84 NEW AUSTRALIAN ASILID.E, 



Two specimens of this species, taken by Dr. T. L. Ban- 

 croft at Eidsvold, Queensland, were kindly sent me for 

 examination by Dr. Ferguson. Dr. Bancroft supplies the 

 interesting information that the species preys on mos- 

 quitos. Date of capture, March 28, 1915. 



Laphria, Meig. 



Of this genus ten Australian species have so far been 

 described; two additional species are now added. 



Laphria variana, Sji. nov. 



Face covered with procumbent golden hairs ; mous- 

 tache black and golden ; thorax black, with four yellow- 

 ish-white spots ; abdomen golden-yellow, with first seg- 

 ment and genitalia black ; femora with basal half golden- 

 yellow, apical half black ; tibiae golden-yellow with has© 

 and apex black ; tarsi black ; wings brown, a little hyaline 

 at base. 



Length. Male, 12.5 mm. 



Hah. Tweed River, New South Wales. 



Male. Face covered with long, procumbent, golden 

 hairs ; moustache bushy, black above, golden below ; beard 

 pale yellow. Front black, with long black hairs on vertex. 

 Antennae black, the first joint tAvice the length of the 

 second, the third slightly longer than the first two to- 

 gether. Thorax velvet black, with pale yellow shoulder 

 spots, and a similar spot on either side of the dorsum, tne 

 whole bearing black pubescence, and black lateral bristles ; 

 scutellum black. Abdomen rather narrow, first segment 

 black, second to sixth segments golden yellow, all bearing 

 golden-yellow pubescence; genitalia black, with long black 

 hairs. Legs black and golden-yellow, the femora- with 

 rather more than the basal half yellow, remainder black ; 

 tibife golden-yellow, with base and apex black, the posT 

 terior pair much curved, and with the black basal portion 

 occupying a third of their length ; tarsi black ; the legs are 

 clothed with long, dense pubescence, which is yellow on the 

 yellow parts, black on the black parts. Wings brown, 

 but a little hyaline at the base ; first posterior cell open, 

 but a little contracted towards the wing margin ; fourth 

 posterior and anal cells closed ; halteres yellow. 



This species is remarkably distinct ; it can be distin- 

 guished at once from all the other Australian species of 

 Laphria by the yellow abdomen. The only specimen at 

 present known was kindly sent me by Dr. Clelan^ ; it was 

 taken at the Tweed River, N.S.W. 



