New Zealand Cyrtidae — Paramonov 
21 
yellowish hairs, in Apsona with long 
ones. 
All these characters have a relative value but 
the striking similarity is quite dominating. 
Apsona caerulea Brunetti 
1926. Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist. IX, 18: 581. 
Brunetti writes: 
Head. Eyes with long, dense, bright rufous-brown 
pubescence, apparently contiguous, but actually suffi- 
ciently separated to show a very narrow shining metallic 
blue space between them throughout, from the shining, 
almost blue-green frons bearing long, black, rather 
shaggy hair to the narrow shining black triangular 
frons. Antennae elongate, very slender, first joint very 
short, cylindrical, brown with a little grey dust; second 
much thicker, nearly as broad as long, subcylindrical, 
brown, with some stiff bristly hairs at tip; third very 
slender, pale yellow, nearly three times as long as 
second, basal half cylindrical, very much narrower than 
second joint, apical half elongate conical, narrowed 
at base, with long fine apical arista. Proboscis long, 
slender, Lasia- like, sheath bright shining metallic blue, 
much longer than full length of body, black. Occiput 
metalic blue, with long shaggy dark grey hair. 
Thorax shining metallic blue with green reflections 
and long, rather coarse, blackish hair, more greyish 
towards sides. Scutellum more than twice as broad as 
long, with concolorous pubescence, hind margin gently 
curved, with more whitish pubescence. 
Abdomen shining metallic blue, with rather long, 
fine, black pubescence. Two peculiar and conspicuous 
small patches of much denser black hair on discs of 
second, third, and fourth segments, well separated. 
Belly shining violet, with black pubescence. 
Legs. Femora and tibiae shining dark brown, with a 
little fine black pubescence; tarsi yellowish (except the 
black tips), with yellowish pubescence, which latter 
also occurs on inner sides of tibiae on about apical half. 
Wings quite clear yellowish grey; venation normal 
except fork of third vein much more upturned than in 
type-species, and fourth posterior cell almost con- 
tiguous at its pointed base with tip of second basal 
cell. All endings of fourth vein not reaching wing- 
margin. Alar squamae yellowish, bare, black-fringed; 
thoracal squamae ferruginous, with rather long shaggy 
depressed whitish hair. Halteres concealed. 
Length IV 2 mm., proboscis 9 mm. 
A unique of uncertain sex in the British Museum, 
Minas Geraes, Brazil (Rogers), from the Saunders 
collection. The only previously known species is mus- 
caria , Westw., the genotype from New Zealand. 
Subfamily PHILOPOTINAE 
Genus Helle Osten-Sacken 
1896. Ent. Monthly Mag. 32: 16. 
Hutton, 1901. New Zeal. Inst. Trans. 33: 28. 
Type species: H. longirostris Hudson. 
Osten-Sacken writes: 
Eyes glabrous, contiguous above the antennae as far 
as the ocellar triangle. Three ocelli. Antennae inserted 
about the middle of the head (seen in profile), very 
small; second joint incrassate at the base and attenuated 
beyond it in the shape of an arista-like prolongation. 
Proboscis elongate. Hind part of the head swollen. 
Thorax gibbous; prothoracic lobes contiguous along 
a rather long suture, on both sides of which they ex- 
pand hindwards, so that the hind margin of the pro- 
thorax shows a deep emargination. Neuration almost 
complete; a single submarginal cell; an elongate, some- 
what pentagonal discal cell; four posterior cells, in- 
complete in consequence of the post-discal veins not 
reaching the margin; two distinct basal cells; the anal 
cell closed long before the margin, its petiole stunted a 
little before reaching the margin. Tegulae large. Legs 
smooth, without spurs; tarsi but little shorter than the 
tibiae; joints three and four are the shortest, both 
together nearly equal the first in length. Three pulvilli. 
Abdomen oval, with the first segment short; the five 
other dorsal segments longer and nearly of the same 
length, with coarctations at the incisures. 
Hutton adds, "The neuration closely resem- 
bles that of Megalybus pictus Westwood, Trans. 
Ent. Soc. London, 1876, pi. v. fig. 4a.” 
KEY TO THE NEW ZEALAND SPECIES OF HELLE 
1. Larger species, length of body about 7 
mm. Prothoracic plates not touching, 
always separated by one rather broad 
furrow. Yellowish-red species, with 
black median longitudinal stripe on me- 
sothorax and two lateral ones, abbre- 
viated in the presutural area 
rufescens Brun. 
Smaller species, about 3-4 mm. in 
length. Brown species with mesonotum 
uniformly coloured, no darker longitu- 
dinal stripes 2 
2. Thorax deep blue-black. Ocelli distinct 
megalyboides Brun. 
Thorax dull blackish with a slight aene- 
ous tinge longirostris Hudson* 
* Hudson has not described this species, the col- 
oured illustration in his book is not good, the insect 
is unrecognisable. The first author who recognised the 
right position of the species and has described it was 
Osten-Sacken, 1896. 
