BY ARTHUR WHITE. 47 



This species should be easy to recognise from the annulated 

 antennae, a character that separates it from all the other 

 known Tasmanian Leptidce. It would appear from Mac- 

 quart's description, to be correctly placed, and if so is the 

 only known Tasmanian representative of the subfamily 

 Xylophagincs. 



Family 11. STRATIOMYIDiE. 



Small to medium- sized bristleless flies, frequently with 

 metallic colouring. 



Head short, as broad as the thorax. Eyes of the male 

 usually contiguous, those of the female separated. Antennae 

 with the third joint annulated, and pi'ovided with an apical 

 style or arista. Thorax occasionally produced into a spine 

 on either side, and with the scutellum either unarmed, or 

 produced into two or more marginal spines. Legs altogether 

 without bristles. Win^s with a characteristic venation, the 

 costal, mediastinal, subcostal, radial, and cubital veins dis- 

 tinct, and much crowded together on the fore part of the 

 wing. The remaining veins faint and sometim(3S incomplete. 

 The praefurca (common stem of the radial and cubital veins) 

 commences opposite the base of the discal cell; cubital vein, 

 including the cubital fork, when present, ends well before 

 the wing tip ; discal cell usually pentagonal ; anal cell always 

 closed. 



The flies belonging to this family have the reputation of 

 being flower-lovers, but the only Tasmanian species that I 

 have found frequenting flowers are those belonging to the 

 genus Odontomyia, a genus of world-wide distribution. 

 Some species frequent the neighbourhood of water, others 

 may be found settled on vegetation, and on windows. 



Most of the Tasmanian species are decidedly rare, the only 

 ones of common occurrence being Odontomyia amyris and 

 Actina incisuralis. 



Table of the Tasmanian Subfamilies and Genera of 

 Stratiomyidx. 



1. Abdomen with seven visible segments. Subfam. BerinSB. 

 Four posterior veins; eyes hairy, separated in both sexes. 



Actina, Meig. 

 Abdomen with five or six visible segments. 2 



2. Three posterior veins, all arising from the discal cell. 



Subfam. Pachygastrinae. 



Scutellum produced in the form of a spine. 



LoNCHEGASTER, Gen. nov. 

 Four posterior veins. 3 



