80 U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 216 



3. Genus Calliephialtes 



Figure 286,b 



Calliephialtes Ashmead, 1900, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 23, p. 54. Type: 

 (Pimpla xanthothorax Ashmead) = grapholithae (Cresson) ; original desig- 

 nation. 



Front wing 4.0 to 12.5 mm. long; body elongate; face and clypeus 

 blackish to fulvous, ordinarily concolorous with the rest of head or 

 the clypeus somewhat paler; clypeus of moderate width, almost flat, 

 its apex impressed and with a deep median notch which makes it 

 bilobed; occipital carina complete, with a dip on the midline; meso- 

 scutum mostly or entirely polished, almost or quite bare or with 

 hairs anteriorly and marginally and the rest bare; submetapleural 

 carina varying from complete to present only as a compressed tuber- 

 cle anteriorly; propodeum rather short, its median longitudinal cari- 

 nae entirely absent or indicated by low rounded ridges; areolet 

 subtriangular, receiving second recurrent vein in front of its hind 

 corner; nervellus broken near, somewhat below, or somewhat above 

 the middle; first tergite short, with moderately strong lateral longi- 

 tudinal ridges, its median longitudinal carinae ascending from the 

 beginning point at basolateral corner at 70° to 90° from the horizon- 

 tal, then curved backward, in male extending some distance horizon- 

 tally, in female short and ending abruptly; basal grooves on second 

 tergite weak, almost transverse; third and fourth tergites with well 

 formed tubercles, their apical impunctate area extending about 0.2 

 their length; female subgenital plate sclerotized only laterally and 

 apically; ovipositor sheath about 1.2 to 1.4 as long as front wing; 

 ovipositor straight, cylindric, its tip as in figure 329, d. 



In the past, the genus Calliephialtes has had broad, indefinite lim- 

 its and included an unnatural assemblage of species. We are restrict- 

 ing it to a rather closely related group of species centered in the 

 Neotropic region, but with four species entering the Nearctic region. 

 The remaining Nearctic species that were formerly in Calliephialtes 

 are placed in Exeristes, Apistephialtes, and Dolichomitus. 



Rearing records for the genus show that the species characteristic- 

 ally attack caterpillars or other larvae in galls, nuts, nutlike fruits, 

 or cases. 



Key to the Nearctic species of Calliephialtes 



1. Mesoscutum anteriorly with numerous hairs; nervellus broken near middle; 



femora uniformly fulvous (figs. 321,d,e). Notandus group (p. 8) . . . 2 



Mesoscutum anteriorly practically hairless; nervellus broken below middle; 



femora white, dark brown behind, the hind femur dark brown also at base 



and apex (figs. 321,f,g). Grapholithae group (p. 84) 3 



2. Groove between propodeum and metapleurum containing a carina between 



the spiracle and apex of propodeum; white of upper edge of pronotum not 



