//• // / K-, I it^. hi I tM^ii f**^x,iu \ . J;". ^ X 



March, 18S3.] / ' I IVt 



tudiniil lines. Tho abdomen is flivl and tapering, liuvinp a central, longitudinal, 

 black, dorsal stripe, as well as transverse dark lines on the borders of the segincntB ; 

 the latter being only visible in certain lights. 1"be anal segment^ is small and grey, 

 and the sub-anal appendages of moderate size. The face and ei)istonie are often rufes- 

 cent, and are both slightly prominent ; the eyes are sub-coherent in the male, and 

 widely separated in the female ; the latter having the intra-ocular space red at the 

 fore part ; the row of bristles on the inside of the hind tibisc of the male consists of 

 short rigid haii-s, placed very near together, and of almost equal lengths. Tho female 

 has the thorax of a paler brown colour, and is indistinctly striped. 



This little fly is generally distributed, and feeds, in the larva state, upon onions. 

 I bred a number of specimens of both sexes last summer, from onion plants, in 

 different stages of growth, which had been kindly sent to me by Miss Ormerod, as 

 well as by Mr. Dunn, of Dalkeith, in consequence of their being infested by the 

 maggots or lai-vse of Diptera, which were injurious to the onion crops. 



I have placed the A. rnjiceps, of Zetterstedt, as a synonym of P. cilicrura, 

 though Rondani thinks that it agrees more closely with A. angustifrons, of Meigen ; 

 the latter species, however, has a decidedly prominent face, and Zetterstedt says of 

 A.fusciceps, "frans parum prominula." The hind tibiee, again, in A. angustifrons 

 (a typical continental specimen of which, named by Rondani, I have had an oppor- 

 tunity of examining), are furnished with much longer and softer hairs than those of 

 P. cilicrura ; and Zottei-stedt says of A.fuscicejis, "tibije posticfe intus pube brevi 

 crecta ciliatie." I have not seen a British specimen of A. angusHfrons. I formerly 

 confused it with P. cilicrura. 



P. TRICHODA.CTTLA, Eoud. 



This species very closely resembles P. cilicrura, but is usually rather smaller, of 

 a lighter grey colour, and has the .thorax less distinctly striped, being often im- 

 maculate. The abdominal dorsal stripe is generally interrupted, the separate 

 portions having a triangular shape. The hind tibiae of the males are armed exactly 

 like those of P. cilicrura, but the middle legs present a very characteristic difference, 

 the metatarsal joints being furnished on their outer sides with four or five long 

 curved hairs or bristles. I only know the male. 



This little fly is not uncotnmon, but less frequently seen than the preceding one. 



P. FLOBILEGA, Zett. 



This species closely resembles P. trichodactyla in form, colour and design, but 

 has the middle metatarsal joints of the males destitute of long hairs, and the iimer 

 surfaces of the hind tibia? unarmed, with the exception of having two or three short 

 bristles at their upper part. It is about 3 mm. in length, has both the face and 

 epistome slightly prominent, the eyes of the male contiguous, the arista bare, the 

 thorax vellowish-grcy, marked with three indistinct brown stripes ; the abdomen 

 flat, narrow and tapering, with very small anal and sub-anal appendages ; cinereous 

 in colour, and marked with a sub-continuous dorsal sti-ipe, which is quite straight, 

 and of uniform width throughout. I do not know the female. 



Not uncommon. 



P. iGNOTA, Eoud. 



This is a well-marked little species, very common in gardens and fields. It is 



