a new Genus of Infecls. 197 



genera in the clafs, which are now very much confufed. This 

 perfuafion is the refult of an examination of what Fabricius terms 

 the injirumenta cibaria, in order to fix upon an efTential character, 

 more determinate than the prefent, for the genus Apis. I found 

 that the tongue was of one form in Sphex, of another in Vefpa, and 

 of another ftill in Apis. Amongft the infects which I difTe&ed with 

 this view, was the Sphex fabulofa of Linnazus ; and I was not a little 

 furprifed to find that it was furnifhed with an inflexed rojfrum (</), 

 which concealed a long, retractile, tubular tongue, with a bifid clava 

 at its end (e) : whereas the tongue of true Spheges, fuch at leaf! 

 as I have examined, is very fhort, flat, dilated, and nearly entire at 

 the apex (f). It agreed with the tongue of Vefpa, in being di- 

 vided at the end ; but in this latter genus, that part is extremely 

 fhort and broad, obcordate, very deeply bifid, having its lobes 

 fometimes tipped with a fmall callous point (g). It had a ft ill 

 ftronger affinity with that member in Apis, efpecially in thoie 

 fpecies that have an inflexed roftrum[h), but in thefe the tongue is 

 entire, and ufually acute. In many other circumftances this infect 

 differs from all thofe genera, as will appear when I give its natural 

 character. 



The poffeflion of three other Britiih fpecies, which agree with 

 this in the peculiar form of the rofirum and maxii/a\ as well as in habit 

 and other circumftances, makes myhefitation the leis toconfiderthem 

 as diitinct from the genus Sphex, and more particularly as Lin- 

 nceus has placed an infect exhibiting the fame characters amongft 

 his Apes, under the name of Apis Ichneumonea, This will appear, I 



(</) Tab. XIX. No. I. fig. 4. a. (e) fig. 3. (/) Tab. XIX. No. II. fig. 2. 



(g) Tab. XIX. No. III. fig. 2. See alfo Reaumur, Tom. V. Tab. 16.. fig. 2. and DeGitr, 

 Tom. II. Partie II. Tab. 26. fig. ic, 11. 

 (h) Tab. XIX. No. IV. fig. 2. 



think. 



