![]() ![]() They do so apparently irrespective of any repugnatorial chemicals the prey may have at their disposal. In general, the family attacks a very wide range of prey, including other flies, beetles, butterflies and moths, various bees, ants, dragonflies and damselflies, ichneumon wasps, grasshoppers, and some spiders. Some Asilidae do, however, specialize in smaller prey, and this is reflected in their more gracile build. The mystax has been suggested to afford some protection for the head and face when the flies deal with struggling prey various Asilidae prey on formidable species including stinging Hymenoptera, powerful grasshoppers, dragonflies and even other Asilidae, in fact practically anything of a suitable size. They also have a usually dense moustache of stiff bristles on the face this is called the mystax, a term derived from the Greek mystakos meaning "moustache" or "upper lip". ![]() Robber flies have stout, spiny legs and three simple eyes ( ocelli) in a characteristic depression on the tops of their head between their two large compound eyes. The Asilidae, together with Bombyliidae and Therevidae, are the most representative families of the superfamily of Asiloidea and they form one of the most characteristic groups of the lower Brachycera. Latreille was the authority for establishing the family in 1802. The Asilidae are cosmopolitan, with over 7000 described species. The common name for members of the family is the robber flies. The Asilidae are a family in the order Diptera, the true flies. This asilid shows the mystax and ocular fringe typical of the Asilidae, with short, stout proboscis and spiny, powerful legs, adapted to the capture of prey in flight. ![]() A member of the Asilidae feeding on a grasshopper.
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