Vol. 5, p. 69-72. 



November 14, 1923. 



Occasional Papers 



OF THE 



^l 



^ UdRABY 



Boston Society of Natural HistorrV. ^ n lo.on 



NEW AND INTERESTING SPECIES^ 



BY CHARLES W. JOHNSON. 





IVED 



This paper adds two interesting genera to the New England 

 fauna : Spania and Hilarimorpha, belonging to the family Rhagio- 

 nidae (Leptidae). A new species of Allognosta of the family 

 Stratiomyiidae is also described, with a note on Allognosta similis 

 Loew. 



Spania nigra Meigen. 

 Svania nigra Meig., Syst. Beschr., vol. 6, p. 335, tab. 66, f . 12-14, 1830. 



Among the material collected at Witch Hole Pond, near Bar 

 Harbor, Maine, June 21, 1921, was a single male specimen of what 

 is evidently this interesting little species. It agrees with the 

 description, except for a discrepancy in the venation. The 

 venation, however, is exceedingly variable in European specimens, 

 and this inconstancy is described by Verrall (British Flies, vol. 5, 

 p. 318, 1909) as follows : '' The two upper veinlets from the discal 

 cell usually sessile, but frequently separated (sometimes widely) 

 and not uncommonly petiolate as in Ptiolina, while the third vein- 

 let is usually abbreviated, but is sometimes complete; it is also 

 not uncommon to find a spurious cross-vein connecting the two 

 upper veinlets from the discal cell soon after their origin and 



Fig. 

 Fig. 



1. — Spania nigra Meigen. Typical venation, after Meigen. 

 2. — Venation in a specimen from near Bar Harbor, Maine. 



thereby forming a small complete cell above the end portion of the 

 discal cell, discal cross-vein hardly before the middle of the discal 

 cell; anal cell sometimes barely closed or sometimes distinctly 

 petiolate; it is very usual to find the venation varying differently 

 in the two wings." In the specimen before me the anterior or 



69 



