sometimes spelled tsetse and also known as tic-tac flies,

are large biting flies that inhabit much of

tropical Africa. Tsetse flies include all the species in
the genus Glossina, which are placed in their own
family, Glossinidae. The tsetse are obligate parasites that
live by feeding on the blood of vertebrate animals. Tsetse
have been extensively studied because of their role in
transmitting disease. They have a prominent economic
impact in sub-Saharan Africa as the biological
vectors of trypanosomes, which cause human sleeping
sickness and animal trypanosomiasis. Tsetse
are multivoltine and long-lived, typically producing about
four broods per year, and up to 31 broods over their
lifespans.
Tsetse can be distinguished from other large flies by two easily observed
features. Tsetse fold their wings completely when they are resting so that
one wing rests directly on top of the other over their abdomens. Tsetse
also have a long proboscis, which extends directly forward and is attached
by a distinct bulb to the bottom of their heads.
Fossilized tsetse have been recovered from Florissant Fossil
Beds in Colorado, laid down some 34 million years ago. Twenty-three
extant species of tsetse flies are known from Africa.