Lonchopteridae. 5 



with these latter they have the bristles on the head in common, and 

 also the puparium and its way of opening is to some degree similar, 

 and the anterior spiracular tubes protrude probably through the second 

 abdominal segment as in the Phoridae. Both in Phorids and in some 

 Platypezids are also the anterior convex veins somewhat spinulous, — 

 The whole question is thoroughly treated by de Meijere in his mono- 

 graph over the Lonchoptera-lRVva., to which I may refer. 



Our present knowledge of the family of the Lonchopterids we 

 mainly owe to de Meijere, who has given two elaborate and valuable 

 monographs about them, one dealing with the larva (Zool. Jahrbiich. 

 Abtheil. fiir Syst. XIV, 1900, 87, Tab. V— VII), the other treating the 

 family (Tijdschr. v. Entom. XLIX, 1906, 44, PI. IV— V). Before this 

 latter appeared the species were in great confusion on account of 

 their strong varying, but de Meijere has cleared up the species in 

 a remarkably good way. In the Kat. palåarkt. Dipt. 18 species are 

 enumerated; after de Meijere's revision they are brought down to 

 seven species, which thus is the number of palæarctic species. In 

 Aldrich's catalogue of North American Diptera three species are 

 enumerated: lutea, riparia and puncfitm; if correctly determined these 

 should be lutea or furcata or both; in the Appendix is mentioned 

 that Baker moreover has recorded L. lacustris from Galifornia, and 

 this again should be either lutea or furcata-, these two common species 

 thus also occur in North America (if they are not distinct species). 

 De Meijere however states, that he has seen L. furcata from Canada, 

 so that this species is certain as occurring in North America. 



The family only includes one genus, Lonchoptera (the Asiatic 

 genus Cadrema being doubtfull). 



The Lonchopterids are much infested by parasitic Hymenoptera; 

 in the literature only little is mentioned about this; de Meijere notes 

 in the works cited above, that he has in single cases seen a Hymen- 

 opterous larvæ in the pupa of L. lutea, and bred a single Hymen- 

 optere, and according to him Lubbock has described a similar parasitic 

 larva as the pupa ofLo;<c/<op^er«. Mr. Schlick and I have, on the other 

 hånd, bred numerous parasites of pupæ of L. lutea and especially of 

 furcata-, when in spring flood refuse in fens is sifted, the pupæ of 

 the named two Lonchoptera species may be found in great numbers, 

 but, as mentioned below, they are always infested; only from one 

 single pupa found so a L. lutea was bred, from all the others parasites 

 were obtained ; among the pupæ sifted in the said way that of furcata 

 is by far the most numerous. The parasites are the following: Pezo- 

 machus sp. ; Alloea contracta Hal., this is by far the most common ; 

 Pteromalus sp. ; Merismus sp. ; Polycystus scapularis Thoms, and 



