

Memoirs 



OF THE 



American Entomological Society 



Number 4 

 the blattidae of panamai 



By Morgan Hebard 



During a brief visit made by the author to the Canal Zone, in 

 November, 1913, a few hours' collecting secured a small but inter- 

 esting series of Orthoptera. The Canal Zone, though not possess- 

 ing the altitudinal differentiation found in the Greater Antilles, 

 was at once seen to be much more productive than Jamaica, visited 

 during the same trip. This is partly due to the latter region being 

 further from the equator, but in much greater degree to its insular 

 character. In summing up, the Canal Zone might, indeed, be 

 said to be a compact and restricted area, excellent for a critical 

 faunistic study, the mingling in that region of forms from both 

 North and South America being a feature of jiarticular interest. 



When the raeagcrness of the literature bearing on Panamanian 

 Orthoptera was noted,'- efforts were at once concentrated on secur- 



1 The Dermaptera of Panama have already been studied and reported upon by Hebard 

 (Trans. Am. Ent. Soc, xliii, pp. 301-334, (1917)). Thirty species were recorded, all but 

 one of which were represented in the collections studied. 



2 In 1896, Grififini published two papers on Orthoptera from Panama (Boll. Mus. Zool. 

 Anat. comp. Univ. Torino, xi, no. 232, pp. i to 32, and xi, no. 236, pp. i to 12), in which 

 fifty-nine species were recorded, fifteen being described as new. The following year 

 Giglio-Tos pulilished an additional paper for this region (Boll. Mus. Zool. Anat. comp. 

 Univ. Torino, xii, no. 301, j)p. i to 9), recording thirty-seven more species, of which six 

 were new. 



In the Biologia Centrali-.Americana (1893 to 1909) all previous records of Orthoptera 

 from Panama were included, as well as the material assembled as a basis for that study. 

 In that paper a total of two hundred and twenty-five species were recorded, fifty of these 

 being described as new. 



In addition to these papers, the literature was found to contain only scattered records 

 and descrij)tions of Panamanian s[)ecies. 



MEM. .\M. ENT. SOC, 4. 



