THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 187 



THE THREE RANATRAS OF THE NORTH-EASTERN 



UNITED STATES. 



BY J. R. DE LA TORRE BUENO, NEW YORK. 



Several entomologists have discussed with me the question of the 

 distinguishing characters of Ranatra quadridentata, Stal, and Ranatra 

 fusca, Pal. Beauv., and in consequence I venture to set forth here briefly 

 and plainly the differences between these two and Ranatra Kirkaldyi, n. 

 sp , which I took for the first time in New York State. 



A few preliminary remarks on this genus may perhaps be found 

 interesting. The genus .ff^wa/r^! was established in 1790 (sec. Kirkaldy) 

 by Fabricius without a type being fixed, and under it he described R. 

 filiformis and R. elongata, both from Tranquebar. In it naturally fell 

 Linne's N^epa linearis, which Latreille in 1802 made the type of the 

 genus. The described American species, exclusive of synonyms, are the 

 following : 



Ranatra Fabricii, Guerin, from Cuba. 



Ranatra rabida, F. B. White, from Brazil. 



Ra?iatra unidentata, Stal, from Rio Janeiro. 



Ranatra quadridentata Stal, from Mexico. 



Ranatra fusca, Pal. Beauv., from the United States. 



Ranatra atinulipes, Stal, from Brazil. 



To these six it is my privilege to add a seventh: 



Ranatra Kirkaldy i, n. sp., from the type localities, Putnam Co., N. 

 Y., and Chicago, Ills. 



Ranatra fusca, Pal. Beauv., and R. quadridentata, Stal, appear to 

 have been much confused with each other, due to the very brief descrip- 

 tion of the former given by its author, and perhaps also to the fact that 

 small specimens of the latter are hardly distinguishable from the former 

 on a superficial examination. Palisot de Beauvois, after his extremely 

 brief Latin description, makes a comparison between R. fusca and the 

 European R. linearis, and, of course, in the absence of the latter for com- 

 parison, it is hardly possible to fix on the former with any degree of 

 certainty. His description simply reads : "Greenish-fuscous, setae shorter 

 than the body, wings reddish-fuscous." The last is quite a noticeable 

 character of the insect. There are to be found more than a few R. 

 quadridentata in which the air-tubes are noticeably shorter than the body, 

 but the wings in this species are hyaline, " very slightly infuscated," as 



May, 1905. 



