No.r206. ICHNEUMON FLIES— ASIIMEA D. 103 



21. First abscissa of the radius quite straight, forming witii the second a sharp 

 angle; transverse median nervure in hind wings broken, with a distinct 



process (811) Entc/ccfivi, Funster. 



First abscissa of the radius distinctly curved and not forming a sharp angle with 

 the second; transverse' median nervure in hind wings l)roken, trilhout a 

 process. 



Hind femora and til)ia;' thickened; external median area prominently 

 toothed (812) Ovuthochorixls Forster. 



Hind femora and til)ia' vol thickened; external median area not promi- 

 nently toothed (813) Proclitus Forster. 



Family XXVII. ALYSIID^E. 



1811. Ichneumon ides adscill Nees (part) Der Ges. naturf. Fr. /. Berl. Mag., V, j). 3. 



1815. ^l^;i!/s'af/rt Leach, Edinb. Encyclop., IX, p. 143. 



1835. Exodonies Wesmaei,, Nouv. Mem. Acad. Sci. Brux., IX, p. 11. 



1838. Braconidse, Family 4 (part), Haliday, Ent. Mag., V, p. 4. 



1839. Ichneumonidn', Family 6 (part), Haliday, Hym. Synop., p. ii. 



1887. Exodontes, Div. V, Cressox, Syn. Hym. North America, j). 62. 



1888. Exodontes Marshall, Species Hym. des Braconides, I, p. 67. 



1900. Alymda:, Family LXXVII, Ashmead, Smith's Insects of New Jersey, p. 

 585. 



This famil\' is composed of a great number of minute, or at least 

 small -sized, ichneumon flies that attack almost exclusively the larvae 

 of Dipterous insects. 



It has been treated by most authorities as a group, or two groups, 

 in the family Braconida!^ with which the majority of the species agree 

 in their venational characters — the front wings being without a costal 

 cell and having but a single recurrent nervure, the first. 



In 181)4 I, however, described my genus LysJognatJai^ an insect agree- 

 ing closely with the Ali/siince in its cephalic, mandibular, and other 

 characters, l)ut differing from all known genera in that group by hav- 

 ing ttro distinct recurrent nervures. This discover}' upset the division 

 between the Ichneumonidm and the Braconidm^ based upon the num- 

 ber of the recurrent nervures, and I am therefore of the opinion that the 

 AhjHiuup.^ Dacnusmce^ and the LysiognatJthue should be treated as a 

 distinct family from the Ichnetmionidm and the Braconldm^ since the 

 family is readily distinguished from both by the peculiar attachment 

 of the mandibles. 



The three subfamilies noted may be separated as follows: 



TABLE OF SUBFAMILIES. 



Front wings with only one recurrent nervuue 2 



Front wings with two recurrent nervures Subfamily I. LYsiociNATHiN.E. 



2. Front wings with ihvee cubital cells, or if with two oni\- they//'.s< transverse cubi- 

 tus is wanting; ai)terous forms occasionally Subfanuiy J I. alysiin.e. 



Front wings with two cubital cells, the second transverse cubitus wanting, the 

 first transverse cubitus always present; no apterous forms. 



Subfamily III. uAcNusiNiE. 



