206 



A REVISION OF THE THYNNIB.E OF AUSTRALIA 



\lIymeyio]')tera.'\ 



Part I. 



By Rowland E. Turner, E.E.S. 



The difficulty of procuring reliable information as to the sexes 

 of the ThynnidcB^ as well as their comparatively restricted range, 

 lias caused the group to be much neglected. As Australia is the 

 headquarters of the family and many of the species are both con- 

 spicuous and numerous as to individuals, it might have been 

 expected that Australian entomologists would ha^e done much 

 work on the group. They have probably been deterred b}' the 

 difficulties encountered at the outset in the identification of the 

 species, many of the old descriptions, especially Smith's, being 

 insufficient without reference to the types, most of which are in 

 the British Museum or in the Hope Collection at Oxford. These 

 have been consulted for the purpose of the present work. Like 

 most of the groups specially characteristic of Australia, it is 

 most strongl}^ represented in the south, especiall}' in the south- 

 western part of the continent, comparatively few species, and 

 those mostly of small size, being found within the tropics. 

 Beyond the limits of Australia they occur, though apparently 

 sparingly, in New Guinea and the adjacent islands as far as 

 Celebes; also in Fiji and New Zealand. Further ofi' the}' are 

 well represented in the Southern States of South America, 

 especially in Chili, a few species spreading as far as California, 

 and other North American States. In Europe and Asia they 

 are represented only by a few species of Meihoca and Isivara, 

 neither of which is at all nearly related to our Australian forms; 

 the latter indeed can only be assigned to the family with con- 

 siderable hesitation. From Africa rather more species are known. 



