222 THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



Abroad, the wasps belonging to this family are known as " ruby- 

 tailed flies " and "gold-wasps." 



Cuckoo wasps is a better name for them. They are among the 

 handsomest of all wasps, being most frequently of a brilliant metallic 

 green, blue-green, blue, purplish or cupreous ; they are rarely wholly 

 black, and still more rarely variegated with yellow or testaceous. 



All the species are parasitic or inquilinous, principally in the nests of 

 bees and wasps. The potter-wasps (Eumenidce) and the leaf-cutting bees 

 ( Megachilidce, subfamily Osmiinae) are especially subject to their attacks; 

 they have also been bred from the nests of other bees and wasps, and a 

 few are said to have been bred from the larvae of sawflies (Tenthredinoidea). 



Dahlbom was among the first to separate the family into groups, 

 which he called families. He established six families : (i) Cleptidce, 

 (2) Elampidce, (3) Hedychridce, (4) Chrysididce, (5) Euchrceidce, and 

 (6) Parnopidce. All of these, except the Euchrceidce, are natural groups, 

 recognized to-day as subfamilies, and he, and not Aaron and Mocsary, 

 should receive credit for first pointing them out. 



In 1S89 an excellent monograph of this family, entitled " Mono- 

 graphia Chrysidarum orbis terrarum universi," was published by Alexander 

 Mocsary,at Buda-Pesth, Hungary. It is a large 4to, of 643 pages, illustrated 

 with two plates, gives a full bibliography of the family, tables for recogniz- 

 ing the subfamilies and genera, and terminates with a list of the hosts from 

 which these wasps have been bred. It is the best work ever published on 

 the family, and will be found indispensable to the student. 



Mocsary, in this work, recognized seven subfamilies : (1) Amisegince, 

 (2) Cleptince, (3) Allococlince, (4) Ellampince, (5) Hedychrince, (6) Chry- 

 sidince, and (7) Parnopince. 



In 1S90, after this work had been published, Mocsary established 

 another subfamily, the Adelphince, based upon a Mexican genus, Adelphe, 

 placing it next to the Amisegince. In my opinion this subfamily does not 

 represent a natural group, and I have here merged it with the Cleptince. 



It will also be observed that 1 have not followed Mocsary in his 

 arrangement of the subfamilies. My reasons for this are simple. I 

 believe the family Chrysididce, through the Cleptince and the Amisegince, 

 is quite closely allied to the family BetJiylidce, and by the arrangement 

 here proposed, a very natural transition into this family is shown. The 

 Parnopince, although very far removed, appear to me to approach nearest 



