Marshall. — On New Zealand Diptera. 279 



black hairs. Metathorax and pleurae yellow, but with a bright- 

 silvery sheen, due to the presence of a minute silvery pubes- 

 cence. Halteres with a stout otange pedicel, terminating in a 

 moderate knob, orange at the base but darker at the apex, 

 covered with a black pubescence, first two segments of 

 abdomen slender, black ; third segment dark-orange, with a 

 dense covering of black hairs ; fourth segment bright-orange, 

 with few black hairs ; fifth segment dark-orange ; the last two 

 segments black, and covered thickly with black hairs. Base 

 of forceps dark-orange, becoming black at the apex, and 

 ending in two horny chelae. Legs moderately long ; cox£e 

 orange, with a few black hairs at the tip; femora dark- 

 orange, covered with short black hairs ; tibiae and tarsi dark- 

 orange, but the close covering of hairs on the tarsi makes 

 them appear almost black ; spurs stout, black. Wings with 

 a fulvous tinge, especially near the costal margin ; a black 

 patch extending from the fork of the second longitudinal to 

 tlie apex, very dark near the costal margin, but shading away 

 towards the inner margin; another feebly-shaded spot near 

 the end of the fifth longitudinal, extending a little beyond the 

 fourth longitudinal, but not extending any distance towards 

 the anterior margin. Veins yellow at the base, but shading 

 into black at the apex of the inner marginal cell; costal vein 

 terminates where the second longitudinal joins it ; two 

 branches of the third longitudinal terminate close together, 

 and the apices of the fourth and fifth longitudinals close 

 together. Wings microscopically haired. 



Female. Length of antennse, 0079 ; size of body, 0"385 x 

 0-071 ; expanse of wing, 0-242 x 0-094. 



Joints of scapus bright-orange, covered with short black 

 hairs ; joints of flagellum as in the male. Head black, but 

 thorax orange, with silver sheen marked with dark-orange in 

 much the same way as the male is marked with black. Scu* 

 tellum dark-orange, fringed with black hairs. Metathorax 

 and plurae with a beautiful silvery sheen. All segments of 

 abdomen dark-orange mottled with black, and covered with 

 black hairs. Legs rather darker all over than in male. 

 "Wings with more pronounced fulvous shade, and less con- 

 spicuously shaded than in male. Sides of abdomen covered 

 with a less-evident silvery tomentum than the pleuras. 



I have only one male and one female specimen of this fine 

 and remarkable insect ; they were taken together, at an eleva- 

 tion of about 1,000ft., on the Ruahine Mountains, in the 

 month of January. 



Platyura agricolce, sp. nov. 



Male. Length of antennae, 0-064 ; size of body, 0-203 

 X 0033 ; expanse of wing, 0157 x 0055. 



