$ only about, or nearly, 4 times as broad as
tubercle; wings in <$$ with a broadish brownish or smoky brownish
band across basal halves of marginal, first submarginal, first posterior,
discoidal and fourth posterior cells, the base of wings being more sub-
opaquely pale yellowish white, in $? hyaline, but with the costal cell,
base and first basal cell slightly pale yellowish white; hypopygium of <$
(text-fig. 80) . . . . $ $ pruinosus n. sp. (p. 356).
13. (8) Antennal joint 1 much shorter, only a little more than 3 times as long as
joint 2 and 3, distinctly much longer than 1 and 2 combined and tending
to be broadest just before middle; squamae yellow-bordered and halteres
with very pale yellowish knobs; abdomen in $$ usually with the hind
margins of last 2 tergites pallid or reddish; interocular space, in relation
to tubercle, nearly or quite 5 times as broad as tubercle; bristly hairs
and bristles on face in front shorter and less shaggily conspicuous; hind
femora usually with only about 4 or 5 separated spines below
$ leucosoma Bezz. (p. 357).
14. (7) Pubescence not entirely gleaming silvery whitish above, some or numerous
dark-tipped, blackish brown or purplish brown or black bristles being
present above, on head above as well as transversely across hind margins
of abdomen and even also on thorax ; scutellum usually with some red
even if only discally ......... 15.
15. (22) Pubescence with the bristles on occiput, some on antennal joint 1, inter-
mixed ones on thorax in front, sides of thorax, on scutellum and those
very densely and conspicuously across hind margins of tergites con-
spicuously dark, blackish brown or purplish black, with the pubescence
on face distinctly more shaggy and with conspicuous bristles on face
and genae; wings distinctly tinged, even if only slightly, subopaquely
greyish mauvish, mauvish brownish and more so in costal and basal parts
in <$<$, or wings may have a dark infuscation in basal half in $<$ and there
may even be indications of spot-like infuscations on cross veins, with the
basal comb dark and veins very dark; pulvilli in <$$ longer, at least
reaching middle of claws . . . . . . . .16.
16. (19) Interocular space in <$<$ broader, at least 1£ times as broad as ocellar
tubercle, in $$ about 4 times as broad as tubercle; antennal joint 3
gradually tapering and not truncated sucker-like at apex; wings in both
sexes distinctly tinged mauvish or smoky mauvish, becoming darker and
more reddish brown or brownish towards base and costal margin, especially
in (?<?> without any distinct indications of spot-like infuscations on cross
veins; pubescence above -without any or with much fewer dark purplish
brown -tipped hairs on thorax, scutellum and transversely behind the
dark transverse bristles on abdomen and with the chalky white flattened
scaling on abdomen absent or less evident; hypopygium of <$<$ (text-figs.
81 and 82) sometimes with long tuft-like hairs on dorsal margins of inner
apical parts of basal parts . . . . . . . .17.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 297
17. (18) Sides of abdomen less broadly or conspicuously reddish in <$<3; pubes-
cence above more gleaming silvery whitish; wings with the darker
basal and costal parts more distinctly reddish bro^.n and the veins more
reddish . . . . . J £ erinaceus Bezz. (p. 358).
18. (17) Sides of abdomen more broadly and more conspicuously reddish in $$;
pubescence above gleaming distinctly more sericeous yellowish to golden
yellowish; wings with the darker basal part more brownish, the reddish
mauve tinge less conspicuous and the veins distinctly darker, more
blackish brown . . . . . <$ $ flavosericatus n. sp. (p. 359).
19. (16) Interocular space in tfg narrower, only about as broad as tubercle, in
$$ remarkably broad, about 6-7 times as broad as tubercle, the head
thus very broad, as broad as, or even broader than, thorax; antennal
joint 3 more slender and rod-like, truncated and sucker-like at apex;
wings in <$<$ with the basal half dark brownish across to fourth posterior
cell, the basal part, however, being more yellowish, in $$ subopaquely
slightly greyish or cinereous, with faint spot-like infuscations indicated
on cross veins; pubescence with numerous and conspicuous dark or
purplish-tipped bristly hairs on front part of thorax, disc of thorax,
on scutellum and transversely across tergites just behind transverse
dark bristles on abdomen and with the chalky white flattened scaling
on abdomen above and sides dense and conspicuous, more or less
arranged transversely; hypopygium of J (text-fig. 83) without such
a tuft of very long hairs on dorsal inner margin of neck region of
basal parts .......... 20.
20. (21) Pubescence with pale brownish golden or dark brownish-tipped, transverse
hairs on practically all the tergites just behind the transverse blackish
bristles, with these transverse bristles longer and very dark on all the
segments but distinctly darker towards apex; scutellum entirely black
or at least very dark and abdomen also entirely dark or black; wings in
$ brownish up to end of costal cell and across to base of third posterior
cell, the basal parts, however, more yellowish across first and second
basal cells and in costal cell, in $ tinged cinereous but darker and more
yellowish in basal part, costal cell, base and in first basal cell and with
the spot-like infuscations on cross veins sometimes very distinct, with the
basal comb in both sexes dark brownish; halteres with whitish knobs;
interocular space in $ a little more than 6 times as broad as tubercle;
hind femora with about 5-8 spines below
<$ $ macrophthahnus Bezz. (p. 361).
21. (20) Pubescence with the pale yellowish brown to fulvous hairs less extensively
developed, more evident transversely across tergites 2, 5, and 6 especially
on sides, with the transverse bristles on abdomen apparently very dark
only posteriorly and laterally from tergites 3-5, the apical ones paler
again; scutellum distinctly ferruginous red on disc and the extreme
sides of abdomen towards apex obscurely reddish; wings in $ apparently
more greyish, tinged slightly yellowish only at base and in costal part
and in first basal cell, with the basal comb more yellowish; halteres
with the knobs more pale reddish brown; interocular space at least
7 times as broad as tubercle ; hind femora with only about 4 spines below
$ eurystephus n. sp. (p. 364).
298 Annals of the South African Museum.
22. (15) Pubescence with the bristles on body above predominantly very pale
creamy yellowish, only the bristles on head above dark and some inter-
mixed transverse bristles towards apex of abdomen dark-tipped, the
latter distinctly less numerous, with the pubescence on face denser,
more woolly, especially in <J, the bristly hairs and bristles on face and
genae poorly developed; wings not dark, but subopaquely greyish
hyaline in both sexes and also having a slight milky tint in certain lights,
with the base and costal parts subopaquely whitish or very pale yellowish
white, the basal comb very pale yellowish, the veins pale yellowish red
and without any indications of spot-like infuscations on cross veins;
pulvilli short and confined to base in both sexes; hypopygium of <$
(text-fig. 84) . . . . . (J $ innocuus Bezz. (p. 365).
23. (2) Antennal joint 3 thickened at base (from side), with the base more broadened
below and the lower margin more distinctly and characteristically
rapidly narrowed towards apex from this broad part, the dorsal margin
thus appearing humped, the joint not distinctly rod-like; pubescence
less shaggy in appearance, shorter, that on face especially, on sides of
face and genae shorter, denser, and distinctly more woolly, the bristles
and bristly hairs on face and genae short and inconspicuous, the hair
on thorax above, especially in <$<$, with a more distinct cropped-off
appearance; hypopygium of <$<$ (text-figs. 85-89) usually with the
beaked apical joints narrower and more slender, not or scarcely depressed
above and usually deeply sunk in between the apical inner and outer
parts of basal parts . . . . . . . . .24.
24. (31) Pulvilli in both sexes confined to base of claws; interocular space in $$
at least 4|-5 times as broad as ocellar tubercle ; wings in both sexes with
a distinct subopacity, either greyish, yellowish to faint yellowish brownish
and in $<$ without a more or less well marked off yellowish brown or
yellowish basal half; pubescence in both sexes always with some, even
if only a few, darkish, blackish brown or purplish black tipped transverse
bristles on abdomen . . . . . . . . .25.
25. (26) Legs with the femora blackened to beyond middle and hind ones almost
entirely black; antennal joint 3 more slender, almost rod-like, only a
little thickened basally, scarcely very distinctly more rapidly narrowed
along lower margin; wings more subopaquely greyish hyaline and with
a more whitish tint, with the basal comb whitish; pubescence above
predominantly very pale creamy whitish or yellowish and with the
bristles on face in front slightly more developed and longer, more evident ;
red on sides of abdomen on the whole less developed even in <$<$
$ $ innocuus Bezz. (p. 365).
26. (25) Legs entirely yellowish; antennal joint 3 distinctly more broadened
towards base, broader below and from there distinctly more rapidly
narrowed apically along lower margin; wings distinctly subopaquely
yellowish to yellowish brownish, with even a faint mauvish tinge, the
basal comb having darker spines; pubescence on body above distinctly
more yellowish, ranging from creamy yellowish to sericeous yellowish
and even deep golden yellowish and with the bristly elements on face in
front inconspicuous and shorter, the pubescence on facial part being
characteristically more woolly and denser even in $$; red on sides of
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 299
abdomen in both sexes more extensively developed and even very-
extensive ........... 27.
27. (30) Wings subopaquely yellowish to pale yellowish brown, having a feeble
mauvish tinge, with the veins not appearing very dark or conspicuous
against the background; pubescence slightly more yellowish and even
deep golden yellowish . . . . . . . .28.
28. (29) Red on sides of abdomen less extensive; pubescence with fewer, or only
a few, dark-tipped transverse bristles across abdomen in $<$ ; interocular
space in <$<$ tending to be a little broader than ocellar tubercle; inter-
ocular space in $$ tending to be slightly narrower, about 4^ times as
broad as tubercle . . . . $ $ phaleratus n. sp. (p. 366).
29. (28) Red on sides of abdomen more extensive and sometimes very much
developed; pubescence in both sexes with more numerous transverse
dark or blackish- tipped bristles on abdomen; interocular space in $c?
tending to be only as broad as tubercle; interocular space in $$
apparently slightly broader, at least 5 times as broad as tubercle
cJ $ phaleratus n. sp. (p. 368).
(Forms of it.)
30. (27) Wings apparently more distinctly subopaquely yellowish, the yellowish
in costal part and base more evident, with the veins appearing very
dark and conspicuous against the background, due to slight pale yellowish
brownish infuscations along their course, especially at the middle;
pubescence more uniformly creamy yellow above
$ phaleratus var. albicerus n. (p. 368).
31. (24) Pulvilli at least reaching middle of claws in <$<$ and even in $$ more
evident at base and even in some $$ also extending to near or to middle
of claws ; interocular space in $$ slightly narrower or very much narrower,
only about 3-4 times as broad as tubercle; wings in $$ clearer and more
hyaline, only the costal and basal parts yellowish or pale yellowish brown,
in known <$$ hyaline, but with a well marked off yellowish brown to
brownish basal half, the base of which is yellowish; pubescence in both
sexes without any black or dark transverse bristles on abdomen . 32.
32. (35) Legs with the femora distinctly blackened to beyond or much beyond
middle; pubescence above paler, predominantly whitish, gleaming
sericeous whitish and only very feebly pale sericeous yellowish on disc
of thorax; interocular space in $ broader, a little more than 4 times
as broad as ocellar tubercle; scutellum with the red much reduced or
even obscure as two maculae . . . . . . .33.
33. (34) Pubescence on body above almost entirely sericeous whitish; wings with
the basal half in <J slightly darker and more brownish; antennal joint 1
scarcely 3 times as long as joint 2 in ^ and about 3 times as long as 2 in $
and with joint 3 slightly longer . ... <J ? sericophorus n. sp. (p. 370).
34. (33) Pubescence above tending to be slightly pale sericeous yellowish on disc
of thorax at least ; wings with the basal half in $ slightly paler and more
yellowish and even faintly yellowish; antennal joint 1 quite 3 times as
long as 2 in c? and with joint 3 apparently slightly shorter
<$ sericophorus var. congruens n. (p. 371).
35. (32) Legs predominantly yellowish and if femora are darkened then only very
obscurely at extreme bases; pubescence above distinctly more yellowish,
300 Annals of the South African Museum.
sericeous yellowish to golden yellowish; interoeular space in $ narrower,
only a little more than 3 times as broad as tubercle; scutellum more
distinctly reddish on hind half ....'$ dolosus n. sp. (p. 372).
36. (1) Pubescence on body above markedly short, fine, with a very distinct
closely cropped or shorn-off appearance, especially on the thorax above
in both sexes, that on occiput, head above, antennal joint 1 and on face
very short in $<$ and in $$ also short and not shaggy, not puff -like,
that on sides of face, face in front and on genae in form of dense, closely
packed or superimposed, short, broadish, flattened, scale-like, pre-
dominantly cretaceous white hairs, that on abdomen above also shorter,
denser and more velvety or matted in appearance, the transverse bristles
being comparatively shorter, denser, and stouter in both sexes; antennal
joint 1 in <$<$ distinctly shorter, only about 1\ times, or even distinctly
less, as long as joint 2 and in $$ a lso shorter and 3, or less, times as long
as 2; face in front distinctly more conically produced and prominent,
bearing some short, stoutish, curved bristles in $$, less distinct in $$,
the lower parts of genae without any long bristly hairs or bristles; pro-
boscis usually longer and more than 5 mm. long; wings with a tendency
for vein between anal and axillary cells to be more undulating, with the
squamae comparatively large, being broad and well developed, its fringe
being much denser and very much shorter than the squamae . 37.
37. (40) Interoeular space in $c? very narrow, at narrowest part very much
narrower than length of antennal joint 1; eyes with the upper facets in
<J<J very coarse and eyes very large; interoeular space in $$ very broad,
very considerably broader than 2 times as long as antennal joints 1 and 2
combined; wings with the uninfuscated parts hyaline or only very
feebly greyish, with the infuscated basal half more demarcated a,nd the
darker middle band in $$ more evident; transverse rows of bristles
across hind margins of abdomen in <$<$ whitish or pale yellowish and the
transverse rows of hairs behind them of the same colour as the rest of
the hair, with the bristles in 9? either whitish or reddish brown, slightly
shorter and less conspicuous, with the transverse hairs behind them
whitish or very pale yellowish, scarcely tipped darker and also less
evident ........... 38.
38. (39) Pubescence on body above paler, more whitish, with that on thorax
above whitish, that on abdomen above distinctly more whitish and not
so yellowish, with the bristles on thorax, scutellum and across hind
margins of abdomen whitish to pale yellowish white in both sexes and
if darkened on abdomen in some $$ without dark- tipped hairs behind
them; antennal joint 1 dark or blackish; hind margins and sides of
abdomen in $$ less extensively red; femora with the extreme bases
and more or less the upper surface of the hind ones blackened; inter-
oeular space in <$<$ narrow, at narrowest part about as broad as front
part of ocellar tubercle, with the upper facets of eyes very coarse; wings
in $<$ apparently more hyaline, with the infuscated part paler and less
evident, the costal cell, base, first and second basal cells, greater part of
anal cell and alula almost subopaquely whitish, with the wing almost
entirely hyaline in $$, the infuscation only faintly indicated along front
margin . . . . . $ $ leucochroicus n. sp. (p. 373).
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Dijptera) of Southern Africa. 301
39. (38) Pubescence above more yellowish to golden, that on thorax and occiput
ochreous yellow to brownish golden, that on abdomen above more creamy
yellow to yellow, with the bristles on thorax and scutellum yellowish in
$(£, reddish yellow to brownish in $$, the transverse bristles on abdomen
in $$ dark brownish black or dark reddish brown and with yellowish
bases, with the transverse hairs behind them distinctly yellowish to
fulvous; antennal joint 1 yellow; hind margins and sides of abdomen
in 9? more broadly red; femora entirely pale ochreous yellow in both
sexes; interocular space in $$ broader, 2 times as broad, about as broad
as ocellar tubercle posteriorly, with the upper facets of eyes distinctly
less coarse ; wings in $<$ with the inf uscated part darker, broader, more
brownish and the costal and basal parts more distinctly subopaquely
yellowish, with the brownish tinged front part in $$ also more distinct
$ $ varipecten Bezz. (p. 376).
40. (37) Interocular space in <$$ broader, at narrowest part at least subequal to
or even longer than length of antennal joint 1 ; eyes with the upper facets
in (J (J only very slightly coarser than lower ones and eyes also smaller;
interocular space in $$ comparatively narrower, not much more than
2 times as long as antennal joints 1 and 2 combined; wings with the
uninfuscated parts also distinctly tinged more subopaquely greyish,
with the infuscated basal half more distinctly merging into rest of wing
and with the darker middle part in <$$ scarcely evident; transverse
bristles on abdomen in <$$ as in $$ dark reddish brown or blackish brown
and with the transverse hairs behind them distinctly yellowish or fulvous
and tipped brownish and with these bands of hair and bristles long and
more conspicuous . . . . . . . . .41.
41. (42) Pubescence above more ochreous yellow and that on abdomen above
distinctly more yellowish, that on body below duller greyish white, with
the mesopleural and metapleural bristles and metapleural tuft straw-
coloured or creamy yellowish, with the hair and bristles on sides of frons
anteriorly, on antennae below and face in front yellowish to ochreous,
with the transverse bristles on abdomen above practically only with
their apices or apical parts reddish brown or brownish, also shorter and
less dense, with the transverse hair behind these less dense and yellowish
brown; antennal joint 1 reddish brown in $$ a t least; reddish hind
margins of abdomen in $$ narrower; wings distinctly duller and more
tinged with greyish, with the brownish infuscated part almost imper-
ceptibly merging into greyish apical part, with the basal comb yellowish
to pale yellowish brown; hind femora with about 9-12 spines below;
hypopygium of $ with the basal strut slightly longer and projecting
much beyond bases of basal parts, with the ventral basal process below
aedeagus more slender and less produced apically
$ $ rubricosus (Wied.) (p. 378).
(Syn. = cervinus Lw.)
42. (41) Pubescence above more yellowish and that on abdomen distinctly more
whitish or white, that on body below more frosty or chalky white, with
the mesopleural and metapleural bristles and the metapleural tuft pure
white, with the hair and bristles on sides of frons in front, on antennae
below and face in front entirely pure white, with the transverse bristles
302 Annals of the South African Museum.
on abdomen almost entirely purplish black and also longer and more
conspicuous, with the transverse rows of hairs behind these denser and
much darker brownish, their tips even darker; antennal joint 1 much
darker in $$; reddish hind margins of abdomen in $$ broader and also
broader on sides; wings more hyaline and only slightly tinged greyish,
with the brownish infuscated basal half more distinctly marked off from
the apical hyaline part, with the basal comb purplish black to black;
hind femora with about 5-9 spines below; hypopygium of <$ with the
basal strut shorter, only slightly projecting posteriorly, with the ventral
basal process below aedeagus broader and more produced apically
$ $ fuscianulatus n. sp. (p. 380).
B. (A) Head across eyes usually less markedly broad, more often narrower than
broadest part of thorax, with the interocular space in $$ in majority of
species distinctly much narrower, the frons in $$ always with a distinct
transverse depression or furrow and in <$£ almost always with a central
furrow even if only indicated posteriorly; first terminal joint at apex of
antennal joint 3 almost always distinct and often comparatively long;
legs with the spines, especially on tibiae, not always pallid or yellowish,
with the claws almost always sickle-shaped, either rapidly curved down-
wards from about middle or more gradually, rarely very slightly curved
downwards, with the pulvilli usually long in both sexes, extending much
beyond middle of claws and more often reaching the bent apices ; pubes-
cence on head below, face, pectoral and pleural regions rarely markedly
contrasting frosty or cretaceous white; proboscis always with spinules
below on labium, sometimes very distinctly visible but often just visible;
wings with the discoidal cell, on the whole, distinctly more acute apically,
with the apical cross vein usually shorter than discal cross vein and,
even if equal or subequal to it, the sides of the cell are, in by far the
greater number of species, more converging towards apex; squamae
distinctly less bilobed, often scarcely bilobed, the smaller lobe being
very small and insignificant, often being only indicated; hypopygium of
<$<$ with the beaked apical joints never markedly broadened basally,
not leaf-shaped, more elongate and narrow, without any or with only
a very feeble and shallow depression above, more gradually narrowed
and attenuated apically, with the aedeagus either falcate (cf. text-figs.
92-142), its ventral part being produced into a thin, lamellate, flattened,
keel-like process and the anterior parts of the lateral ramus from basal
parts simply fused to base of aedeagus to form a sort of ridge or girdle,
or the aedeagus is not falcate but with a movable, stylet-like, clavate,
rod-like or racket-shaped process formed as a continuation of the ramus
on each side from the basal parts in addition to the girdle-like or arch-
like ridge across base through which the penis proper passes
(Systoechus Lw.) (p. 382).
1. (74) All or the majority of the spines or spicules below in the lower outer row
on front and middle tibiae, or at least on the front ones, and also the lower
long and short apical spurs or spines on front and middle tibiae as well
as the spines behind on middle femora, dark or black like rest of the spines
on legs; pallid spines, when present on front tibiae, are minute, incon-
spicuous and present on lower inner row only . . . .2.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 303
2. (7) Claws only gradually or more gradually curved, with the pulvilli in both
sexes shorter, not reaching or just falling short of middle of claws; head
with the eyes in <$$ more broadly separated on vertex and quite 1£ times
as broad as ocellar tubercle, with the proboscis usually long and even
reaching 13 mm., its labial part below with very dense, conspicuous
and relatively long spinules, giving it a coarse and scabrous appearance,
those towards base being denser and more conspicuous and this basal
part itself more conspicuously transversely wrinkled or ridged; pubes-
cence either entirely velvety black or very dark velvety blackish brown
or when not there are 2 broad vertical bands of gleaming fulvous brown
pubescence separating a very characteristic broad band of silvery whitish
hair, from below base of wing to between front and middle coxae, and
another band of silvery white hair at base of venter and tergite 1 and
another anteriorly, extending from below head and propleural parts to
behind eyes; hypopygium of $$ with dense and conspicuous, stoutish,
bristly hairs on apical two-thirds of basal parts; large and bulky species,
about 13-16^ mm. long and with a wing-length of about 14-16 mm. 3.
3. (6) Pubescence on body above and below entirely deep velvety black or very
dark and deep velvety blackish brown; wings tinged smoky blackish,
becoming very dark sooty black or coal black in front half, the veins black,
with the squamae darker, very dark blackish brown or blackish and the
halteres blackish, only the cups pale or whitish; legs entirely black or
dark and with very dark blackish brown or coal black scaling; proboscis
slightly shorter, 7-10 mm. long and with the spinules below tending to be
slightly less coarse; face, head below, pleural parts and in $$ sides of
abdomen darker and more dark brownish or obscurely blackish brown;
hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 92) without a conspicuous ridge on side of
each basal part and with the mane or crest of shortish, bristly hairs on
apical two-thirds of basal parts shorter and less conspicuous, with the
beaked apical joints shorter and less slender and with a distinct and long
rod-like process on each side below aedeagus from the ramus on each
side ............ 4.
4. (5) Pubescence distinctly more deep velvety black or entirely velvety black;
wings with the anterior and basal darker part slightly more extensive;
legs with the scaling more coal black . <J Qfuligineus Lw. (p. 382).
(Western Province form.)
5. (4) Pubescence distinctly more deep velvety blackish brown; wings with the
anterior and basal darker part slightly less extensive; legs with the
scaling tending to be more blackish brown <$ Qfuligineus Lw. (p. 383).
(Karoo and O.F.S. form.)
6. (3) Pubescence on body above in <$<$ predominantly gleaming greyish sericeous,
appearing more velvety sericeous whitish on abdomen above, that on
thorax with whitish gleaming longitudinal stripes, that on thorax in $$
brownish golden or fulvous, separated by 4 more sericeous whitish stripes,
that across base of thorax and on occiput also gleaming greyish sericeous,
that on abdomen above in $$ with fulvous or brownish golden tints, but
with more greyish or whitish sericeous gleams on sides of the tergites,
that on head in front gleaming pale greyish sericeous, the bristly elements
reddish golden to brownish, the pubescence on body below very char-
304 Annals of the South African Museum.
acteristic, in form of 2 broadish perpendicular bands of brownish golden
- or fulvous pubescence separating the contrasting silvery whitish hair on
head below, propectus and behind eyes from a broad perpendicular band
of very conspicuous silvery pubescence extending down from below
base of wings to pectus between front and middle coxae, and from the
silvery white pubescence at base of venter and on tergite 1, with the
bristles on thorax in front of wings reddish, those on post-alar calli more
whitish to very pale reddish yellow, those on abdomen reddish brown in
$$ and reddish brown on sides in <$$, pubescence on venter fulvous or
brownish golden, more so in <$<$; wings tinged reddish or greyish, the
front half darker and more subopaquely reddish brown, the veins reddish
brown to brownish, the squamae opaquely reddish brown and the halteres
with more yellowish or pale yellowish brown knobs; legs pale reddish
brown, the scaling greyish or greyish yellow; proboscis slightly longer,
about 11-13 mm. and with the spinules below more conspicuous and
relatively coarser; face, head below, pleural parts and in <$<$ sides of
abdomen paler and more reddish yellow; hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 93)
with a very conspicuous ridge on each side of each basal part and with
the mane or crest of spines on apical two-thirds of basal parts longer,
denser and more conspicuous, with the beaked apical joints longer and
more slender and without any process on side of aedeagus
$ $ scabrirostris Bezz. (p. 384).
7. (2) Claws more rapidly bent down nearer apex, with the pulvilli longer in both
sexes, reaching, or extending beyond, middle of claws; head with the
eyes in $<$ above either in subcontact, very narrowly separated or if
broadly separated the space is scarcely broader than ocellar tubercle,
with the proboscis usually shorter and if very long not spinulated to the
same extent below, the spinules, when present, less conspicuous and
sometimes scarcely visible; pubescence not entirely velvety black above
and below and without a very characteristic perpendicular band of silvery
white hair on pleurae, which is marked off on each side by a band of
fulvous or golden brown hair from the other silvery white hair on head
below and base of venter, the pubescence on pleurae being uniformly
whitish, yellowish or golden, its whitish elements not vertically well
marked off by brownish golden hair; hypopygium of <$<$ without a very
conspicuous and dense mane or crest of shortish or long bristly hairs on
basal parts, with either a sharp, ventral keel to aedeagus or with a stylet-
like, rod-like or clavate process on each side; smaller and less bulky
species, and if very large and bulky the claws are more rapidly curved
down apically and the eyes are more narrowly separated . .8.
8. (53) Scutellum predominantly red or ferruginous red, or at least with distinct
and extensive red on disc; face, especially in <$<$, usually more conically
prominent and with the pubescence usually less dense, shorter and more
often sparse in both sexes; sides of abdomen in <$$ rarely entirely black
and if black scutellum is red; face yellowish, reddish or brownish, rarely
black 9.
9. (40) Face and genae predominantly pallid, yellowish or reddish brownish and
to a certain extent head below anteriorly is similarly coloured; sides of
abdomen in <$<$ more extensively and broader reddish or reddened . 10.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 305
10. (17) Antennal joint 3 more distinctly club-shaped, its apical half or more
slender and attenuated, comparatively rapidly narrowed from the
broadest part in basal half or near base, the joint relatively longer, its
length to 1 and 2 combined 4 : 3 or 5 : 4 or even more, ending apically
in an inconspicuous, scarcely visible, basal element bearing the style
11.
11. (14) Large and bulky species, about 13-17 mm. long and with a wing-length
of about 16—19 mm.; wings, though tinged cinereous or greyish hyaline,
on the whole less dark, the anterior yellowish brownish, brownish or
reddish brownish infuscation less extensive, less dark, with the second
basal cell, the greater part or entire discoidal cell in both sexes clearer
and more hyaline or greyish hyaline like rest of hinder part of wing;
head with the proboscis very much longer than 6 mm., with the face
longer and longer than combined length of antennal joints 1 and 2;
pubescence on body predominantly paler, gleaming greyish sericeous or
golden yellowish to deep golden, that on sides of abdomen in basal half
even in $$ not deep fulvous brownish or brownish, with the transverse
bristles across hind margins of tergites 1-4 not blackish brown or
darkened and if a few dark ones are present in <$$ they are on
extreme sides, pubescence on body below, along pleurae and basal part
of venter on each side with more whitish or pale elements, that on
disc of thorax tending to show longitudinal stripes of paler gleaming-
elements; legs darker, predominantly blackish or very dark blackish
brown . . . . . . . . . . .12.
12. (13) Pubescence on body paler, very pale greyish white, creamy yellowish,
gleaming more sericeous whitish especially on abdomen in <$<$, that
towards apex and on sides even in $$ sericeous whitish, that along
middle parts of pleurae, on metapleural tuft, on squamae and sides of
venter more extensively and more conspicuously whitish, that on disc
of thorax in <$<$ especially shorter and with a more shorn-off appearance,
the bristles on thorax, scutellum and on abdomen whitish in $<$ and
whitish to very pale sericeous yellowish in $$ and sometimes with a few
darkish ones on sides of abdomen in some <$<$, the bristly elements on
antennal joint 1 predominantly whitish or pale yellowish; interocular
space on vertex in $$ comparatively narrower, as broad as ocellar
tubercle; wings with the dark yellowish brown or brownish anterior
infuscation slightly less extensive and more marked off, the apices of
wings in <$$ more pointed; hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 94)
<$ $ bechuanus Hesse (p. 387).
13. (12) Pubescence on body gleaming golden yellow to deep golden yellow, that
on abdomen in both sexes golden yellowish, though more brassy yellowish
in (JcJ without any sericeous whitish gleams, that on pleurae, in meta-
pleural tuft, on squamae and sides of venter with more yellowish hair,
that on coxae more yellowish or golden, that on sides of abdomen in $$
especially deeper golden, that on disc of thorax, though also short,
distinctly with a less closely cropped appearance, the bristles on thorax,
scutellum and on abdomen golden yellowish to deep golden, the bristly
elements on antennal joint 1 predominantly black; interocular space in
cJcJ slightly broader and slightly broader than tubercle; wings with the
306 Annals of the South African Museum.
more reddish brown anterior infuscation slightly more diffuse, the apices
of wings in <$<$ less pointed; hypopygium of <$ (cf. text-fig. 94)
<? $ goliath Bezz. (p. 390).
14. (11) Smaller and less bulky species, only about 8-13 mm. long and with a wing-
length of about 9-13 mm. ; wings distinctly darker, more deeply tinged
mauvish or reddish brown, much darker in the anterior half, this anterior
darker part more extensive, the second basal cell and the basal and upper
parts of discoidal cell also included in darker part; head with the proboscis
not longer than 6 mm. and even shorter, with the face distinctly shorter
and only about, scarcely longer or even shorter than combined length of
antennal joints 1 and 2; pubescence predominantly deep velvety reddish
brown or fulvous brown to chocolate brownish and, when paler towards
apical part of abdomen, gleaming deeper golden or more brownish golden,
that on sides of abdomen in basal half, especially in $$, deep fulvous
brownish, with the transverse bristles on at least tergites 1-4 darker
reddish brown to chocolate brownish, especially on sides and with the
bristly elements on frons, thorax and scutellum also similarly coloured,
the pubescence on body below predominantly rufous or deep golden
brownish, only the squamal fringe, the upper part of metapleural tuft,
that on head below and on sides of venter basally gleaming more pale
sericeous in certain lights, that on disc of thorax not with very pale
sericeous bands; legs pale reddish brownish to brownish . .15.
15. (16) Pubescence slightly paler, more yellowish brown, that on thorax in front
more yellowish in certain lights, that towards apex of abdomen in both
sexes distinctly paler and even in $$ gleaming more yellowish, that in
squamal fringe and upper parts of metapleural tuft gleaming almost
whitish sericeous in certain lights, that on sides of venter basally with
some pale, almost whitish sericeous elements, with the bristly elements
on body paler, more yellowish brownish or reddish brownish, with only
the transverse bristles across tergites 1-4 dark; legs paler and more pale
reddish brownish or yellowish red; wings with the darker mauvish or
brown anterior half more marked off; antennae with joint 2 more elongate
and distinctly longer than broad, with joint 1 thus relatively shorter and
only about 2 times as long as 2, with 3 relatively longer, distinctly more
slender and longer in apical part . . <$ $ kalaharicus Hesse (p. 392).
16. (15) Pubescence on entire body distinctly darker brownish, dark chocolate
brownish, only that on occiput in certain lights more yellowish, that on
abdomen darker and more chocolate brownish even on sides and apically
there being no pale hair apically, that on pleurae scarcely paler, being
coffee brownish, that in squamal fringe and metapleural tuft and base
of venter distinctly darker and brownish, not gleaming almost sericeous
whitish, with the bristly elements on head, thorax and scutellum darker
and more chocolate brownish and with all the bristles across hind margins
of all the tergites very dark chocolate brown, moreover the pubescence
on abdomen is apparently slightly shorter; legs darker, entirely chocolate
brownish; wings apparently more uniformly tinted mauvish brownish,
the darker front part more imperceptibly passing into less tinged part;
antennae with joint 2 slightly shorter and only a little broader than long,
with joint 1 also relatively a little longer and slightly more than 2 times
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 307
as long as 2, with 3 relatively shorter, the apical part less slender and
shorter ......$ namaquensis n. sp. (p. 394).
(Syn. =fuligineus Bezz. nee Lw.)
17. (10) Antennal joint 3 less distinctly club-shaped, with less than its apical
half slender and there distinctly less slender, usually more gradually
narrowed from broadened basal part, the joint usually relatively shorter,
being subequal to 1 and 2 combined or if longer only a little longer and
if much longer the apical slender part is shorter and thicker, ending
apically in a more distinctly visible or more conspicuous terminal ele-
ment bearing a style ......... 18.
18. (25) Wings distinctly more darkly and more uniformly tinged mauvish brownish
or reddish brownish throughout, the basal part up to end of costal cell
and across to ends of basal cells darker brownish or mauvish brownish,
this darker part distinctly more diffuse and not well marked off from the
less infuscated part; pubescence above, especially in $$, with more
brownish or brownish golden hair or at least with yellowish brown hairs
on disc of thorax and abdomen and if not, wings at least are more uniformly
tinged ........... 19.
19. (20) Larger species, about 9-11 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
10-11 mm.; antennal joint 3 distinctly club-shaped, dilated or knob-like
basally, more than apical half slender, ending apically in a longish terminal
basal element bearing the style; pubescence tending to be pale in both
sexes, that in $$ predominantly gleaming silvery to greyish white above,
that in $$ on disc of thorax slightly tinted yellowish, the fine pubescence
on abdomen in $$ gleaming sericeous or greyish whitish, that on body
below predominantly whitish in both sexes, that on sides of thorax in
front of wings ochreous brownish, that towards apex of venter in $£
also ochreous brownish, the bristly elements on frons, face, sides of thorax
and transversely on all the tergites and on coxae in both sexes dark
reddish brown to brownish; legs dark or blackish brown, with dense
greyish white hair-like scaling . . £ $ fumitinctus n. sp. (p. 442).
(Slight var. of it.)
20. (19) Smaller forms, usually less than 9 mm. long and with a wing-length of
less than 10 mm. ; antennal joint 3, less club-shaped, less rapidly thickened
basally and the apical part less slender and shorter, ending in a much
shorter basal terminal element; pubescence, especially in $$, distinctly
much darker, deeper and more extensively yellowish, pale golden brownish
to chocolate brownish or with more numerous yellowish or brownish
golden elements and if predominantly sericeous whitish in some $3,
antennal joint 3 is not club-like, that on disc of thorax in $$ more
distinctly yellowish or brownish golden, that on abdomen in $$ more
yellowish or brownish and if white in <$<$ antennal joint 3 is not club-like,
that on body below usually less extensively whitish, the bristly elements
on thorax and abdomen especially darker and more numerous and if
pale or not dark antennal joint 3 is not club-like; legs chocolate brownish,
brownish or even yellowish in some $$ or the femora may be darkened
21.
21. (24) Pubescence distinctly darker in $$ at least, more brownish golden to
chocolate brownish, that on body below without or with less whitish
308 Annals of the South African Museum.
elements, the bristly hairs on frons, antennae, face, on thorax, scutellum
and abdomen predominantly very dark brownish, blackish brown or
chocolate brownish; wings on the whole more darkly tinged mauvish
brownish or brownish; face darker and more reddish brown; legs dark
brownish or chocolate brown; antennal joint 3 more rapidly narrowed
apically, the apical part on the whole more slender . . .22.
22. (23) Slightly larger species, about 8£ mm. long, with a wing-length of about
9 mm. ; pubescence predominantly darker, very dark or velvety chocolate
brown, that on abdomen darker and more coffee brownish, that on body
below predominantly chocolate brownish; antennae with joint 1 rela-
tively shorter, about 2^ times as long as 2, with 3 longer than 1 and 2
combined, less rapidly narrowed apically, the apical slender part also
longer; wings with the second longitudinal vein tending to be more
rapidly bent up at its end, with the squamal fringe darker
$ namaquensis n. sp. (p. 394).
(Syn. =fuligineus Bezz. nee Lw.)
23. (22) Slightly smaller species, about 7 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
8 mm.; pubescence slightly paler, gleaming paler golden brownish,
with more golden gleams, that on abdomen gleaming more fulvous
brownish to golden in certain lights, that on body below with more
gleaming greyish sericeous whitish hair along middle of pleurae and base
of venter on each side; antennae with joint 1 relatively longer and
quite 3 times as long as 2, with 3 distinctly shorter, subequal to 1 and 2
combined, more rapidly narrowed apically, the apical slender part more
slender and shorter; wings with the second longitudinal vein tending to
be more gradually curved up at its end, with the squamal fringe and
metapleural tuft paler and more yellowish . $ badius n. sp. (p. 398).
24. (21) Pubescence in both sexes very much paler, predominantly gleaming
sericeous whitish in $$, that on abdomen even appearing more silvery,
that on body above in $$ sericeous yellowish to gleaming golden yellowish,
that on body below in both sexes more extensively gleaming greyish
or sericeous whitish, even the coxal bristles pale, the hair in front of wings
and in <$<$ towards apex of venter ochreous, the bristly elements on
frons, thorax and across all the tergites in $$ reddish brownish to brown,
those on thorax, scutellum and on entire abdomen in $<$ sericeous
whitish, those on face and genae in both sexes pale yellowish sericeous
or yellowish, not dark; wings on the whole slightly less darkly tinged
and with a slight tendency for the anterior and basal darker part to be
more distinctly marked off; face much paler, pale reddish yellow or
yellowish; legs entirely or predominantly yellowish in $$, but the femora
blackened or darkened, sometimes to beyond middle in <$$; antennal
joint 3 only gradually narrowed apically; hypopygium of (J (text-
fig. 96) c? 9 aberrans n. sp. (p. 395).
25. (18) Wings either greyish hyaline for the greater part or distinctly less tinged,
only infuscated yellowish brown, brownish or reddish in basal and costal
parts or more distinctly and more darkly tinged coffee brown or mauvish
brown in basal part up to end of basal cells and across to end of costal
cell and in costal cell, this infuscation, however, distinctly delimited and
well marked off from the more hyaline part even in $$; pubescence
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 309
above, even in $$, distinctly paler, predominantly whitish, straw-coloured
yellowish, yellowish to golden yellow and, if darker or more fulvous,
then wings have a well marked off basal infuscation . . .26.
26. (35) Wings infuscated coffee brown, reddish brown to mauvish brown in
anterior basal half in costal cell and basal part up to end of basal cells
and across to end of costal cell, the greater part of second basal cell
and basal parts of anal and axillary cells not being clearer and less
infuscated than the dark basal parts, with the apical cross veins of
basal cells more distinctly infuscated; face and genae predominantly
paler, pallid, pale yellowish to very pale reddish yellow or yellowish
brown ........... 27.
27. (32) Pubescence above in both sexes markedly short and especially in <$<$
with a short cropped or shorn-off appearance on thorax, with the bristly
hairs and bristles on head and especially on face less dense, shorter,
poorly developed and not long and stoutish or stiff, that on genae not
conspicuously extending down into the furrow between eyes and buccal
cavity, with the pubescence on abdomen in <$<$ more pelt-like, the bristles
much shorter ; legs more darkened and femora in $$ extensively darkened
or blackened to beyond middle or even entirely and even in $$ with
certain surfaces darkened or covered with blackish scaling; antennae
with joint 1 distinctly shorter, only a little more, or distinctly much
shorter, than 3 times as long as joint 2, with joint 3 comparatively
stouter, subrod-like or gradually narrowed to apex in <$<$, more broadened
basally in $$ than in <$<$; proboscis with the spinules below distinctly
visible and denser ......... 28.
28. (31) Pubescence predominantly pale creamy yellowish or whitish to golden
yellowish, that on apex of abdomen in <$$ paler and more creamy whitish,
with the hair in front of wings on each side distinctly deeper yellowish
or more fulvous to deep golden, with the bristles in front of wings,
on scutellum and on abdomen whitish, straw-coloured yellowish to pale
golden, only a few blackish ones being present on sides of tergites 4 and
5 in <$($ and some laterally also on sides of 5-7 in $$, with the coxal
bristles even in $$ straw-coloured yellowish to golden, with the hairs
on antennae above yellowish; wings with the infuscated part slightly
paler and more coffee brownish or yellowish brown, with the veins paler
brownish; proboscis with the spinules below distinctly denser and more
hair-like, visible; palps paler and more brownish .... 29.
29. (30) Pale creamy whitish, creamy yellowish to pale yellowish-haired forms,
the <$<$ being slightly paler, the pubescence on abdomen above being-
more straw-coloured whitish, paler in <$<$; proboscis usually longer
than 6 mm.; wings with the basal infuscation coffee brown; antennal
joints 1 and 2 in $$ almost black; bristles on frons and face dark blackish
brown to black; hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 97)
<J $ albidus Lw. (p. 398).
30. (29) Distinctly golden yeUow-haired form, in $ at least, with golden sheen,
the pubescence on sides of thorax in front of wings even more orange
golden or fulvous, that on abdomen above more or less uniformly golden,
the hair on pectoral region and coxae not creamy or sericeous but pale
golden yellow, the transverse bristles on abdomen more golden or
VOL. XXXIV. 21
310 Annals of the South African Museum.
brownish yellow; proboscis about 6 mm. long; wings with the basal
infuscation paler and more yellowish brown; antennal joints 1 and 2
distinctly darker, dark reddish brown; bristles on frons and face also
more reddish brown . . . $ albidus var. auripilus n. (p. 401).
31. (28) Pubescence predominantly white or silvery white, appearing greyish
from above, that on disc of thorax in $$ slightly yellowish or pale
brownish, with the hair on abdomen above silvery whitish in both sexes,
more apparent in $<$, those across hind margin of tergite 2 with a slight
yellowish tint and also along extreme sides towards apex in some $$,
with the hair in front of wings entirely white, only the numerous bristles
there in $$ being brownish to dark brown, with the hair on body below
also more silvery whitish, but also with ochreous or fulvous brown ones
near apex of venter in $$ especially, with the bristles on sides of thorax,
on posterior calli, scutellum and transversely across all the abdominal
segments as well as intermixed bristles on coxae and a few on each side
of propleurae in front of front coxae dark golden brown to black in $$,
those on thorax more golden brown, with the thoracic and scutellar
bristles and almost all those on abdomen in $$ whitish, only some
on sides of tergites 4 and 5 being blackish or black, with the hairs on
antennae above dark or blackish; wings with the infuscated part dis-
tinctly darker and more mauvish brown, with the veins also darker
brownish; proboscis with the spinules below less distinctly visible and
only so near base; palps more blackish brown
cJ $ polioleucus n. sp. (p. 401).
32. (27) Pubescence above distinctly longer and more shaggy even in $$, slightly
more recumbent, without a very striking cropped or shorn-off appearance
on thorax, with the bristles on face and genae longer, denser and more
conspicuously developed, sometimes markedly stout, rigid, stiff and
brush-like, well developed and conspicuous even in the furrow separating
eyes from buccal cavity, with the pubescence on abdomen not pelt -like
but distinctly longer, more shaggy and more recumbent, the bristles
being also longer; legs much paler yeUowish, the femora entirely yellow
or only slightly darkened along upper surfaces; antennae with joint 1
distinctly longer, quite 3, or even considerably more than 3, times as
long as 2, with joint 3 more rapidly attenuated apically from broad
basal half, the apical part or third being comparatively more slender or
very slender; proboscis with the spinules below almost indiscernible,
very minute and less dense . . . . . . .33.
33. (34) Wings with the costal and basal dark brownish or mauvish brown in-
fuscation more extensive and diffuse, extending into basal parts of first
posterior and discoidal cells and into basal half of anal cell and less
delimited from greyish hyaline part ; pubescence longer and more shaggy,
with the bristles in front of wings dark reddish brown and the hairs there
fulvous or brownish golden, with the transverse bristles laterally on
abdominal segments 3-5 at least with distinct stouter blackish brown or
black bristles, with the bristles on face in front and sides distinctly denser
and with only a few or without any yellowish intermixed ones, with well-
developed pubescent hairs on femora below basally; antennal joint 1
longer and much longer than 4 times as long as joint 2; sides of abdomen
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 311
less extensively red, the red not extending much dorsally; spines on
hind femora below comparatively long and slender
3 tumidifrons Bezz. (p. 414).
34. (33) Wings with the costal and basal coffee brownish infusoation less extensive
and less diffuse, distinctly delimited from clear part, the infusoation
ceasing at apical cross veins of first and second basal cells, which veins
also show a much more distinct darkish infusoation, with the bases of
first posterior and discoidal cells and even basal part of anal cell clear;
pubescence slightly shorter, with the bristles in front of wing bases pale
yellowish and the hairs there only a little more yellowish than the creamy
yellowish ones on disc, with the transverse bristles on abdomen above
entirely creamy yellowish, without any blackish ones, with the bristles
on face and sides of face less dense and less numerous and with numerous
yellowish ones intermixed, with the pubescent hairs at bases of femora
below less developed; antennal joint 1 much shorter, only about 4 times
as long as 2; sides of abdomen more extensively reddened, the red
extending considerably dorsally; spines on hind femora below much
shorter ...... <$ rhodesianus n. sp. (p. 414).
35. (26) Wings more uniformly subopaquely greyish hyaline, only the extreme
base, costal cell and first basal cell being tinged yellowish or pale yellowish
brown, the entire second basal cell, anal and axillary cells being greyish
hyaline like rest of wing, with the apical cross veins of first and second
basal cells not or scarcely showing any distinct inf uscations ; face,
genae or face at least duller and darker or more obscure reddish brown
and often so only anteriorly or on sides ..... 36.
36. (39) Larger species, longer than 6£ mm. and with a wing-length longer than
7 mm.; pubescence comparatively short, especially on thorax, showing
a closely cropped or shorn-off appearance, more distinct in <$<$, with that
on body below markedly or more strikingly white or whitish, with the
transverse bristles on abdomen above in both sexes predominantly or
entirely very dark blackish brown or black, with those on thorax in
some <$<$ also darker reddish or golden brownish; wings with the basal
comb strongly developed; legs with more numerous, more than 5, spines
on hind femora below, with a tendency for some of the apical spicules in
lower outer row on front and middle tibiae to be pallid or yellowish,
with the claws tending to be less sharply bent downwards apically;
interocular space in $<$ very narrow, at narrowest part about as broad
as, or only a very little broader than, front ocellus, the eyes somewhat
flattened above and the upper facets very coarse; antennal joint 3 more
slender, gradually tapering from a broadened base . . .37.
37. (38) Pubescence above in £, when viewed from side, more silvery white, with
the hair on disc of thorax, the hair and bristles in front of wings, bristles
on posterior calli and scutellum in 3 P a l e reddish brown to brownish,
that on head below and body below more uniformly silvery white, with
the coxal bristles also silvery white, the hair on abdomen above more
pale fulvous, those transversely across hind margins more silvery whitish
in certain lights, with the bristly hairs and bristles on frons and face
dark reddish brown; legs entirely pale ochreous yellow, with whitish
scaling, with the front femora unarmed or with only a feeble spine behind ;
312 Annals of the South African Museum.
face and head below paler brownish and antennal joints 1 and 2 more
distinctly dark brownish or reddish brown
(J spinithorax Bezz. (p. 406).
38. (37) Pubescence above, when viewed from side, duller and more straw-coloured
yellowish in $<$ and more uniformly yellowish to pale golden yellowish
in $$, the hair on disc of thorax, bristly hairs and bristles in front of
wings, on posterior calli and scutellum pale straw-coloured yellowish in
cJcJ and slightly deeper yellowish in $$, with that on head below, pleural
and pectoral regions and sides of venter frosty or chalky white, con-
trasting markedly with that above, with the coxal bristles straw-coloured
yellowish, with the hair on abdomen above paler and more straw-coloured
yellowish to very pale yellowish in $<$ and more uniformly yellowish in
$$, those transversely across segments scarcely paler in $<$ and entirely
yellowish in $$, with the bristly hairs and bristles on frons and face black
in both sexes; legs more brownish yellow, with the femora blackened
basally in $$, with black scaling on front faces in addition to the whitish
scaling and with often 2-3 distinct spines in front and behind on front
femora ; face and head below almost entirely black or very dark brownish
and antennal joints 1 and 2 black in both sexes
Certain forms of albipectus n. sp. (p. 486).
39. (36) Small species, about 5|— 6£ mm. long, with a wing-length of about
6-7 mm.; pubescence on body above distinctly longer and more
recumbent, not with 8. very distinct shorn-off appearance on thorax,
entirely very pale yellowish or straw-coloured yellowish, only the apical
part of abdomen in some $? being slightly more yellowish, with all
the bristles on thorax and abdomen entirely yellowish like rest of hair,
only the bristly hairs on head above, some intermixed on face and a few
inconspicuous ones on sides of abdomen in <$ blackish, with the hair
on body below scarcely paler than that above and not frosty white or
silvery; wings with the basal comb poorly developed; legs with only
about 5 spines on hind femora below, with the apical parts of claws more
sharply curved downwards, with all the spicules in lower outer row on
front and middle tibiae black; interocular space in (J broader and dis-
tinctly much broader than front ocellus, the eyes not flattened above
and the upper facets not markedly coarser than lower ones; antennal
joint 3 much shorter, about as long as 1 and 2 combined, more rapidly
narrowed from a comparatively broader base
$ $ transvaalensis n. sp. (p. 417).
40. (9) Face, head below and also, to a certain extent, the genae predominantly
or entirely very dark or black; sides of abdomen in <$<$ entirely black
or at least distinctly less extensively reddened . . . .41.
41. (42) Wings with an anterior well marked off or delimited coffee brown in-
fuscation in costal cell and at base, extending up to apices of basal cells
and across to end of costal cell, the second basal cell and basal parts of
anal and axillary cells being as darkly infuscated as costal and basal
parts, the rest of wings greyish hyaline; pubescence predominantly
silvery whitish in both sexes, only the venter apically and along sides
slightly yellowish, with 3 distinct, strong, black macrochaetae on each
side in front of wing-bases, with the transverse bristles on abdomen in
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 313
$$ entirely or predominantly black, whitish in $$, only a few or some
dark or blackish ones being present on sides of segments 4 and 5 in £<$;
abdomen in £$ entirely black on sides, and scutellum in $$ also tending
to be blackish or even entirely black; legs with the femora entirely
black in both sexes or at least in $$ also much darkened, with the tibiae
dark brownish or brownish yellow . $ $ neglectus n. sp. (p. 404).
42. (41) Wings either almost entirely subopaquely greyish hyaline, the costal
cell and base alone being tinged yellowish or pale yellowish brown or
the wings are more diffusely tinged faintly mauvish brown or faintly
cinereous, becoming darker towards base and in costal cell, but without
a distinctly and sharply delimited basal and costal infuscation and with
the greater part of the second basal and even anal and axillary cells
distinctly clearer than costal and basal parts ; pubescence silvery whitish,
straw-coloured yellowish, golden yellowish to deep golden and, when
silvery whitish, always with numerous black bristles on thorax in front
of wing-bases or with those on abdomen, even in $<$, with more numerous
or predominantly black ones; abdomen in $$ usually with some red
on sides and, if not, then all the bristles are at least dark or black, with
the scutellum either entirely red or sometimes also obscurely reddish
discally; legs with the femora less extensively darkened or entirely
yellowish in $<$, predominantly yellow also in $$, rarely entirely darkened
and, if so, then tibiae are also black and thorax has more numerous
black bristles .......... 43.
43. (52) Pubescence on body not predominantly silvery whitish above and below
in both sexes and, if silvery whitish in <J<£, then at least with some
yellowish hair in front of wings or on sides of abdomen and venter, with
the stoutish bristles on thorax, scutellum and transversely across abdomen
not all entirely black in $£; legs in $$ not entirely black; sides of
abdomen in $$ always with some red or reddish; face tending to be
more conically prominent; interocular space in known $$ narrower,
distinctly much less than 5 times as broad as ocellar tubercle ; wings not
tinged cinereous and without an almost sooty blackish or blackish brown
infuscation towards base especially in $$ . . . . 44.
44. (49) Pubescence with the hair on pleural regions, metapleural tuft and sides
of venter straw-coloured yellowish, yellowish or sericeous yellowish, not
markedly contrasting with that on body above or very gleaming silvery
whitish, with the transverse bristles on abdomen entirely straw-coloured
yellowish or yellow like rest of hair or pale reddish, reddish yellow to
reddish brown and not black; antennal joint 3, especially in $$, markedly
thickened basally in basal third and then very or more rapidly narrowed
along lower or inner side, thus producing a more distinct angular or sub-
angular prominence; sides of abdomen in known $<$ more distinctly
and more broadly red, the venter paler reddish; legs with the pubescent
hairs on femora below in $<$ poorly developed or absent . . 45.
45. (48) Larger species, about 8-10 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
8-10 mm.; pubescence on body predominantly deep yellowish, chrome
yellowish to deep golden yellow, often with marked golden or sericeous
gleams, distinctly shorter and with a cropped or shorn-off appearance
even in $$, with the blackish bristly hairs on face in front in both sexes
314 Annals of the South African Museum.
tending to be denser and stiffer and more brush-like; proboscis longer,
about 4-5 mm. long and with the minute spinules below more visible;
wings either entirely faintly tinged mauvish or at least with the base,
costal cell and first basal cell distinctly darker brownish, with the basal
comb distinctly larger and more developed; antennal joint 3 distinctly
much longer than 1 and 2 combined; legs with the femora in $<$ more
extensively darkened even to beyond middle and in $$ a l so often ex-
tensively darkened along front surfaces by black hair-like scaling, with
the tibiae also darkened by black scaling and hind femora with more
than 4 or 5 spines below ........ 46.
46. (47) Wings slightly longer in relation to body, distinctly, though faintly,
tinged mauvish, with the costal cell, base, first basal cell, basal part of
second basal cell and even extreme base of anal cell darker mauvish
brown; pubescence on body above often more gleaming golden yellow
or sericeous yellow, with that on pleural parts only slightly paler yellowish
than above, with at least some or all the transverse bristles, especially
on sides, of abdomen pale reddish yellow, reddish to reddish brown;
legs with the femora in $$ only blackened or darkened towards base,
the greater part of hind ones being yellowish and in $ only darkened by
blackish scaling along upper or front surfaces; slightly smaller form,
about 8-10 mm. long, with a wing-length of about 8-10 mm. ; hypopygium
of <$ (text-fig. 101) . . . . (J $ bombycinus n. sp. (p. 407).
47. (46) Wings slightly shorter in relation to body, more greyish hyaline, only
the base, costal cell, first basal cell and extreme bases of second basal and
anal cells brownish; pubescence above with the golden yellow hair
slightly duller and less gleaming, with that on pleurae, across middle,
slightly duller and distinctly paler and more straw-coloured whitish or
whitish in certain lights, with all the transverse bristles on abdomen
entirely yellow like rest of hair in both sexes, the hair towards apex of
venter in $, however, slightly more brownish; legs with all the femora
in $ blackened to much beyond middle, with the bases of front ones in
$ and the upper surfaces of the others also darkened with the tibiae in
the <$, especially hind ones, also more darkened; slightly larger form,
about 9-10 mm. long, with a wing-length of about 8^—9 mm. ; hypopygium
of $ (text-fig. 102) . . cJ $ bombycinus var. bedfordi n. (p. 410).
48. (45) Smaller species, about 5^-6^ mm. long, with a wing-length of about
6-7 mm.; pubescence on body, including all the bristles (excepting
only a few inconspicuous dark or blackish intermixed ones on sides of
abdomen in <$ and on head above in both sexes) much paler, straw-
coloured yellowish or whitish, only slightly yellowish at apex of abdomen
in some $?, distinctly duller, slightly longer and more recumbent and
without a marked shorn-off appearance, with the blackish brown bristly
hairs on face less dense and distinctly less stiff; proboscis shorter, less
than 4 or 5 mm. long, with the spinules below almost invisible; wings
greyish hyaline and with the costal cell and basal parts paler and more
yellowish, pale yellowish brown, with the basal comb distinctly smaller
and poorly developed; antennal joint 3 shorter, only a very little or
scarcely longer than 1 and 2 combined; legs more uniformly yellowish,
only the basal half of front femora and extreme bases of the others
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 315
darkened, not blackened along upper surfaces, the tibiae on the whole
distinctly more yellowish and the hind femora with only about 4 or 5
spines below . . . . g $ transvaalensis n. sp. (p. 417).
49. (44) Pubescence with the hair on pleural regions, metapleural tuft and sides
of venter markedly frosty white or gleaming silvery whitish, thus either
markedly contrasting with pubescence above or more conspicuously
silvery, with the transverse bristles on abdomen in both sexes distinctly
darker, very dark blackish brown or black and also more conspicuous;
antennal joint 3 not markedly thickened in basal third to form a sub-
angular or angular prominence on lower side; sides of abdomen in <$<$
almost entirely black or much more indistinctly reddened, the venter
also darker; legs with the pubescent hairs on femora below basally in
cJcT more evident ......... 50.
50. (51) Smaller species, about 5^-7 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
5|— 7 mm.; pubescence on body sericeous whitish on thorax, more
yellowish in front of wings and on disc, more gleaming yellowish on
abdomen above especially on sides, with more distinctly pale sericeous
yellowish hair on venter laterally and more ochreous ones in <$ towards
apex, with silvery whitish hair on pleurae and sides of venter and upper
part of metapleural tuft being more gleaming sericeous yellowish, with
the bristles in front of wings, on scutellum and transversely on abdomen
in both sexes black; wings greyish hyaline, the costal cell, base, first
basal cell and to a certain extent the second basal cell distinctly darker
and more brownish, with the basal comb smaller; scutellum tending to
be entirely black in $ and often with an obscure reddish tint discally in
$; sides of abdomen in $ scarcely obscure reddish; interocular space in
$ broader, about as broad as ocellar tubercle, the eyes not markedly
flattened above and the upper facets only slightly coarser than those
below; legs with the front and middle femora darker and more brownish
and with only about 5-6 spines on hind ones below; hypopygium of <$
(text-fig 109) without a lateral process on each side of aedeagus
£ $ lightfooti n. sp. (p. 430).
51. (50) Larger species, about 8-11 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
9-12 mm.; pubescence above creamy whitish to pale yellowish in $<$,
more uniformly yellowish to golden yellowish in $$, that on abdomen
laterally in $$ also yellowish, with the hair on head below, pleural
regions and sides of venter markedly frosty or chalky white and markedly
contrasting with that above (Anastoechus-like), with the bristles in front
of wings, on posterior calli and scutellum yellowish in both sexes and
those transversely across abdomen black, stout and conspicuous; wings
greyish hyaline, with the base, costal cell and first basal cell more ochreous
yellowish, not brownish, with the basal comb more strongly developed;
scutellum predominantly ferruginous red in both sexes ; sides of abdomen
in $<$ distinctly and more broadly red; interocular space in $<$ very
narrow, at narrowest part about as broad as, or only very little broader
than, front ocellus, the eyes markedly flattened above, large and with
the upper facets very coarse; legs with the front and middle femora in
(J(£ darker at base, only those of $? entirely yellowish or, if slightly
darkened by blackish scaling, then along upper surfaces, with more
316 Annals of the South African Museum.
numerous and more than 6 spines on hind ones below; hypopygium of
$ (text-fig. 134) with a distinct clavate process on each side of aedeagus
formed by the forward continuation of the ramus from basal part on
each side. $ $ albipectus n. sp. (especially some ^-specimens with
dark spines on tibiae below) (p. 486).
52. (43) Pubescence on body predominantly silvery whitish, without any yellow
or yellowish tinted hair in front of wing-bases or on sides of abdomen,
with the bristles on head, thorax in front of wings, on scutellum and
transversely across abdomen entirely black in known $ at least; legs
entirely black; sides of abdomen black; face tending to be more bluntly
rounded in front ; interocular space in $ broader, nearly 5 times as broad
as tubercle; wings with a slight, but distinct, cinereous tinge, the costal
and basal parts being distinctly more sooty black or at least deep blackish
brown. (Scutellum almost entirely black; antennal joint 1 only a little
more than 3 times as long as 2) . $ leucostictus n. sp. (p. 416).
53. (8) Scutellum entirely or predominantly black, without any red or only with
very obscure and indistinct reddish discally; face tending to be less
conically prominent and with the pubescence denser, longer and more
shaggy in both sexes; sides of abdomen in <$<$ never red; face always
entirely or predominantly very dark or black .... 54.
54. (69) Wings distinctly and more diffusely tinged smoky cinereous, coffee brownish
to mauvish brown, more so in <$$, distinctly more deeply so towards
base and slightly deeper in <$<$, the darker basal part imperceptibly
merging into less infuscated part, thus not well marked off, with the
greater part of wing not greyish hyaline; pubescence, especially in <$$,
distinctly longer and more recumbent, that on thorax with a less cropped
or shorn- off appearance, with the hair on abdomen also longer and less
pelt-like, with the bristles in $$ also longer, more conspicuous and much
longer than the hair; sides of face somewhat tumid . . . 55.
55. (56) Wings tinged more smoky or cinereous, becoming darker and more
blackish brown or sooty at base, in costal cell and first and second basal
cells; pubescence above and below entirely silvery white, with, however,
all the bristles on head, thorax in front of wings and laterally, on scutellum
and transversely across abdomen black; scutellum in $ with a very
slight rufous tint discally behind; legs entirely black; interocular
space in $ very broad, nearly 5 times as broad as ocellar tubercle or
distance from lateral ocellus to margin of eye on each side is much longer
than antennal joint 1 ... $ leucostictus n. sp. (p. 416).
56. (55) Wings tinged more brownish, coffee brownish or mauvish brown, the
darker basal and costal parts being darker mauvish brown and not
blackish; pubescence on body not entirely silvery whitish, even in $<$,
but always with some creamy yellowish or yellowish hair on sides of
thorax or on disc above or on sides of abdomen or on venter below,
with the bristles not entirely black on all these sites; scutellum entirely
black; legs yellowish or brownish or with the tibiae and tarsi in part
yellowish or brownish and, when entirely black, all the bristles on body
at least are not black; interocular space in known $$ narrower, distinctly
less than 5 times as broad as tubercle or the distance between lateral ocellus
and eye is shorter or only subequal to length of first antennal joints . 57.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 317
57. (68) Pubescence on body below, even in <$<$, always with some or much
whitish, straw-coloured or yellowish hair and always with some silvery
whitish, yellowish or golden yellowish depressed pubescence on frons
and face; wings in ^ with the costal and basal infuscation more ex-
tensive, with the basal comb more developed; halteres with the knobs
paler or whitish; antennal joint 3 broader and more distinctly thickened
basally; interocular space in <$<$, at narrowest part, broader than front
ocellus, more or less half as long as antennal joint 1; legs not uniformly
dark brown, the femora in $$, if darkened, at least much darker than the
tibiae, with more than 4 or 5 spines on hind ones below which begin
nearer base; hypopygium of $<$ with the ventral part of aedeagus
distinctly produced into a ventral keel-like plate; larger forms usually
not less than 6 mm. long and with a wing-length of not less than 6 mm.
58.
58. (67) Pubescence on body predominantly whitish, creamy whitish or yellowish
in $$ and also with much paler or whitish hair on thorax in front and
on pleurae and sides of abdomen even in $$, always with much silvery
whitish or white hair on pleurae in both sexes; antennal joint 1 distinctly
shorter, scarcely and not more than 3 times as long as joint 2 in $$ at
least, with joint 3 less rapidly narrowed apically, the apical third not
being very slender . . . . . . . . .59.
59. (66) Smaller forms, about 5-8 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
6-8 mm.; pubescence in <$<$ at least predominantly sericeous or silvery
whitish or white, with that towards apex of abdomen distinctly whiter
and more silvery white, with sericeous yellowish, straw-coloured yellowish,
pale yellowish or even fulvous hair on sides of thorax in front of wings
and on abdomen in $$, with the hair on face distinctly less dense, sparser,
the pale hairs less conspicuously developed and not very pubescent
and concentrated round buccal cavity, with some dark bristles in front
of wings in both sexes and without any, with only a few or with the dark
or blackish bristles on sides of abdominal segments in <$$ less developed,
distinct only on 2 and 3 ; wings less strongly developed, less broad basally
in <$$, with the alula and axillary lobe not so markedly broad and
conspicuously lobe-like, with the basal comb slightly smaller; legs either
entirely yellowish or entirely black . . . . . .60.
60. (65) Pubescence with deeper yellowish or fulvous yellowish hair in front of
wings, on mesopleuron, discally on thorax and on each side just above
wings and on sides of abdomen to a certain extent in both sexes, but more
extensively fulvous or sericeous yeUow on abdomen in $$, with the
dark or black bristly hairs on face more numerous and more conspicuous,
with or without blackish bristles on sides of abdomen in <$$, with dark
or black bristles laterally on segments 2-6 and also discally on 3-6 in
$$; interocular space in $$, relative to tubercle, slightly broader, nearly
4, quite 3£, times as broad as ocellar tubercle; antennal joint 1 in $$
red or reddish; legs almost entirely yellowish, with the femora blackened
in $$ to a variable extent or even entirely, predominantly or entirely
yellowish in $$; wings in both sexes tinged slightly darker mauvish
and the basal infuscation apparently also darker and more extensive
61.
318 Annals of the South African Museum.
61. (64) Bristly hairs on face and genae and the transverse bristles on abdomen,
especially laterally and towards apex, in ?$ at least, distinctly darker,
more blackish brown to black; face tending to be darker or even entirely
blackish 62.
62. (63) Legs with the femora, especially front and middle ones, blackened to a
variable extent in $$, the hind ones being almost entirely yellowish, with
the legs in $$ entirely yellowish; abdomen in <$<$ with almost entirely
silvery white hair, without any dark or blackish bristles on sides of
segments 2 and 3 and also without conspicuous yellowish hairs on these
segments laterally . . • <J $ nigripes var. plebeius n. (p. 421).
63. (62) Legs, on the whole, much darker, almost entirely black, the tibiae scarcely
less dark than the femora and the hind femora also entirely black in $<?
at least; abdomen in <$$ with some more conspicuous fulvous hairs
laterally and with distinct dark or black bristles or bristly hairs laterally
on segments 2 and 3 . . $ nigripes var. plebeius n. (p. 421).
(Form of it.)
64. (61) Bristly hairs on sides of face and genae predominantly and the transverse
bristles on sides and towards apex of abdomen, in $ at least, distinctly
paler, pale yellowish brownish, those on face often gleaming brownish
golden and those towards apex of abdomen darker again; face tending
to be more distinctly reddish brown on sides
$ nigripes var. plebeius n. (p. 421).
(Form of it.)
65. (60) Pubescence in $<$ predominantly straw-coloured whitish to white, with
only slightly and much paler yellowish hair in front of wings and on
mesopleuron, that on abdomen entirely white, with paler yellowish or
more straw-coloured hair in front of wings, on disc of thorax in $$ also,
that on abdomen in $$ sericeous yellow to pale golden yellowish, with
the black bristly hairs on face less numerous, the paler ones more con-
spicuous, without any black bristles on sides of abdomen in £<$, with
only black bristles laterally in $$, those discally on 3-6 distinctly paler;
interocular space in $$, relative to tubercle, slightly narrower, only a
little more than 3 times as broad as tubercle; antennal joint 1 in $ black;
legs in both sexes entirely very dark or black, the femora entirely black
even in $$; wings slightly less darkly tinged, the darker basal infuscation
apparently slightly less extensive . $ $ nigripes Lw. s. str. (p. 419).
66. (59) Slightly larger form, about 9 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
10 mm.; pubescence in $ at least predominantly more creamy yellowish
and slightly duller, only sericeous whitish on abdomen above, with
that on sides in front of wings scarcely deeper creamy yellowish, with
the hair on face distinctly much denser, the pale hairs distinctly more
numerous, conspicuously developed and concentrated around the buccal
cavity, without any dark bristles in front of wings, but with more con-
spicuous black bristles laterally on most of the abdominal segments; wings
markedly developed, being markedly broad towards base, the axillary
and alular lobes being very broad and lobe-like, with the basal comb also
larger; legs entirely black . . <$ nigripes var. nomtelecnsis (p. 424).
67. (58) Pubescence on body deep fulvous or golden brownish, more orange
golden when viewed from side, that on abdomen above pale orange
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 319
golden, with that on body below yellowish golden, only the head below
white, with the transverse bristles on abdomen laterally on segments
2-5 blackish brown; antennal joint 1 longer, slightly more than 3 times
as long as joint 2, with joint 3 distinctly more rapidiy narrowed apically
from broad base, the apical third at least being more slender. (Wings
well developed, very broad basally and with the axillary lobe very large ;
legs with the femora black and the tibiae dark brownish)
<$ stevensoni n. sp. (p. 425).
68. (57) Pubescence on entire body below rusty brown to blackish brown, even the
mesopleural tuft being blackish brown, with only black bristly hairs
on head and no pale or whitish depressed hairs; wings with the costal
and basal darker infuscated part less extensive, with the basal comb
small and poorly developed; halteres darker and with brownish knobs;
antennal joint 3 more rod-like, only very little broader basally than
apically; interocular space in <J, at narrowest part, only about as broad
as front ocellus, distinctly much narrower than half as long as antennal
joint 1; legs uniformly dark brownish, with only about 4 or 5 spines in
apical half on hind femora below; hypopygium (text-fig. 108) without
any distinct flattened, ventral keel below sickle-shaped aedeagus;
smaller species, about 5J mm. long, with a wing-length of about 5 mm.
$ fusciventris n. sp. (p. 426).
69. (54) Wings distinctly less diffusely tinged, only the base, costal cell, first and
second basal cells or only the costal cell, base and first basal cell being
darkly tinged or coloured yellowish brown, brownish to mauvish brown,
the greater part of wing being thus more greyish hyaline and more
distinctly or even well marked off from dark basal infuscation; pubes-
cence, especially in <$<$, shorter, more pubescent, that on thorax above
more cropped or shorn off in appearance, that on abdomen shorter, more
pelt-like and gleaming in $<$, with the bristles in $$ shorter and less
conspicuous; sides of face not tending to be tumid and if slightly tumid
wings are less tinged ......... 70.
70. (73) Pubescence predominantly silvery whitish, that on abdomen in <$$
shining silvery white, that on abdomen in $$ also with more sericeous
whitish hair, that on sides being more yellowish sericeous, that on pleurae
more extensively silvery whitish, with the metapleural tuft and squamal
fringe silvery whitish, without any dark or black bristles on abdomen
in $<$ or with only a few inconspicuous ones on sides of segments 4 and 5,
with black transverse bristles on abdomen in $$ or with at least dark
ones laterally towards apex; legs with the femora in both sexes exten-
sively or entirely black or dark or the entire legs may be dark, the tibiae
being scarcely or only slightly paler than the femora; hypopygium of
($<$ with a well-developed ventral, keel-like plate below aedeagus . 71.
71. (72) Wings with the costal and basal infuscation coffee brownish, more con-
spicuous and extending to apices of basal cells and across to end of costal
cell, well marked off from more hyaline part of wing and even more so
in <?<£ ; interocular space in <J<J broader, about as broad as ocellar tubercle
or as broad as more than half length of antennal joint 1, about 3 times
as broad as tubercle in $$; eyes in <J(J with the upper facets almost
imperceptibly coarser than lower ones; proboscis longer, about 5-6 mm.
320 Annals of the South African Museum.
long; pubescence almost entirely silvery whitish in both sexes, with
no pale yellowish hair in front of wings or on mesopleuron and with
scarcely any sericeous yellow hair on abdomen above in $$, with 3 stout,
distinct, black macrochaetae in front of the wings in both sexes and with
often all the transverse bristles on abdomen in ?$ as well as those on
scutellum black, but only a few intermixed dark or black ones laterally
on segments 4 and 5 in <$<$, with the bristly hairs on face in both sexes
sparser; scutellum tending to be more reddish in some $$ and in $$
often entirely reddish; slightly larger species, about 8-10 mm. long,
with a wing-length of about 8-10 mm. $ $ neglectus n. sp. (p. 404).
72. (71) Wings with the costal and basal infuscation paler, more pale brownish,
distinctly less extensive, the apical parts of first and second basal cells
or even greater part of second basal cell clearer and less dark than basal
infuscation, with this infuscation a] so less well marked off from greyish
hyaline part and even less so in $$; interocular space in <$$ distinctly
narrower, only about as broad as front part of tubercle or much less than
half length of first antennal joints, in $$ distinctly more than 3 times as
broad as tubercle; eyes in <$$ with the upper facets distinctly coarser
than lower ones ; proboscis shorter, only about 3-4 mm. long ; pubescence
with some yellowish or sericeous yellowish hair on sides of thorax even
in some $$ and often extensively on abdomen above and laterally in $$,
without any black bristles in front of wings and without any black ones
laterally on abdomen in $$, those on abdomen in <$$ being predominantly
yellowish, those laterally towards apex and apically in some $$ often
darker, even brownish to blackish brown, those on scutellum yellowish,
with the black bristly hairs on face distinctly much denser and more
conspicuously developed; scutellum entirely black in both sexes; smaller
species, about 6-8^ mm. long, with a wing-length of about 6-7£ mm.
<$ ? argyroleucus n. sp. (p. 428).
73. (70) Pubescence not predominantly or entirely silvery whitish, more yellowish
from above and, when viewed from the side, that on occiput, sides of
thorax in front of wings and down the propleurae, that on disc of thorax
and scutellum, that in metapleural tuft, on squamae, greater part of
abdomen above even in <$ and apical part of venter, especially in $,
rich creamy yellow to gleaming pale yellowish brown, with only the
middle part of pleurae and base of venter and abdomen silvery whitish,
especially in $, with some macrochaetae in front of wings, the posterior
callar bristles, scutellar bristles and all the transverse bristles on abdomen
in both sexes dark blackish brown to black; legs on the whole paler and
more yellowish brown to brownish, the front femora being dark and the
apical parts of the tibiae and also the entire tarsi almost black; hypo-
pygium of $ (text-fig. 109) without a well-developed, flattened, vertical,
keel-like plate below aedeagus. (Wings with the costal cell, base, first
basal cell and to a certain extent the second basal cell darker, yellowish
brown and more so in <J) . . . <J $ lightfooti n. sp. (p. 430).
74. (1) All the spines or spicules in lower outer row and the longer lower apical
spines or spurs on front and middle tibiae as well as the spines behind on
middle femora entirely or predominantly pallid or yellowish, not black
like the rest of the spicules . . . . . . . .75.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 321
75. (128) Wings distinctly, though often faintly, tinged more extensively yellowish
brown, brownish, coffee brownish to mauvish brown, in basal part this
infuscation usually distinctly more diffuse or extensive, occupying the
costal cell, base, first basal cell, second basal cell to a varying extent,
even bases of marginal cell, first posterior cell and discoidal cell as well
as extreme bases of anal and axillary cells and also alula, with the second
basal cell never entirely or for its greater part clear or hyaline, being
always distinctly more subopaque or darkly tinged than discoidal
cell, with the rest of wing in a large number of species distinctly tinged
greyish, feebly or faintly mauvish brown to darker mauvish . .76.
76. (91) Wings with the second basal cell entirely or almost entirely and distinctly
infuscated to the same extent as costal cell, base and first basal cell,
the infuscated basal part thus much darker and more distinctly con-
spicuous and delimited from rest of wing, especially in the <$<$ . 77.
77. (82) Scutellum entirely red or reddish or at least with the greater part or more
than half of the disc red in both sexes; sides of abdomen in known <$<$
always with more extensive red or reddish; femora in $$ never entirely
black or blackish brown; black transverse bristles on abdomen more
developed, in both sexes encroaching much on disc above towards
midline, even in <$<$, with at least those above on segments 4-7 pre-
dominantly or entirely black . . . . . . .78.
78. (79) Larger species, about 10-13 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
10^—14 mm.; pubescence on pleural and pectoral regions straw-coloured
yellowish, yellowish to very pale golden yellowish, that on body above
yellowish to golden, even deep golden yellow, with predominantly pale
yellowish bristly hairs on face in $$, only a few intermixed ones in front
being black; sides of abdomen in $<$ obscurely reddish; proboscis
longer, about 6-8 mm. long, with the fine hair-like spinules below dense
and more distinctly visible; wings distinctly more greyish hyaline,
with the basal and costal yellowish brown to reddish brown infuscation
more distinctly delimited from rest of wing
cJ $ inordinatus n. sp. (p. 431).
(Syn. =mixtus Bezz. nee Wied.)
79. (78) Smaller species, about 7-9 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
8—9^ mm.; pubescence on pectus and pleurae distinctly paler and more
straw-coloured whitish or white, that on body above less golden yellow,
more pale yellowish white to very pale yellowish, with distinctly more
numerous and denser black bristly hairs on face in $$; sides of abdomen
in known <Jc? more extensively and more distinctly reddened; proboscis
shorter, about 4-5 mm. long, with the spinules below finer, less dense
and less distinctly visible; wings more distinctly slightly more darkly
tinged mauvish or dark mauvish, with the basal and costal infuscation
slightly darker, dark brownish to mauvish brown and also slightly more
diffused 80.
80. (81) Wings very darkly tinged mauvish, the costal and basal infuscation dark
mauvish brown; the bristles and macrochaetae in front of wings, on
posterior calli, scutellum and transversely across abdomen all black;
antennal joint 3 less slender, shorter, not longer than joints 1 and 2
combined, the apical part thickened on inner side; face with a tendency
322 Annals of the South African Museum.
to be obscurely reddish on the sides and above; tibiae with the upper
outer row of spines on front ones entirely black like the inner or front
upper row ..... $ badipennis n. sp. (p. 435).
81. (80) Wings only very feebly tinged mauvish, the costal and basal infuscation
more brownish; the bristles and macrochaetae in front of wings, the
posterior callar ones on thorax and those on scutellum pale yellowish
or whitish, only those on abdomen being black; antennal joint 3 in $$
comparatively more slender and longer, longer than joints 1 and 2
combined, the apical part more slender and longer, without a thickened
part below, with joint 3 almost rod-like in $<$, scarcely thicker basally;
face entirely black; tibiae more often, especially in $$, with the spines
in upper outer row on front ones entirely pallid or with a large number
of pallid ones ; sides of abdomen in $<$ extensively red ; femora blackened
to beyond middle in <$<$; pubescence above paler than in $$, more
straw-coloured yellowish or whitish . $ $ canipectus n. sp. (p. 436).
82. (77) Scutellum entirely black, much darkened or only very feebly and obscurely
tinted reddish, with the red, if developed, occupying not more than the
posterior half of disc or with a large basal black spot; sides of abdomen
in known $<$ entirely black or with the red very obscure; femora in
$$ usually, as in <$$, blackish brown or black; black transverse bristles
on abdomen developed only on sides or extreme sides and extending
towards middle above only on last 2 or 3 segments . . .83.
83. (88) Legs entirely dark, black or blackish, even the tibiae, when not entirely
black, are at least dark brownish or with blackish scaling and not pale
ochreous yellow ......... 84.
84. (87) Wings entirely tinged smoky or mauvish, the costal and basal infuscation
dark sepia or blackish brown and with a mauvish tint, the squamae
brownish and knobs of halteres brownish; spines on hind femora below
and on hind tibiae black and spines on front tibiae above well developed;
pubescence with the bristly hairs on face predominantly black and with
only a few or without any pale intermixed ones, that on body above in
known $$ straw-coloured whitish as in (JJ or only slightly darker than
the cJcT in front of wings on each side; interocular space in known $$
slightly narrower, less than 4 times as broad as ocellar tubercle ; antennal
joint 1 slightly shorter, only about 4, or even less, times as long as joint 2
85.
85. (86) Larger species, about 7-9 mm. long, with a wing-length of about 6-8 mm.;
pubescence above and below in both sexes sericeous whitish to straw-
coloured whitish or that above pale sericeous yellowish, that on sides of
venter towards apex pale ochreous yellowish, with the bristly hairs on
face intermixed with pale ones, more so in $?; wings very slightly tinged
more darkly, the costal and basal darker infuscation slightly less extensive,
not extending much into bases of first posterior and discoidal cells, the
first posterior cell not very acute apically; halteres with the knobs pale
brownish yellow to pale yellowish ; scutellum always with a slight rufous
tint or even reddish, especially in $$; face slightly more produced and
less bluntly rounded in front; antennal joint 3 slightly longer and dis-
tinctly thickened in basal half, the apical part being moderately slender ;
interocular space in (J<J slightly broader, about as broad as tubercle;
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 323
proboscis longer, about 4-4J mm.; hind femora with about 6-9 spines
below; hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 112) with a broadish clavate process
on each side of aedeagus . . <J $ montanus n. sp. (p. 438).
86. (85) Smaller species, about 5^ mm. long, with a wing-length of about
5 mm.; pubescence in <$ silky whitish on thorax above, straw-coloured
yellowish or even whitish on abdomen above, that on body below darker,
even entirely dark velvety fulvous brownish or blackish brown, with
the hairs and bristles in front of wings also blackish brown, with the
bristly hairs on face entirely black and without any intermixed pale
ones; wings tinged slightly less darkly, the costal and basal darker
infuscation slightly more extensive, distinctly extending into basal halves
of first posterior and discoidal cells, the first posterior cell distinctly
more acute apically; halteres dark brownish, with dark brown knobs;
scutellum entirely black; face slightly more rounded in front; antennal
joint 3 distinctly shorter and more rod-like; interocular space in <$ nar-
rower, at narrowest part only about as broad as front part of tubercle ;
proboscis shorter, only about 2 mm. long; hind femora with only about
4 or 5 spines below; hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 108) with the aedeagus
sickle-shaped, without a distinct ventral keel and without a process on
each side ...... $ fusciventris n. sp. (p. 426).
87. (84) Wings greyish hyaline, only the costal and basal parts darker and more
pale yellowish brown and less conspicuous, the squamae yellowish and
knobs of halteres yellowish; spines on hind femora below and on hind
tibiae yellowish brown to brownish, the spicules on front tibiae very
small and poorly developed; pubescence with the bristly hairs on face
with black and pale ones intermixed more or less in equal proportions,
that on body of $ above distinctly more yellowish, with sericeous or
brassy yellow gleams; interocular space in $ distinctly broader, at least
4 times as broad as tubercle; antennal joint 1 slightly longer, more than
4 times as long as joint 2. (Pubescence on abdomen with slender blackish
brown to black bristles on sides of segments 2-4 in $ and 2-7 in $;
hind femora with only about 4 or 6 spines below; hypopygium of (J
(text-fig. 113) with a clavate process on each side of aedeagus.)
cJ $ poweri n. sp. (p. 440).
(Syn. = nigripes Bezz. nee Lw.)
88. (83) Legs not entirely dark or black, the front and middle femora in the $$
blackened to beyond middle, if darkened in $$, then only at extreme
bases or in basal halves of front ones, with the tibiae in both sexes dis-
tinctly paler and pale yellowish or pale ochreous yellowish . .89.
89. (90) Smaller species, about 6^- mm. long, with a wing-length of about
6 mm.; pubescence on body above less dense, straw-coloured whitish
or yellowish, that on disc of thorax and on occiput being more sericeous
whitish, that on body below whitish, with the hair on face less dense,
with only a few and inconspicuous dark bristles on sides of abdomen in
£ and without any in $; wings with the costal and basal infuscation
darker and more brownish; antennae with joint 1 much shorter, less
than 4 times as long as joint 2, with joint 3 also much shorter, compara-
tively broader and more rapidly thickened basally, the apical part shorter
and thicker; interocular space in $ slightly narrower, not quite 2 times
324 Annals of the South African Museum.
as broad as front ocellus, only about 3 times as broad as tubercle in $;
scutellum with the basal half at least black, in <$ slightly more so, with
the black base not angularly produced posteriorly; hind femora with only
about 4 or 5 spines below . . <$ $ transvaalensis n. sp. (p. 417).
90. (89) Larger species, about 7f-10 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
7-8 mm.; pubescence above much denser, distinctly more yellowish,
yellowish sericeous to golden yellowish in $$, more creamy yellowish
in $<$, that on thorax in front, even in some <$<$, more yellowish tinted,
that on body below scarcely paler than above, only more creamy yellowish
in some <$<$, with the hair on face, in $$ especially, very dense, with
more numerous, longer and more conspicuous black bristles on sides of
abdomen in both sexes; wings with the costal and basal infuscation
more reddish brown or yellowish brown; antennae with joint 1 slightly
longer, at least 4 times as long as joint 2, with joint 3, especially in $<$,
longer and more gradually thickened basally, the apical part compara-
tively more slender and longer; interocular space in $<$ distinctly broader,
about as broad as front part of tubercle, quite 2 times as broad as front
ocellus, quite 3J times as broad as tubercle in $ ; scutellum with the black
basal part produced angularly towards hind margin, almost dividing
the red into two maculae; hind femora with at least 5—9 spines below
<$ $ brunnibasis n. sp. (p. 495).
91. (76) Wings with the second basal cell much clearer, only feebly tinged and
then distinctly not to the same extent as costal cell, base and first basal
cell, being, however, distinctly tinged or more subopaque and slightly
darker than the discoidal cell, with the infuscated basal part of wings
more diffuse, less distinctly contrasting with, or delimited from, the rest
of wing ........... 92.
92. (93) Wings comparatively darkly tinged mauvish or smoky, the costal cell,
base and first basal cell being very dark mauvish brown; pubescence
dull greyish in front and silvery whitish on abdomen from above, from
side that on thorax is silvery whitish and greyish silvery white on abdomen
in (J(J, slightly more subgolden on disc of thorax in $$, with the hair in
front of wings pale brownish fulvous in both sexes, that on venter towards
apex pale brownish fulvous in <$$, that on body below in both sexes
silvery whitish, with the coxal bristles predominantly brownish to blackish
brown, with the transverse bristles across abdomen in both sexes entirely
brownish black; face and head below brownish or reddish brown; sides
of abdomen in $<$ broadly reddish brown; legs in both sexes entirely
blackish brown to black; antennal joint 3 club-shaped, broadest at about
basal third, rapidly narrowed apically, more than the apical half being
slender, with the first terminal joint well developed and comparatively
long ...... <$ ^fumitinctus n. sp. (p. 442).
93. (92) Wings distinctly less darkly tinged, only faintly and feebly mauvish,
more often greyish hyaline for the greater part, with the costal and basal
darker infuscated part also less dark mauvish brown, often more brownish
to pale yellowish brown; pubescence above whitish, yellowish to golden
yellowish, not distinctly or predominantly silvery white on abdomen
above, the hair being straw-coloured yellowish, creamy yellowish to
golden yellowish, with the hair and bristles in front of wings not fulvous
A Revision of the Bo?nbyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 325
brown, that towards apex of venter in $<$, if darker, then yellowish or
ochreous, that on body below ranging from more extensive silvery whitish
to golden yellowish, with the coxal bristles never brownish or blackish
brown, with the transverse bristles on abdomen in <%<$ either not dark
or blackish or only so laterally, those on greater part of disc above being-
whitish or yellowish, rarely with all or most of the bristles above in both
sexes blackish, though these may sometimes be reddish brown to golden;
sides of abdomen in <JcJ entirely black, obscurely reddish or at least with
the red much less extensive and confined to extreme sides; legs not
entirely black and, if so, the scutellum is also black, more often pre-
dominantly yellow; antennal joint 3 not typically club-shaped, distinctly
less rapidly narrowed from base, usually less than the apical half being
slender, with the first terminal joint rarely long and conspicuous and if
so the entire pubescence is not silvery whitish . . . .94.
94. (99) Smaller species, usually not more than 7 mm. long, with a wing-length of
about 6^— 7 mm. ; scutellum entirely black or tending to be predominantly
dark; legs entirely black or very dark blackish brown or the bases of
the femora are black even in $$, with the tibiae comparatively slender
and the spicules on front ones above usually small and poorly developed
and not very numerous, with fewer spines, about 4-6, on hind femora
below, beginning at about middle or just before middle; interocular
space in $$ sometimes quite 4 times as broad as tubercle; sides of
abdomen in $<$ without any red; wings with the basal comb poorly
developed, the spines less dense and much shorter . . . .95.
95. (98) Legs in both sexes entirely very dark blackish or blackish brown, with the
spines on hind femora below brownish; scutellum entirely black; inter-
ocular space in $$ broader, more than 3, quite 4, times as broad as
ocellar tubercle ; pubescence on body below tending to be more yellowish
or sericeous yellowish and that on body above in $$ more brassy yellowish
96.
96. (97) Wings with the first posterior cell distinctly less acute apically; pubes-
cence with fewer black bristly hairs on frons, antennae and face and with
distinct black transverse bristles across hind margins of abdomen even
if only a few in both sexes . . . ■ c? $ poweri n. sp. (p. 440).
97. (96) Wings with the first posterior cell distinctly more acute or pointed apically;
pubescence on head above and in front predominantly black or at least
with much fewer yellowish hairs and without any trace of black trans-
verse bristles on abdomen in both sexes . <$ $ faustus n. sp. (p. 444).
98. (95) Legs predominantly yellowish in both sexes, only the bases of femora
darkened, with the spines on hind femora black; scutellum with some
obscure reddish and if darkened as in <$ the legs at least are yellowish;
interocular space in $ distinctly narrower, not much more than 3 times
as broad as tubercle; pubescence on body below not much paler than
above and that above in $ paler and more pale sericeous yellowish like
that of <$, with a few darkish bristles on sides of abdomen in some
specimens . . . . $ $ transvaalensis n. sp. (p. 417).
99. (94) Larger species, more than 7 mm. long and with a wing-length of more
than 7 mm.; scutellum always with extensive and conspicuous red;
legs never entirely black or dark, yellowish, but with the femora in $$
VOL. XXXIV. 22
326 Annals of the South African Museum.
sometimes blackened or darkened, with the tibiae less slender and the
spicules above on front ones more numerous, longer and better developed,
usually with more than 6, spines on hind femora below, beginning much
nearer base; interocular space in $$ not very much more than 3 times
as broad as tubercle; sides of abdomen in <$<$ usually with some red and,
if not, then scutellum is at least distinctly red; wings with the basal
comb distinctly larger, the spines denser and longer . . . 100.
100. (103) Abdomen above without any very dark, dark reddish brown or black
bristles even laterally in both sexes, these bristles being, like the rest of
them on thorax, scutellum and abdomen, yellowish, pale golden yellow
or very pale reddish or reddish yellow; legs entirely pale ochreous to
pale reddish yellow in both sexes . . . . . .101.
101. (102) Wings distinctly tinged mauvish, with the costal and basal darker
part more darkly brownish yellow and more diffuse; pubescence above
more uniformly and entirely pale golden yellow to golden, with that
in front of wings scarcely deeper yellowish, that on body below scarcely
paler, that on mesopleurae and sides of venter basally not being con-
spicuously silvery whitish, that towards apex on venter in <$$ pale
ochreous yellow, with the transverse bristles on abdomen in both sexes
entirely yellow; interocular space in $<$, at narrowest part, about as
broad as front part of tubercle, a little more than 3 times as broad as
tubercle in $$, with the eyes in <$$ not flattened above and the upper
facets only slightly coarser than lower ones; antennae with joint 1 very
short, scarcely 2 times in <$$, and only about 2£ times as long as joint 2
in $$, with 3 slightly shorter and more broadened in basal half, the apical
slender part short, with the first terminal joint markedly long; proboscis
short, about 3-5 mm. long; sides of abdomen in $<? obscurely and not
very extensively reddish; front femora with only about 1-3 spines in
front and behind . . . . . <$ 2 aureus n. sp. (p. 446).
(And forms of it.)
102. (101) Wings only greyish hyaline, not distinctly tinged mauvish, with the
costal and basal darker part only yellowish and much less extensive;
pubescence above slightly deeper golden and with even slight fulvous
gleams, especially in <$<$, with that in front of wings distinctly deeper
yellowish and even more orange fulvous, that on body below with an
almost silvery white vertical band on mesopleurae and also with con-
spicuous silvery white hair on sides of venter near base, that towards
apex of venter in $c? often more fulvous or brownish golden, with the
transverse bristles on abdomen slightly deeper and more reddish yellow;
interocular space in 3$, at narrowest part, scarcely broader than front
ocellus, in $ quite 3£ times as broad as tubercle, with the eyes slightly
flattened above and with the upper facets very coarse; antennae with
joint 1 longer, quite 3 times as long as joint 2, with 3 more elongate,
less thickened basally and with the slender part long, with the first
terminal joint not markedly long; proboscis longer, more than 5 mm.
long; sides of abdomen in $<$ broadly and extensively reddened; front
femora with more, at least more than 3 spines in front and behind
<$ $ ventricosus Bezz. (p. 449).
(Some forms of it.)
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 327
103. (100) Abdomen above always with some black or dark bristles, either with a
few on sides even if only with 1 or 2 or with more numerous ones especially
towards apex, with these bristles entirely black, dark brownish to dark
reddish or reddish; legs with the femora in some $<$ blackened basally
or to beyond middle and if entirely yellowish the sides of the abdomen
at least with some blackish bristles ...... 104.
104. (Ill) Abdomen with the transverse bristles across hind margins of tergites
above predominantly yellowish, dark yellowish brown, brownish or
reddish and if dark blackish brown or blackish ones are present, these are
inconspicuous and found only as a few or very few laterally on extreme
sides and ventrally towards apex in both sexes and they are usually
pale-tipped; pubescence predominantly brassy or golden yellowish:
sides of abdomen in $<$ more extensively reddish; antennal joint 1 in
$$ with a tendency to be obscurely reddish or dark reddish brown on
certain surfaces .......... 105.
105. (106) Larger and bulkier species, about 11-13 mm. long and with a wing-
length of about 11-12 mm.; wings more vitreous hyaline, only the base,
costal cell and first basal cell subopaquely yellowish or ochreous yellowish,
with the veins paler yellowish brown or brownish; head with the eyes in
cjcj distinctly flattened above and even in 9? more flattened above,
separated in <$<$ by a narrower space, only about as broad as narrow front
part of ocellar tubercle or even front ocellus; legs entirely yellowish in
both sexes and even the tarsi scarcely darkened, with distinctly more
numerous spines on middle femora below and with more, about 10-14
spines on hind ones below; sides of abdomen in ^ more broadly or
extensively reddish; pubescence on the whole deeper gleaming golden,
with a more conspicuous and more contrasting band of sericeous whitish
hair down middle of pleurae, the hair on face tending to be denser and
less brush-like in front in <$$ and even more bushy in $$, with fewer
dark bristles laterally on sides of abdomen
$ $ ventricosus Bezz. (p 449).
(Some forms of it.)
106. (105) Smaller and less bulky forms, about 6-11^ mm. long and with a wing-
length of about 6-10 mm.; wings distinctly, though sometimes faintly,
tinged mauvish, greyish mauvish, brownish or even reddish, the costal
and basal parts slightly more brownish and if yellowish or ochreous
wings are at least not hyaline, the veins usually darker or more reddish;
head with the eyes in <$$ and $$ not tending to be flattened above and
in $$ usually more broadly separated by width of ocellar tubercle and
if narrowish the eyes are not flattened above; legs with the femora in
<$<$ at least darkened or blackened basally to a variable extent and if
entirely yellowish the tarsi are darkened in both sexes, with much fewer
spines on middle femora below and less than 10 on hind ones below;
sides of abdomen in 3<$ usually less broadly reddish on sides; pubescence,
even if golden, gleaming less markedly and with either a less marked
vertical band of whitish pubescence down middle of pleurae or with the
whitish more diffused, with more numerous and sometimes more reddish-
tinted bristles on sides of abdomen and with the hair on face tending to be
concentrated brush-like in front and if not wings are at least tinged . 107.
328 Annals of the South African Museum.
107. (108) Pubescence shorter, with a more closely cropped-off appearance on
disc of thorax, that on abdomen shorter, less shaggy, the bristles towards
apex shorter and scarcely or not much longer than length of antennae,
that on face, especially the darker elements, more concentrated brush-
like or tuft-like in front, that on pleurae only slightly paler than above,
not contrasting or with a more contrasting whitish vertical band down
middle of pleurae, that on body above also sometimes more brassy or
sericeous yellowish; head with the face much darker or black, with the
proboscis shorter, only about 4-5 mm. long, the spinules below finer,
with antennal joint 3 shorter, only a very little longer than or subequal
in length to joints 1 and 2 combined, its inner margin at broadest part
near base slightly bulging, ending apically in a scarcely visible and
inconspicuous terminal basal element bearing a style; legs with the
femora, even in $$, slightly more darkened
<$ $ bombycinus var. pallidispinis n. (p. 410).
108. (107) Pubescence slightly longer, with a less closely shorn-ofT appearance on
thorax, that on abdomen slightly longer, appearing more shaggy, the
pubescence and bristles towards apex at least as long or longer than
antennae, that on face slightly more dense, with apparently fewer dark
bristly elements which do not tend to be concentrated brush-like or
tuft-like in front, that on pleurae distinctly more extensively and more
contrastingly whitish or with at least the middle part of pleurae vertically
more whitish-haired, that on body above deeper and more gleaming
golden ; head with the face, genae and to a certain extent the head below
yellowish or yellowish brown, with the proboscis longer, about 5-8 mm.
long, the spinules below more visible, with antennal joint 3 relatively
longer, appearing more humped above in basal half and ending apically
in a distinctly longer and more conspicuous terminal basal element
bearing a style; legs with the femora either entirely yellowish in both
sexes or darkened basally in some <$<$ to a lesser extent . . . 109.
109. (110) Wings distinctly more darkly tinged and more mauvish, the base and
costal cell slightly darker and more brownish, the veins much darker and
towards apical part almost black, the basal comb more strongly developed;
pubescence slightly deeper gleaming golden above, with the sericeous
whitish or whitish hair on pleurae more concentrated in a vertical band
down middle of pleurae and with the darker bristles on abdomen or sides
of abdomen darker and more brownish; head with the interocular space
in <$<$ broader and as broad as ocellar tubercle, with the proboscis slightly
longer, about 7-8 mm. long, with antennal joint 1 relatively longer and
quite 3, or a little more, times as long as 2 and with the terminal basal
element of joint 3 longer; legs with the femora in <$<$ at least entirely
yellowish ...... (J monticolanus n. sp. (p. 411).
110. (109) Wings tinged distinctly reddish or reddish greyish, appearing clearer,
the base and costal part distinctly more yellowish or ochreous yellowish,
the veins much paler and more reddish, the basal comb much smaller;
pubescence slightly paler golden above, with the sericeous whitish or
more whitish pubescence on pleurae more extensive and more contrasting
and with the darker bristles on abdomen paler and more reddish or even
reddish; head with the interocular space in <$$ distinctly narrower and
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 329
only about as broad as front ocellus or front part of ocellar tubercle,
with the proboscis slightly shorter and about 5-7 mm. long, with antennal
joint 1 relatively shorter and only about, or scarcely, 3 times as long as 2
and with the terminal basal element of 3 slightly shorter; legs with the
femora in (JcJ at least darkened at bases
$ $ subcontiguus n. sp. (p. 455).
111. (104) Abdomen with the transverse bristles across hind margins of tergites
always with conspicuous and dark blackish brown or black ones, either
on most of the tergites laterally and towards apex or even discally or
they are more numerous on at least some of the tergites laterally in both
sexes; pubescence not always golden and if golden the darker elements
on abdomen are more blackish and more conspicuous; sides of abdomen
in <$<$ usually less extensively or more obscurely reddish, sometimes
entirely black; antennal joint 1 entirely black in both sexes and if
tending to be yellowish brownish the darker bristles on abdomen are
darker and more numerous . . . . . . . .112.
112. (123) Antennal joint 1 distinctly shorter, rarely about 4 times as long as
joint 2, more often much shorter; legs with the femora in $<$ either
entirely black or more extensively blackened to much beyond middle
and their bases tending to be darkened even in some $$ ; sides of abdomen
in <$<$ usually with some red, even if only very obscurely; pubescence
with the hair on pleural parts, head below and sides of venter on the
whole paler, more whitish, more sericeous whitish or at least more con-
spicuously or more markedly contrasting with that on body above,
with the darker or black transverse bristles on abdomen, especially
in $$, encroaching more on the disc above towards apex; wings, apart
from the basal and costal infuscation, tending to be more distinctly,
even though faintly, tinged reddish, mauvish or brownish mauvish and
usually with the discoidal cell more truncate apically, the apical cross
vein rarely very much shorter than discal cross vein; hypopygium of ^c?
with the process on each side of aedeagus very much flattened and
broadened, leaf-like or racket-shaped in apical part, where it is also
slightly depressed and spoon-like . . . . . .113.
113. (118) Pubescence on body distinctly longer, more shaggy, that on frons,
antennae and face longer, finer and more bushy, especially in <$<$, that on
thorax above not with a closely cropped appearance, that on abdomen
much more shaggy and longer, that on body below not markedly con-
trasting with that on body above, that in front of wings and, in <$<$, that
towards apical part of venter not or less distinctly deeper yellowish or
ochreous ; head with the eyes separated above in $<$ by a slightly broader
space, about as broad as front part of ocellar tubercle or broader than
length of antennal joint 2, the upper facets thus less coarse, with antennal
joint 1 relatively longer, at least 3 times as long as 2; legs more slender
and with longer hairs on femora below . . . . .114.
114. (115) Pubescence on body above gleaming pale sericeous yellowish to
yellowish, that on sides of abdomen with a slightly deeper yellowish tint,
that on antennae and face even slightly longer in <£, with fewer dark
bristles on sides of abdomen in <$, that on body below paler than above;
wings less darkly tinged and more reddish mauvish, the veins paler and
330 Annals of the South African Museum.
more reddish, the basal comb slightly larger; scutellum more extensively-
reddish and sides of abdomen in $ also with more reddish, the legs with
the femora even in $ less extensively darkened and then more sienna
brownish; head with the interocular space in $ slightly narrower, the
inner margins of eyes bounding this space and tubercle much longer,
with antennal joint 1 distinctly longer and nearly 4 times as long as 2;
hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 118) . . . <J altivolans n. sp. (p. 450).
115. (114) Pubescence above paler and gleaming more sericeous whitish in both
sexes, that below scarcely paler, that on sides of abdomen in <$<$ also
more whitish, and even in $$ only feebly tinted yellowish, the entire
pubescence thus more whitish, that on antennae and face slightly shorter,
with more numerous and more conspicuous blackish or black bristles on
sides and towards apical part of abdomen in both sexes; wings slightly
darker, the costal and basal part darker subopaquely brownish, the
veins darker and the basal comb smaller; scutellum almost entirely
black in <$<$ or obscurely reddish in both sexes and sides of abdomen in
<$<$ entirely black and legs in both sexes tending to be darker, the femora
at least much darker in both sexes; head with the interocular space on
vertex in <$$ slightly broader, the inner margins of eyes bounding the
tubercle much shorter, with antennal joint 1 shorter, only about 3, or a
little more, times as long as 2; hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 112) .116.
116. (117) Wings on the whole darker, more distinctly subopaquely mauvish or
smoky mauvish, with the basal and costal darker brownish infuscation
slightly more extensive, extending more into second basal cell; pubes-
cence without any distinct more yellowish hairs on each side in front
of wings and without a few intermixed dark ones in this tuft
cJ $ montanus n. sp. (p. 438).
117. (116) Wings less darkly mauvish, with the basal and costal part slightly paler
brownish, the second basal cell much clearer; pubescence with a distinct
more yellowish tuft in front of wing bases, containing distinct intermixed
blackish hairs .... <$ montanus (slight var.) (p. 440).
118. (113) Pubescence on body distinctly much shorter, not shaggy, that on frons,
antennae and face shorter and more brush-like, that on thorax above
with a shorn-off appearance in <$$ especially, that on abdomen less
shaggy and shorter, that on body below more markedly contrastingly
whitish than above, that in front of wings and, in <$$, that towards apex
of venter deeper or more ochreous yellowish; head with the eyes more
narrowly separated above in $<$ by a space only about as broad or a
little broader than front ocellus or not broader than antennal joint 2 is
long, the upper facets thus coarser, with antennal joint 1 relatively
shorter, slightly less, or distinctly less, than 3 times as long as 2; legs
stouter and with shorter hairs on femora below .... 119.
119. (120) Legs with the femora almost entirely or entirely black in <$($, blackened
to much beyond middle in $?; pubescence predominantly sericeous
whitish in cJ(J, sericeous whitish to creamy yellowish above in $$, that
towards apical part and sides of venter only feebly yellowish in gg, not
markedly ochreous yellowish to ochreous brownish, that on pleurae,
pectus and sides of venter basally not so contrastingly gleaming sericeous
whitish . . . . <$ § affinis var. discrepans n. (p. 455).
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 331
120. (119) Legs with only the bases or basal halves of femora black in $<$, or at
least with the apical parts more yellowish, only blackened or darkened
at bases in $$, or a greater part of the apices yellowish or even entirely
yellowish in $$; pubescence predominantly creamj'- yellowish to even
golden yellowish above in <J<J and yellowish or golden in $<j>, that
towards apex and sides of venter in $<$ distinctly more ochreous
yellowish to ochreous brownish, that on pleurae, pectus, metapleural
tuft and sides of venter basally more gleaming sericeous whitish,
thus more contrasting with the yellowish pubescence and that in front
of wings on each side more distinctly yellowish to orange in some
specimens .......... 121.
121. (122) Interocular space in <$<$ slightly broader and narrowest part much
shorter than length of ocellar tubercle; legs with the femora in both
sexes more extensively darkened basally; pubescence slightly longer,
that on antennae predominantly black, that on disc of thorax with a
less shorn-off appearance in <$<$ at least and that on disc in $$ also
slightly longer, with the bristles on abdomen distinctly longer in both
sexes and black in $$; wings with the basal infuscation slightly darker
brownish and the veins also darker; hypopygium of $ (text-
fig. 119, a and b) . . . . • c? ? affinis n. sp. (p. 452).
122. (121) Interocular space in <$ distinctly narrower and narrowest part subequal
in length to tubercle; legs in $ at least only darkened at extreme bases
of femora, entirely yellowish in $$; pubescence shorter, that on antennae
below with more numerous yellowish hairs, that on disc of thorax in $
with a more cropped-off appearance and that in $$ also apparently
shorter, with the bristles on abdomen apparently shorter in both sexes
and reddish in $$; wings with the basal infuscation slightly paler
brownish and the veins paler reddish brown to reddish; hypopygium
of cJ (text-fig. 121) . . . . c? $ subcontiguus n. sp. (p. 455).
123. (112) Antennal joint 1 distinctly longer, at least 4 or more times as long as
joint 2; legs with the femora in <$<$ predominantly yellowish, only the
bases being blackened, entirely yellowish in $$ ; sides of abdomen in <$$
entirely black like rest of abdomen ; pubescence with the hair on pleural
parts and even base of venter less conspicuously white and contrasting,
with the black transverse bristles on abdomen only extending to the
midline above on last few segments (5-7); wings more distinctly greyish
hyaline, not distinctly tinged mauvish, only the base, costal cell, first
basal cell and extreme base (to a variable extent) being yellowish brown,
brownish or mauvish brown, with the discoidal cell usually more subacute
apically, the apical cross vein being usually shorter than the discal
cross vein ; hypopygium in <$$ with the process on each side of aedeagus
slender and narrow throughout, its apical part not conspicuously
broadened and leaf -like ........ 124.
124. (127) Interocular space in $<$ much narrower, only about as broad as front
ocellus, tending to be only about 3 times as broad as tubercle in $$;
antennae with joint 1 slightly shorter, only about 3^—4 times as long as
joint 2, with joint 3 less rapidly narrowed towards apex or with a shorter
apical slender part, the joint on the whole shorter; wings tending to be
distinctly darker and more brownish at base, in costal cell, first basal cell
332 Annals of the South African Museum.
and even in second basal cell to a variable extent, with the veins much
darker, very dark blackish brown to almost black . . . .125.
125. (126) Pubescence on body predominantly more yellowish, creamy yellowish
to pale yellowish golden in both sexes, that towards apex of abdomen
only slightly paler and creamy whitish to yellowish; scutellum usually
more extensively reddened or entirely reddish; legs with the femora in
<$<$ only darkened at extreme bases in some specimens, the hind ones
being entirely yellowish . • c? ? silvaticus var. turneri n. (p. 500).
126. (125) Pubescence on body entirely or predominantly whitish, straw-coloured
whitish to pale straw-coloured yellowish in both sexes, that towards apex
of abdomen in $$ and even $$ distinctly more white; scutellum with a
tendency to be less red and sometimes only so discally; legs with the
femora in <$$ often darkened to about middle
$ $ silvaticus var. turneri n. (p. 500).
(Pale form.)
127. (124) Interocular space in $<$ slightly broader and distinctly broader than
front ocellus, about lf-2 times as broad as front ocellus, tending to be a
little more than 3 times as broad as tubercle in $$; antennae with joint 1
distinctly longer, about 4-5, or more, times as long as joint 2, with joint 3
usually distinctly more rapidly narrowed apically, the apical slender
part usually more slender and longer; wings either less dark in costal
cell and base or, when distinctly darkish, it is less conspicuous, with the
veins slightly less dark and more brownish
<$ $ silvaticus n. sp. (p. 497).
128. (75) Wings distinctly less extensively or diffusely infuscated at base, this
whitish, pale yellowish white, pale yellowish, pale brownish yellow to
brownish basal infuscation confined to the base, costal cell, first basal
cell and often the alula, never extending into bases of first posterior and
discoidal cells and with the second basal cell always entirely or for the
greater part clear or hyaline or greyish hyaline like the rest of the wings,
never darker than discoidal cell, with the rest of wing more often hyaline
or greyish hyaline, rarely distinctly tinged mauvish or brownish mauvish
129.
129. (172) Abdomen in both sexes entirely with whitish, yellowish, golden
yellowish, reddish to reddish brown bristles discally or on sides, without
any conspicuous or extensive black bristles on sides and, if such are
present, only very few, 1 or 2, are found laterally near apex in <$<$ and a
few in $$ also confined to sides apically . . . . .130.
130. (133) Legs with all the spines and spicules entirely yellowish or pallid;
pubescence entirely brilliantly gleaming silvery whitish above and entirely
or predominantly so below, without any dark or blackish bristles or
bristly hairs on any part of body, without distinct stouter bristly hairs
on face or on f rons ; eyes in known <$ in actual contact above for a distance
at least as long as tubercle, the upper facets very much coarser than
lower ones .......... 131.
131. (132) Legs entirely very dark or black, the spicules very poorly developed,
especially on front tibiae and with the 9-10 spines on hind femora below
slightly flattened and adpressed to femora; antennae with joint 1
relatively longer, quite 3 times as long as 2 and with 3 quite 1£ times as
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Dijptera) of Southern Africa. 333
long as 1 and 2 combined; pubescence on the whole short, fine and
pubescent; slightly larger, about 8 mm. long and with a wing-length of
about 8 mm. . . . . . $ argyropogonus n. sp. (p. 458).
132. (131) Legs with only the femora dark blackish browp, the tibiae being
distinctly yellowish, the spicules on tibiae less poorly developed, and
the 3-4 spines on hind femora more slender, not flattened and not slightly
adpressed to femora; antennae with joint 1 relatively shorter, only a
little more than 2 times as long as 2 and with 3 also shorter and only
a little longer than 1 and 2 combined; pubescence on the whole slightly
longer and more shaggy; slightly smaller, about 5 mm. long, with a
wing-length of 5 mm. . . . . $ candidus n. sp. (p. 459).
133. (130) Legs with all the spines and spicules not entirely yellowish, predomi-
nantly black, and those on hind tibiae always black and even some on
front and middle tibiae black; pubescence not entirely silvery whitish
above and below, always with some or numerous intermixed dark or
black bristly hairs or bristles on frons in $$ and on face in both sexes,
and even with blackish or dark transverse bristles on abdomen, always
with some stouter hairs or bristles on frons and face; eyes in <$<$ never
in actual contact above, either very narrowly separated or widely
separated, the upper facets not so obviously and conspicuously coarser
than lower ones ......... 134.
134. (139) Wings distinctly, though faintly, sometimes more deeply, tinged
mauvish or mauvish brown throughout, with the base, costal cell and
first basal cell slightly darker and more subopaquely or opaquely yellowish
or pale yellowish brown; antennal joint 1 much shorter, only about
2-3 times as long as joint 2 ....... 135.
135. (138) Antennae with joint 3 comparatively shorter, equal or subequal to, or
only very slightly longer than 1 and 2 combined, more rapidly broadened
basally, especially in ?$, and more so along inner or lower side, thus
forming a subangular prominence just before middle, with the first
terminal joint bearing style small and insignificant; legs with the femora
in ($<$ always darkened or blackened basally to even beyond middle
and even darkened in $$ along front and upper surfaces, with the tarsi
and even certain surfaces of the tibiae darkened; interocular space in
($$ broader, about as broad as ocellar tubercle; pubescence with the
mauvish black bristly hairs on face slightly shorter but more densely
concentrated and brush-like on face in front and the hair on frons in $$
not reddish or orange; hypopygium of <$ (text-fig. 101) . . . 136.
136. (137) Pubescence on body tending to be predominantly yellowish, brassy to
golden yellowish, with some or numerous transverse bristles on sides
of abdomen pale reddish, reddish yellow to reddish brown in both sexes;
legs with the femora in <$<$ usually less extensively darkened and less
so in $$, even entirely yellow in $$ and usually with more than 5 spines
on hind ones below; sides of abdomen in <$<$ usually more extensively
and broadly red; scutellum tending to be more extensively red
$ $ bombycinus var. pallidispinis n. (p. 410).
137. (136) Pubescence on body tending to be paler, often very pale sericeous
yellowish to whitish, with all the bristles on side of abdomen paler,
whitish or yellowish; legs with almost, or the entire, femora in <$<$
334: Annals of the South African Museum.
blackened and even the tibiae more darkened, the femora in $$ often
also entirely dark and even blackish in basal halves, usually with fewer
spines, 4-6, on hind ones below; sides of abdomen in <$<$ scarcely
reddened; scutellum tending to be much more obscurely reddened
discally, often almost entirely dark in $<$
cJ $ bombycinus n. sp. (Variety) (p. 407).
138. (135) Antennae with joint 3 longer and distinctly longer than 1 and 2
combined, less rapidly broadened basally and not markedly subangularly
prominent below nearer base, with the first terminal joint usually
markedly elongate and conspicuous; legs in both sexes entirely pale
ochreous yellow, the femora not or scarcely darkened along certain
surfaces and only the apical parts of tarsi darkened; interocular space
in $$ much narrower, only about as broad as narrow front part of
tubercle; pubescence on body above and below entirely deep golden
yellow and all the bristles on abdomen golden yellow, with the black
bristly hairs on face slightly longer and more distributed on face and
not tending to be concentrated in front and depressed pubescence on
frons and face in $$ deep orange golden; hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 116)
$ $ aureus n. sp. (p. 446).
139. (134) Wings only feebly subopaquely greyish hyaline or hyaline, not tinged
mauvish throughout, though the base and costal parts may be subopaquely
yellowish or even darker; antennal joint 1 usually slightly longer and
longer than 3 times as long as joint 2 . . . . . .140.
140. (161) All or the majority of the spines or spicules in the upper outer row
on the front tibiae black, not pallid or yellowish like those in the lower
outer row; spines on hind femora below, in both sexes, entirely black;
transverse rows of bristles on abdomen rarely without some black ones
laterally, especially towards apex of abdomen in $$ and, in majority
of species, with a few, even if only 1 or 2, inconspicuous ones laterally
towards apex in $$ also . . . . . . . .141.
141. (152) Abdomen without any or with only 1 or 2 or very few, inconspicuous
dark or blackish, pale-tipped bristles laterally near apical end in <$<$ and
without any or with a few more pale-tipped black ones in $$ laterally
and more or less confined to apical part of abdomen . . . 142.
142. (145) Legs entirely very dark or black in both sexes or the femora in <$$ at
least almost entirely black or the apical parts of hind tibiae and the
entire hind tarsi in $$ at least are blackish; pubescence with the bristly
hairs on frons, antennae and face predominantly or almost entirely
black, without any black or darkish transverse bristles on abdomen in
both sexes .......... 143.
143. (144) Legs entirely very dark or black in both sexes, with the spines on
hind femora below more brownish and with the spicules on front tibiae
above more poorly developed; wings distinctly with yellowish brown
in costal cell, base, first basal cell and even slightly in second basal cell,
with the first posterior cell distinctly more acute apically; scutellum
entirely black and sides of abdomen also entirely black; interocular
space in $ quite 4 times as broad as tubercle; antennal joint 1 relatively
longer, quite or nearly 4 times as long as 2; proboscis only about 3 mm.
long ....... $ $ faustus n. sp. (p. 444).
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 335
144. (143) Legs with the femora black in <$ and the apices of hind tibiae and the
hind tarsi darkened in both sexes, with the spines on hind femora below
black and with the spicules on front tibiae well developed; wings with
only the base, costal cell and part of first basal cell subopaquely very
pale yellowish brownish or yellowish, with the first posterior cell distinctly
less acute and normal apically; scutellum with red discally and sides
of abdomen in $ slightly reddish ; interocular space in $ less than 4 times
as broad as tubercle; antennal joint 1 shorter, only about, or scarcely,
3 times as long as 2 ; proboscis longer, about 3^-4 mm. long-
ed $ salticolus n. sp. (p. 460).
145. (142) Legs entirely yellowish in both sexes or if darkened in <$<$ then only
at base, with the apical parts of hind tibiae never blackened and at least
basal parts of tarsi yellowish even in $$; pubescence with distinctly
more numerous yellowish bristly hairs on head in both sexes, usually
with a few or some darker and even blackish bristles on sides of abdomen
even if only towards apex in $$ . . . . . . . 146.
146. (147) Larger species, 11-13 mm. long, with a wing-length of about 11-12 mm.;
pubescence above deeper and more uniformly golden yellow or even
more fulvous, with deep golden gleams, that towards apex of abdomen
in <JcJ less whitish and also more golden, that in front of wings deep
golden yellow to orange golden or fulvous, with a conspicuous contrasting
vertical band of silvery white pubescence on mesopleural part and also
with a conspicuous silvery whitish patch on each side at base of venter;
wings slightly more greyish hyaline, with the costal and basal parts
more pale yellowish brown, with the basal comb large and strongly
developed; sides of abdomen in $$ very broadly and extensively red;
interocular space in <$$ about as broad as, or scarcely broader than,
front ocellus; eyes in <$<$ distinctly more flattened above and the upper
facets very coarse; legs with the front and middle femora armed below
with numerous spines in front and behind in both sexes and with more
numerous, about 9-14, spines on hind ones below
cJ $ ventricosus Bezz. (p. 449).
(Some forms of it.)
147. (146) Smaller species, about 6^-11 \ mm. long, with a wing-length of about
6-10 mm.; pubescence above ranging from sericeous whitish to pale
yellowish sericeous in $£, pale creamy yellowish to pale golden yellowish
in $$ and with sericeous or brassy gleams, that on apical part of abdomen
in $$ paler and often almost white, that on sides in front of wings only
slightly deeper or more yellowish than above, that on pleural parts and
base of venter either uniformly paler yellowish or whitish, without
distinct contrasting bands or very conspicuous silvery whitish hair on
pleurae and venter; wings entirely hyaline or vitreous hyaline, with
only the base, costal cell and first basal cell very pale whitish or yellowish,
with the basal comb less strongly developed; sides of abdomen in ^c?
entirely black or very obscurely and indistinctly reddened; interocular
space in $$ slightly broader, about as broad as front part of tubercle,
broader than front ocellus; eyes in $$ not markedly flattened above
and with the upper facets not very conspicuously coarser than lower
ones; legs without or with only 1, or at least much fewer, spines in front
336 Annals of the South African Museum.
and behind on front and middle femora and with usually fewer, not more
than 10, spines on hind ones below ...... 148.
148. (151) Pubescence shorter, denser and, on thorax above, comparatively
shorter, varying from whitish sericeous to creamy yellowish or to brassy
and even golden yellowish, tending, however, to be more constantly
creamy yellowish or pale brassy yellow, with the bristly black hairs
on frons and sides of face in <$<$ distinctly shorter or about subequal
to antennal joint 3, without any or with only a very few dark bristles
laterally and ventrally towards apex of abdomen in both sexes ; antennal
joint 3, including terminal joints, always longer than 1 and 2 combined,
thickened near base and very gradually narrowed to apex; legs com-
paratively thicker; hypopygium of $$ with the arch, formed by lateral
rami from basal parts, at base of aedeagus, well developed and raised,
with the clavate process on each side of aedeagus shorter and the lateral
struts less developed . . . . . . . . .149.
149. (150) Larger forms, 8-ll| mm. long, with a wing-length of about 8|— 10 mm.;
proboscis more than 3 mm. long; antennal joints 1 and 2 black and 3
longer and comparatively more slender apically, with the first terminal
joint well developed; legs with the front femora more often armed with
a few small spines in front and behind; sides of abdomen in <$<$ entirely
blacky face in front with denser and more numerous yellowish hairs in
<$<$; interocular space in $$ comparatively broader, at narrowest part
about as broad as front part of ocellar tubercle; wings broader and
distinctly much broader towards base than apically; hypopygium of <$
with the inner apical angle or process not projecting beyond apices of
basal parts, with the basal strut very broad, racket-shaped and with
a deep angular dorsal sinuosity . . • c? $ mixtus Wied. (p. 501).
(Variety of it.)
150. (149) Smaller form, about 6^-8 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
6-7 mm.; proboscis shorter, about 3 mm. long; antennal joints 1 and 2
more brownish, and 3 shorter, thicker apically and with the first terminal
joint minute and scarcely discernible; legs with the front femora un-
armed; sides of abdomen in <$<$ often distinctly, though feebly, reddish
towards apex; face in front with the hair distinctly less dense, with
fewer and more inconspicuous yellowish hairs; interocular space com-
paratively narrower, at narrowest part subequal to or scarcely broader
than front ocellus; wings distinctly narrower and towards base scarcely
much broader than apically; hypopygium of $ with the inner apical
angle slightly more developed and distinctly projecting beyond apices
of basal parts, with the basal strut narrower and its dorsal sinuosity
less deep and angular . . . <$ $ marshalli Par. (p. 462).
151. (148) Pubescence distinctly longer, more recumbent and slightly less dense,
longer on thorax above, paler, more whitish to straw-coloured whitish
or yellowish, that on abdomen in <$$ whiter towards apex, with the black
bristly hairs on frons and face in <$<$ distinctly longer than antennal
joint 3, without any or with more darkish bristles towards apex of
abdomen, especially in $$; antennal joint ,3, including terminal joints,
more often distinctly shorter than 1 and 2 combined, distinctly more
club-shaped, comparatively much broader in basal third or fourth, from
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 337
where they are slightly more rapidly narrowed apically to slightly
beyond middle; legs comparatively more slender and the tibiae longer;
hypopygium of o "with the arch at base of aedeagus less raised and less
developed, with the clavate process, on each side of aedeagus, longer and
projecting more . . . <$ 2 anthophilus n. sp. (p. 466).
152. (141) Abdomen always with a good few, a large number or at least with more
numerous and more conspicuous, more than 1 or 2, black or dark bristles
laterally and ventrally on last few segments in $<$, always with more and
a variable number of distinct and conspicuous black bristles on sides
towards apex or from segments 2-6 in 29 . 153.
153. (154) Scutellum entirely black; legs in both sexes entirely black or very
dark blackish brown, with the spines on hind femora below and on hind
tibiae yellowish brown to brownish, with the spicules on front tibiae
above small, sparse and comparatively poorly developed; face ap-
parently more truncate and slightly less conical in front; interocular
space in 22 very broad, at least 4 times as broad as tubercle; antennal
joint 3 in ^o a t least short and rod-like; wings more greyish hyaline,
with the costal and basal darker parts darker and more brownish, slightly
more extensive and even slightly extending into second basal cell, more
distinctly infuscated in qo ; hind femora with only about 4 or 6 spines
below . . . . . . • c? ? poweri n. sp. (p. 440).
154. (153) Scutellum red or reddish; legs not entirely black or dark, entirely
yellowish or with the femora darkened only at extreme bases in some gg,
with the spines on hind femora and tibiae black, with the spicules on
front tibiae above as well developed as on middle ones, also more
numerous; face slightly more conically prominent in front; interocular
space in 22 narrower, distinctly less than 4 times as broad as tubercle;
antennal joint 3 longer and even very long, distinctly thickened basally
and gradually narrowed apically; wings more hyaline, with the costal
and basal parts very pale yellowish white to yellowish, the yellowish
confined to costal cell, base and first basal cell, not extending into
second basal cell ; hind femora usually with more than 5 spines below
155.
155. (156) Larger form, about 11-13 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
11-12 mm. : pubescence deeper and more distinctly deep golden or orange
golden, with golden gleams, that on sides in front of wings, especially
in oo, also deeper golden and more orange fulvous, that on mesopleural
part with a conspicuous vertical band of silvery whitish hair and that
at base of venter similarly silvery white, with the transverse bristles
on abdomen slightly deeper yellowish in 2$ and in both sexes often
with more blackish or dark ones laterally and apically; sides of abdomen
in <$$ very broadly red; interocular space in <$$ very narrow, as broad
as, or scarcely broader than, front ocellus; eyes in <J<£ more distinctly
flattened above and with the upper facets very coarse; wings slightly
more greyish hyaline in certain lights and considerably broader at base
hi oo; with the costal and basal darker parts deeper yellowish to pale
yellowish brown, slightly more extensive and, extending into extreme
bases of second basal and anal cells, with the basal comb more strongly
developed and the squamal fringe more orange fulvous; legs with more
338 Annals of the South African Museum.
numerous spines in front and behind on front and middle femora and
with slightly more numerous, 9-14, spines on hind ones below
Certain <$$ $$ ventricosus Bezz. (p. 449).
156. (155) Comparatively smaller and less bulky species, about 6-11^ mm. long,
with a wing-length of about 5-10 mm. ; pubescence ranging from almost
sericeous whitish to pale creamy yellowish or straw-coloured yellow in
(JcJ, creamy yellowish, brassy yellow to pale golden yellowish in $$ and
with more sericeous gleams in both sexes, that on sides in front of wings
not or not so fulvous or orange golden, that on pleural parts and sides
of venter basally more uniformly paler yellowish or more whitish and
without a very distinct vertical silvery band, with the transverse bristles
on abdomen, in $$ at least, paler and more whitish or pale yellowish
and with fewer black ones intermixed laterally in both sexes; sides of
abdomen in <$<$ entirely black or only very indistinctly and obscurely
reddish towards apex; interocular space in $<$ broader, a little or much
broader than front ocellus; eyes in $<$ not very visibly flattened above
and with the upper facets only a little more coarse than lower ones;
wings entirely hyaline or vitreous hyaline, scarcely broader basally
even in $<$ and the apex is more rounded, with the costal cell, base and
first basal cell being alone subopaquely whitish or feebly yellowish
white, with the basal comb less developed and even poorly in some
forms, with the squamal fringe not orange fulvous; legs with fewer
spines in front and behind on front and middle femora and hind ones
also with fewer, usually less than 10, spines below . . . 157.
157. (160) Slightly larger forms, about 7^—11^ mm. long, with a wing-length of
about 7-10 mm.; proboscis longer, more than 3 mm. long; antennae
darker and more blackish brown or black; face and head below black;
frons in <$<$ with the central furrow more or less well developed and
distinct throughout its length, with the frontal triangle in $$ larger and
broader, the inner margins of eyes very rapidly diverging apically, with
the distance across bases of antennae equal to or subequal to width of
eyes at same level; dark bristly hairs on frons and face black in <£<£ and
very dark blackish brown to black in $$, that on face in front denser and
predominantly yellowish in $$; black bristles on abdomen in 9? present
only on sides; front femora armed or unarmed below . . .158.
158. (159) Legs with the femora in <$ blackened to middle or to beyond middle,
without any apical spines above on front and middle femora, the front
ones unarmed below and the hind ones with about 5-7 spines below;
interocular space in $ slightly broader, at least 2 times as broad as front
ocellus, with the inner margin of eye from hind angle to point of diver-
gence in front much shorter, equal to or subequal to 2 times narrowest
part of interocular space; antennae with joint 1 more than 4 times as
long as joint 2, with 3 shorter, less thickened basally and more rod-
shaped; pubescence on body above and below more silvery whitish and
that on abdomen above distinctly purer silvery white and the pectus
also with whiter hair; wings with the basal comb more feebly developed,
the basal spines being much shorter than length of first antennal joint,
with a tendency for discoidal cell to be more obtuse or truncate apically
<$ deceptus n. sp. (p. 506).
(Karoo-form det. albidus Bezz. nee Lw.)
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 339
159. (158) Legs with the femora in <$<$ as in $$ entirely yellow or only slightly
darkened at extreme bases, more often with a few small spines above
apically on front and middle femora, the front ones often armed below
with 1 or 2 spines in front and behind and the hind ones usually with
about 5-9 spines below; interocular space in SS distinctly narrower,
less than 2 times as broad as front ocellus, with the inner margin of eye,
on each side of tubercle, from hind angle to point of divergence anteriorly
distinctly much longer than 2 times the interocular space; antennae
with joint 1 only about 4, or less than 4, times as long as joint 2, with 3
longer and distinctly more thickened basally and less rod-shaped even
in (JcJ; pubescence above and below more creamy yellowish or even
yellowish in <$($, more golden yellowish in $$, that on abdomen above
in $<$ more creamy yellowish and that on pectoral part, even in £$,
less silvery whitish; wings with the basal comb better developed, the
spines being at least equal to or subequal to length of first antennal
joint, with the discoidal cell tending to be less obtuse and often distinctly
more subacute apically . . . • c? $ mixtus Wied. (p. 501).
(Some forms of it.)
160. (157) Slightly smaller form, about 6-7 mm. long, with a wing-length of about
5-6^ mm.; proboscis much shorter, 2^-3 mm. long; antennae paler
and more reddish brown; face paler and more reddish brown; frons in
<$ with the central furrow less distinct and indicated only posteriorly,
with the frontal triangle in <$ smaller, the inner margins of eyes less
rapidly diverging apically, the distance across bases of antennae being
distinctly much less than width of eyes at same level; bristly hairs on
frons and face in $ brownish or reddish purple and reddish or fulvous
brown in $, that on face in front less dense, being predominantly more
orange to orange fulvous, especially in $; black or dark bristles on sides
of abdomen in $ at least more numerous and even found discally above
on segment 6 ; front femora unarmed below
<$ $ exiguus n. sp. (p. 464).
(Syn. = ctenopterus Bezz. nee Mik.)
161. (140) All or the majority of the spines or spicules in the upper outer row
on the front tibiae pallid or yellowish like those in the lower outer row;
spines on hind femora below, especially in $$, more often also with a few
or a large number of pallid or yellowish ones ; transverse rows of bristles
on abdomen above entirely whitish or yellowish in both sexes, rarely dark
and if so they are more reddish, pale reddish brown to brownish . 162.
162. (165) Pubescence whitish sericeous, straw-coloured whitish or yellowish to
very pale creamy yellowish in both sexes, that on abdomen towards apex
in both sexes always almost entirely white, with the transverse bristles
on abdomen in both sexes entirely white or whitish, only those towards
apex in some $$ sometimes slightly brownish, but without any golden
ones; sides of abdomen in known £$ entirely black; legs with the femora,
in known <$<$, blackened to much beyond middle .... 163.
163. (164) Pubescence entirely whitish sericeous, straw-coloured to pale creamy
yellowish, with the transverse bristles on abdomen in both sexes entirely
white or whitish, that on pleurae and pectus, sides of venter, in meta-
pleural tuft and in squamal fringe distinctly whiter; wings with a
340 Annals of the South African Museum.
distinct, but faint, subopaquely whitish tint, with extreme base sub-
opaquely whitish to very pale yellowish white; face in $$ at least with
comparatively fewer black hairs, the pale ones predominating and are
also denser, with that in <$$ even denser, black, more greyish in front
due to intermixed pale ones; legs with the spines on hind femora below,
especially in $$, often with some or a large number of pallid or whitish
ones; antennae black . . . <J $ xerophilus n. sp. (p. 467).
164. (163) Pubescence more distinctly straw-coloured whitish or yellowish, with
the transverse bristles on abdomen in $ at least not entirely white,
brownish on sides and towards apex, hair on pleurae and pectus, sides of
venter much duller and inclining more towards straw-coloured yellowish,
that in metapleural tuft and squamal fringe more distinctly creamy
yellowish; wings more vitreous hyaline, less distinctly tinted whitish,
more subopaquely and feebly reddish, with the extreme base slightly
more pale ochreous yellow; face in $ with slightly more numerous
very dark reddish brown hairs, with fewer pale ones which are distinctly
more whitish and less dense; legs with 1 or 2 reddish yellow or brownish
spines in addition to blackish ones; antennae with joint 3 more brownish
$ nigribarbus v.falsus n. (p. 485).
165. (162) Pubescence more distinctly yellow, yellow sericeous to pale golden
yellow and even deep lemon yellow to ochreous yellow, not whitish,
that on abdomen apically in both sexes pale yellowish to yellow, with the
transverse bristles on abdomen in both sexes entirely yellow or golden
and in some $$ reddish yellow to brownish or reddish near apex, the rest
of these, however, entirely yellow; sides of abdomen in $<$ always with
some distinct red or reddish; legs entirely yellow or only darkened in
basal halves of femora in some $$ ...... 166.
166. (169) Antennae almost entirely pale reddish brown or yellowish in both
sexes, with the third joints, if darker, distinctly paler reddish brown or
brownish, not distinctly black; pubescence slightly paler, more sulphur
yellow to pale golden yellow, with the hair on face less dense and with
the black hairs, in $$, intermixed with more numerous and more con-
spicuous paler yellowish or golden ones, with the transverse bristles on
abdomen in both sexes entirely yellowish or golden like rest of hair;
face in front reddish or brownish; legs entirely pale ochreous yellow or
yellowish in both sexes, with the front tarsi in $$ not comparatively
short, distinctly very much longer than front tibiae . . . 167.
167. (168) Wings faintly, but distinctly, tinged mauvish or reddish brownish;
pubescence above in <J pale yellow, more golden in $, with a more ochreous
yellow apical tuft on abdomen; face less distinctly reddish brown in
front; interocular space in $ distinctly broader, at narrowest part, as
broad as front part of ocellar tubercle or about as broad as length of
antennal joint 2, about 3 times as broad as tubercle in $, with the upper
facets in eyes in $ only imperceptibly coarser than lower ones; proboscis
slightly shorter, about 3^-4 mm. long; legs with the majority of spines,
especially on middle and hind ones, and the spines on hind femora below
black; hypopygium of $ with the process, on each side of aedeagus,
flattened and considerably broadened, leaf -like apically
cJ $ rufiarticularis n. sp. (p. 480).
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 341
168. (167) Wings less tinged, almost vitreous hyaline and with a feeble whitish
tint in certain lights; pubescence above in <$ more sulphur or lemon
yellow and more golden in $, without the apical part of abdomen being
more ochreous yellow; face more extensively and more distinctly
yellowish to reddish brown; interocular space in $ distinctly narrower,
at narrowest part, as broad as front ocellus or considerably narrower than
length of antennal joint 2, more than 3 times as broad tubercle in $,
with the upper facets in eyes in <$ markedly coarser than lower ones;
proboscis longer, about 4-4£ mm. long; legs with almost all the spines
yellowish to pale yellowish brown; hypopygium of $ with the process,
on each side of aedeagus, not characteristically broadened and leaf-like
apically . . . . . <J $ chlamydicterus n. sp. (p. 482).
169. (166) Antennae entirely black or at least not reddish brown or yellowish in
(J ^, but joints 1 and 2 may be yellowish in some $$; pubescence deeper
yellowish and more often ochreous or fulvous yellow, with the hair on
face denser and longer, with more numerous and more predominantly
black ones in <$$, the pale ones being visible only round buccal rim in
front, with the transverse bristles on abdomen, in $$ at least, deeper
yellow, often more golden reddish and even brownish towards apex;
face entirely black; legs with the basal parts of femora in <$<$ black;
with the front tarsi in $$ comparatively short, almost equal to or only
slightly longer than front tibiae ....... 170.
170. (171) Antennae entirely black or very dark reddish brown in both sexes; sides
of abdomen in <$<$ with some red or reddish; pubescence on body below,
especially in $$, distinctly paler and more whitish, with the transverse
bristles on abdomen in <$$ either entirely yellowish or with a few darker
yellowish or reddish ones laterally near apex and with distinctly deeper,
more reddish yellow, reddish brown and even distinctly brownish ones
laterally and ventro-apically in $$; interocular space in $$ usually slightly
narrower, scarcely 3^ times as broad as tubercle; legs with the majority
of the spines on middle and hind femora below and those above on middle
tibiae black; wings with a tendency for discoidal cell to be slightly
less acute or subacute apically . $ $ nigribarbus Lw. (p. 483).
(Including forms.)
171. (170) Antennae entirely black in <$<$, but with joints 1 and 2 yellowish in $$;
sides of abdomen in $<$ black; pubescence on body below, especially
in $$, more yellowish, with the transverse bristles on abdomen in both
sexes entirely yellow and not darker ventro-apically; interocular space
in $$ slightly broader, quite 3^ times as broad as tubercle; legs with the
majority of the spines on middle and hind femora and on middle tibiae
above yellowish; wings with a tendency for discoidal cell to be more
acute apically . . . . . <$ $ chrystallinus Bezz. (p. 486).
(Ex. descr. and labelled $.)
172. (129) Abdomen with distinct and more conspicuous transverse dark or black
bristles across hind margins of most of the segments on sides in both
sexes and these bristles in both sexes often not entirely confined to
extreme sides, with those in $$ more often also found on disc laterally
above of even segments 2-4 and usually with some or even most of those
on segments 5 and 6 discally above also dark or black . . .173.
VOL. XXXIV. 23
342 Annals of the South African Museum.
173. (174) All or the majority of the spines or spicules in the upper outer row on
the front tibiae pallid or yellowish like those in lower outer row; pubes-
cence above, especially on abdomen, more ochreous yellow and even
more so apically in $; legs with the front tarsi in $$ markedly short,
almost subequal to front tibiae; antennal joint 3 tending to be more
brownish . . Some $ forms of nigribarbus Lw. var. falsus n. (p. 485).
174. (173) All the spines or spicules in upper outer row on front tibiae entirely
black; pubescence above, especially on abdomen, usually paler and more
yellowish, not deep ochreous and the apex not deeper yellowish in $$
or $$; legs with the front tarsi in $$ much longer than front tibiae;
antennae entirely black . . . . . . . .175.
175. (178) Pubescence on head below, pectus, lateral parts of pleurae, the meta-
pleural tuft and sides of venter conspicuously frosty or chalky white,
markedly contrasting with the straw-coloured whitish or yellowish to
brassy or golden yellowish pubescence on body above . . .176.
176. (177) Pubescence above pale straw-coloured yellowish to creamy yellowish
in $$, pale yellowish to brassy or golden yellowish in ?$, with the frosty
white hair below less extensive and concentrated more on propleurae,
pleural regions and sides of venter, with the sides in front of wings pale
yellowish haired in <$<$ and pale golden yellowish in $$, with the transverse
bristles on abdomen tending to be irregularly arranged in two rows
across hind margins, with the coxal bristles in $$ straw-coloured yellowish
to yellowish; legs more dark brownish, the front faces of femora and
tibiae darkened by black hair-like scaling, with about 9-10 spines on
hind ones below; interocular space in $<$ very nearly in contact, subequal
to width of front ocellus, in $$ more than 3 times as broad as tubercle;
wings distinctly greyish hyaline, the extreme base and costal cell yellowish
brown to brownish, with upper part of fringe on squamae ochreous,
containing some intermixed dark hairs
cJ $ albipectus n. sp. (p. 486).
(Syn. = mixtus Bezz. nee Wied.)
177. (176) Pubescence above more uniformly paler and more whitish, with frosty
whitish hair below more extensive and occupying the entire body below,
with that on sides in front of wings paler, dull straw-coloured whitish
and not yellow, with the transverse bristles on abdomen apparently less
dense and with a tendency for the rows to be single dorsally, with the
coxal bristles entirely frosty or chalky white; legs paler, pale ochreous
yellow, the front faces of the femora and tibiae without extensive or
conspicuous black scaling, with about 6 spines on hind femora below;
interocular space in $ about or scarcely 3 times as broad as tubercle;
wings clear hyaline, the base and costal part subopaquely pale yellowish
white or whitish, with the fringe of squamae entirely white
$ canescens n. sp. (p. 489).
178. (175) Pubescence on head below, pectus, pleurae, in metapleural tuft and
sides of venter not strikingly or conspicuously frosty or chalky white
and, if whitish, not contrasting sharply (Anastoechus-hke) with the
pubescence above, with that on the body below, excepting head, whitish,
pale yellowish white to pale yellowish and almost always, even when
whitish with a slight yellowish tint . . . . . .179.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 343
179. (180) Abdomen with the transverse rows of black bristles on sides containing
fewer black ones, less extensive and also less conspicuous, pale-tipped
and confined more to extreme sides and ventro-apically in $$, being
entirely absent above dorsally on segments 5 and 6; bristly hairs on
ocellar tubercle in $$ with more numerous and often predominantly
pale yellowish or pale brownish intermixed ones; legs with the femora
entirely yellow in both sexes or at least without very distinct black basal
parts in gg . . . . . . <$ $ mixtus Wied. (p. 501).
(Some forms of it.)
180. (179) Abdomen with the transverse bristles having more numerous, more
conspicuous and also more extensive black bristles on sides, these ex-
tending laterally above also, especially in $$, are rarely pale-tipped and
always present on segments 5 and 6 above dorsally in $$ even if only a
few; bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle in $$ usually predominantly black
or at least with fewer pale intermixed ones; legs with the femora in <$<$
always blackened at bases, in basal halves or even to beyond middle
and even blackened basally in some $$ . . . . .181.
181. (188) Comparatively larger species, bulkier, about 8-12 mm. long, with a
wing-length of about 8^-1 1£ mm.; legs with either the entire femora
dark blackish brown or black or, at least, with the basal halves of front
and middle ones and bases of hind ones distinctly blackened or darkened
in both sexes ; sides of abdomen in $<$ always with distinct red or reddish ;
antennal joint 1 shorter, scarcely 4, or a little more, times as long as
joint 2; basal comb of wings well developed, the spines nearer its base
being longer than the length of antennal joint 1; transverse bristles on
abdomen, in known gg, very or comparatively narrowly interrupted
dorsally and, when more broadly interrupted on segments 2 and 3, the
bristles are not confined to the extreme sides, with the black ones more
numerous and conspicuous in both sexes, extending almost or to the
dorsal interruption on most of the segments, especially in $$ . . 182.
182. (185) Pubescence very pale sericeous, straw-coloured yellowish, dull whitish
or straw-coloured whitish above, with sericeous or silky gleams, that on
body below paler, more whitish or dull straw-coloured whitish, with the
coxal bristles also paler and more whitish, with the transverse bristles on
abdomen comparatively broadly interrupted dorsally on segments 2
and 3, the interruption being slightly more or about a third of width of
segments; interocular space in known <$$ distinctly narrower, at
narrowest part about as broad as or only a very little broader than,
front ocellus, in known $$ distinctly 3 or a little more than 3 times as
broad as tubercle; wings with the squamal fringe whitish; halteres with
slightly more brownish knobs; sides of abdomen, in known <$<$, less
extensively red, the red being confined more to extreme sides; tarsi with
only the last 2 joints of front and middle ones black . . .183.
183. (184) Pubescence above more straw-coloured yellowish, with sericeous
gleams, with the black transverse bristles on abdomen slightly pale-
tipped; legs with the femora only darkened at bases; wings more
distinctly subopaquely whitish, with the costal cell, base and first basal
cell more subopaquely whitish, with the veins darker and more blackish
brown, the first longitudinal vein being darker brownish to black, with
344 Annals of the South African Museum.
the discoidal cell tending to be more subacute apically; hind femora with
slightly more, about 9, spines below . $ acridophagus n. sp. (p. 474).
1S4. (183) Pubescence above and below paler and more dull whitish or straw-
coloured, that on abdomen above also more whitish and with the black
transverse bristles not pale-tipped; legs with the femora in $ distinctly
more extensively blackened to near apex; wings more greyish hyaline,
with the base, costal cell and first basal cell distinctly more subopaquely
yellowish or ochreous, with the veins very pale yellowish brown, with the
first longitudinal vein very pale yellowish brown and with the discoidal
cell tending to be more obtuse apically; hind femora with only about
7 spines below .....$ damarensis n. sp. (p. 490).
(Syn. = rniztus Bezz. nee Wied.)
185. (182) Pubescence distinctly more yellowish, dull yellowish, brassy yellow to
golden yellow, with brassy to golden or deep golden gleams, that on
body below distinctly less white, more yellowish and not much paler
than above, with the coxal bristles pale yellowish to yellow, with the
transverse bristles on abdomen distinctly more narrowly interrupted
dorsally above on segments 2 and 3, the interruption being distinctly
less than a third of the width of segments; interocular space in <$$, at
narrowest part, slightly broader, distinctly and much broader than front
ocellus, about as broad as front part of tubercle, about 3 times as broad
as tubercle in $$; wings with the squamal fringe more yellowish or
yellow; halteres with distinctly more whitish knobs; sides of abdomen
in Jo* distinctly more extensive^ reddened; tarsi with at least the last
3 or 4 joints of front and middle ones black . . . . .186.
186. (187) Pubescence pale or dull yellowish, with dull brassy gleams, that on
apical part of abdomen paler, inclining to whitish, with the hair on face,
in (JcJ a t least, less developed, shorter and the bristly hairs on head above
distinctly shorter, with the transverse bristles on abdomen on segments 2
and 3 more narrowly interrupted dorsally and, in $$, with only the
extreme lateral ones on segments 2-4 black, with pale yellowish or
yellowish white bristles on venter; legs with the femora darkened or
blackened only in basal halves or at extreme bases in both sexes, the
front surfaces may be darkened by blackish scaling, without any apical
spines above on front and middle femora and front ones unarmed;
interocular space in <$$, at narrowest part, about as broad as front part
of tubercle, with the upper facets of eyes in <J<J less coarse; antennal
joint 3, in $? at least, with the apical part more slender; proboscis
with the spinules below not or scarcely visible; wings with the base,
costal cell and first basal cell much paler, subopaquely very pale yellowish
brown or even yellowish white, with the squamal fringe very pale
yellowish white or creamy yellowish; hypopygium of <$ with the process,
on each side of aedeagus, flattened, broadened and racket-shaped apically
<$ $ eremophilu.s Hesse (p. 492).
187. (186) Pubescence distinctly more pale golden to deep golden, with more
golden gleams, that on apical part of abdomen, especially in $$, less
whitish and more golden, with the hair on face, in <$<$ at least, slightly
longer, denser and more conspicuous, and the bristly hairs on head above
longer and those on antennae also denser, with the transverse bristles
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Souther/'. Africa. 345
on abdominal segments 2 and 3 dorsally very much more broadly inter-
rupted above and, in both sexes, with all the bristles in the rows entirely
black, with black transverse bristles on venter; legs with the entire
femora, excepting only the apices, dark brownish blsek to black in both
sexes, with the front surfaces of both the front pairs and the tibiae even
more darkened by black scaling, with the front and middle ones often
armed above with apical spines, the front ones also armed below with
about 2—4 short spines; interocular space in {£$, at narrowest part,
much narrower and only about as broad a3 front part of tubercle, the
tubercle itself being smaller, with the upper facets of eyes in o o distinctly
more coarse and distinctly coarser than lower ones; antennal joint 3
with the apical part comparatively thick and distinctly less slender;
proboscis with the spinules on labium below dense and distinctly visible ;
wings with the base, costal cell and first basal cell much darker, yellowish
brown to brownish, with the squamae darker and its fringe distinctly
more subfulvous or yellowish; hypopygium of ^ with the proce^. ekd
each side of aedeagus, narrow, strap-like and not broadened, clavate or
racket -like apically . . . . . £ § waltoni n. sp. (p. 493).
188. (181) Comparatively smaller species, less bulky, usually about 6-10^- mm.
long, with a wing-length of about 7-9 mm. ; legs with the femora in 1 2
entirely yellowish, blackened in bases or in basal halves or even entirely
in some <$<$; sides of abdomen in <J<J without any red; antennal joint 1
usually at least 4, or even distinctly more, times as long as joint 2; basal
comb of wings less strongly developed, even very small, with the spines
nearer base much shorter and never or very rarely longer than antennal
joint 1; transverse bristles on abdomen in oo Ter 7 broadly interrupted
dorsally and on segments 2 and 3 only found on extreme sides, with the
black ones in both sexes less conspicuous, less numerous and more
confined to the sides, the greater number of those discally above being
whitish or yellowish even in 22 . . . . . . . 189.
189. (196) Interocular space in 3$ distinctly narrower, about as broad as front
ocellus or only a very little broader at narrowest part, with the inner
margins of eyes, on each side of tubercle, in q ^ from their hind angle to
point of divergence in front, longer, at least 2, or much longer than 2,
times the width of interocular space or at least f length of antennal
joint 1; legs in <$<$ with the femora entirely yellowish or distinctly less
extensively darkened, the hind one3 being not extensively or entirely
black; last abdominal tergite in both sexes with black bristles or bristly
hairs on each side and, when not very distinct, the interocular space in
cJ6* at least is narrow and the black bristles on abdomen in 22 are pale-
tipped; wings more often distinctly darker in costal cell and at base,
being usually more brownish; antennae with joint 1, on the whole,
slightly longer, about 4-5, or even more, times as long as joint 2, with 3
usually distinctly more broadened basally or at least more rapidly
narrowed towards apex and without or with only a few intermixed pale
hairs on joint 1 in 22 . . . . . . . . 190.
190. (193) Interocular space in <$<$ much narrower, only about as broad as front
ocellus, in 22 tending to be narrower, not very much more than 3 times
as broad as tubercle; antennae with joint 1 slightly shorter, only about
346 Annals of the South African Museum.
3|-4 times as long as joint 2, with joint 3 less rapidly narrowed towards
apex or with a shorter apical slender part, the joint, on the whole, shorter;
wings tending to be distinctly darker and more brownish at base, in
costal cell, first basal cell and even in second basal cell to a variable
extent, with the veins much darker, very dark blackish brown to almost
black 191.
191. (192) Pubescence on body predominantly more yellowish, creamy yellowish
to pale golden yellowish in both sexes, that towards apex of abdomen
only slightly paler, creamy whitish or yellowish; scutellum usually more
extensively reddened or entirely reddish; legs with the femora in $<$
only darkened in some specimens at extreme bases, the hind ones being
entirely yellowish . • c? ? silvaticus n. sp. var. turneri n. (p. 500).
192. (191) Pubescence on body entirely or predominantly whitish, straw-coloured
whitish to straw-coloured yellowish in both sexes, that towards apex of
abdomen in both sexes distinctly more white ; scutellum with a tendency
to be less red and sometimes only so discally; legs with the femora in
$<$ often darkened to about middle
$ $ silvaticus n. sp. var. turneri n. (p. 500).
(Pale -haired form.)
193. (190) Interocular space in <$$ slightly broader and distinctly broader than
front ocellus, about 1^-2 times as broad as front ocellus, in $$ tending to
be a little more than 3 times as broad as tubercle; antennae with joint 1
either distinctly longer, 4-5 or slightly more, times as long as joint 2 or,
if shorter than 5 times, the interocular space in $<$ is broader and black
bristles on abdomen in $$ are pale-tipped, with joint 3 usually distinctly
more rapidly narrowed apically, the apical slender part usually more
slender and longer; wings either distinctly less dark in costal cell and
base or when distinctly darkish the dark is less conspicuous, with the
veins less dark and more brownish . . . . . .194.
194. (195) Abdomen with distinct, black, not pale-tipped bristles towards apex
on segments above as well as laterally on the other segments in both
sexes and always with black bristles or bristly hairs on sides of last
tergite; wings with the costal cell, base, first basal cell and often even
base of second basal cell more distinctly yellowish brown or yellowish,
with the veins darker and more brownish; antennal joint 1 distinctly
longer, about 4^-5, or even slightly more, times as long as joint 2; hind
margins of ventral segments entirely black or only very obscurely pallid;
frons in <$$ without a distinct tuft of pale hairs just in front of tubercle
and ocellar tubercle in $$ with predominantly, or entirely, black hairs
cJ $ silvaticus n. sp. (p. 497).
(And forms of it.)
195. (194) Abdomen without any black bristles towards apex above in both sexes
or a very few in $$ and without any or only a few inconspicuous blackish
bristly hairs on sides of last tergite with the black bristles on sides of
abdomen in both sexes becoming paler apically (i.e. distinctly pale-
tipped); wings usually much paler and more subopaquely whitish or
pale yellowish at base, in costal cell and first basal cell, rarely with a more
brownish tint, with the veins distinctly more yellowish; antennal joint 1
distinctly shorter, less, and often much less than 5 times as long as 2;
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 347
hind margins of ventral segments in both sexes more distinctly and often
conspicuously more pallid; frons in 33 with a distinct tuft, or at least
with a good number, of pale hairs in front of ocellar tubercle and with
more numerous or even predominantly yellowish or pale bristly hairs
on tubercle in $$ . . . . • c? ? mixtus Wied. (p. 501).
(Forms of it.)
196. (189) Interocular space in 33 distinctly broader, at narrowest part, much
broader than front ocellus, about as broad as front part of tubercle and
only a little narrower than posterior part of tubercle, with the inner
margins of eyes in 33 > on each side of tubercle, from hind angle to point of
divergence in front, shorter, subequal to, or even less than, 2 times the
width of interocular space or distinctly shorter than two-thirds length
of antennal joint 1; legs in 33 with the femora distinctly more ex-
tensively blackened to beyond middle and with the hind ones entirely
or almost entirely, black; last abdominal tergite in both sexes without
any black bristles or bristly hairs on side and also without black bristles
on last few segments in 33 above; wings with the base, costal cell and
first basal cell distinctly much paler, very pale yellowish white or sub-
opaquely whitish; antennae with joint 1, on the whole, shorter, not
more or scarcely more than about 4 times as long as joint 2, with joint 3
comparatively less rapidly broadened basally, more gradually narrowed
apically, often more subrod-like and with more numerous pale hairs on
joint 1, especially below, in $$ . 3 $ deceptus n. sp. (p. 504).
Gen. Anastoechus Ost. Sack.
48 33 86 $$ A. deserticolus n. sp.
($yn.=rubricosus Bezz. nee Wiedemann.)
Body black, often with a greyish mauve or slate-coloured bloom
on the thorax and abdomen above in some forms and, where this is
denuded, the integument shows a slight deep metallic blue sheen in
sunlight; first antennal joints pale yellowish, the second joints dark
blackish or reddish brown and the extreme apices of joint 3 not
entirely black like rest of joint, but often more brownish; front part
of face and in $$ also front part of frons, pale reddish yellow to dark
reddish; scutellum, excluding narrow black base, more often pale
reddish to ferruginous red, but in some specimens only obscurely red
on disc ; sides of abdomen very broadly and to a certain extent the
hind margins towards sides of segments 2 and 3 and more broadly
on 4 and 5 and the entire dorsum of the rest in the 33 very pale
reddish, terra-cotta to salmon pink, in $$ also broadly red on the
sides, but less extensively than in 33, with the hind margins of
segments 3-6 above and entire segment 7 of the same colour, but in
some forms the hind margins are pale yellowish red to ivory yellowish ;
348 Annals of the South African Museum.
venter pale yellowish, pale reddish to reddish brown or brownish,
the hind margins ivory whitish to yellowish or yellowish red and
^-genitalia yellowish; metapleural parts in many specimens with
irregular infusions of yellowish red to obscure brownish red; legs,
including coxae and trochanters, very pale yellowish, almost pallid
in many specimens, the hind femora, in some smaller forms, with a
slight pale brownish infusion on its upper apical outer aspect, especially
in 33, with the tarsi becoming more brownish yellow towards apices,
the apical part of last joint or even last 2 joints in some forms, as
well as the planes of articulation of the other joints dark brownish
black to black, apical two-thirds of claws black, all the spines pallid
to pale yellowish and the scaling on legs whitish ; pubescence com-
paratively long, with the bristly elements well developed, varying
from greyish white, through pale yellowish white and pale ochreous
to soft yellowish brown when viewed from above, viewed from in
front or the sides it varies above from pale greyish white to pale
creamy whitish, yellowish to golden, that on occiput and thorax in
front of 33, in certain lights, whitish to very pale creamy whitish,
in $$ whitish to pale yellowish or yellowish white, hair on occipital
part and sides in front of wings in some <j>$ often distinctly yellowish
to ochreous, that on abdomen long and shaggy, whitish, pale creamy
whitish to pale yellowish white, the extreme sides and the apex
distinctly whitish, with the bristles on thorax, posterior calli and
scutellum whitish, pallid to pale yellowish white, those on occiput, in
some $$, more yellowish, the transverse hairs across hind margins
before rows of bristles tipped pale creamy yellowish, ochreous to
pale brownish fulvous, even distinctly dark mauvish in some forms,
with the transverse bristles long, conspicuous, mostly brownish,
blackish brown, purplish brown to black, only their bases or basal
halves and often all on segment 2 entirely yellowish to pale golden,
the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle and bristles on sides of frons,
varying from whitish to straw-coloured in 33, to very pale yellowish
or ochreous in $$, those on first antennal joints, on frons in front,
sides of face and face in front and some intermixed on upper parts of
genae straw-coloured yellowish, pale yellowish to ochreous in $$,
whitish to very pale yellowish white or pale yellow in 33, with the
genal bristles white or straw-coloured white in 33, often slightly
more yellowish in some ?$ and often distinctly tipped yellowish to
pale ochreous yellow in some $$, with the flattened depressed scaling
along hind margins of eyes laterally and along sides of genae, the
hair on head below frosty or chalky white, that on pectoral and
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 349
pleural regions more frosty white in $<j>, the bristly hairs on coxae,
especially the front ones, and some on propleurae entirely whitish
to straw-coloured in $$, tipped straw-coloured yellowish to yellow
in $$, the bristles of metapleural tuft white to straw-coloured in $$,
more yellowish, even ochreous in some $$, pubescence on venter pale
straw-coloured yellowish to yellowish in #<£, slightly more yellowish
in $$, the bristles straw-coloured to pale sericeous in 33 and pale
yellowish to golden or fulvous in some $$ ; wings with the costal cell,
first marginal cell (to even slightly beyond its apex), basal two-thirds
of first submarginal cell, apical part of first basal cell, basal fourth
and the upper half of first posterior cell (up to its end), extreme base
of second marginal cell, more or less the apical half of second basal
cell, bases of discoidal and fourth posterior cells, basal half of anal
cell and often extreme base of axillary cell pale yellowish brown to
deep yellowish brown, the extreme base, basal part of costal cell,
basal three-quarters of first basal cell and more or less basal half of
second basal cell, alula and in some specimens, middle of apical part
of marginal cell more translucently pale yellowish, the rest of wing
(posterior part) hyaline and also an obscure clear spot in apical part
of second basal cell, with the basal comb whitish, yellowish, ochreous
yellow to orange in some forms, the veins brownish yellow, brownish
to dark brownish, becoming paler towards base, with the discal cross
vein, basal cross vein of fourth posterior cell and basal part of vein
between submarginal cells distinctly darker, the squamae subopaquely
pale yellowish white, pale yellowish to yellow, with white to creamy
yellowish or distinctly yellow fringes in some $$; halteres very pale
yellowish to brownish yellow, with white to very pale yellowish
white knobs. Head with the interocular space in £3 comparatively
wide, wider than ocellar tubercle, at narrowest part about or nearly
twice as wide as posterior part of tubercle, almost at once rapidly
widening anteriorly from narrowest part, in $$ about 3, or even
slightly more, times as wide as tubercle; occiput with the hairs long
and longer in the $$; antennae with joint 1 slightly longer in $$,
joint 2 broader than long, with 3 much longer than 1 and 2 combined,
club-shaped, much thickened at base, broadest at about basal fourth,
rapidly narrowed apically, the apical half or more being long and
slender, the extreme apex being again slightly dilated, with the first
terminal joint indiscernible and the style slender and straight; face
with the pubescence and mystax well developed, the bristles in front
and laterally, as well as those on genae prominently developed and
more so in $$; lower parts of genae with distinct long and stout
350
Annals of the South African Museum.
bristles; palps comparatively slender and feeble; proboscis otften
with the extreme basal part reddish or brownish, about 3-5 \ mm.
long. Legs with the bristles on coxae very well developed and long ;
front and middle femora, in $$ at least, with long white hairs post-
eriorly; front ones with 1-3 spines in front; middle ones with from
4-9 in front and 1-4 behind; hind ones with about 7-19 spines
below, the number varying with the size of the specimens and are
more often more or less irregularly arranged in 2 or more rows
Text-fig. 78. — Side and ventral views of hypopygium and dorsal view of
beaked apical joint of $ Anastoechus deseriicolus n. sp.
towards apex; claws comparatively long and slender, longer in $£,
only slightly bent downwards from about middle to apex, with the
pulvilli extending to middle or even slightly beyond in $<$, more
reduced and confined to basal third in $$; joints 2-5 of front tarsi
in $$ slightly modified, appearing more dilated or thickened than
middle tarsi and also provided with fairly dense, fine and slender
hairs, especially on last 3 joints, from where the two rows of ventral
spines, present on middle and hind tarsi, are entirely absent, the
front pulvilli in $£ are also slightly more reduced and confined to
base, the claws also slightly shorter. (The front tarsi in all $$ of
Anastoechus and Systoechus, like those of Bombylius, are of course
modified.) Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 78) with the basal parts
with fairly long hairs, the neck region towards dorsum with long and
shaggy hairs, the dorsal margin of inner apical processes also with
long hairs; apical beaked joint comparatively broad, hollowed from
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 351
below, with a somewhat elongate depression above and outer upper
convex part with dense hairs, long basally, the beaked curved out-
wards; aedeagus with the apex nearly reaching level of inner apical
processes, with the base not very much produced anteriorly into a
plate or ventral aedeagal process.
Types in the South African Museum and paratypes in the Transvaal
and British Museums and in Imperial Institute.
Length of body: about 6-14 mm.
Length of wing: about 7-13 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Springbok (^-holotype from here and
labelled as rubricosus by Bezzi); O'okiep (^-allotype also labelled
rubricosus), paratypes from Bowesdorp, Kamieskroon, Garies District
and Spektakel (South African Museum). N.W. Karoo: Calvinia
(Ogilvie, 11-16/11/31) (Imperial Institute); Van Wyk's Vlei and
Bushmanland (South African Museum). Little Karoo: Willowmore
(Transvaal Museum). S. Karoo: Matjiesfontein (Turner, Oct.-Nbv.
1928) (British Museum). Meuwveld Karoo, Central and Gouph
Karoo (Mus. Staff, Nov. 1935).
This species is very typical and characteristic and may easily be
recognised by its excessive hairiness, its characteristically infuscated
wings. The species seems to be very variable and at least five, more
or less different, forms are distinguishable: — (1) The type form,
which is fairly large, with predominantly yellow ochreous or pale
yellowish brown pubescence and yellowish basal comb. (2) Another
large form, which is slightly paler, more creamy yellow in certain
lights, with almost orange coloured basal comb. (3) Another
Namaqualand form with the transverse hairs before rows of bristles
much darker at tips, more brownish to brownish black and with the
infuscated part of wings in some specimens paler, more pale yellowish
and not so conspicuous. (4) Smaller forms which, when viewed
from side, are distinctly paler, less yellow and more whitish, with
fewer spines on hind femora and darker scutellum. (5) The smallest
forms, which are distinctly paler greyish white and almost white
above, with whitish basal comb.
This species is also remarkable in that it represents in the genus
Anastoechus more or less the same pattern-type of species that
purpureus, micans and hypoleucus do in the genus Bombylius. As a
matter of fact, so close is this specific parallelism that A. deserticolus
may be superficially mistaken for B. micans or hypoleucus. It has
the same well-developed pubescence, bristles, etc., on the body, a
very similar type of wing pattern, the same well-developed pubescence
352 Annals of the South African Museum.
and bristles on the head, face and genae, same wide interocular
space in the $, similar claws and pulvilli, obtuse apical part of dis-
coidal cell, etc. Moreover, the species darlingi, hirtus and melanurus
bear the same relationship to B. hypoleucus that the various forms of
deserticolus bear to this type form.
Both Bigot and Bezzi (p. 47, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, PL I, fig. 9,
1921) wrongly determined this species as rubricosus (Wied.) (see under
rubrieosus). The species seems to be more or less confined to the
drought-stricken and arid parts of South Africa, where it is always
found hovering over and resting on the dry and hot sand.
1 $ 3 $$ A. deserticolus var. color atus n.
This variety is so near certain forms of deserticolus that the
differences only may be mentioned. It is relatively much smaller;
the body is comparatively more elongate, and narrower; pubescence
is more uniformly paler greyish white on thorax and more straw-
coloured yellowish on the abdomen and only in $$ is it more distinctly
yellowish towards apex and on sides; the red on abdomen is
comparatively more reduced, the red hind margins towards
apex less conspicuous; pubescence and bristles on head com-
paratively paler, whitish in <$, like that of small forms of
deserticolus s.str., but the transverse bristles on abdomen darker
in $$; wings darker, distinctly tinged greyish or cinereous in the
posterior half, with the front part infuscated as in deserticolus, but
first posterior cell is almost entirely infuscated, the constant lower
clear half of apical part of this cell in deserticolus being here scarcely
discernible, the apical clear half of anal cell of deserticolus is also
much less clear, the infuscation at apical part of second basal cell,
basal half of fourth posterior cell and base of third posterior cell is
also more diffused, almost the entire fourth posterior cell being tinged
(the hyaline posterior half being on the whole more tinged and less
conspicuously delimited from the anterior infuscated part than in
deserticolus) ; legs with apparently fewer spines, 5-8, on hind femora
below. Hypopygium like that of deserticolus (cf. text-fig. 78) with
the apical beaked joints comparatively narrower, but larger in relation
to the basal part, the beak more slender and the hairs shorter, hair
on dorsum of neck region also much shorter; aedeagus distinctly
projecting beyond inner apical processes; lateral struts and basal
strut much feebler.
Types in the South African Museum.
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 353
Length of body: about 5J-7 mm.
Length of wing : about 6-7 \ mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand: Bowesdorp (Mus. Staff, Nov. 1931).
2 $<$ 2 $$ A. argyrocomus n. sp.
( Syn. = leucosoma Bezz. in part.)
The ^-specimen from Matjiesfontein, referred to leucosoma by
Bezzi (p. 54, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii) as well as another $ and $
from the same locality, although superficially inseparable from leuco-
soma, show distinctly different specific characters and compared with
the $? of leucosoma the following differences may be mentioned : —
The specimens are comparatively larger and bulkier, with a body-
length of about 9-10 mm. and a wing-length of about 8-9 mm.;
the beautiful dense, frosty white or silvery white pubescence and
bristles above and below comparatively longer and apparently denser;
head very much broader, the hairs and bristles on frons and hairs on
face denser, longer and more developed, with the blackish brown
bristly hairs on frons -more extensive and even a few intermixed ones
extending down lower and upper parts of genae, with distinct stiff
hairs or bristles on face anteriorly and even a few bristles on genae
also, with the interocular space above considerably broader, though
having the same relationship of about 4J times as wide as ocellar
tubercle, the tubercle also being much smaller in leucosoma, with
antennal joint 1 comparatively much longer, subequal to 3, whereas
in leucosoma it is distinctly much shorter, with joints 1 and 2 combined
longer than 3, shorter than 3 in leucosoma, with joint 3 almost rod-
like, only slightly thickened at about basal third, the base broad and
not petiolate as in leucosoma, with the eyes larger, the facets also
comparatively larger, with the proboscis distinctly shorter, less
slender, about 4J mm. long; wings with a slightly more distinct
whitish tint in certain lights, with the costal cell, first basal cell and
extreme base also subopaquely whitish, the veins however distinctly
darker, more dark brownish to blackish brown and the first longitudinal
vein dark brown, not yellowish; halteres dark brown, with dark
brown knobs, not yellowish with white knobs; abdomen above with
the hair and bristles much denser and longer; legs stouter, but with
the femora almost entirely blackened and white-scaled as in leucosoma,
but more hairy, also only the apices of the tibiae yellowish, with,
however, a spine apically on hind face of front femora and 2 or 3
whitish spines in front on middle ones and 5-7 whitish ones on hind
354
Annals of the South African Museum.
femora below, with the claws more developed and longer than in
leucosoma.
The S is like the $, but the bristly hairs on ocellar tubercle and frons
are longer and finer and slightly paler brownish, only the ones inter-
mixed on frons laterally in front and on face laterally above are
blackish brown as in ?; bristles on face in front are more slender
and less stout; interocular space much narrower, only very slightly
wider than the tubercle at narrowest part at level of lateral ocelli;
a b.
Text-fig. 79. — (a) Side view and half of ventral view of hypopygium of <$ of
Anastoechus argyrocomus n. sp. (6) Beaked apical joint of hypopygium of
<J Anastoechus nitens n. sp.
eyes with the upper facets coarse; third antennal joint comparatively
shorter, more slender and rod-shaped, scarcely broadened basally,
with the style, as in $, slender, short and inconspicuous; abdomen
with the pubescence and bristles finer; legs coloured as in $, only
more slender, with the same number, but more slender, spines on
the femora. Hypopygium (text-fig. 79, a) comparatively narrow, the
basal parts only with fine hairs; apical beaked joint leaf-shaped,
very rapidly narrowed to a short outwardly directed beak, with a
large, elongate, basal, foveate depression above, the hairs short above,
lower surface more or less hollowed out; aedeagus with the lateral
rami forming a slightly pointed ventral aedeagal process; lateral
and basal struts shortish, the basal one slender and club-shaped.
Types in the South African Museum.
Locality. — S. Karoo: Matjiesfontein (Trimen, Oct. 1891) (Types):
Calitzdorp Distr. ; Matjiesvlei (Brauns, Oct. 1921).
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 355
This species is probably the southern representative of leucosoma
of the North Western Cape.
1 S A. nitens n. sp.
Very close to argyrocomus, having the same beautiful frosty white
or silvery white pubescence and bristles and superficially inseparable
from $ of argyrocomus, differing, however, in being comparatively
broader across the thorax, in that the integument of body in this
specimen is not black, but dark brownish to brownish black; frons,
face and scutellum as well as pleural parts being even more brown
than body above; venter yellowish; antennal joints 1 and 2 yellowish,
with 3 black but with a brownish apex; proboscis more or less
narrowly pale brownish below towards base; bristly hairs on ocellar
tubercle, frons and sides of face dark brownish as in argyrocomus',
legs yellowish and even greater part of femora also yellowish, only
the upper surfaces and bases darkened and brownish, not black,
with the spines more brownish yellow; femora with less pubescent
hairs below basally, with 1 apical spine below on front ones, 2-3 in
front and 1 behind on middle ones, and about 7 spines below on hind
femora from just before middle to apex; claws slightly longer and
more slender and only slightly curved downwards from middle to
apex, the pulvilli also as in argyrocomus; wings with the veins more
yellowish; interocular space, at narrowest part, about 2 times as
wide as in argyrocomus, the ocellar tubercle also being much larger,
the space broader than tubercle, a little less than twice the distance
between the two posterior ocelli; antennae with joint 1 comparatively
longer, subequal to 3, which is similarly rod-shaped; face viewed
from in front much broader, the mystax as dense, but the bristles
on genae slightly more apparent; proboscis slightly shorter, about
3J mm. long; halteres yellowish, with ivory white knobs, not brownish
ones. Hypopygium very similar to that of argyrocomus (cf. text-fig.
79, a), elongate and narrow, the apical beaked joints (text-fig. 79, b),
however, with the dorsal foveate depression slightly longer and
deeper, the front part more steeply sloping ; ventral process at base
of aedeagus less pointed and less prominent.
Type in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 10 mm.
Length of wing : about 9 J mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand; "P.N.8" (probably "Port Nolloth").
The above three species are characterised by the beautiful downy,
356 Annals of the South African Museum.
silvery white or frosty white pubescence and hyaline, or only faintly
whitish-tinted, wings. They also show the same parallelism of
pattern and relationships to other species of Systoechus and Anas-
toechus as the remarkably similar B. molitor, volucer, leucolasius and
minusculus bear to other species of Bombylius.
3 33 4 $$ A. pruinosus n. sp.
Superficially these specimens are almost inseparable from argyro-
comus, nitens and leucosoma. They all have longish, dense, shaggy,
entirely gleaming silvery whitish pubescence and bristles, thus also
resembling white haired species of Bombylius, such as volucer, molitor,
leucolasius and minusculus. Their separation is thus a difficult
matter. This species is, however, much nearer argyrocomus than
leucosoma, and may even be considered as a northern representative
of argyrocomus.
Like argyrocomus the entire body, including scutellum, is entirely
black; legs also with the femora black to much beyond the middle,
the tibiae yellowish and apical parts of tarsi blackish; pubescence
also entirely gleaming silvery or silky white, only the pubescence on
body below less brilliantly silvery and with the hairs on ocellar
tubercle and longer bristly hairs or bristles on basal part of frons,
sides of frons and even a few down sides of face black in both sexes ;
wings also faintly subopaquely tinted milky whitish but with the
basal half in ££ not hyaline or clear as in argyrocomus but distinctly
tinged smoky brownish up to end of costal cell, then across basal
halves of marginal, first submarginal, first posterior, discoidal and
fourth posterior cells, with, however, the costal cell, base and basal
three-quarters of first and second basal cells and alula more sub-
opaquely whitish or yellowish white, with the wings in $$ entirely
clear as in argyrocomus, only the base, costal cell and first basal cell
almost imperceptibly more pale yellowish white instead of white,
the veins and especially costal veins also very dark as in argyrocomus,
the squamae also opaquely whitish and black bordered as in argyro-
comus and not yellowish bordered as in leucosoma; halteres with the
knobs also very dark brownish and not pale as in leucosoma. Head
with the interocular space in SS much broader than in argyrocomus,
in fact remarkably broad, nearly or about 2 times as broad as broad
ocellar tubercle, in $$ on the contrary slightly narrower than in
argyrocomus, only about or nearly 4 times as broad as tubercle, quite
4 \ times in argyrocomus', antennae with joint 1 nearly 6 times as long
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 357
as 2, thus about as long as in argyrocomus, with 3 subrod-like, sub-
equal to joints 1 and 2 combined; proboscis about 4-5 mm. long.
Legs with 1 spine in front apically and about 2 behind on front
femora; middle ones with about 2 spines medially below and 1 or 2
behind apically; hind femora with about 5-8 spines below; claws
slender, only gradually curved downwards, with the pulvilli not quite
reaching the middle of the claws in both sexes as in argyrocomus.
Hypopygium of $ (text-fig. 80) very much like that of argyrocomus
Text-fig. 80. — Side view, half of ventral view, and dorsal view of beaked
apical joint of hypopygium of <$ Anastoechus pruinosus n. sp.
and nitens, differing only in having no apically projecting lobe-like or
lip-like process below aedeagus, in having a slightly shorter beaked
apical joint and longer lateral and basal struts.
Types in the South African Museum.
Length of body: about 6J-9 mm.
Length of wing : about 7-10 mm.
Locality. — N. Eastern Karoo: Venterstad (Mus. Staff, Oct. 1935)
(Types); Steynsburg Distr. (Mus. Staff, Oct. 1935); Burghersdorp
Area (Mus. Staff, Oct. 1935). O.F.S.: Bethulie; Caledon K.
(Mus. Staff, Oct. 1935).
A. leucosoma Bezz.
(P. 54, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
The $-type from Bushmanland and 3 other $$ from Prieska and
O'okiep and 1 $ from Murraysburg District can only be considered
as belonging to this species. In addition to Bezzi's description the
following points may be added: Abdomen usually with the narrow
vol. xxxiv. 24
358 Annals of the South African Museum.
hind margins of tergites 6 and 7 yellowish to reddish and sometimes
even the venter is reddish or brownish ; wings with a feeble whitish
tint and paler veins than in argyrocomus or pruinosus, the costal
veins being yellowish; antennae with joint 1 much shorter than in
argyrocomus or pruinosus, only a little more than 3 times as long as
2, with 3 distinctly longer than 1 and 2 combined and tending to
be broadest just before middle; interocular space on vertex in $$
relatively broader in relation to tubercle, nearly or quite 5 times as
broad as tubercle ; claws much shorter than in argyrocomus or pruin-
osus, also only gradually curved and with the pulvilli short.
Length of body: about 5-6 J mm.
Length of wing : about 5J-7 mm.
Locality. — Namaqualand, Bushmanland, N.W. Karoo and Central
or Great Karoo. (In the South African Museum.)
A. erinaceus Bezz.
(P. 50, Ann. S. Afr. Mus., vol. xviii, 1921.)
This species, described from Namaqualand, is easily recognised by
the following characters : —
Body predominantly black; scutellum with more than hind half
ferruginous; legs with the femora darkened to beyond middle, the
tibiae yellowish and only apical parts of tarsi more brownish ; pubes-
cence much like that of deserticolus , the head very bristly, bristles
being present on face and on genae, the bristles on abdomen also
long and shaggy, with the pubescence on body above predominantly
gleaming silvery whitish in both sexes, that on disc of thorax with
very faint brownish gleams, with the scaling on sides of face, the
pubescence and bristles on genae, the hair on head and body below
and on sides of abdomen chalky whitish, with the bristles on head
above, thorax, scutellum and transversely across hind margins of
tergites very dark purplish brown in both sexes and some bristles on
venter also very dark ; wings with a distinct subopaquely mauvish
tint, becoming more distinctly reddish brown or yellowish brown at
base, in costal cell, basal half of marginal cell, first basal cell, second
basal cell and even across basal halves of first submarginal, first
posterior, discoidal, fourth posterior and anal cells in <£, in $ only
distinctly subopaquely yellowish brown at base, in costal cell and
first basal cell, the basal comb dark purplish brown in both sexes,
covered with white scaling, with the veins reddish or purplish brown,
the squamae opaquely pale yellowish, dark bordered and fringed with
A Revision of the Bombyliidae (Diptera) of Southern Africa. 359
white hairs; halteres yellowish brown with very pale knobs. Head
with the interocular space in $ broadish, only a little more than
1J times as broad as ocellar tubercle, in $ about 4 times as broad as
tubercle; antennae with joint 1 about 3 times as long as 2 along
dorsal part in $ and only about 2J times as long as 2 in <£, with 3
gradually tapering to apex, the apex very slightly thickened 
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