No. 2317. FIVE TRIBES OF ICHNEUMONINAE—ROHWER. 449 



The species whose biology is known are parasitic on insects living 

 within wood or woody substance. 



Head subquadrate; eyes large, reaching to near the base of mandi- 

 bles, strongly converging below; mandibles rather broad, with an 

 inner tooth which is shorter than the outer; malar furrow wanting; 

 clypeus not depressed; posterior orbits broad and without a ridge; 

 antennae not annidated, long and slender; notauli well defined an- 

 teriorly but poorly defined posteriorly; prepectus almost wanting; 

 propodeum long, sloping, the spiracle nearl}^ round and placed at 

 about tlie middle; legs normal, long and slender; areolet present or 

 wanting, when present petiolate and with the outer vein usually in- 

 complete; nervellus reclivous, broken above the middle; abdomen 

 long and slender; hypopygidium and last tergite short; ovipositor of 

 variable length. 



The species of Poemenia resemble each other very closely and are 

 separated largely by unisexual characters and color. There are but 

 few specimens in any collection and when more material has been 

 studied it may be that an entirely different arrangement will be de- 

 sirable. The following key is almost a copy of a synopsis made from 

 the Philadelphia types by R. A. Cushman and is based on the females. 



TABLE TO THE SPECIES. 



1. Ovipositor nearly as long as the body; meso- and meta- pleura marked 



\VT.th red (usually) 2. 



Ovipositor much shorter than the body; pleura black 3. 



2. Mesoscutum and scute] lum red; spiracles of the first tergite prominent. 



thorarica (Cresson). 

 Mesoscutum black, scutellum rod ; spiracles of the first tergite not prominent. 



vancouverensis (Provaucher). 



3. Ovipositor nearly as long as the abdomen ; tergites narrow, the first hardly one-third 



as wide as long, the second nearly twice aa long as wide albipes (Cresson). 



Ovipositor but little more than one-half the length of the abdomen ; first tergite but 

 little more than twee as long as wide, second one-third longer than wide. 



americana (Cresson). 



POEMENIA THOKACICA (Cresson). 



EpMaltes thoracicus Cresson, Proc. Acad. Sci. St. Louis, 187S, p. 377. 



Type.— C&t. No. 1539, Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia. 



This species which is known only from the type material is very 

 close to Vancouver ensis (Provancher) and the latter may only be a 

 color form. The following notes were made from the type by 

 R. A. Cushman: 



Female.— "Ijengih 12 mm., ovipositor 10.5 mm. Black, with 

 clypeus, mandibles (except at base and tip), palpi, scape and pedicel 

 beneath, mesonotum, scutellum, meso- and meta-pleura red ; tegulae, 

 line m front and antero-ventral margin of pronotum yellowish; 

 front and middle legs yellowish, middle tarsi fuscous; hind legs some- 

 144382— 20— Proc.N.M.vol.57 29 



