Thanks!

I'm thinking it was more of a "Hey girls, look at what a stud I am, I just got this huge mite!" ;o)

Augustsonella sp. mites were a favorite prey item. While I was trying to get shots, most of the prey attempts and captures I observed involved these mites. The flies I saw were all in the transition area between the fore and backdunes with large stretches of open sand between scattered beach bur clumps; the mites were very abundant in this area.

Most of the habitat is closed off to protect nesting western snowy plovers, but this closure also, incidentally, protects these flies and the co-occurring Oso Flaco flightless moth (Areniscythris brachypteris) which is found in the same habitat/location. Open areas areas to the north are subject to heavy human visitation and off-road vehicle traffic.

I was thrilled to find these. NatureServe: http://explorer.natureserve.org/servlet/NatureServe?searchName=Ablautus+schlingeri lists them as "Extirpated/possibly extirpated", but they appear to be alive and well in the "plover areas".