202 ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. [June, 



Abdomen entirely red, sometimes in the $, and always in the $ , with 

 the two or three apical segments black; first abdominal segment 

 not nodose at apex ; femora black, the fore and medial pair 

 marked with yellow (sometimes the clypeus entirely, anterior 

 orbits broadly and scape in front, yellow; = personatus n. var.). 



abdominalis. 



3. Abdomen entirely black, without yellow markings; no yellow on or- 



bits; median tooth of clypeus longest; first abdominal segment 

 slender, strongly nodose at apex and somewhat longer than the 



hind femora pygmaeus. 



Abdomen marked more or less with yellow 4. 



4. Clypeus, except fore margin in the $, metathorax, petiole and second 



abdominal segment without yellow markings; third abdominal 

 segment with a yellow mark on each side; in the tf the scape and 

 first two joints of the flagellum beneath, yellow . . bimaculatns. 

 Clypeus entirely, two marks on basal portion of metathorax, basal 

 half of first abdominal segment and maculations on the second 

 and third segments of abdomen, yellow; cf unknown, alpestris. 



1. Mellinus rufinodus Cress. 



M. rufinodus Cresson, Proc. Ent. Soc. Phila. iv, p. 475, 9cf- 

 Colorado, Montana. Some specimens are much stouter than 

 others, the petiole appearing shorter and broader than usual. 



2. Mellinus abdominalis Cress. 



M. abdominalis Cress., Proc. Ent. Section, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila. 



iSSi, p. xxxix, 9J 1 . 



Montana. To several female specimens having the greater part 

 of the head in front yellow I have given the varietal name per- 

 sonatus. The males of this species are peculiar for their long, 

 slender abdomen. 



3. Mellinus bimaculatus Harris. 



M. bimaculatus Say MS. 



1\L bimaculatns Harris, Cat. Ins. Mass. (2d ed.), p. 68, 1835; Pack- 

 ard, Proc. Ent. Soc. Phila. vi, p. 419, 9- 



Maine, New Hampshire. A specimen before me from the latter 

 State was collected at Franconia by Mrs. A. T. Slosson. The 

 $ differs from the 9 by having the anterior margin of the cly- 

 peus bordered narrowly with yellow ; first three joints of the 

 antennae yellow beneath and the remaining testaceous; last ven- 

 tral plate of abdomen broadly and triangularly emarginate. 



I have not seen Harris' description of this insect and rely, 

 therefore, on Packard's synonymy. In the first edition of the 

 Catalogue of the Insects of Massachusetts this insect is simply 

 listed and without a description. 



