44 PKOCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL, MUSEUM, vou 64. 



Bradley has recognized both Parabates and Parahatus as subgenera 

 of Paniscus, restricting the former to those species that have the 

 areolet incomplete. 



That the bases of Parabates and Opheltoideus, that is the specimens 

 on which their authors based these genera, really belong to the genus 

 as at present recognized I do not believe; for in his manuscript, so 

 frequently referred to by Schmiedeknecht and recently become the 

 property of the Bureau of Entomology, Foerster indicated as the type 

 of his genus an undescribed species the specific name of which indicates 

 that it was tricolored, a character quite foreign to the present genus; 

 and the fact that Ashmead called his genus Opheltoideus would seem 

 to indicate that it had greater similarity to Opheltes than to Paniscus. 

 But so far as their published descriptions go there is no way to 

 distinguish them from the present conception of Parabates, and the 

 only course left open is to treat them as they are here treated. 



This genus differs constantly from Paniscus only in lacking the 

 occipital carina, though its species usually have the ovipositor short, 

 and in Paniscus the nervulus is usually distinctly postf ureal. 



The species of Parabates divide naturally into two groups on the 

 length of the ovipositor, some having it very short while others have 

 it approaching in length that of Paniscus. In the North American 

 species at least this is accompanied by a difference in the compara- 

 tive length of the apical tarsal joint. The latter character can be 

 used for separating the males of the two groups. 



The North American species may be distinguished by the following 

 key: 



KEY TO THE NORTH AMERICAN SPECIES OF PARABATES. 



1 . Ovipositor very short, the sheath not extending above top of apical truncature of 



abdomen; apical joint of hind tarsus in female nearly or quite as long as third, 



in male longer than fourth 2. 



Ovipositor long, sheath linear; apical joint of hind tarsus in female much shorter 

 than third, in male not longer than fourth ,. 5. 



2. Lateral portions of apical carina represented at most by weak noncarinate eleva- 



tions- 3. 



Lateral portions of apical carina more or less distinct 4. 



3. First tergite without sculpture; 13 mm.-.. deceptor (Morley) Bradley. 



First tergite minutely shagreened; less than 10 mm smithi, new species. 



4. Postscutellum margined to apex and usually with a more or less distinct transverse 



sharp ridge or carina, abdomen slender, first tergite more than three times as 

 long as wide at apex, second nearly twice as long as wide at base. 



crlstatoides, new species. 



Postscutellum not margined to apex and without a transverse sharp ridge or carina; 



abdomen stout, first tergite less than three times as long as broad at apex, second 



not nearly twice as long as wide at base crassus, new species. 



5. Apical carina of propodeum strong laterally, represented in male by distinct trans- 



verse elevations; areolet large, distinct; nervellus broken at or below upper 



third exsertus, new species. 



Apical carina of propodeum wanting; areolet small, frequently incomplete; 

 nervellus broken at or above upper fourth. monticola Cushman. 



