BY EUSTACK W. FEKGL'SOX AND G. F. HII.L. 463 



Tabaxus pallipe.vnis Mac<i. 



Macijuart. Dipt. Exot., Suppl. 1, 1844, p. IGO ; Bicardo, Anu. Mag. Nat. 

 Hist.. (8), xiv., 1914, p. 397. 



A species of Tahanus from the Burnett River District, Queensland, bred out 

 from larvae by Mi-s Bancroft, is tentatively referred to T. palUpennis. 



Following is a detailed description of the specimens : — 



A moderately -mall species with three well-detined abdominal vittae. 



c?. Face rather deeply sunken, black, densely clothed with grey tomentuni 

 and with white puliesctoce; cheeks with grey tonientum and pubescence; beard 

 grey. Palpi with second joint short, oval, creamy yellow, with mixed grey and 

 black pubescence. Antennae brown, the basal joints more greyish; first joint 

 broader and partially concealing second joint, the latter small, somewhat crescen- 

 tic, both joints with a few, short, black hairs at apices; third joint rather slender, 

 the basal portion angulate but hardly toothed above. Eyes large, contiguous for 

 greater portion of length, separated below to allow of the appearance of a small 

 strongly nitid black callus; the upper two-thirds of the eyes set with moderately 

 large facets, the lower third with much finer facets. 



Thorax black with median, submedian and sublateral grey tomentose stripes, 

 clothed with black erect pubescence and with rather scanty, decumbent, golden 

 pubescence on the grey stripes ; sides clothed with gi-ey tomentum, with long, fine, 

 pubescent tufts, mingled dark and grey. Seutellum dark brown with slight red- 

 dish tinge, with black pubescence on dorsum and rather scanty, golden hairs along 

 free margin. 



Abdomen dark brown to black, with three vittae of elongate, pale grey, some- 

 what creamy spots, the segmentations also narrowly edged with same colour; 

 median vitta extending from third segment to apex, spots elongate, broader at 

 posterior margins of segments, forming a continuous vitta; sublateral vittae ex- 

 tending from first segment to apex, the vittae more interrupted, the spots not 

 reaching the anterior border of each segment and not triangiilar in shape ; pubes- 

 cence black, with a few creamy hairs on some of the spots. Venter dark brown, 

 segmentations narrowly edged with grey, pubescence black, gTcy on segmentations. 



Legs dark brown, tibiae lighter yellowish-brown, apical half of fore tibiae 

 darkly infuscate, tarsi rather darker than tibiae, the anterior tarsi black; pubes- 

 cence grey on femora and liasal half of anterior tibiae, black elsewhere. 



Wings rather dark grey, with whitish areas in centres of cells, only visiljle 

 from certain direct 'ons against a black background, cross veins lightly suffused 

 with brown ; veins brown, stigma narrow, fairly conspicuous ; appendix present. 



?. Resembles male in general appearance. Face not sunken, densely clothed 

 with greyish tomentum and rather dense, whitish pubescence, cheeks similar, beard 

 white. P.ilpi with second joint short, very stout, apex not produced l)ufc ratlier 

 sharply pointed, yellowish brown, with short, mixed pale and dark pubescence. 

 Antennae as in male. Forehead rather broad, distinctly wider at vertex than an- 

 teriorly, densely clothed with grey tomentum, with brownish tinge in places and 

 darker on vertex, pubescence black in centre and above, shorter and creamy at 

 sides; callus transverse, reaching eyes, black, tumid and shining, a second, round, 

 black callus in centre of forehead, occupying about half the width. Eyes with 

 facets uniform, bare. Thorax as in male. Abdomen witli median -s-itta extending 

 to first segment, with more distinct, creamy, almost golden pubescence on the 



