28 STRATIOMIDiE. 



Body of middle or small size, obloiig, smooth, shining, slightly 

 pubescent, wholly metallic, bluish or golden green. Head semicircular, 

 sometimes rather depressed in front. Epistoma perpendicular. Eyes 

 large, green, often with purple bauds. Ocelli 3, close together on the 

 crown. Proboscis concealed. Labrum very short, flat, hollow, rounded 

 and emarginate at the tip. Palpi 3-joiuted, diverging ; first and second 

 joints cylindrical, short; second thicker and shorter than the first; 

 thii-d oval, pubescent. Labium large, cylindrical, short. Antennae 

 6-jointed, porrect, short, pilose, seated on the middle of the head in 

 front, approximate at the base, inclined upwards, diverging towards 

 the tips ; first joint almost cylindrical ; second cyathiform, bristly, 

 somewhat compressed, thicker than the first ; third and three following 

 formiug an elliptical flagellum ; sixth setiform, seated on the tip of 

 the fifth. Thorax oval, pubescent ; scutelluiii semicircular, unarmed. 

 Wings lanceolate, pubescent, incumbent, parallel. Alulae none. Hal- 

 teres uncovered. Abdomen with 5 segments, flat, rather short and 

 broad. Legs slender; metatarsus almost as long as the other 4 joints. 



Male. Eyes contiguous. 



Fem. Eyes remote. 



The C/mjsomi/ice are sluggish ; inhabit flowers and the leaves 

 of trees ; the larvae of the second division feed on decaying vege- 

 table matter^ and the flies are not uncommon about hot-beds. 



a. Body of middle size. Eyes hairy in both sexes. Species 1. 



a a. Body small. Eyes bare in both sexes. Abdomen nearly round. 

 Male. Eyes reddish-cupreous and composed of large facets above, 

 ffiueous and with small facets in front. Fern. Eyes wholly feneous 

 and composed of small facets. Species 2-4. 



1. formosa, Shr. ia. 899 (1781); Mg. ; Mq. ; Ztt. — cupraria, 

 Spl. ? {\'lCi?j).--Jlavo-genicHlata,J)g. — aurata, Fb. ; Mg. — xanthoptera, 

 Mg. ; Eb. ; Latr. ; Eln. Cyaneo-viridis, capite autennisque nigris, alls 

 fulvis, pedibus nigris, femoribus apice tibiisque basi fulvis. Long. 3-4 ; 

 alar. 6-8 liu. 



Head black. Eyes golden-green ; upper part purple, between which 

 colour and the green there is a narrow blue and purple band. Pro- 

 boscis and antennte black. Thorax bright bluish-green. Wings 

 tawny ; veins darker. Halteres luteous. Legs black ; tips of the 

 femora and tibite towards the base tawny. Male. Body thickly clothed 

 with tawny hairs. Eyes thickly clothed with short black hairs. Ab- 

 domen golden-green, dark green beneath. Fem. Less hairy than the 

 maje. Abdomen purple, blue along each side ; rarely bluish-green, 

 aeneous-green along each side. 



Generally distributed. (E. S. I.) 



2. polita, L. s. n. ii. 894. 93 (1767); Fb. ; Mg. ; Fin. ; Mq. ; Ztt.— 

 aurala, Deg. — splendens, Mg. — cyanea, Fb. • ^Eneo-viridis vel cyaneo- 



