180 THE DIPTERA-BRACHYCERA OF TASMANIA, 



Female resembles the male, but the legs are lighter, the 

 tibiae being all pale 3"ellow-brown, with apex black, and 

 the wina;s are hyaline. 



Yariation. Specimens from New South Wales, which 

 Dr. Ferguson has kindly sent me, have the femora entire- 

 ly black, except the extreme base, which is light reddish- 

 brown, and the tibiae are a light yellow-brown in botk 

 sexes ; the thoracic bristles may be almost entirely white, 

 or with only a few white o^nes posteriorly ; and the ab- 

 domen is blacker than in Tasmanian specimens. 



This species can be easily distinguished from N . hrunneus, 

 the only Tasmanian species that it resembles, by the white 

 thoracic bristles, and by the thora^s having one broad in- 

 stead of two narrow median stripes. 



N, graminh occurs sparingly on high ground, where it 

 may be found resting on the stems of long grass, during 

 the months of January and February. 



Neoitamus brunneus. White. 



A small brown species. Thorax light brown, with two 

 dark median stripes, and black bristles ; abdomen brown, 

 with hind-margins of segments indistinctly paler ; femora 

 black above, light brown beneath ; tibiae light brown ; 

 moustache pale yellow, with a few black hairs above. 



Length. Male, 12 mm.; female, 11 mm. 



Hab. Mangalore. (Probably generally distributed.) 



Male. Face covered with yellowish-white tomentum ; 

 moustache pale yellow, with a few black hairs above. An- 

 tennae v/ith the first joint red, remainder black. Thorax 

 light brown, with two dark brown media,n stripes, and 

 three brown suffused spots on either side ; bristles entirely 

 black ; scutellum grey-brown, with two long, marginal, 

 black bristles. Abdomen brown, with hind-margins of 

 segments indistinctly paler ; dorsum of abdomen with 

 black, and sides with white, short stiff pubescence. Legs 

 light brown, with upper surface of femora black, and apex 

 of tibiae, and last four tarsal joints, darkened; posterior 

 femora with one long and about three short black bristlesi; 

 ail tibitc with white and black bristles. Wings very slight- 

 ly tinged with brown; anterior veins brown, posterior 

 veins black. 



Female resembles the male very closely, but the thorax 

 is somewhat lighter, and less distinctly marked. 



This species bears some resemblance to N. graminis, 

 but may be easily distinguished by the thoracic bristles 

 being entirely black, by its lighter colouring, moustache 



