Xeramoeba Hesse

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 : 214-215

Xeramoeba Hesse

Xeramoeba Hesse, 1956: 356 . Type species: Xeramoeba apricaria Hesse, 1956 , by original designation.

Comments: The genus was described by Hesse (1956) for a new South African species, X. apricaria Hesse , near Prothaplocnemis . Subsequently, other African species have been described and several Palaearctic species transferred to it from the Anthracini and from Desmatoneura .

Keys: Palaearctic, Engel (1932 –7) as Anthrax or Chionamoeba ; also, Paramonov (1935) as Anthrax .

Hosts: Xeramoeba oophaga (Zakhvatkin) is well known as a predator of the eggs of Acrididae , but another species, X. infuscata Greathead , was reared from the pupa of a noctuid moth ( Greathead 1963; du Merle 1975).

Distribution: Southern Palaearctic and Afrotropical Regions. North Africa: 4 species; Xeramoeba . ramsesi (Paramonov) ( Egypt), X. rubicunda (Bezzi) ( Egypt) , X. sabulonis (Becker) ( Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia), X. semirufa (Sack) ( Egypt) . Africa South of the Sahara: 7 species.