1881.] NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA. 69 



XIV. Description of Species. 



FORMICARI.E. 



Family FORMICIDJE. 



Subfamily CAMPOXOTID^ (Forel). 



Genus MYRMECOCYSTUS, Wesmael, 



CataglypMs, Foerster, Vevli. d, Nat. Ver. d. Rheinl., 1850 , Mayr, Europ. 



Formic, 1861; Norton, Wheeler's Report, Vol. V, Zool., p. 734. 

 Monocumbus, Mayr, Verb. d. Zool.-bot. Ver. in Wien, 1855. 

 Myrmecocystus, Forel, Etudes Myrmecologiques, Bull. Soc. Vaud. de Sci. 



Nat. 



M. melliger, Llave. 



1. Var. mexicanus, Wesm. 



2. Var. hortus-deorum, McCook. 



Workers. — Three castes, major, minor and minim or dwarf. 

 Color, a uniform light yellow ; the body is covered quite tliickly, 

 the legs more thickl}', with short yellow hairs. The maxillary 

 palps are very long, six-jointed, third joint longest ; they are 

 covered, especially beneath, with long hairs, curved backward. 

 Lf\,bial palps four joints ; mandibles with nine teeth. The head is 

 quadrate, in the worker-major more rounded at the sides than 

 with the minor and dwarf; wider than the thorax. Clypeus 

 smooth, rounded, slightly flattened in front of the frontal area. 

 Frontal area smooth, shining, triangular, somewliat truncated 

 posteriorly. Ocelli sufficiently prominent ; a tuft of hairs on the 

 face beneath, directed forward. The body is of good length, 

 narrow and compressed beneath at the mesothorax ; metanotum 

 as high as, or slightly higher than the pronotum. The node 

 cordate, cleft at the tip, thickened at the base, set perpendicularly 

 upon the petiole. Anns strong!}' ciliated. Length, worker-major, 

 8^ mm. ; worker-minor, 7 mm, ; worker-minim, 5^ mm. 



Honey-bearers —A sedentary class or caste distinguished by 

 alxloraens distended into spherical form by expansion of the crop 

 filled with grape-sugar. The length (including abdomen) is 13 

 mm. (one-half inch) ; the proportions and description of the head 

 and body are those of the worker-major, of which it may be a 

 developed form. 



Female Virgin queen, total length, 13 mm., as follows : Man- 

 dibles, 1 m. ; head, 2 mm. ; body, 5 mm. ; abdomen, 5 mm. Width 



