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A NEW GENUS AND SPECIES OF BIBIONIDDIPTERA.
Bv Cnanras P. AlexaNDER,Amherst, Massachusetts.
fn an extensivecollectionof Tipulidae from British Columbia
sentto me for identificationby ProfessorG. J. Spencer,there wasincludeda singlespecirnenof a fly that I must consideras representingan undefineclgenusand species. It is confidentlyexpectedthat this particularinsectrvill result in much discussionas to itstrue systematicposition. The generalappearanceis much likePachyneurabut in the venationthe acceptedcharactersof theAnisopodiclae
anclBibioniclaeare crlriouslycornbined.
Genus Cramptonomyianovum.
Rostrum and labial palpi relatively small; maxillary palpi
elongate,aboutone.halfthe lengthof the antennae.Antennae
r6-segrnented;
scapalsegmentssmall,the first a trifle larger;
flagellar segmentscylindrical, gradually decreasingin length
outwardly, the terminal segmentabout one-third longer thanthe penultirnate,pointedat apex; flagellarsegmentswith delicate erect setulaeand scatteredverticils that are shorter than
the segrnents. Ocelli three, f orming a close triangle.
Hrlteres elongate. Legswith the tibiaeaboutone-halflonger
than the femora; tibial spurs longer than the diameterof
tibia at apex. \\-ings ( Figures r ancl z) rvith Sc, ending
oppositer-tn, Sr, far from its tip, being placedjust beyond
origin of Rs ; three branchesof R reach the margin; free
portion of R, lacking, in some lights apparentlyrepresented
by ". faint line bisectingthe stigma; basal sectionof Ro appearingas ? strong transverseelementthat simulatesa crossvein, placedjust before the level of proximal end of stigma;
rnediawith four branchesreachingthe margin, the anterior
fork very deep,the vein XI, *, forking at or just beyondr-nx;
basal sectionof A[, long and gently sinuous; cell rst fu[,exceptimclosed; main stem of.M faint and subevanescentrnediatelybefore its fork ; a single anal vein. Apical cellsof rvingwith scatteredmacrotrichia.
Genotype.-Cramptonomyia spencerin. sp. (\\'estern NearcticRegion).
this genusto Dr.
It is with very great pleasurethat I cleclicate
G. ChesterCrampton,in recognitionof his work on the phylogeny

Bu,lletin of the Brooklyn EntomologicalSociety Tot'xxrl
and morphology of the Diptera. In the above discussionI haveomitted detailedmention of the mouthparts,thoracic scleritesand
genitalia,all of which will be describedand figured in subsequent
papersby Dr. Crampton.
Cramptonomyia spenceri n. sp.
Fenr,ale.-Lengthabout rr mm.; wing ro.2 mm.; antenna
about 3.5 mm.
Front and the reducedrostrum yellowish gray; palpi black.
Antennae black throughout. Head gray, more infuscated on
the anterior vertex. Ocellar triangle dusky.
Pronotum gray. Anterior lateral pretergites restrictedly
bright yellow. Mesonotumbrownish gray, the median regionof the praescutum more infuscated, scutellum dark brown,
obscureyellow beneath; postnotalmediotergitegray. Pleurauniform gra!, the dorso-pleural membrane more buffy.
Halteres obscure yellow. Legs with the coxae yellow,
sparselygray pruinose; trochantersyellow ; femora obscureyellow ; tibiae dark brorvn; tarsi black. \\Iings ( Figures rand z) yellorvish,the oval stigma dark brou'n ; u,eak dusky
d lt,; on cord ;suffusionsin baseof cell Sc immediatell' be1'on
and as vagueseanrsalongthe veinsof the lledial, Cubital andAnal fields; veins chiefly dark. Sparse macrotrichia in thestigmal darkening and outer ends of cells R, to IVI, inclusive.
Venation as describedunder the genericdiagnosis.
Abdomen elongate; tergites bicolorous,their bases darkbrown, the apicesobscureyellow; sternitesmore uniformlyobscureyellow; outer segmentsmore uniformly darkened,thecerci blatkish gra)'.
Habitat; British Columbia. H olot)'Pe.'?, \rancouver, \{arch3 0 , r 9 3 o ( G . I . S p e n c e r ) . T ) ' p . r e t u m e ctlo P r o i e s s o rS p e n c e r .
I take great pleasurein naming this speciesirr honor of Professor G. J. Spencer,who collectedthe uniquet)-pe.
As statedin the introductory paragraph,the presentinsectpresents some very puzzling venational characters. .The affinities ofthe fly would seemunquestionablyto lie with Plecia Wiedemann( r8z8), Pacltyneu,raZetterstedt ( 1838) and H esperinwsWalker( t8a8). These three genera, and especiallythe two last, havecausedmuch trouble in the past when the necessityaroseto placethem within definite f amilies. The various positions assigned
thesegeneraare as follows :Jan.,1931 Bulletin, of the Brooklyn EntontologicalSociety
Kert6sz (Cat. Dipterorum, r ; rgo2) recognizeda subfamily
Pachyneurinaein the Bibionidaeto includePaclcyneuraand Hesperinus,Pleci,abeing retainedin the subfamily Bibioninae. Williston (Man. N. Amer. Dipt., Ed. 3: r42-r43; r9o8) recognizedin the Bibionidae the subfamily Pachyneurinae,ref erring to it
H esperi,ruts and H esperodesCoquillett ( Ent. News, r r : 429;rgoo), as well as the PalaearcticPach,ynelcra.
Johannsen(MaineAgr. Irxpt. Sta.,Bull. r72: zt6 ; ryca) considered
the Pachyneurinae as being Mycetophilidae,correctly placed H esperodesas a
CeroplatineMycetophilid,and referred Hesperinttstentativelyto
the BoletophilineMycetophilidae,
tothoughnotingits resemblance
Plecio and definitely stating that it should be placed with theBibionidae.Crampton(Ann. Ent. Soc.Arner.,fi:4y74; rg21),in a notable study of the thoracic scleritesof Nematocerous
Diptera,indicatesthe closerelationships
existingbetweenPleciaand H esperinus. Edwards ( Diptera, Fam. Protorhyphidae,Anisopodidae,Pachyneuridae,Trichoceridae.GeneraInsectorum,Fasc. r9o : r-4r, z pls.; t9z8), following Handlirsch,has recognized the Pachyneuridaeas a family and refers to it not only
Pach,ynexcre
but alsoArynryfo McAtee (Proc. Ent. Soc.Washington, 23: 49; rgzr). Edwards retainsPlecia and Hesperinusin
the Bibionidae. In his opinion,Pach,yneLcra
has more featuresin
cornrnonwith the Anisopoclidae
than with either the Bibionidaeor
the X{ycetophilidae.
I arn not fully convincedof the justihcationfor placingPacltyneurein a family distinctfrom Plecicand Hespcrirtrts.The discoveryof the fly abovedescribedas ne\\-n'ouldtendto supportthis
view. In the venationof the medialfielcl,Cramptortornyia
seems
closerto the Anisopodidae,
but the courseof the branchesof theradial sector is almost exactly as in Pach,ytl,excra,
showing notendencyof the anterior branch to swing cephaladand finally tobecomefused apicallywith R, * z, ?s is the casein the Anisopodidae. Likewise the downward curvature of the distal sectionof
Cu,,is a characterof the Pachyneurineflies. The profound forkof IVI,* ,, togetherwith the strong f ree basalsectionof vein Ro,give.sthe genus Crant,ptonotnyia
a very distinctive appearance.
A comparisonof this fly with Pach,yn,eLr,ra,especiallyin the lightof the interpretationof the modificationof the radial field of theDiptera as proposedby the writer ( IV. Internat.CongressEnt.,
2: Zoo-2o7,pl. 3, fig. 6; rg2g) makesit seempossiblethat theelementthereheld to be R, is really the free portion of R, before

10 Butletin of the Brookl,yn,EntornologicalSociety Tot'xxvr

Fig.I
Rl+aRa f ttl

Fig.2
E,xprnNATroNor FrcuREs.
Fig. r. Wing-venation of Crant,ptonontyiaspenceri, gen. et.
sp.n.
Fig. z. The same; detailsof radial and medial fields.
its apical fusion with R, and that the trvo main branchesof theradial sectorin Pacltyneurashouldbe interpretedas is done in thepresentpaper f.or Cranr,ptononrryis.Until more evidenceis forthcoming, I am inclined to place the new genus in the near vicinity
of.PachyneLcra,
but must also consider that Plecia and Hesperinus
fall in the samegeneralgroup.
The four generamay be separatedas follows :r. Antennaewith rGrS segments. . .
Antennaewith from 8 to 12 segments

23

Jan.,1e31 Bulletin of th,e Brooklyn Entomological Society 11
2. Four branchesof R and three of.M reachthe wing-margin.
P achyneur a Zetter stedt
Three branchesof R and four of.M reach the wing-margin.
Cramptonomyia nov.
3. Antennaewith only 8 or 9 segments
Antennaew i t h 1 2s e g m e n t s . . . . . . . .

. .Plecio Wiedemann. . H e s p e r i n uWs alker

The fly describedby Garrett ( Sixty-one New Diptera, privatelyprinted, pp. rr-r2; rg2s) "s Hesperi,nu,sfl,agellaria,likewise from
British Columbia, seemsundoubtedlyto be correctly placed in
H esperirotcs.