92 R. W. CROSSKEY 
large heavy cerci (Text-fig. 60) in which the free apical parts are much longer than 
the contiguous basal midline of the cerci; the outer margins of the basal parts of 
the cerci rather straight. [Tasmania and New South Wales] . : . R. media 
SUBGENERICALLY UNPLACED SPECIES-GROUP Taxa IN RUTILIA S.t. 
These are two, micropalpis Malloch, 1929 and scutellata Enderlein, 1936. Each is 
briefly discussed below. 
Rutilia micropalpis Malloch 
This little-known species differs from all other species of Rutilia s.1. so far described 
by having the palpi (as the appropriate specific name indicates) exceptionally small; 
they are very inconspicuous in the buccal cavity and their length is at most only 
about half the normal palpal length in Rwutilia. I would not exclude the species 
from any named subgenus on this character alone, but on the basis of all the other 
characters shown by micropalpis in combination it is impossible to place the species 
at all satisfactorily in any one of the seven subgenera here recognized, and it seems 
best to leave micropalpis subgenerically unplaced for the time being. The male is 
unknown to me, and so far I have seen only four female specimens (holotype and 
paratype in Australian Museum and two specimens in British Museum (Natural 
History)). Other than the palpal character these are the features shown by micro- 
palpis: 
Head pollinose, non-metallic; parafacials bare; 2 with one pair of strong proclinate orbital 
setae; arista micropubescent; four humeral] setae (one sometimes very weak); one to three post- 
humeral setae (variable each side on same specimen); two or three post ia setae (if three then 
anterior one very small); no supernumerary prescutellar setae; four or five postalar setae; 
suprasquamal ridge with short black hair, rather sparse; scutellum convex, with four or five 
paiis of marginal setae and with well developed preapicals; pteropleuron not haired in advance 
of hind stpl seta; two sternopleural setae (1 + 1, anterior one exceptionally strong); prosternal 
membrane and anterior edge of prosternum with long pale hair; hind tibia with short very 
regular and close-set ad fringe along its basal three-fifths and with or without one strong ad 
seta inserted at the end of the fringe, with three or fom strong pd setae; abdominal T3 with 
one pair of median marginal setae; T5 without depression and with a median transverse row 
of very strong erect setae; body colour dark blackish green with coppery to purplish reflections 
(mainly on mesonotum and scutellum) and thin whitish pollinosity over humeral area, meso- 
pleuron, and (very thinly) on tergite bases. 
If the foregoing list of micropalpis characters is compared with the subgeneric 
diagnoses it is evident that the closest fit lies with subgenus Donovanius, though the 
species fails to conform with typical species of this subgenus by having short sparse 
suprasquamal ridge hairing, some hair present on the prosternum, by the very short 
hind tibial fringe and several strong hind tibial fd setae, and by the lack of a depres- 
sion in the last abdominal tergite. R. micropalpis seems to combine some of the 
characters of Donovanius with some of Rutilias.str. There is no suggestion, or very 
little, of any affinity with the other subgenera, even though these possess four or 
more postalar setae as in micropalpis. 
It would not be unjustified on the basis of its unusual palpi and combination of 
other characters to place micropalpis in a separate new subgenus, but one is not 
