94 Tachinidae. 



the lateral part of the tergites on ventral side yellow-haired. Legs 

 blackish to brownish, the tarsi generally brown and hind tibiæ often 

 reddish; hind femora red on basal half or two thirds; the tarsi flattened 

 and especially the four last joints on front tarsi strongly dilated. 

 Claws and pulvilli strongly elongated. Legs black-haired, below 

 femora more or less yellow-haired, almost without bristles except 

 some dorsal on hind tibiæ; no ventral bristle on middle tibiæ. Wings 

 large and very broad, the anterior margin curved outwards on basal 

 part; they are brownish yellow tinged with brown blotches, generally 

 one elongated on middle at anterior margin, a similar below along 

 discai vein, and one at apex; veins brown to yellow; subcostal vein 

 ending far beyond medial cross-vein; first posterior cell somewhat 

 short-petiolate, ending at apex of wing; discai angle very obtuse 

 and rounded, the apical cross-vein concave; posterior cross-vein 

 somewhat near the angle. Squamulæ blackish brown. Halteres yellow. 



Female. Frons still narrower than in male; upper eye-facets 

 distinctly larger than lower. Thorax velvet black, unstriped, mainly 

 red-haired or with red and black hairs. Scutelliim black at base. 

 Abdomen black, somewhat velvet, with only reddish side spots or 

 quite black. Ovipositor curved evenly upwards. Claws and pulvilli 

 long, but shorter than in male. Wings less broad and of more normal 

 shape, only slightly tinged, outwards nearly hyaline. 



Length 8 — 12 mm, the female generally the smaller. 



While the female does not vary or only slightly, the male varies 

 considerably and in a peculiar way, as stated by Girschner 1. c. The 

 variation comprises the colour of the body, the colour and breadth 

 of the wings and the dilatation of the tarsi. The form described above 

 is the normal (var. vittata Girsch.); then there is a variety {ohscura 

 Girsch.) with thorax black and velvet as in the female, it is black- 

 haired above and the hairs on pleura generally less developed, scu- 

 tellum all or nearly all black, and abdomen velvet black, only slightly 

 reddish on the sides at base, seen from behind grey pruinose. The 

 wings are less broad and not dilated at front margin, and they are 

 rather evenly brown or only a little clouded, and the front tarsi 

 are not dilated; it is smaller than var. vittata. This variety is thus 

 in most respects similar to the female. A third variety {eximia Girsch.) 

 has the wings only quite slightly tinged, almost clear or only in- 

 fuscated at apex, but they are broad as in var. vittata^ and the front 

 tarsi are dilated and it is otherwise similar to vittata. All these varieties 

 are connected by transitions. 



