ICHNEUMON-FLIES — GELINAE : MESOSTENINI 279 



margin; fii-st abdominal segment without a distinct basolateral tooth, 

 its spiracle far behind the middle, its postpetiole strongly expanded, 

 its ventrolateral carina sharp and complete, its dorsolateral and 

 median dorsal carinae blunt and indistinct, the latter reaching basal 

 part of postpetiole; second tergite mat, with fine dense punctures, 

 denser in females than in males, in females of some species the punc- 

 tures sparser on central part of tergite; tergite 7 not marked with 

 white; ovipositor sheath about 0.5 to 1.4 as long as front wing; ovi- 

 positor cylindric, weakly upcurved, its tip elongate, about 4.0 to 10.0 

 as long from nodus to apex as it is deep at nodus. 



Compsocryptus is an ilmerican genus, ranging from southwestern 

 Canada to southern Argentina. The majority of the species occur in 

 Mexico and southwestern United States. Fourteen species are in our 

 area, of which one occurs also in Cuba and several range southward 

 into Mexico. Besides these, we have studied Cryptus xanthostigma 

 Brulle 1846 (Mexico to northern South America), C. melanostigma 

 Brulle 1846 (southern South America), C. fuscqfasciatus Brulle 

 1846 (Peru), and several undescribed species from Mexico. The three 

 species named above are new combinations in Compsocryptus. Their 

 synonjrms (all new) are as follows: Cryptus opacorufus Taschenberg 

 1876, C. lateritus Taschenberg 1876, and Callicryptus pulchrifasciatus 

 Cameron 1909 = Compsocryptus melanostigma; Callicryptus magnificus 

 Viereck 1912 = Compsocryptus xanthostigma; and Callicryptus ornatipen- 

 nis Cameron 1902 = Compsocryptus juscojasciatus. Although they are 

 brightly colored, several of the species are difficult to distinguish, 

 especially in the male. 



The species of Compsocryptus are often very common in open, dry 

 or semidesert habitats, among short grass or herbage, or on almost bare 

 ground. There are no host records. 



Keys to the Nearctic species of Compsocryptus 



MALES 



1. Body entirely bluish black; wings blackish with a single transverse yellow 



band (fig. 357) 1. fasciipennis (Brulle) 



Body entirely fulvous or fulvous and black; wings either uniformly dark or 

 banded, if banded then with more than one yellow band 2 



2. Mandible strongly narrowed apically, ending in a single tooth (the upper 



tooth) but the lower tooth often present as a weak subapical lobe; head a 

 little wider across temples than across eyes . 8. buccatus (Cresson) 

 Mandible normal, moderately wide apicaUy and ending in two teeth of ap- 

 proximately equal size; head narrower across temples than across eyes . 3 



3. Flagellum entirely black 4 



Flagellum partly fulvous or light brown, at least on the under side basally . 5 



4. Front wing uniformly dark brown; temple just below its midheight fiat or 



weakly concave; third and fourth tergites not black at base. 



13. purpuripennis (Cresson) 



