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Show 262 INSECTA. FAMILY III. TABANIDES. . of the Diptera is characterized by a O. ur secobnods c!lsa muilsyu a 11 y t er minated by two 1ips w. ith pro-s. ahe. nt proI i by' the 1a st J.O l.D t of the antennre b. emg ann. u- J1eactetmd, ga npda bPy ' a sucker compos ed of six pieces: It compr1ses the genus TABANus, Lin.(l) · • .1 to large Flies, and well known by These Diptera are ve~y Slml arttl by piercing their skin in order h occas1on to ca e, . . tlle torment t ey • . b d is usually but shghtly pl1 o se. to suck their blood. fhelrh o y lmost hemispherical, and with d . ·de as the t ora:x, a · d Their hea . 1s asf Wl small space, par t'l c ularly in the males, occup1ke the exception ° eraa lly of a go ld en-gre en ' with purple spots or strea sd. by tw. o eyte s, gree na re about t h e l en gth of the head, and are. compo. se The1r an enn f h. h is the longest, termmates m a of three joints, the last o ·~ t lCt the end is frequently lunate above point, has neither seta nor stl e a en trau~verse and superficial divi-d · th from three to sev its base,T ahn Wl !>oscis of the greater n umber is almost membranous, sions. e pro 1 ·h f the head or somewhat shorter, perpendicular, of the eng~ o d b t o elongated lips. The two · d · 1 and termmate Y w d almost cyhn nca' 't thick pilose conical, compresse • 11 incumbent on 1 ' are ' ' . . d palpl,• usu· a y k . l sed in the proboscis lS compose 1 t d The sue er me o . b and b1art1cu a e • f . . the form o 1a nce t s, which ' by the1r num her of six small pleces, m d t the parts of the mouth in t e and relative situation, correspon o d 'th the precedi. ng one. It ap pears to me to (1) This family is not connecte Wl 1 d' from the Nemocera: to the form a particular series with th~ follow;~~' ea a:!her which would also lead to Atericera:. The precedinS: family wol~ be o:~roximated to the last of th~ Nota: them, so that the last of tlus,one ~ou the only Diptera whose sucker 11 com canthi. The Culicides and 1 abamdes are posed of six pieces. DIPTERA. 263 Coleoptera. The wings are extended horizontally on each side of the body. The alulce almost completely cover the halteres. The abdomen is triangular and depressed. The tarsi are furnished with three pellets. These Insects begin to appear towards the close of spring, are very common in the woods and pastures, and produce a humming noise when on the wing. They even pursue Man in order to suck his blood. Beasts of burden, having no means of repulsing them, are most exposed to their attacks, and are sometimes seen covered with blood from the wounds they inflict. The Insect mentioned by Bruce, under the name of Taaltaalya, which is dreaded even by the Lion, may possibly belong to this genus. In some, the proboscis is much longer than the head, slender, siphoniform, squamous, and usually terminated in a point, with the palpi very short in proportion to its length. The last joint of the antenna:: is divided into eight annuli. 1'hey form the subgenus PANGONIA, Lat. Fab.-Tanygloaaa, Meig. These Insects are only found in hot climates, and feed on the nectar of flowers like the Bombylii( 1 ). In the others the proboscis is shorter, or hardly longer than the head, membranous, and terminated by two large lips; the length of the paJpi is at least equal to half that of the proboscis, and the last joint of the antennce is divided into five or four rings. Sometimes the antennce are hardly longer than the head; the last joint which is somewhat lunate and subulate is divided into five rings, the first very large with a tooth superiorly. They constitute the subgenus TABANus proper. To which belongs that well known species, {1) Encyc. Method., article Pangonie. See also Meigen and Wiedemann. Some species are destitute of ocelli, and form the genus PauoLrcaE of Count Hoffmansegg, Wied., Dipt., Exot., 54. Others in which the proboscis projects, as in Pangonia, but ascends, where the pal pi consist of three joints instead of two, and the antenna: resemble those of Tabanus proper, compose the genus Rar:s-oxru., Wied., lb., 69. Those, which he calla .Ruaroaar:Ncaus and AC.A.NTROMER..&. placed by him be- |
