Anastoechus Osten Sacken

Greathead, D. J. & Evenhuis, N. L., 2001, Annotated keys to the genera of African Bombylioidea (Diptera: Bombyliidae; Mythicomyiidae), African Invertebrates 42 (1820), pp. 105-224 : 152-153

Anastoechus Osten Sacken

Anastoechus Osten Sacken, 1877: 251 . Type species: Anastoechus barbatus Osten Sacken, 1877 , by monotypy.

Comments: This genus, formerly considered to be closely allied to Bombylius and Systoechus , has been shown to have bare laterotergites (Greathead 1995). It is close to the southern African genus Australoechus Greathead and forms a clade with it in all cladograms found for the genera of Bombyliini (Greathead unpublished). In addition to the characters in the key, Anastoechus differs from Australoechus Greathead in the male genitalia which has the phallosome attached near the base of the gonocoxae and not near the middle.

Key: Palaearctic, Engel (1932 –7), Paramonov (1940 b); Egypt, Efflatoun (1945) ; Afrotropical, Bezzi (1924); southern Africa, Hesse (1938).

Hosts: African species have not been reared, but some Holarctic species are predators in egg-pods of Acrididae ( Greathead 1963; du Merle 1975).

Distribution: Holarctic, Afrotropical and Oriental (1 species only) Regions (Greathead 1995). North Africa: 11 species. Canary Islands: 1 species, Anastoechus latifrons (Macquart) . Africa South of the Sahara: 32 species, mostly from South Africa and the northern semi-desert areas.