332 FAMILY X. — NEIDID^E. 



This family was until recent years treated as a subfamily of 

 the Coreidse. By some authors it is known as Berytidse. About 

 60 species are known, nine of which occur in America north of 

 Mexico. Of these, four species, representing as many genera, 

 occur in our territory. The principal literature treating of them 

 is by: Say, 1824, 1832; Stal, 1874; Van Duzee, 1909, 1914; 

 Barber, 1911a; McAtee, 1919a. 



KEY TO EASTERN GENERA OF NEIDIDjE. 



a. Head elongate and with a porrect decurved spine between the bases 

 of antennae; elytra in great part coriaceous, the clavus and corium 

 strongly punctate; scutellum without a spine; osteolar tubercle 

 low, not spined. (Subfamily Neidinse). I. Neides, p. 332. 



aa. Head shorter, without a decurved spine; clavus and corium in great 

 part hyaline with but few punctures; scutellum with a distinct 

 spine. (Subfamily Metacanthinse) . 

 b. Front of pronotum without an erect spine each side; osteolar 



process long, more or less spine-like; tibia? not annulate. 



c. Front coxae separated by a distinct sulcate area; fourth joint of 



antennae longer than head ; osteolar process not curved or 



twisted, the canal ending on its outer side. II. Jalysus, p. 333. 



cc. Front coxae contiguous or nearly so; fourth antennal about as 



long as head ; osteolar process curved and twisted so that the 



canal ends on its upper side. III. Aknisus, p. 334. 



bb. Front of pronotum with an erect sharp spine each side; osteolar 



tubercle low, not at all spine-like; tibiae banded with black. 



IV. Protacanthus, p. 335. 



I. Neides Latreille, 1802, 246. 



Here belongs a single slender species having the vertex of 

 head produced into a strongly deflexed spine or process which, 

 however, scarcely reaches the middle of the declivent tylus; 

 pronotum without spines, the median carina confined to basal 

 portion ; elytra reaching tip of abdomen, the costal margin to 

 middle of sixth ventral ; front coxae well separated ; under side 

 of neither head nor prosternum with a sulcus, the position of 

 beak usually limited each side by a heavy line of whitish gran- 

 ules; meso- and metasterna with a deep groove bordered each 

 side by similar granules. Other characters as in generic key. 



269 (419). Neides muticus (Say), 1832, 13; I, 328. 



Dull straw-yellow; disk and side margins of hind lobe of pronotum 

 and base of corium sometimes with vague blackish markings; last joint of 

 antennae, tips of tibiae and tarsi and groove of meso- and metasterna 

 black or fuscous. First and third joints of antennae subequal in length, 

 second nearly one-half shorter. Pronotum densely and coarsely punc- 



