Biology

Only the male of this species is known.

Corizoneura formosa Austen, 1920 was described based on four male specimens with distinct longitudinal sublateral stripes on the thorax.  Oldroyd (1957) moved this into Philoliche (Philoliche) and surmised that it might be a “mere local race of aethiopica,” (p. 334) but was not confident enough to synonymize these species due to the small number of specimens.  Very few specimens of this species have ever been collected, and based on the variation in thoracic stripes present within P. (P.) aethiopica, I am also inclined to consider P. (P.) formosa simply a variant of P. (P.) aethiopica.  However, the sublateral stripes in the few existing specimens that I have seen are quite distinct.  More collections are required to make a decision on this issue.

Distribution

South Africa:  Deelfontein, southern Free State; Entabeni (Zoutpansberg), Limpopo Province; Hluhluwe Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal; Umzimkulu, Eastern Cape.

Works Cited

Austen, E. E. (1920). Notes on the nomenclature of certain African Tabanidae (sub-family Pangoniinae), with descriptions of a new genus and new species. Bulletin of Entomological Research 11, 139-152.

Oldroyd, H. (1957). 'The horseflies of the Ethiopian region. III. Subfamiles Chrysopsinae, Scepsidinae and Pangoniinae, and a revised classification.' (British Museum (Natural History): London.)