Empididae. 231 



or streamlets, or in other humid piaces; they are found on bushes 

 and in low herbage and grass. I have never seen any species with 

 prey, but they are certainly carnivorous, and they use no doubt the 

 front legs in capturing the prey. Zetterstedt says: „Victus e minorum 

 Dipterorum rapina. " The species seera generally to be soniewhat rare, 

 but this is, I think, to some degree due to their smallness. 



The genus comprises about 12 to 15 species (three are doubt- 

 ful) from the palæarctic region; 5 have hitherto been found in Den- 

 mark. 



Tahle of Species. 



1. Discai cell present 2. 



— Discai cell not present 4. 



2. Wing stigma more or less roundish, the radial vein 

 curved below it 3. 



— Wing stigma elongated, the radial vein not curved be- 



lovsr it 3. melanocephala. 



3. Thorax grey; male genitalia w^ith the ventral lamella 

 large, protruding and swollen; female ovipositor evenly 

 attenuating 1 . precatoria. 



— Thorax yellowish or light brownish; male genitalia not 

 with the ventral lamella large and protruding; female 



ovipositor generally somewhat suddenly narrowed ... 2. stigmatica. 



4. The base of the discai fork lying a little more api- 



cally than the apex of the radial vein 4. raptoria. 



— The base of the discai fork lying a little more basally 



than the apex of the radial vein 5. oratoria. 



1. H. precatoria Fall. 



1815. Fall. Dipt. Suec. Emp. 10, 12, et 34, 12 {Tachydromia). — 

 1822. Meig. Syst. Beschr. III, 63, 2, Tab. XXIII, Fig. 13. - 1842. Zett. 

 Dipt. Scand. I, 266, 7. — 1862. Schin. F. A. I, 83.— 1864. Loew, Wien. 

 entom. Monatschr. VIII, 238, 1. — 1882. Mik, Wien. ent. Zeitg. I, 41, Tab. 

 I, Fig. 13—15. — 1903. Kat. palåarkt. Dipt. II, 268. — Hemerodromia 

 monostigma: 1822. Meig. Syst. Bechr. III, 62, 1, Tab. XXIII, Fig. 6. — 

 1842. Zett. Dipt. Scand. I, 267, 8. 



Fig. 98. Antenna of H. precatoria. X 100. 



Male. Frons whitish grey, epistoma white; palpi whitish. Occi- 

 put somewhat dark grey, with short, pale hairs, and a few a little 

 longer hairs. Antennæ yellow, with the apical part of the third joint 



