190 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. vol.45. 



"discal bristle" in this paper). What value this possesses I have been 

 unable to determine, but for the present it has served to make the 

 validity of at least one species (townsendi as opposed to Jiavopalliata) 

 To the 13 described species I add 14 others in the pages following, 

 making in all a total of 27 species, all of which, with the possible 

 exception of one or two, I believe are distinct. There are no well- 

 marked varieties. 



This paper will again emphasize the importance of either detailed 

 or comparative description and will treat of a group of great interest 

 from whatever standpoint it is viewed. Thus, from the systematic 

 standpoint an isolated group of species may be seen, which, begin- 

 ning at one end with deep black and at the other with yellow, con- 

 verge toward each other, so much so as to cause confusion at the 

 middle or therabouts. A' genus is seen, the only representative of 

 its subfamily, which has such a peculiar form and bears such peculiar 

 characters that it has been a matter of dispute where to place it in 

 the great complex of which it forms a part, though I consider its 

 present position as nearly right as possible. For ecology, the host 

 relations of these parasites should form a study of great value, since 

 they seem to be entirely dependent for their existence upon one or 

 two specialized groups of insects. The study of specific variation, it 

 seems to me, could be made in this group with much profit and 

 success; thus, the coloration is variable but of more interest is the 

 fact that comparatively very slight structural variation becomes of 

 specific value here, for instance, as mentioned about the isolated 

 bristle arising from the fore wing. 



From the systematic standpoint, this paper has significance (1) 

 as showing the relative paucity of our knowledge of the existing 

 specific forms in a previously explored insect group, (2) and as 

 showing the inadequacy for recognition of specific forms of brief, 

 noncomparative descriptions. 



For a systematic monograph has several elementary functions: 

 (1) To record every definite variety (species, varieties, and so on of 

 systematic language) known to exist in nature; (2) to make the 

 identification of each of these possible and to determine their proper 

 names. Beyond these, other considerations become of secondary 

 importance. 



HISTORY OF THE SIGNIPHORINiE. 



FamUy ENCYRTID^. 



SuTafaiTiily SIGJ-TsTIPHORIN^^ze:. 



Signiphorinse Howard, 1894, p. 234.— Ashmead, 1899, pp. 236, 248; 1900, p. 324: 



1904, pp. 286-287, 311, 497. 

 Signiphorini ScSmiedeknecht, 1909, pp. 191, 261. 



This subfamily was established 18 years ago by Howard (1894) 

 in the following manner. It was in a paper describing Signiphora 



