278 Mr. C. II. T. Townsend on Diptera 



the abdomen beneath the tergum. Therefore I feel quite 

 safe in referring these specimens to inconsfans, since the 

 peculiar characters of the wings and thorax agree so well 

 with the description. As a variety it differs from the typical 

 formosa not only in the characters of aurantiaca, but further 

 by the postsutural golden markings of the mesoscutum. 



38. TncJiopoda /anipes, var. tropt'calis, var, n. 



One female, San Rafael, June 28. On flowers of the 

 Cordia sp. 



Length 13^ millim. 



This is a large form of lam'pes. Fabricius's and Wiede- 

 mann's specimens measured about 9 millim. I have seen 

 specimens of the smaller form, here considered to be the 

 typical himpes, which were only a little larger than normal 

 specimens of pennipes. The present specimen has the deep 

 golden pollen of sides of front clear and pronounced, being 

 pointed-triangular in shape, filling out the space between 

 frontal vitta and eye-margins anteriorly, and continued indis- 

 tinctly backward along orbits nearly as far as vertex. The 

 lines of thorax are distinctly golden, though inclining to 

 whitish. Abdomen has a uniform bluish cast, apparently 

 from a very thin covering of silvery pollen over the black 

 ground-colour, but is nevertheless shining. Femora are 

 yellowish red at base. Palpi brownish yellow. Otherwise the 

 specimen agrees perfectly with the descriptions of Fabricius 

 and Wiedemann. It shows some short cilia on upper and 

 lower edge of hind femora apically. 



The characters belonging to this variety are, in the main, 

 its greater size, combined with the lighter palpi and bases of 

 femora, and the femoral cilia. It is doubtless a tropical 

 variety of the smaller typical form, which was from Carolina. 

 I have seen other large specimens, from Mexico and South 

 America, apparently belonging to this variety. 



T. plurmpes, Fabr., is doubtless to be considered another 

 variety of lanipes, differing principally in the rust-colouring 

 of scutellum and femora. It is small like the typical lanipes. 



T. lanipes, presumably the typical form, has been recorded 

 by Giglio-Tos (Ditt. Mess. iii. p. 6) from Cuautla (wrongly 

 spelled with an n), which is in the State of Morelos. The 

 specimen was collected by Saussure. In the same place, 

 Giglio-Tos gives New Mexico as a locality for lanipes, 

 referring to my paper, in which I gave no locality whatever, 

 but merely remarked on the affinities of the species. He 

 has similarly recorded penmpes from New Mexico, referring 



