THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST 239 



segment of the former as compared with the narrow, bluish- black facial stripe 

 and blackish first abdominal segment of the latter. 



In the writer's series of both species the facial stripe colour character holds 

 good, although many ohliqua specimens have the brown stripe hardly "faint" 

 but quite prominent. In \\\e fracta series no individual has as much as half the 

 first abdominal segment yellow above, while in the obliqua series all specimens 

 have considerably more than half the segment yellow, in fact only the posterior 

 margin is black. The scutellar pile is a good character for separation; in obliqua 

 it is all black, and in Jracta almost all yellow. In both species the picture of 

 the fourth segment is variable, but all the fracta females have the longitudinal 

 stripes divergent anteriorly, while all the obliqua females have these parallel 

 the whole length. This character does not hold for the males, owing to some 

 of the fracta males having stripes not divergent. 



A. fracta is a smaller species than A. obliqua. The immature stages are 

 virtually indistinguishable. 



The only known extra- Californian record for A. fracta is that of Metcalf 

 (4) for Blowing Rock, N.C. This record suggests a transcontinental range for 

 the species. 



LITERATURE CITED 



(1) Metcalf, C. L. SyrphidcX of Maine. Me. Agr. Exp. Sta. Bull. 253, 

 1916, p. 234 and fig. 31. 



(2) Williston, S. W. Synopsis of the North American Syrphidae. Bull. 

 U. S. Nat. Mus. 31, p. 97. 



(3) Osten Sacken, C. R. West. Dipt., p. 331. 



(4) Metcalf, C. R. A List of Syrphidae of North Carolina. Jour. Elisha 

 Mitchell Scientific Society, Dec, 1916, p. 102. 



OBITUARY. 



F. H. WOLLEV DOD. 



On the 24th July, of enteric, at 49 Hospital, Chanak, Frederic Hova WoUey 

 Dod, of Midnapore, Alberta, Sec. Lieut., Yorkshire Light Infantry, attached 

 Macedonian Labour Corps. 



Naturalists are born, not made, and if ever there was an enthusiast — a 

 zealous seeker of scientific truths, it was our good friend who is gone. But to 

 F. H. Wolley Dcd even his beloved study of entomology had to take second 

 place in his thoughts after the outbreak of war. He must go, and serve! and 

 handicapped by his years, and his unfitness as a fighting man, he finally over- 

 came all obstacles; obtained a commission; and served as a lieutenant in a Labour 

 Battalion in Macedonia. 



His last letter to me was joyous in the Allied victory, and full of plans for 

 the future. "He must set up his Macedonian material, do a little collecting in 

 England for old times sake; and then for Canada, and a trip into the mountains 

 for alpine stuff. Would I go with him?" Aye, gladly would I go! 



Dod was the pioneer worker in Alberta on the Ledpidoptera, with a special 

 leaning to the Noctuida. For many years he contributed regularly to The 

 Canadian Entomologist, the first of his long series of paper " Preliminary List of 



