266 LEPTID^ 



abdomen with the black markings extended, the spots on the second and 

 third segments large, the one on the fourth segment connected near its 

 foremargin with the black side-markings, and the rest of the abdomen 

 black except for a narrow rather dark ferruginous hindmargin on the fifth 

 segment and the dull dark ferruginous middle lamellae ; the sidemargins 

 blacker than usual, and more extended out triangularly near the fore- 

 margins of the segments ; belly with the fourth segment dull black across 

 its middle ; legs often more obscured, and the knob of the halteres some- 

 times brownish, but the wings sometimes only faintly maculated; the 

 female has the palpi sometimes all black haired, the wings well inaculated 

 but sometimes with an oval pellucid spot on the clouded wing-tip on the 

 middle of the submarginal and cubital cells. I have seen other small 

 dark forms in which the antennae and front coxce are darker, the front 

 femora obscurely blackish on the basal three-quarters, the hind femora 

 more extensively blackish and even the middle femora with traces of 

 darkening, the stigma larger and blacker, the maculation on the wings 

 more extended, the frons in the female brownish on its middle, the 

 abdomen ($) black with little more than the hindmargins orange, and 

 the palpi blackish orange; while on the other hand pale specimens 

 occur in which the hind femora show scarcely any trace of darkening, 

 or in the case of a rather pale female taken by Colonel Yerbury at 

 Parknasilla in Co. Kerry the wings have a slight blackish tinge. 

 A continental female taken at Eger in Bohemia has large black 

 markings and also indistinct side-spots on the abdomen, so that there 

 are almost three rows of black spots connected along the foremargins of 

 the segments, and in this specimen the belly is nearly all black except 

 that the second segment is dull ferruginous, and the wing-markings are 

 dark and diffuse. L. scolopacea is the only British species of the genus 

 with maculated wings that I have seen, though L. strigosa Meig. was in 

 all our lists ; it is almost certain that Walker's L. strigosa is only one of 

 the small dark forms, but the true L. strigosa (if distinct) may be known 

 by its extreme yellowness on the pleurae and scutellum. L. maculipennis 

 Lw. and L. Cavannm Bezzi have entirely black-haired palpi, while L. 

 Cavannoi and L. latipennis Lw. have the eyes of the male obviously 

 separated. Z. scolopacea is recorded from extreme North Europe to Italy. 



L. scoIo2)acea is a common British species, and I have numerous 

 records from Devonshire to Tongue and the Outer Hebrides, while 

 Colonel Yerbury has taken it in several Irish localities. The dates 

 range from May 21 to July 23. It is fond of sitting on tree-trunks in 

 moderately wooded districts, and often dashes off in a disconcerting and 

 apparently threatening manner, from which hal)it I expect it obtained 

 its reputation (Bull. Soc. Ent. Fr., LXi., civ., 1892) of being able to 

 inflict a very unpleasant bite; I have never been able to obtain any 

 corroboration of this habit from any experienced Dipterologist, and I 

 am convinced that its ferocious appearance and its maculated wings have 

 caused it to be confounded with Hctinatoiwta. 



2. L. notata Meigen. Wings not maculated, l)ut with a conspicuous 

 blackish stigma. Legs mainly black, 



A rather large fly of narrow shape, with almost unicolorous 



