Hendel 1903; McAlpine 1977; Ozerov 1984a; Ozerov 1984b; Ozerov 2000.

Brownish, scathophagid-like flies, body length 4−8 mm. Body densely to moderately microtomentose and covered with long, fine setulae, especially in males. Frons with one or two upper reclinate orbital setae. Ocellar seta, medial and lateral vertical setae, and postvertical seta long and robust. Two to ten frontal setae usually arranged more or less regularly around lunula. Face with a strong, flattened median carina, antennal grooves deep. Parafacial with a patch of microtomentum at mid length (Fig. 15). Compound eye almost round in lateral view. Two pairs of strong vibrissae present, subequal in length and strength. Thoracic chaetotaxy as follows: 0−2 postpronotal setae (postpronotal setae usually absent in male of Centrophlebomyia furcata); 1 + 1 intra-alar, 1−2 + 3 strong dorsocentral setae, 1 postalar, 2 notopleural setae, 0−1 prescutellar acrostichal setae. Scutellum long, dorsally flattened, much more developed in male than in female, with two pairs of setae, apical pair very long and strong, almost spiniform in larger males. Dorsal surface of scutellum bare. Development of scutellum in male related to body size. Propleural seta strong. Katepisternum densely setulose, with one strong katepisternal seta at upper posterior margin. Anepisternum with a row of setae along posterior margin, one of them strong. Thorax (except scutellum) very finely setulose throughout, besides the strong setae.

Wing membrane hyaline. Costa more or less spinose (i.e., with a regular row of stronger setulae interspersed with the general costal setulae), spine-like setae stronger in male than in female. Anal vein fading out well before wing margin. Legs thickly setulose in both sexes (almost woolly in male). Fore femur with 5–6 weak posteroventral setae near apex, scarcely differentiated in male. Hind femur with 2–3 anteroventral setae near apex. Mid tibia with five apical setae on ventral side: middle and lateral ones strongest. Hind tibia with one short, curved apical seta on posteroventral surface. Tarsi unmodified.

Described by Freidberg (1981) and below.

Europe, North Africa, Middle East, Russian Far East, northern India (Kashmir and Darjeeling).

The generic diagnosis incorporates the characters given by McAlpine (1977) based only on the type species Centrophlebomyia furcata.

Neotype (designated below). Male (ZMUC), here designated, from Sardinia, Italy and bearing the following labels: SARDEGNA / Belvì (NU) / 10.X.’84 [39°57.889'N, 9°11.111'E] // Neotype ♂ / Thyreophora / anthropophaga / Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830 / M. Mei & P. Cerretti des. 2013 // Centrophlebomyia / anthropophaga / (Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830) / M. Mei & P. Cerretti det. 2013).

Other material examined. 5 ♂♂, 5 ♀♀, same data as neotype. 35 ♂♂, 3 ♀♀, Italy, Abruzzo, L’Aquila province, Riserva Naturale Orientata Monte Velino, Mandridi, 42°7.696'N, 13°22.247'E, 1270 m, 11.XI.2005, G. Lo Giudice, M. Mini, A. Vigna Taglianti legit. 20 ♂♂, 13 ♀♀, same data but 9.XII.2005; 13 ♂♂, 4 ♀♀, same data but 25.I.2006; 7 ♂♂, 1 ♀♀, same data but 25.X.2006; 2 ♂♂, same data but 9.XI.2006; 3 ♂♂, 5 ♀♀, same data but 16.XI.2006; 6 ♂♂, 4 ♀♀, same data but 30.XI.2006; 2♂♂, same data but XI.2006 reared from larvae, (see below); 13 ♂♂, 2 ♀♀, same data but 14.X.2007; 2 ♂♂, same data but 18.XI.2008.

Michelsen 1983; Contini and Rivosecchi 1993; Martín-Vega et al. 2010.

Specimens from Sardinia were collected from a bag of dead, decaying snails (Contini and Rivosecchi 1993). Specimens from central Italy were collected with hand net (adults) and pitfall traps (adults, larvae) filled with a saturated solution of water and salt (NaCl), in a large fenced area where a feeding station (“vulture restaurant”) was kept for a population of griffon vultures living in the Nature Reserve. Twenty pitfall traps were placed around dead and dismembered sheep (front and rear quarters without skin and guts).

?France (Paris), Italy (Sardinia, Central Apennines).

Colouration. Head, including antenna and palpus, usually reddish yellow; sometimes dorsal half of occiput black. Occiput, ocellar triangle, genal dilation, and parafacial covered with microtomentum. When seen in dorsal view, the microtomentum that covers the occiput anteriorly outlines a three-pointed crown on the frons between the medial posterior margin of eyes (Figs 1, 3, 11, 12); middle tip of crown corresponds to anterior ocellus; lateral tips, laterally confined by eyes, end about level with posterior ocelli or slightly anteriorly. Prementum black. Postpronotum at least partly reddish laterally (reddish colour usually not visible in dorsal view). Scutum black in ground colour, covered with thin microtomentum except around base of dorsocentral setae and two lateral, longitudinal shiny vittae, widely interrupted at level of transverse suture (Figs 1, 27) (suture well developed laterally up to level of dorsocentral row). Scutellum at least apically yellow. Legs usually entirely yellow, rarely tarsi darkened. Abdomen usually entirely yellow or light brown, but can vary from dark brown to shiny black dorsally in some females. Setae of whole body black. Wing hyaline.

Head (Figs 1−4, 11−12, 15, 27). Head about as wide as thorax. Eye almost round. Frons 2.0−2.5 times as wide as an eye in dorsal view. Parafacial 1/2–2/3 as wide as first flagellomere, both measured at mid length. Gena, in profile, 0.33–0.65 times as high as eye. Medial vertical seta well developed, reclinate. Lateral vertical seta well developed, about 4/5 of medial vertical seta, lateroclinate. One or (usually) two upper reclinate orbital setae; when two are present, then anterior one at most 1/3 as long as posterior seta, and distinctly thinner. Postocellar seta strong and reclinate, subequal in size to ocellar and medial vertical setae. Ocellar seta proclinate. Anterior margin of frons with 2–3 pairs of pro- and medioclinate, strong frontal setae. Fronto-orbital plate with scattered, short, proclinate or medioclinate setae, between posteriormost upper reclinate orbital seta and distal margin of pedicel. Vibrissa double, very strong. Antenna shorter than height of facial ridge; first flagellomere 1.3–2.0 times as long as pedicel. Occiput and genal dilation covered with scattered black setae. Palpus well developed, apically clavate, covered with fine black setae.

Thorax (Figs 1, 3, 16, 17, 27). Thorax covered with fine black setulae, those on scutum distinctly shorter than those on pleurae. Postpronotum with or without 1–2 very fine setae in male (Fig. 16), usually with 2, relatively strong setae in female (Fig. 17). One strong presutural and 2 postsutural supra-alar setae; posterior postsutural supra-alar seta short and thin. One presutural and 3 postsutural dorsocentral setae (Figs 1, 27) (2 postsutural dorsocentral setae may occur in smaller sized male specimens (Fig. 3)). One, short and weak, prescutellar acrostichal seta. Scutellum dorsally flat to slightly concave (ground plan trait of the Thyreophorina, McAlpine, 1977), more or less elongated posteriorly, with one lateral seta and one apical seta (Figs 1, 3); lateral seta usually much smaller than apical seta. Shape and size of scutellum strongly variable (Figs 1, 3, 27) between sexes and between males of different sizes (Figs 1, 3). Two notopleural setae. One anepisternal seta. One katepisternal seta. Legs robust, covered with long and fine setulae. Mid tibia with 3–5 robust ventral preapical setae. Claws well developed in both sexes, about as long as fifth tarsal segment in male, varying in length between 0.5 and 0.7 times as long as fifth tarsal segment in female. Ventral row of costal setae (specifically CS₃) characterized by the presence of some longer and stouter setae placed at more or less regular intervals (Fig. 18).

Abdomen. Male: more or less elongated; tergite 1 laterodorsally covered with short erect hair-like setae, medially bare; tergites 2 and 3 laterodorsally and ventrally covered with long, hair-like setae that become shorter toward the midline of tergites. Tergites 4 and 5 evenly covered with long, erect hair-like setae. Female: abdominal setae distinctly shorter.

Male terminalia (Figs 22, 24−26). Epandrium short and convex. Surstyli massive, almost touching each other posteromedially; distal margin of surstylus slightly bent posteriorly. Cerci very small, bearing long setae. Phallapodeme, in lateral view, very large with an evenly convex dorsal margin (Fig. 22). Pregonite well sclerotized, relatively narrow and slightly bent posteriorly; basally fused to hypandrium; pregonite with 1−2 fine setae distally. Postgonite very long, well sclerotized and evenly bent anteriorly. Pregonite and postgonite pincer-like in relative position, almost touching each other distally. Epiphallus attached basally and well developed. Basiphallus very long, tubular, covered with fine pubescence and membranous. Distiphallus massive, slightly sclerotized, covered with fine pubescence as in basiphallus; distiphallus with two large laterodistal lobes.

Female terminalia (Figs 28−29). Ovipositor long and telescopically retracted within fifth segment. Tergites 6 and 7 relatively wide and more or less flattened. Tergite 8 longitudinally divided into two halves. Cerci not differentiated. Two rounded and well sclerotized spermathecae.

Both the larva and puparium of Centrophlebomyia anthropophaga (Figs 30−38) correspond well to features given by McAlpine (1977), Ozerov (2000) and Ozerov and Norrbom (2010) for other piophilids and by Freidberg (1981) for Centrophlebomyia furcata. Here we provide additional information not given in previous descriptions. Nearly all the segments of the third instars have a lateral “dotted” line composed of microscopic, concave structures which may be sensory organs (Fig. 31). Their shape and position suggest that they may be mechanoreceptors of pressure or stretching. These structures have not been noted in previous descriptions of piophilid larvae; they were either overlooked or are unique to Centrophlebomyia anthropophaga.

On April 5^th (n=15) and May 3^rd (n=7), 2006, several mature larvae were collected from the soil a few centimetres below the sheep quarters used as bait for the pitfall traps set in the “vulture restaurant” (see above under “Remarks”). The larvae were then transferred into two petri dishes (12 cm diameter): one filled with potting soil, the other with natural soil collected with the larvae from under the carcass. Moisture was provided each week until midsummer. All larvae remained active, though only slightly so, during this time. By June 1^st, five out of 22 larvae had died. The loss of larvae continued steadily and by the beginning of September only six larvae were left, three in the potting soil and three in the natural soil. In early October 2006, two puparia were found in each dish and all the remaining larvae were dead. The four puparia and small amounts of soil were isolated in smaller dishes. An adult male emerged in November from one of the puparia in the natural soil, and another adult (possibly a male) was found dead in its puparium in the potting soil. The remaining two puparia failed to produce adults.

Our observations are consistent with those of Freidberg (1981; 2010 pers. comm.) on Centrophlebomyia furcata larvae reared in Israel. Mature Centrophlebomyia furcata larvae remained buried in the soil through spring and summer, estivating in this stage or as prepupae, and pupariated at the beginning of autumn. The larvae did not feed but were still more or less active. Most of the larvae died during the summer months and only very few adults emerged in October.

1 ♀, 1 ♂, Israel, Tel Aviv, 17.XII.1977, A. Freiberg legit (MZUR); several males and females, same data (TAU). 16 ♂♂, 9 ♀♀, Italy, Latium, Monti della Tolfa, Mount S. Ansino, 332 m, 42°03'51.85"N, 11°59'47.05"E, 28.XII.2011, M. Mei legit, on dead sheep (MZUR).

Hendel 1903; McAlpine 1977; Freidberg 1981; Ozerov 2000; Martín-Vega et al. 2010.

Europe: Austria, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom; North Africa: Algeria; Middle East: Turkey, Israel.

1 ♂, 1 ♀, each bearing the following labels: [Russia] Aмурская обл[аст] / Г. ЗеЯ [= Amur region, Zeya.] 1.VIII.1981 / A. Ozerov / PARATYPE (ZMUC).

Ozerov 1984a, 2000.

Russian Far East.

Holotype male, bearing the following labels: [INDIA] Darjeeling / Juni / Frusthofer leg. // Centrophlebomyia / orientalis / Hendel [handwritten] // Type [red label] // Holotypus [red label] // Pseudotyreo - / phora orientalis / Hendel / A. Ozerov det., 1984 (NHMW).

INDIA (Kashmir) Gulmarg, 2600–3000 m, 17.VIII 5.IX.1978: 2 ♂♂, 1 ♀ (ZMUC).

Hendel 1907; Michelsen 1983; Ozerov 2000.

Northern India (Darjeeling, Kashmir).