332 A. L. MELANDER. 



coutiguous, their facets large, the lowest ones smaller, eyes of the female separated 

 more widely than the ocelli, their facets as large as the smallest of the male; face 

 of nearly uniform breadth. Proboscis very slender, extending straight forward, 

 nearly one and one-half times the height of the head ; palpi prominent, slender, 

 extending beyond the epistome. Antennae black, short, the basal joints short 

 and thick, the third joint lanceolate, robust, the stout arista one-third the length 

 of the third joint. Occiput with slender hairs. Thoracic dorsum evittate, but 

 with the dorsicentral bristles prominent; scutellum with four slender bristles. 

 Abdomen slender, long; hypopygium small, terminal, widely open. Legs very 

 slender, simple, fuscous, the posterior tibiae gradually and slightly thickened 

 towards the apex; all the tibiae provided with small terminal spurs; tarsi 

 slender not spinose below. Halteres infuscated. Wings lightly infumated in 

 the male, and clear hyaline in the female, veins narrow, fuscous, stigma indefi- 

 nite ; the furcation of the third vein acute, taking place beyond the tip of the 

 marginal cell, sixth vein evanescent. 



Seven specimens; San Diego Co., California (Wm. M. Wheeler). 



This species, while differing from the typical Iteaphila by its very 



slender proboscis, is not a true Empis, and had best be included 



here. 



MICROPHORUS Macquart. 



Small, black, moderately hairy species. Of the European forms 

 the antennte are as long as the head, apparently two-jointed, with a 

 short two-jointed arista ; proboscis short, not projecting forward ; 

 palpi cylindrical ; eyes bare, of both sexes separated, but approxi- 

 mate. Thorax hunchbacked. Abdomen of male blunt at the end, 

 of the female pointed. Legs slender, bristly, the hind ones length- 

 ened, tibiae sometimes thickened apically. Third vein unforked ; 

 discal cell with three apical veins ; anal cell shorter than tlie second 

 basal cell, both bounded by one cross- vein, extending almost parallel 

 with the hind margin; anal vein obsolete; anal angle almost rec- 

 tangular. 



Since Walker was familiar with at least one European species of 

 Microphorus, drapetoides is left in the genus as given in its European 

 sense. However, his selection for the specific name is not descriptive 

 of the other species, and therefore his species probably does not con- 

 form with the characterization above given. The diagnosis is too 

 meagre to allow any certainty to be placed on Mr. Walker's deter- 

 mination, and thus the location of drapetoides in the present genus 

 is mere conjecture. 



Microphorus drapeloirtes Walker. 

 List Dipt. Ins., iii, 489. 



Body black, hairy; eyes piceous; feelers and lip black, the latter short; legs 



