THE MYCETOPHILID.E. 115 



They live upon fungi. There are possibly four or five British 

 species. 



C. brevicoriiis, Staeg. = C. valida, Wlk. 



This seems to be a rare species, and is described in Walker under 

 the name of Valida. Recorded from Glanvilles-Wootton and the 

 New Forest. 



The !//tago is yellowish, stout, and compact. Lanceolate antennaj 

 shorter than thorax ; joints short. Wings grayish and stout. Veins 

 tawny. Legs are stout, with longish spurs ; brown tarsi ; hind tibice 

 armed by very minute spines. The second longitudinal vein ends at 

 before two-thirds of length of wing. Sub-anal (fifth longitudinal 

 vein) being forked and nearer base of wing than the fork of the 

 sub-apical (fourth longitudinal vein). Length 2 lin. 



C. JIaviccps, Staeg. 



Head yellowish. Thorax tawny or yellowish in front, also sides, 

 and under surface. Antennae and palpi yellow. Wings having the 

 fork of the fifth longitudinal vein much further than the fork of the 

 fourth longitudinal vein from the base of wing. Legs tawny, short, 

 and thick, long spurs ; tarsi dark ; posterior tibice with minute spines. 

 Length i lin. 



Genus. — Mycetophila, Mg. 



This is an important genus, of which eleven species are recorded 

 from Great Britain and twelve more are reputed ; whilst Walker 

 describes about fifty. 



The characters of the genus are as follows : Body generally 

 small, elongated, and hairy. The head is sessile and transversely 

 broadened ; round in outline. Eyes are far apart and oval. Ocelli 

 two in number. Proboscis short. The palpi 4-jointed (Meigen* 

 only figures three joints ; the first joint being very small, was 

 evidently overlooked). The three joints are nearly equal. Antennre 

 i6-jointed; not more than half length of body; filiform to cylin- 

 drical ; setaceous ; very thick in some species. The thorax very 

 convex and generally oval \ metathorax small and sloping down to 

 level of the abdomen, which is of seven segments, and compressed, 

 especially in the ? ; in the $ it is more cylindrical. The wings 

 are often spotted and of moderate length and breadth ; the second 

 longitudinal is straight, and ends just before three-quarters of 

 length; the third longitudinal vein emitting the sub -apical 

 * " Sys. Besch. d. b. Eur. Zwei. Insecten," t. 2, tab. 9, fig. 17 (1820). 



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