Superfamily SPHECOIDEA 1583 



elegans (Smith). B. C, U. S. west of 100th Meridian. Ecology: Nests in borings in wood or 

 stems, and in abandoned borings of mining bees, each cell being separated by a 

 partition. Parasite: Sphaeropthalma ferrugiyiosa (D. T.), S. unkolor (Cr.); Epistenia 

 caeruleata Westw.; Amohia floridensis (Tns.). Prey: Oecanthus quadripunctatiis Beut., 

 0. c. califomiciis Sauss., 0. niveus (DeG.), 0. spp.; Dichopetala sp., ? Eremopedes sp.; all 

 nymphs. 

 Sphex elegans Smith, 1856. Cat. Hym. Brit. Mus., v. 4, p. 262. S. 



Taxonomy: Evans, 1964. Amer. Ent. Soc, Trans. 90: 238-239, figs. 13, 16 (larva). 



Biology: Ashmead, 1894. Psyche 7: 64 (prey). —Davidson, 1899. Ent. News 10: 179-180 (nest, 



prey, parasites). — Fernald, 1906. U. S. Natl. Mus., Proc. 31: 364 (nest, prey, cocoon). 



— Ainslie, 1924. Canad. Ent. 56: 269-270 (nest, prey). —Parker and Bohart, 1966. 



Pan-Pacific Ent. 42: 94 (nest, parasites). — Krombein, 1967. Trap-nesting wasps and bees, 



pp. 240-242, fig. 57 (nest, prey, life cycle). 

 mexicana (Saussure). U. S. east of Rockies, Ariz.; Mexico, Central America; introduced into 

 Hawaii, France. Ecology: Nests in borings in wood, hollow stems, pitcher plants and 

 glass tubes; nest usually contains a single large brood cell, but occasionally cells of 

 individual larvae are separated by flimsy partitions. Parasite: Amobia distorta (Wulp), 

 Senotahiia trilineata (Wulp), S. sp., Sarcophaga sp.; Megaselia aletiae (Comst.); 

 Eustalo7)iyia vittipes (Zett.). Prey: Oecanthus angustipennis Fitch, 0. quadripunctatiis 

 Beut., 0. argentmus Sauss., O.fultoni Wlkr., 0. nigricomis Wlkr., 0. niveus (DeG.), 0. 

 fasciatus Fitch, 0. spp., Gryllus assimilis F., Neoxabea biptmctata (DeG.); Orochans 

 saltator Uhl., Odontoxiphidium aptenim Morse, Conocephalus fasciatus DeG., C. spp., 

 Neoconocephaius sp., Orchelimuni sp., Rehnia spinosa Caud.; both adults and nymphs 

 are stored. Predator: Crematogaster sp. 



Sphex apicalis Harris, 1835. In Hitchcock, Rpt. Geol. Mineral. Bot. Zool. Mass., p. 588. 

 Nom. nud. 



Sphex apicalis Saussure, 1867. Reise d. Novara, Zool., v. 2, Hym., p. 38. Preocc. 



Sphex apicalis var. mexicana Saussure, 1867. Reise d. Novara, Zool., v. 2, Hym., p. 38. 9, 

 6. 



Taxonomy: Evans and Lin, 1956. Amer. Ent. Soc, Trans. 81: 143, figs. 23-28 (larva; misdet. 

 as harrisi Fern.). —Evans, 1964. Amer. Ent. Soc, Trans. 90: 239-240 (larva). 



Biology: Ashmead, 1895. U. S. Dept. Agr., Insect Life 7: 241 (prey). —Jones, 1904. Ent. News 

 15: 14-17, 2 pis. (nest, prey). — Engelhardt, 1929. Brooklyn Ent. Soc, Bui. 23: 269-271 (nest, 

 prey). — Rau, 1935. Brooklyn Ent. Soc, Bui. 30: 65-68, 1 pi. (nest, prey, life cycle). 

 — Suehiro, 1937. Hawaii. Ent. Soc, Proc. 9: 358 (nest, life cycle). —Rau, 1943. Ent. Soc. 

 Amer., Ann. 36: 648 (nest). — Swezey, 1947. Hawaii. Ent. Soc, Proc 13: 8 (nest). —Lin, 

 1962. Tex. Jour. Sci. 14: 429-430 (nest, prey, life cycle). — Medler, 1965. Ent. Soc. Amer., 

 Ann. 58: 137-142, 4 figs, (nest, prey, life cycle, cocoon, parasites). —Lin, 1966. Wasmann 

 Jour. Biol. 24: 239-247, 2 figs, (nest, prey, life cycle). —Krombein, 1967. Trap-nesting wasps 

 and bees, pp. 242-246, figs. 58, 59 (nest, prey, life cycle, predator). 



Tribe PRIONYXINI 



Genus PALMODES Kohl 



Palmodes Kohl, 1890. K. K. Naturhist. Hofmus., Ann. 5: 112. 



Type-species: Sphex occitanica Lepeletier and Serville, Desig. by Fernald, 1906. 



So far as known these are soUtary ground-nesting wasps except for carbo which has been re- 

 ported once as nesting gregariously. Most of our species prey upon Tettigoniidae except for 

 carbo which uses Gryllacrididae. 



Revision: Bohart and Menke, 1961. Ent. Soc. Wash., Proc. 63: 179-191, 17 figs. 

 californicus Bohart and Menke. Calif., Nev., Oreg., B. C. Prey: Immature adult, Platylyra 

 califomica Scud., Neduba morsei Caud. 

 Palmodes californicus Bohart and Menke, 1961. Ent. Soc. Wash., Proc. 63: 182, figs. 3, 13. 



6, 9. 



