78 



The family contains a number of small flies, many of which have curiously 

 mottled wings. Some of them produce galls upon plants ; the larvae of 

 others mine in the plant tissue without producing galls ; and many are very 

 destructive pests to fruit. They are well represented in Australia by a 

 number of indigenous species, some of which produce galls, such as Tephritis, 

 sp., which forms large galls upon the twigs of the Snow Bush (Aster ramulosa), 

 and the fruit-damaging species by Dacus tryont, a serious pest to citrus fruits 

 and bananas. 



There are a number of different genera in this family that include fruit- 

 flies. The genus Dacus contains a great number of destructive species. 



The gtnus Ceratitis, though limited in number of species, comprises 

 several very destructive species, and in the genus Trypeta two species are 

 known to attack sound fruit. The genus Carpomyia contains the Baluchiston 

 Melon Fly, which appears to come very close to the genus Ctratitis. The 

 .genus Anastreplia, founded by Schiner (" Reise der Novara Zool. Diptera," 

 262, 1868) for the reception of two South American flies, Ancistreplia munda 

 and A. sfriata, now includes others that were originally desciibed in the genus 

 Dacus, the common fruit-pest of Brazil. " The Bahia Fruit Fly," AnastrepJia 

 Jratercula, was named Dacus fratercuhis by Wiedemann. Another common 

 fruit-pest in the same country, A. serpentine, was also first known as 

 Dacus serpentinus. 



Bigot placed one of the commonest Indian fruit-flies in the genus Rivellia. 

 Tt was found infesting peaches, so he called it E. persicce. It is a Dacus, 

 and I have returned it to that genus in my notes. 



Othf r species that have been described in the genus Dasyneura are now 

 placed in the genus Dacus. The generic name Dasyneura having been used by 

 Rondani in 1840 for a group of the Cecidomyia (gall gnats), Saunders' genus 

 created in 1841 will have to drop out of the Trypetidce. The "apple 

 maggot " of the United Slates, once known as Trypeta pomonella, has now 

 been placed in the genus Rhagoletes, and the allied species Ortulis cercisi, 

 attacking cherries, has come under the same group. 



Genus DACUS. 



(Meigen System Beuchr. VI, 22, 1, 1830. Syn. Mitsca, Fabr. Rossi. 



Oscims, Latr. Fabr., Bracliyopa, Meig.) 



The members of this genus are all rather small reddish-brown flies, some- 

 times marked with black on the dorsal surface, and in most cases marked 

 with pale or bright yellow nude areas on the shoulder^, sides of t,he thorax, 

 or forming regular stripes or lines on the dorsal surface of the thorax. The 

 scutellum is also often yellow, prominent, usually smooth and shining. 

 The wings are hyaline, often striped or clouded with brown, or blackish. 

 They are active little flies ; the shape of the abdomen, narrow and con- 

 stricted at its junction with the thorax, giving them a wasp-like appearance. 

 When running about over the fruit or foliage, they often carry their wings 

 in a very characteristic manner, drooping down on the sides of the body. 

 They all have the same habit of puncturing ripening fruit, and depositing 

 their eggs beneath the skin of the fruit, the maggots feeding upon the 

 tissue. 



These maggots are elongate cylindrical grubs, and pupate in the soil upon 

 which the damaged fruit falls. 



