Rhingia. 391 



27. Rliingia Scop. 



Species of medium size, with blackish or æneous thorax and red- 

 dish abdomen. Head a littie broader than high, as broad as thorax, 

 a littie excavated behind. Eyes touching in the male for a long space, 

 well separated in the female. The eyes are bare, the facets above 

 slightly enlarged in the male. Antennæ inserted considerably above 

 the middle; they are short, third joint ovate, a littie pointed at the 

 end; arista longer than the antennæ, very short-pubescent, almost 

 bare. Epistoma of a curious shape, it is a littie hollowed below the 

 antennæ, the lower part then produced bec-like and as long as the 

 rest of the head, but not descending; the lateral angles are more pro- 

 duced than the front mouth edge so that the epistoma is incised in 

 the apex when seen from above; the epistoma is reddish or reddish 

 brown and frons and epistoma are bare. Jovvls somewhat broad and 

 slightly descending; they are somewhat separated from epistoma by 

 a furrow which extends upwards towards the antennæ so that the 

 cheeks are separated as eye-margins as in Chilosia; the eye-margins 

 are narrow, slightly hairy. The oral aperture is long and narrow, a 

 littie widening behind. Oral cone long and proboscis very long and 

 slender, when stretched fully out as long as the whole body. Clypeus 

 long and narrow and its basal part long but somewhat weakly 

 chitinised, the stronger chitinised side lists continued up into the apical 

 excision of epistoma. Labrum very long, not broad at the base, 

 strongly semitubular; the median apical process not deeply cleft, un- 

 usually broad and beset with numerous spines or emergences; the 

 upper lateral process delicate, simple and pointed, the lower lateral 

 process rounded as usual ; the row of small tubercles or papillæ along 

 the lateral inside of labrum present as usual. Hypopharynx about as 

 long as labrum, attenuated at the apex and pointed; maxillæ with a 

 long, knife-shaped lacinia, slightly shorter than labrum, beset with the 

 usual microscopical spines in rows but they are very fine; palpi long, 

 a littie shorter than the lacinia, thread-like, a littie clubbed; they are 

 beset with fine hairs and some bristles, longest at the apex, but in 

 the basal part and up towards the apex the hairs are not present on 

 the side which is turned towards the lacinia. Labium very long and 

 slender with a very long basal connecting membrane, usually folded 

 in ; the basal part of labium nearly twice as long as the long and 

 narrow labella. Thorax rectangular, nearly square. Scutellum red to 

 dark brown with a long fringe below the margin. There are some 

 strong hairs on the postalar calli, in the præsutural depression and 

 above on mesopleura, but no distinct bristles; at the margin of 



