Heterotropus munroi, Bezzi 1926
Heterotropus is a monophyletic genus of small, rather bare flies with hyaline wings. Coloration of body with
distinctive pale yellow/ivory/cream and black markings. Larvae are predatory and live in loose sand.
This species is easily distinguished amongst the 5 known Heterotropus spp from Southern Africa by:
Wing with anal cell (cup) closed and stalked, other marginal cells open; discal cell longer than wide.
Scutum and scutellum not all black, scutum black with two mediolateral yellow stripes
Head ivory with black markings.
Abdominal terga black with narrow pale hind margins.
Description of female by Hesse 1938:
https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/40845178#page/836/mode/1up
Description of male by Greathead 2006:
https://sci-hub.ee/10.11646/zootaxa.1149.1.1
Photos of a female from Namibia (BMNH):
https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/2451849154
Taxonomy: The subfamily Heterotropinae sould probably raised to family level. Publication of the biological data on the Afrotropical species of this genus (Yeates and Irwin, 1992 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236612517_Three_New_Species_of_Heterotropus_Loew_Diptera_Bombyliidae_from_South_Africa_with_Descriptions_of_the_Immature_Stages_and_a_Discussion_of_the_Phylogenetic_Placement_of_the_Genus/link/0c96051848895d9620000000/download?_tp=eyJjb250ZXh0Ijp7ImZpcnN0UGFnZSI6InB1YmxpY2F0aW9uIiwicGFnZSI6InB1YmxpY2F0aW9uIn1)
was a certain breakthrough since these findings suggest that Heterotropus Loew does not belong to Bombyliidae but should be elevated to a separate family. Also, the genus Heterotropus clearly differs from the known representatives of Bombyliidae in the morphology of the wing, antenna, abdomen, and body pubescence.
(N. P. Krivosheina (2012). The position of the genusHeterotropusin the system of Brachycera-Orthorrhapha (Diptera). , 92(7), 798–807. doi:10.1134/s0013873812070068 https://sci-hub.ee/10.1134/s0013873812070068)
Observation on iNat: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/28508705
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