450 



UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 224 



ovipositor. Male terminalia rather large, robust, elon- 

 gate, not rotate. The elongate superior forceps notched 

 apically; gonopod much shorter; hypandrium short. 

 The ovipositor is comparatively flattened and broad, 

 becoming somewhat more convex laterally ; the eighth 

 tergite is robust, long and cylindrical, it is triangular 

 or trapezoidal in shape, a little longer than its basal 

 width and the ninth segment quite sliort; the terminal 

 proctiger is nearly twice the length of the ninth seg- 

 ment. The eighth stemite forms two posteriorly ap- 

 posed, robust, short, bristly lobes directed a little down- 

 ward. 



This is a small but remarkable genus restricted to the 

 Australian region. Wing spread of the largest indi- 

 viduals may be 85 mm. They are said to be alert as well 

 as strong and swift in flight. 



Distribution : Australian : Blepharotes aterrima 

 Hermann (1907) ; coriarius Wiedemann (1830) ; flavv^ 

 Kicardo (1913) ; punctatus Hardy (1921) ; splendtdis- 

 sinmis Wiedemann (1830) [ = ahdominalis Westwood 

 (1840), audouinii Macquart (1838), fasciatus Jaen- 

 nicke (1867)] ; W'lJaa; Hermann (1907). 



Genus Pararatus Ricardo 



Figures 323, 694, 1603, 1624, 1625, 2198, 2210. 2393, 2396 



Pararatus Ricardo, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. 8, vol. 11, p. 429, 

 1913. Type of genus: Blepharotes macrostylus Loew, 1874, 

 by original designation. 



Large flies with elongate, pale, smolvy wings and 

 venation as in Blepharotes Westwood. They difl'er from 

 that genus principally in the much more slender, sub- 

 cylindrical, yet strongly tapered abdomen. The lateral 

 tergal margins have an extensive brush of coarse, long 

 pile on the first 3 or 4 segments but the margins are not 

 flattened; the pile grows progressively shorter pos- 

 teriorly ; only the first tergite with bristles. Metanotal 

 callosity miusually protuberant and micropubescent 

 only. Male terminalia large and clublike. Length 25 

 to 33 mm. 



Head, lateral aspect : The face is short on the upper 

 fourth; it is abruptly produced on the lower and re- 

 maining three-fourths but only for a short distance and 

 as a result the lower face is nearly plane. Cheeks mod- 

 erately extensive below the eyes. Eyes short and re- 

 duced in length below and rather flattened. The oc- 

 ciput is moderately and more or less luiiformly thick; 

 it is thickest sublaterally ; eye developed dorsally and 

 laterally a considerable distance beyond the occiput; 

 pile dense, coarse, abundant, with finer pile below, al- 

 most bristly pile above and all of it brownish white; 

 near the upper eye corner are 2 oi- 3 stout, short, black 

 bristles. Proboscis extended downward and moderately 

 long, robust, with the apex bhintly but rather sharply 

 pointed and sloping above and below ; this tapered part 

 bears considerable coarse pile ; the basal half ventrally 

 bears quite abundant, long, coarse, oblique pile. Palpus 

 moderately long, with numerous, long, bi'istly hairs on 



all sides and the apex. The antenna is attached a little 

 below the upper third of head ; first segment twice as 

 long as second with abundant, fine, bristly pile above 

 and below ; second with 1 ventral apical seta only and a 

 few above. Third segment elongate and attenuate from 

 base to apex ; it is II/2 times as long as the combined 

 length of the first two segments, has no microsegment, 

 and the stout, spine-tipped style is not as long as the 

 third segment. 



Head, anterior aspect: The face about a fourth of 

 head width and strongly divergent below; it bears 

 down the middle of only the produced part numerous, 

 long, coarse hairs or bristly hairs which ventrally 

 change over to equally numerous, slender, pale bristles; 

 upper lateral epistomal margin with similar bristles and 

 lower margin with coarse pile continued over the whole 

 cheeks and there changing from pale to black. Front 

 a little widened, with a dorsolateral patch of coarse, 

 long pile almost opposite the enlarged anterior ocellus 

 and with 4 or 5 ocular marginal bristles extending up 

 opposite the ocelli ; vertex a little narrowed and quite 

 deeply excavated with vertical sides; ocellarium quite 

 low with on each side a row of rather numerous, fine, 

 black hairs continued behind. Anterior eye facets but 

 little enlarged. 



Thorax: The mesonotum is not very high but is 

 abrupt anteriorly and bears an irregular, partly trebled 

 band of fine, short, appressed, black acrostical setae 

 separated by a wide, bare stripe. Extensive dorsocen- 

 tral elements are contuiued over tlie whole anterior 

 mesonotum, except the lateral margins, which have 

 fine, erect pile. Humerus with appressed, fine, black 

 pile. All mesonotal bristles are moderately long, very 

 stout and black, and consist of 2 notopleural, 2 supra- 

 alar, 3 postalar, and 3 pairs of scutellar bristles turned 

 upward and curved, with a fourth weak basal element. 

 Metanotal slopes strongly villose, somewhat creased 

 medially, without pile. Mesopleuron with only stiff 

 pile posteriorly and dorsally; a little longer on the pos- 

 terodorsal corners. Basalare with 3 weak bristles ven- 

 trally; pteropleuron with a few hairs behind; hypo- 

 pleuron with short, appressed pile ; metapleuron with a 

 wide band of dense, somewhat matted, bro\\Tiish yellow 

 pile; pronotum with 3 or 4 stout, black spinous bristles. 



Legs: The hind femur is rather slender, somewhat 

 elongate and slightly thickened gradually from the 

 base; it bears dense, fine, short, appressed, black setae 

 and stout, and rather short, black bristles. The bristles 

 consist of 2 medial elements at the apex, 2 dorsal at the 

 apical sixth, 3 lateral before and after the middle, and 

 1 short bristle close to the base; there are 6 antero- 

 ventral bristles, with the basal member doubled and 8 

 ventromedial bristles. The tibia is rather slender, 

 scarcely thickened at the apex, densely short, black, ap- 

 pressed pilose with curved oblique bristles, which con- 

 sist of 4 doi-sal, 3 ventral beginning near the middle, 

 and 2 lateral bristles at the middle and outer third; 2 

 lateral, 4 ventral, 2 dorsal, 2 medial. The middle femur 

 is shorter and bears 5 or 6 stout, black, oblique bristles 



