50 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. vol. 63. 



rapidly to a hairy slender tip; fifth sternite with a deep narrow 

 cleft, the two plates rather large and prominent without any strik- 

 ing hairs or bristles. 



Legs black, middle tibia with three bristles on the front side; 

 the claws and pulvilli elongated, especially on the front feet. 



Wings hyaline, costa without spines, third vein with two or three 

 hairs at base. 



Femalv. — Front somewhat wider, claws and pulvilli short. Wing 

 wider in proportion. Fourth segment of abdomen with numerous 

 bristles on the sides and below. The abdomen is provided with a 

 short, flat, curved piercer lying between two rather large and promi- 

 nent plates. 



Length 8 mm. 



Described from four specimens: one male (figured), "Maryland, 

 near Plummer Island " (W. L. McAtee) ; one male and one female on 

 same pin. West Hills, Long Island (W. T. Davis) ; one female, Fran- 

 conia, New Hampshire (Mrs. A. T. Slossen). type of Euj>horocera 

 slossonae. 



r^/^e.— Female, Cat. No. 10912, U.S.N.M. 



A male of Phorocera assimilis Fallen, the type species of the 

 genus, is in the United States National Museum, determined many 

 years ago by Brauer and Bergenstamm. The very striking male 

 genitalia agree remarkably with those of our males, and it seemed for 

 some time that the species were the same. Further examination led 

 to the conclusion that the American form has a more shining abdo- 

 men and much longer hair on the sides of the united inner forceps. 

 I'here can be no question that they belong to the same genus in the 

 narrowest possible conception of the term. 



The onlj^ known species in North America with closely similar 

 genitalia is Pseudotachinoinyia icehheri Smith, which has bare eyes. 



Subgenus Parasetigena. 



Since the males of this group admit of much more satisfactory 

 analysis than the rest of our material, it is believed that a supple- 

 mentary table of them will greatly assist other workers. The geni- 

 talic and other characters used here are quite striking in life, but 

 difficult to figure. The subgenus is primarily distinguished by the 

 union of the inner forceps into a single more or less beak-like 

 organ and the reduction of the outer forceps to a plate-like form, 

 broad and rounded, somewhat like the form which they have in 

 Sarcophaga. Most of the species have the abdomen elongate in the 

 male, or even in both sexes; some have a fold at the bend of the 

 fourth vein which at a certain angle looks like a continuation of the 

 vein : in most species the third vein is bristly halfway to the cross- 



