26 BULLETIN 15, UNITED 8TATES NATIONAL MUSEUM, 



characters iu common, tlieir nearest allies being tlie Pr(»c'totryi)ini and 

 the Belytini. 



Prof. Westwood's contribution, mentioned above, is a most valnable 

 one, in which some new genera and many new species are described 

 and illustrated. It is of especial value for clearing up many obscure 

 points in the old, imperfectly described genera, for the very full diag- 

 noses of all the genera in the Bethylnnc known to him, and for the ad- 

 mirable illustrations of the mouth parts and other salient characters. 



Other European contributors to a knowhdge of the family are 

 Walker, Mayr, Euthe, Cameron, Marshall, Mik, Giard, etc. 



In America no systematic study of the family has been before at- 

 tempted. 



The American writers on the family, besides myself, are Say, Halde- 

 man, Cresson, Patton, Packard, Provan<'her, Howard, Riley, and 

 Forbes, and, excepting an admirable translation of Forster's tables by 

 Mr. L. O. Howard, the work thus far done has been purely descriptive, 

 confined to isolated descriptions of genera or species. These will be 

 found recorded iu their i)roper place in this work and require no special 

 mention here. 



Forster separated the Proctotrupii into eleven families. In the pres- 

 ent work, ten of these are recognized as subfamilies. His family 

 MymaroidfB { = Mymarid(c Haliday) I have not included, as I believe 

 with Haliday, who first proposed the name, that it is a group entirely 

 distinct from this family, more closely allied to the Clialcididic than to 

 the Proctotrypidic and entitled to rank with other families of the 

 Hymenoptera Terel)rantia. 



In the arrangement of the ten subfamilies or natural groups recog- 

 nized in this family I have attempted to show their true relationship, 

 and, although full diagnoses of them are given in their proper place iu 

 the body of the work, I believe the following table will be found all 

 that is necessary to facilitate their recognition: 



TABLE OF SUBFAMILIES. 



Wiiifj;l('ss forma G 



Winf;e(I. 



l'o.steiior wings not lobed 2 



Posterior wings IoIxhI; anterior wings with 1 or '2 basal cells. 



Head oblong; antenna' inserted at the clypens, 12- or 13-jointe(l in both sexes. 



Snbfam. I. Bethylinm:. 

 Head not oblbug. 



Head gloliose; front wings with a lanceolate stigma; anterior feet never 

 chelate; antenna- in 9 18-jointe<l, in ^ 10-jointcd. 



Subfain. II, E:\iBOi,KAriNM:. 

 Head transverse; front wings iisnal]_v witii a large or seinicirciilar stigma; 

 anterior feet often clielate; antenna- 10-jointcd in both sexes. 



Siibfam. Ill, Dhyinin.ic. 



2. Antenna; inserted on tliomiddli^ of the face, often on a frontal ))roininenee 4 



Antenna; inserted at the clyjiens. 



Abdomen acnte or niargiiKMl at the sides, sessile or subpetiolate 3 



