SARGIN.^. 163 



with that before the middle of the cell by the discal cross-vein, and it is hexagonal 

 and emits three veinlets towards the wingmargin, all of which belong entirely to 

 the discal vein, as the small cross-vein is present and connects the discal cell with 

 the upper branch of the postical vein; postical vein with its fork simple_ except 

 tliat the lower TDranch runs into the anal vein just before the wingmargin, and 

 consequently the anal cell is long and pointed and closecl just before the wing- 

 margin ; posterior cells five, but the middle ones rather irnperfect ; alula small 

 but obvious, pointed, triangular; wing-membrane strongly ribbed. Alar squamae 

 evidently present and with short fringes ; thoracal squamae sometimes tongue- 

 shaped, resting close to thesquamal angle of the frenum, pubescent on the upper and 

 under surfaces and with long straight fringes, in Sargus^ the tongue-shaped mem- 

 brane is longer and smaller than in Chrysomyia, while Microchrysa has the thoracal 

 squamte almost circular. 



The essential characters of the Sargince lie in the small number of 

 abdominal segments, whereby they are distinguished from the Bcrince and 

 Xylomyinm, the presence of the small cross-vein which connects the discal 

 cell with the upper branch of the postical vein whereby they are dis- 

 tinguished from the Pachygastrince and Glitellarinm, and the long thin 

 arista whereby they are distinguished from the Stratiomyinm and in fact 

 all the other European forms except the Pachygastrmce, but the peculiar 

 feature of the Sarginw which distinguishes them from in fact almost all the 

 Brachyceka, lies in the discal cross- vein connecting the discal cell with the 

 prsefurca and not with the cubital vein, whereby the radial vein appears 

 to emit two short forks to the costa. The brilliant metallic blue or green 

 coloration of all the European species at once distinguishes them from 

 any others in the Stratiomyidcc, though many Berince have a metallic 

 seneous-black coloration ; the elongate parallel-sided abdomen of Sargus 

 and its allies is also only equalled in the Berince ; the apparently doubly 

 forked cubital vein caused by the radial vein diverging from the cubital so 

 far after the discal cross-vein, and the remarkable thoracal squamae of 

 Sargus are peculiar to the subfamily. 



The Sargincc, when restricted to the species with a long thin apical or 

 subapical arista and an unarmed scutellum, comprise about nine genera 

 from all Europe, Asia, Africa, and North, Central, and South America, but 

 I cannot trace any record from Australasia; five genera are recorded 

 from the Palsearctic region, of which one {Ptecticus) has not been observed 

 in Europe, and in the remaining four genera (one of which I fail to 

 distinguish) about twenty species are recorded, but of these only ten or 

 eleven are well recognised of which at least eight are British, while I 

 have also included five of the less satisfactorily distinguished species. 



The metamorphoses of a few species have been recorded, and as three 

 or four species occur commonly in gardens they should be well known, but 

 their habits do not seem to be known with full accuracy, for it seems 

 strange that Sargus cuprarius should breed in cow dung or heaps of rotting 

 weeds and also in ulcers in Elm ( Ulmus). 



