Diptera 61 c 
Phaonia Robineau-Desvoidy. 
The larvae of this genus are very little known. The species that have been 
reared are scavengers in the larval stages, feeding in decaying vegetable matter. 
There are several specimens in the collection that are referalile to this genus, 
accepting as the criterion the character furnished by the bristling of the hind 
tibia. 
Phaonia minima, n. sp. 
Male. — Black, shining. Thorax in type so badly crushed that it is impos- 
sible to say whether or not it is vittatel Abdomen with slight pruinescence 
and a dark central longitudinal stripe. Legs black. Squamae and halteres 
yellow. Wings yellowish brown on anterior half. 
Eyes bare, narrowly separated above, interfrontalia linear on upper half, 
not wider than orbit; antennae short, third joint not twice as long as second; 
arista microscopically pubescent on basal half; cheeks high, but the head is in 
such poor condition that their armature and comparative height can not be 
definitely ascertained; palpi broader than normal. Presutural acrostichals 
strong, with one to two series of shorter hairs between the series; postsutural 
dorso-centrals four; prealar bristle very small; hypopleura and pteropleura 
bare. Abdomen narrow, subcylindrical; hypopygium small, fifth ventral 
sclerite with a rounded excavation, the lateral extensions small, glossy at apex.. 
Legs rather slender, the tarsi noticeably so, and especially the basal joint of 
fore pair; fore tibia without bristles; mid tibia with one bristle near apex on 
posterior surface; hind femora slightly curved, thickened apically, the apical 
third on antero- and postero-ventral surface with a graduated series of long 
bristles; hind tibia with two antero-ventral, one antero-dorsal, and one long 
postero-dorsal bristle. Costal thorn small; outer cross-vein straight; last 
section of fourth vein barely twice as long as preceding section. 
Female. — Colour as in the male except that the wings and calyptrae are 
more conspicuously yellowish. 
Eyes more than one-third the head-width, orbits shining, each one-fourth 
the width of inter-frontalia, orbital bristles normal, rather weak above, strong 
below; antennae as in male; cheeks one-fourth as high as eye, invaded on lower 
half by the bristles of margin, those on margin of moderate length, vibrissae 
well differentiated, one strong bristle below vibrissa. Thorax as in male. Legs 
similar to those of male but the tarsi stouter, the hind femora less distinctly 
swollen apically, and with fewer bristles. 
Length, 4-5 mm. 
Type Locality: Nome, Alaska, August 21, 24, and 25, 1916 (F. Johansen). 
This species is the smallest known to me. 
Phaonia imitatrix, n. sp. 
Male. — Black, distinctly shining, thorax and abdomen unmarked. Frontal 
and facial orbits with dense, silvery pile; cheeks and face very slightly pilose; 
inter-frontalia opaque black. Wings slightly fuscous, noticeably so at base. 
Squamae white. Halteres black. 
Eyes hairy, separated by about one-sixth the head-width, orbit about one- 
third as wide as interfrontalia, bristles strong, with the exception of the upper 
l)ackwardly directed one, directed inward; antennae short, not extending below- 
lowest fourth of face, third joint 1 -5 as long as second; arista subnude, with an 
elongate tapered swelling at base; orbits in profile projecting beyond eye as 
far as width of third antennal joint; cheek as high as one-third the eye-height, 
protruding at anterior angle further than frons at base of antennae, marginal 
bristles numerous, of average strength, a few weak hairs above margin; palpi 
