70 THE UNIVERSITY SCIENCE BULLETIN. 



the basal and a little shorter than the third. Pronotum transverse, 

 closely punctate, short, the sides very oblique, broadly reflexed; the an- 

 terior margin truncate, M^ith a slender collum extending along its entire 

 length, the anterior anglesi rectangular; the posterior margin concavely 

 a little sinuated, with the outer angles moderately lobed, truncated at the 

 end, and a little folded, and bounded on the inner side of the fold by an 

 impressed short line; the anterior lobe moderately convex, variegated 

 with black, transversely impressed, and with a few coarse punctures in the 

 impression ; the impressed line environing the lobe sharply defined, brown, 

 and set with small punctures. Presternum whitish, a little inscribed with 

 piceous, finely sericeous pubescent; mesopleuras black, sericeous pubescent, 

 more or less bounded and invaded with tawny; metapleurae tawny, seri- 

 ceous pubescent. Coxse a little piceous at or near the base; legs tawny; 

 the femora more or less dotted with brown, pubescent; the apex and 

 spines of the tibi« and the ends of the tarsal joints dark piceous; nails 

 pale piceous. Scutellum finely, closely punctate, yellow, blackish on the 

 base and disk, finely sericeous pubescent. Corium pale, dull clay-yellow, 

 remotely sericeous pubescent, paler at base and lip, a little more coarsely 

 punctate; the costal margin broadly arcuated at base, the expansion there 

 wide and thin; costal area broad, pale, infuscated on the inner side, 

 sutures, and nervures; centers of a few of the outer, discal, and apical 

 areoles whitish, with dusky nervules; the clavus dusky; membrane pale, 

 dull testaceous, with strong, slightly curved, piceous nervules, inclosing 

 five long areoles. Venter pale, obsoletely punctate, closely invested with 

 pale, minute, prostrate pubescence. 



"A varity of the male is more dusky on the hemelytra, has the disk of 

 the venter (excepting the edges of the segments) piceous, and irregular 

 series of brown dots on the sides. The male genital segment is long, semi- 

 oval, densely set with long hairs. 



"Length to tip of venter, 4-5 mm. ; to tip of membrane, 5-6 mm. Width 

 of base of pronotum, l%-2 mm. 



"This species is exceedingly abundant on the discolored sandy and 

 marshy brown spots of the tide-water districts of eastern Massachusetts 

 and Maryland. Some of these tracts of country are no longer within the 

 reach of the tide, although they were at a former period; but still these 

 insects remain there, although apparently in diminished numbers. The 

 salt mud seems to afi'ord them the conditions best suited to their develop- 

 ment, and on such spots they may be found in all stages of development 

 and in unnumbered multitudes. As far as I was able to collect them 

 (which was difficult because of their activity and close resemblance to the 

 soil), I found the males to be in the proportion of two to fifteen females. 

 Yet I do not think that this would be the full proportion if we were able to 

 collect them exhaustively over a locality in which they occurred of aver- 

 age abundance." 



"Specimens were collected by me at Newtonville, Chelsea, Lynn, and 

 Braintree, Mass., in July; also on Sinepuxent Beach, Maryland, in July 

 and August. 



"Specimens have also been found in Cuba, by Prof. Felipe Poey, which 

 were smaller than the average of those from the United States. 



"An individual from San Diego, Cal., has the scutellum black, except- 

 ing only some small marks of yellow on the sides, and the punctures of 

 the scutellum are coarser than those of the pronotum. Its length is only 

 4% mm. and the width of the pronotum is 1% mm." — JJhler 



Parshley adds Maine and Rhode Island. 



Saldula opacula Zett. 1840. 



Zetterstedt, Ins. Lapp., Column 268, 1840. 



"Elongate oval, black, sides of the thorax widely impressed. Scutellum 

 and clavus with golden hairs, the latter with an obscurely pale spot near 

 the apex. Corium with a few obscure pale markings; lateral margin, 



