364 THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



of silvery light brown bounds the outer margin. Beneath as above, but 

 the brown edgings are not so pyDUOunced. The fringe is silvery-white, 

 shading into light brown along the line of attachment opposite the brown 

 line on the outer margin of the wing. The fringe on the distal margin is 

 light brown. 



SOME CARPENTER-BEES FROM AFRICA. 



BY T. D. A. COCKERF.LL, BOULDER, COLO. 



I am indebted to Dr. F. Creighton Wellman for specimens of two 

 little-known species of Xylocopidje, collected by himself in Angola. 

 Although they are not new species, they suggest a few observations. 



Mesot7-ichia mixta (Radoszkowski, 1881). 

 Two females, Chyaka, Angola, July, 1906, on mountain side, 6,000 

 feet. Dr. Wellman says : " Seen at several flowers. These taken at a 

 species of Mi/leitia, of which they are very fond." 



The genus Mesotrichia seems sufficiently distinct from Xylocopa to 

 be maintained, but I think Koptorihosoma, Gribodo, is only a subgenus of 

 it. Ashmead separates Mesotrichia from Koptorihosoma by the charac- 

 ters, '' second cubital cell, along the cubitus, much lono;er than the first ; 

 mandibles tridentaie," as well as certain peculiarities of the males. M. 

 mixta, however, has the venation of Mesotrichia, with the bidentate 

 mandibles of KoptortJiosoma. Vachal suggests that M. fnixta may be a 

 v2iX\^\y oi Mesotrichia flavoriif a {Apis flaiwrufa, DeGeer, 1778), but the 

 UVLQ Jlavoru/a appears to be confined to the eastern side of the continent, 

 and I think mixta is certainly a valid species. 



Xylocopa tarsaia. Smith, 1854, var. lVeiinia?ii, v, nov., Bailundo, 

 Angola, Feb.-March, igo6, 4,700 feet. "Taken at various Malvaceae, 

 principally Gossypin7?i spp." Both sexes sent. The insect agrees with 

 Smith's brief description, except that it is a little longer, and the hind 

 tibia? are covered with red hair on the outside (Smith speaks of it as being 

 confined to the apex). The male, not hitherto described, has the clypeus 

 (except the lower margin), a broad supraclypeal mark, and lateral face- 

 marks filling in the space between eyes and clypeus, and ending 

 abruptly at level of antennae, all bright chrome-yellow. The labrum is 

 black, with a central tubercle. The hind femora are much swollen, and 

 have a large basal tooth, directed downwards, and apicad beneath ; the 

 hind trochanters have a large tooth directed backwards over the coxa. 

 The insect is nearly 18 mm. long. Vachal has suggested that X albifronSy 

 Lep., is the male oi tarsata, but it is quite distinct from the Angola male. 

 Since the Angola insect is not quite the same as true tarsata (from the 

 Cape of Good Hope) in the female, and the male is like nothing yet seen 

 in the original locality o{ tarsata, I propose to call Dr. Wellman's insect 

 X. tarsata Wellma?ii. 



November, 1906 



