24C) THE DIPTEPvA-BRACHYCEKA OF TASMANIA, 



Family X. DOLICHOPODIDiE. 



Head alDout the same width as the thorax ; the vertex 

 more or less excavated. Eyes usually separated in both 

 sexes, but sometimes joined below the antennae in the male ; 

 only joined above the antennae in the genus Diajjhoriis. 

 Proboscis short and fleshy ; palpi very short, usually rest- 

 ing on the proboscis. Antennae consisting of three joints 

 and an arista, the first two joints always short, the third 

 either short or long, the arista usually much longer than 

 the three antennal joints together, but sometimes short, 

 and occasionally differing in length in the two sexes, and its 

 position may be either apical, subapical, dorsal, or basal. 

 Thorax bristl}^, with short, but well defined, acrostichal 

 bristles, which may be either uniserial or biserial, doTso^ 

 central, humeral, posthumeral, presutural, postalar and 

 supraalar bristles also usually present; scutellum with from 

 two to six marginal bristles. Abdomen conical or long and 

 cylindrical, frequently bearing lateral bristles. Legs usually 

 of moderate length, but sometimes elongated, and, in the 

 male, frequently exhibiting some ornamental structure. 

 Wings with the second basal cell and the discal cell united ; 

 anal cell very short; mediastinal vein short, and usually 

 united with the subcostal, which is also' short; discal vein 

 usually simple, but occasionally forked ; wings either hya- 

 line or banded, but never with any trace of a stigma. 



Most of the flies belonging to this family are partly or 

 altogether metallic green in colour, but this may be varied 

 with metallic blue, grey, or violet ; even the most soberly- 

 coloured species usually exhibit at least a metallic tinge. 

 Frequently a great difference exists between the two sexes, 

 and owing to this fact, and also because the chief generic 

 and specific disitinctions are shown by the male, I have, 

 with the exception of the unmistakeable genus i^riapiifi, 

 only described those species in which the male is known 

 to me. This gives a total of twelve Tasmanian species, but 

 this number is likely in the future to be greatly increased. 



Tnl'le of the Tasmanian (Jenera of DoUchopodidcv 



1. Discal vein forked S c i a p u s, Zell. 

 Discal vein not forked. 2 



2. Legs extremely long and slender ; eyes in male 



joined for a short distance below the antennae. 



A R A c H N M Y I A, Gen. nov. 

 Legs comparatively short. 3 



