482 i^KOViJEUlWei OJ- lUt, :\AiJU.SAL J7l.S£C'.U. VOL.4!. 



species have been placed in wrong genera, and there many of them 

 remain at the present writing. Until the type is studied, or the 

 species rediscovered, the generic position of many species must be 

 considered in doubt. I have studied tliis subject with considerable 

 thoroughness and as a result have assigned eacli of these faulty species 

 to its probable true generic position, and it is in this genus that the 

 species will be considered. Future research will undoubtedly prove 

 that raanj* of the species were wrongly assigned, and the purpose of 

 this introduction is to let the reader know of the difficulties in the way. 

 Many of the keys are based entirely or in part upon the origmal 

 descriptions, and for that reason it has been necessarj^ to use super- 

 ficial characters for the main subdivisions, such as "wings spotted," 

 "wings not spotted," etc. This is of course unsatisfactorj", but con- 

 venient and, under the circumstances, the only possible course. 



As an example of the manner in which species are referred to the 

 wrong genera, the case of the genus Limnobia is cited. This genus, 

 erected by Meigen in 1S0.3, has served as a storehouse, or junk heap, 

 for species which are in reality referable to almost everj' genus of the 

 Limnobinse. The numerous species of Fabricius and Wiedemann 

 were described before the old genus Limnobia was spht up. Mac- 

 quart included everything m Limnobia that possessed but two 

 branches to the radial sector. Philippi and Gay described a large 

 number of species of what seem to be Furcomyia, as Limnobia. The 

 notorious work of Francis Walker needs no comment here, most of 

 his descriptions being absolutely unrecognizable and the types of 

 many no longer in existence, many of the names are herein consid- 

 ered as imrecognizable species and dropped from consideration. 



After this discussion of the difficulties encountered because of the 

 work of pioneer students like Fabricius and Weidemann, or the mis- 

 erably poor work of Walker, it is a pleasure to speak of the really 

 monumental labors of Osten Sacken, who, having seen the types of 

 many of the early ^Titers, definitely and finally gave them a true 

 generic position. Of the scores of species of New World crane-flies 

 described by Osten Sacken and his fellow workers, Loew and Schiner, 

 not one can be called "unrecognizable" from their descriptions. 

 Osten Sacken did not describe an extraordinary^ nimibcr of now 

 species, but whatever work he did was done tlioroughly and accu- 

 rately. The "Father of American Dipterology" now rests from his 

 labors, havmg won the honor, respect, and the highest esteem of 

 even- student of his subject. 



lii studying the Neotropical Tipulidse the student is struck by the 

 abundance of certain genera and tribes, and the total absence of 

 others. Of the hundreds of specimens examined by the writer not a 

 single species of the CVlindrotomina? or Pedicini was encountered. 

 Limnobini are abundant {Geranoimjia, Fuicomyia, and BMpidia); 



