194 DIPTERA OF NORTH AMERICA. [PART III. 



Gen. XII. EPIPLATEA Loew. 



Charact. — Front broad, narrower anteriorly; not projecting in profile; 

 rather densely hairy upon the whole surface. 



Antennae of medium size; third joint oval, with a thin, bare arista. 



Face vertical, with a depression under each antenna; longitudinally 

 convex between these depressions ; clypeus of a moderate transverse 

 diameter, projecting considerably beyond the anterior edge of the 

 mouth, which is drawn upwards ; proboscis stout. 



Thorax with bristles on its hind part only ; scutellum convex, with 

 four bristles. 



Femora of moderate length, strong, but not incrassate; all unarmed. 



Wings comparatively short ; submarginal and first posterior cells 

 broad ; third longitudinal vein bent backwards towards its end ; 

 the last section of the fourth longitudinal vein does not converge 

 towards the third; posterior crossvein perpendicular; the posterior 

 angle of the anal cell rather acute. 



The species of this genus are rather stout, not metallic, except 

 sometimes on the abdomen. The structure of the head recalls 

 that of some Sciomyzidse, and is very like that of the two well- 

 known species, described by Wiedemann as Ortalis trifasciata 

 and atomaria ; in their general appearance, the species of Epi- 

 platea are also not unlike the two latter species, but are easily 

 distinguished by the first longitudinal vein being bare, by the 

 posterior angle of the anal cell not being rounded as in those 

 species and by the absence of the erect biidtle before the end of the 

 upper side of the tibiae, a bristle which is always present in the 

 latter species. 



1. E. erosa Loew. 9 .—(Tab. IX, f. 24.) Fueco-testaceo vel ex fer- 

 rugine fusca, pedibus concoloribus ; abdomine nigro, alis hyalinis, fasciis 

 duabus et puncto centrali nigris. 



Brownish-yellow or ferruginous-brown, with the feet of the same color and 

 a black abdomen; wings hyaline, with two brown crossbands and in 

 the middle with a brown dot. Long. corp. 0.17; long. al. 0.16. 



Syn. Epiplatea erosa Loew, Berl. Ent. Zeitschr. XI, p. 325, Tab. II, f. 25. 

 The coloring of the lighter shaded specimens is yellow-brown- 

 ish, in darker specimens it becomes ferruginous-brown. Head of 

 the same color. Front broad, considerably narrowed anteriorly, 

 upon its whole surface uniformly and rather densely clothed with 

 an erect, black pubescence; along the lateral margin with a 

 narrow border of white pollen ; the stripes running down from 



