44 
Psyche 
[April 
arising as an oblique row, several supraalar, one postalar, four 
scutellar, about ten dorsocentral and a single median row of 
acrostichal bristles; pleurae entirely bare. Abdomen cylindrical 
but curving downward in the male, the hairs of the male long, 
the eighth segment of the female retracted and blunt, the basal 
three ventral segments of the male inflated, the sixth and seventh 
segments forming a stout pedicel to the large globose inflexed 
hypopygium which bends forward under the abdomen. The 
hvpopygium is bilaterally symmetrical and terminates in a pair 
of small bristly ovate valves and a subdorsal median prong. 
Legs rather short, the middle tibiae with an apical flexor bristle, 
hind femora pectinate above, hind tibiae somewhat compressed 
clavate, pectinate on the extensor edge, the posterior side tomen- 
tose like the swollen metatarsus. Wings very broad at the base, 
the anal angle very full and rectangular, costa abruptly thinned 
at the end of the first vein, two basal bristles present and also 
numerous costal setulae but no hairs, auxiliary and first veins 
strong, the other veins very weak and almost straight and 
radiating, stigma very prominent and so sharply limited behind 
as to present an extra vein between the first and second veins, 
the second vein ending near the tip of the wing, anterior cross- 
vein wanting, a terminal spur of the anterior fork of the fourth 
vein present, cliscal cell open, only a trace of the crossvein at the 
end of the minute second basal cell, anal cell short and apically 
acute, alula well developed and margined with long flattened 
scale-like hairs. Type species, M. stigmaticalis Zetterstedt. 
The genus Microsania includes very small, inconspicuous 
flies that are rarely observed by the general collector. Because 
of a superficial resemblance in the open venation to the species 
of Bicellaria ( Cyrtoma ) previous authors have been led to locate 
the genus in the Empididse. A close inspection discloses that 
the resemblance gives way to far more significant differences, 
and that Microsania is not an empid but is closely related to 
Platycnema and Opetia, forming with them a group of the 
Platypezidse characterized by an open discal cell and by the 
presence of a distinct humeral bristle. Microsania differs from 
Platycnema and Opetia in lacking the anterior crossvein and in 
