100 SYBPHIDJE. 



blackish ; venter shining yellow. The four anterior legs are almost 

 entirely pale yellow, the femora darkened on the apical half, more 

 distinctly so in the male ; hind femora enormously thickened in 

 both sexes, pale yellow interiorly, blackened towards the middle 

 exteriorly, with some whitish hairs above and some black ones 

 below ; hind tibiae arched and with a short fringe ; tarsi yellow. 

 The black basal spot of the femora is very distinct. Wings 

 hyaline, bare, unspotted ; veins in great part yellow ; marginal cell 

 broadly open ; loop of the third vein deep and narrow, not appen- 

 diculated ; lower corner of discal cell with a short stump. 



Type $ and type $ , a couple of specimens from the Cape of 

 Good Hope. 



Genus 19. MERODON, Mel gen (1803). 



Of this characteristic Mediterranean genus there are only a few 

 Ethiopian species known ; the collection comprises the three 

 following : 



1 (2) Face retreating below, not at all prominent 



towards the buccal cavity ; lower corner 



of the disca) cell with a short stump . . . plamfncjes, sp. n. 



2 (1) Face even more prominent than usual at the 



buccal cavity ; lower corner of the discal 

 cell not appendiculated. 



3 (4) Abdomen at the base with an orange ppot on 



each side of the second segment ; an tenure 



and tarsi entirely black mehnwcerus, sp. n. 



4 (3) Abdomen at the base entirely black; antennae 



and tai\-i reddish nasiats, Bezzi. 



107. Merodon planifacies, sp. n. 



<3 . Length of the body 10 mm. 



A rather aberrant species, very distinct from any other on 

 account of the shape of the face; in general aspect not much 

 differing from M. const ans, Rossi, but the hind trochanters and 

 the hind tibiae are wholly simple. 



Head black, densely clothed with grey hair, the vertical tri- 

 angle alone being shining and the hairs around ocelli dark ; eyes 

 touching for a considerable distance, covered with w r hitish hair, 

 which is dark on the upper part; frontal triangle not very pro- 

 minent, densely clothed with whitish hair; face very short and 

 entirely flat, a little retreating, not prominent at the buccal 

 cavity, distinctly shorter than the eyes ; antennae short, reddish, 

 the third joint rectangular and of a pale yellowish colour ; arista 

 bare, yellowish; opening of the buccal cavity very small; pro- 

 boscis short and concealed. Dorsum of thorax clothed with dense 

 and rather long grey hair; it is of a shining aeneous colour, 

 and has three broad purplish-black bands, the middle one being 

 abbreviated behind and divided by a thin aeneous line, while 



