TITHRONE.— STAGMOMANTIS. 139 



1. Tithrone roseipennis, Sauss. 



Acontista roseipennis, Sauss. Bull. Soc. Eut. Suisse, iii. p. 229 ( ? ) (1870) ; Westw. Revis. 



Mantid. p. 23. 

 Tithrone roseipennis, Stal, Syst. Mant. p. 62. 

 Tibiae anticae spinis intus 14, extus 15. 



Hab. Guiana, Cayenne (Mus. Genavense) ; Venezuela (Stal).~\ 



STAGMOMANTIS, Sauss. 



Stagmomantis, Saussure, Bull. Soc. Ent. Suisse, iii. p. 56 (1869) ; Mem. Mex., Mantid. p. 42; 



Miss. Scient. Mex., Orthopt. p. 242 ; Westwood, Revis. Mantid. p. 14. 

 Stagmatoptera, Burmeister (ex parte), Handb. ii. p. 537. 



This genus is essentially a Central- American type. It is very numerous in species 

 in the central parts of America and in the Antilles ; and some of the Central-American 

 representatives extend into the southern parts of the United States, or into the 

 northern parts of South America. 



Its species are somewhat heterogeneous, differing from each other in form and 

 coloration ; some are long and slender, others short and stout. The males, as usual, 

 differ very much from the females and present different types ; but they are not 

 yet sufficiently well known to enable us to judge if they correspond to the differences 

 of their respective females, so that at present we cannot divide the genus into typical 

 sections. 



The anterior legs are strong, not so long as in Phasmomantis. The femora have their 

 exterior border occupied by spines for two-thirds of their length ; the apical spines are 

 small or wanting. The anterior tibiae have their outer border unarmed for a short 

 distance at the base ; but in the larger species the unarmed space is greater. 



In the American Mantidse two types of coloration in the hind wings of the females 

 are especially noticeable, particularly in the posterior field of these organs : — 



1. Hyaline, tessellated with small opaque yellow bands placed on the transverse 

 venulae. 



2. Iridescent-brown, with the transverse venulae generally hyaline. 



These two types are sometimes characteristic of large groups, i. e. in the tribe 

 " Vatinse." In the genus Stagmomantis both are to be found, most of the species belonging 

 to the first type (S. dimidiata, S. fraterna, S. doming ensis), some others with fuscous 

 wings belonging to the second (S. tolteca, S. coerulans) ; but it must be remarked that 

 the varieties of several of the species include the two forms. For example, 8. tolteca, 

 with partly brown wings, has the transverse venulae typically yellowish, but in certain 

 specimens they become widely yellow and nearly tesselated as in the first type ; and 

 S. doming ensis, the wings of which are usually clear and partly tesselated with yellow 

 bands, is subject to lose the opaque yellow bands and to become pale fuscous with paler 



Tt2 



