606 FAMILY XXI. — N^EOGEID^]. 



Fewer than 20 species are known from all parts of the world. 

 They live in or near still or stagnant waters and their habits 

 have been well set forth by Drake (1917, 102) as follows: 



"Their favorite haunts are secluded coves of lakes, ponds, and 

 swampy pools, where the water is shallow and where there is an abun- 

 dant growth of aquatic plants. I have rarely seen them on the damp 

 ground near the water's edge. They are aquatic pedestrians, capable 

 of standing, walking and running upon the surface of the water, their 

 entire body being covered with a velvety pile which effectively sheds the 

 water and prevents them from becoming wet. They can move forward 

 or backward, but the usual mode of progression is a steady forward 

 movement, all three pairs of legs being used in locomotion. I have often 

 found them on Lemna, Nymphsea, and various other aquatic plants. It 

 is not uncommon to find them on the under side of floating leaves, or 

 even among the roots of floating water plants. When submerged in the 

 water, the insects are surrounded by a film of air which enables them 

 to stay beneath the surface film for a considerable period of time. In 

 an aquarium I have often watched them standing or walking for a 

 period of a half hour or a little longer on pieces of cork or 

 plants that were beneath the water. Occasionally, they would walk 

 down the sides of the glass aquarium beneath the surface of the water 

 and when the water was shallow, they would walk across the bottom 

 and come up on the opposite side. Nothing seems to be known of their 

 food habits and life history." 



Our seven known eastern species are divided among two 

 genera, the principal literature pertaining to them being by 

 Uhler, 1894a, Champion, 1898; Drake, 1917; Bueno, 1912c, 

 1923, and Hungerford, 1920. 



KEY TO EASTERN GEXERA OF X.EOGEIP.Tv 



a. Antenna? 5-jointed (not counting the minute joint at base of third), 



joints 3 — 5 very slender (fig. 6, j) . I. N^eogeus, p. 606. 



aa. Antenna? 4-jointed, the joints subequal in thickness, or the fourth 



stouter. II. Merragata, p. 610. 



I. N^eogeus Laporte, 1832, 34. 



Very small, oblong stout bodied species possessing the char- 

 acters set forth under the family heading and generic key. 

 About a dozen species have been described, four of which occur 

 in the eastern states. They have been mostly described or 

 recorded under the generic name Hebrus Curtis (1833), but La- 

 porte's name has priority by a year. As there has been much 

 confusion of our eastern species I secured paratypes of two 

 of Uhler's species from the British Museum and from them 

 and others on hand drew up the following key : 



