71 



A REVISION OF THE STRATIOMYID.E OF 

 AUSTRALIA. 



By Arthur White. 



( CommnnJcnti'd III/ Dr. Kiisfacc W. Fftyusnn. ) 



(Seven Text-tigures.) • 



The Stratiomyidce form one of the larger families of the Diptera, 

 containing about one thousand species from all parts of the world. 

 They are conspicuous flies, many of them possessing splendid 

 metallic colouring, but, so far as the Australian species are con- 

 cerned, they have been little studied. Most of those named up 

 to the present time were described by Macquart (Dipteres Ex- 

 otiques, 1838-55); and Walker (List of Diptera in the British 

 Museum, 1848-55; and Insecta Saundersiana, Diptera, 1850). 

 One species was described by Erichson (Archiv f. Naturgesch., 

 1842), one by Bigot (Ann. Soc. Ent. de France, 1876), and, 

 finally, some Tasmanian species by myself (Proc. Roy. Soc. Tas- 

 mania, 1914). 



The present paper lists 30 species, belonging to 18 genera, all 

 the species, with one doubtful exception, and lli of the genera 

 being peculiar to Australia. Most of the species are uncommon, 

 and many more probably await discovery, particularly in the 

 northern parts of the Continent. 



In the preparation of the present paper, I have received great 

 assistance from Mr. C. French, Junr., Government Entomologist 

 of Victoria; Mr. W. W. Froggatt, Govei*nment Entomologist of 

 New South Wales; Dr. E. W. Ferguson, of the Government 

 Bureau of Microbiology, Sydney; Mr. A. M. Lea, of the Adelaide 

 Museum; and Mr. F. P. Spry, of the National Museum, Mel- 

 bourne, to all of whom I wish to tender my most cordial thanks. 



The Australian -i>7?'a<io»i2/ic?<e are divisible into six Subfamilies, 

 which are distinguished as shown in the following Table. 



