pepsinae: tribe pepsini 89 



date, and possibly the last two dates apparently represent precocious 

 spring arrivals rather than late stragglers. A female collected Apr. 

 10, 1902, at Mountain View, Calif., is labeled "from nest of ground 

 spider." 



This is a spring species common in the Transition and Canadian 

 faunas from southern British Columbia to southern California, and 

 loss common eastward into the Great Basin. 



Subgenus Priocnemis Schi0dte 



Priocnemis Sclu0dte, 1837, Kr0yer's Naturhistorisk Tidsskrift, vol. 1, p. 324. 



Type: Sphex exaltata Fabricius; designated by Westwood, 1840. 

 Prionocnemus Burmeister, 1872, StettinerEnt. Zeitung, vol. 33, p. 235 (emendation). 

 Prionocnemis Kirby, 1884, Zool. Rec, vol. 20 (Insecta), p. 131 (emendation). 

 Myrmecosalius Ashmead, ] 903, Proc. Ent. Soc. Washington, vol. 5, p. 307 (new 



synonymy). Type: Myrmecosalius nigriceps Ashmead; monobasic. 



In the groove between the mesoscutmn and scutellum slender 

 slightly elevated wedges extend mesad from each side and meet at 

 the middle, forming a narrow raised transverse line; third intercubital 

 vein approximately perpendicular so that the third cubital cell has 

 its outer angle approximately rectangular or obtuse; third cubital cell 

 about as long as the second cubital cell; cubital vein sometimes not 

 reaching the wing margin (pi. 2, figs, 22, 23, 24, 25); wings of the 

 females of some species reduced or vestigial ; hind tibia of male without 

 a trace of teeth on its outer edge, of female with a row of sharp, 

 obliquely chevron-shaped, decumbent teeth; hind tibia of female with 

 numerous hairs on and between its teeth, so that its outer edge does 

 not appear polished; propodeum without a sublateral longitudinal 

 impression. 



This subgenus is well represented in both North America and in 

 Eurasia, and there are a few species in the Neotropics.^^ In contrast to 

 the vernal subgenus Priocnemissus, adults of the subgenus Priocnemis 

 occm* in the summer. The extralimital species of which specimens 

 have been studied are: Pompilus 'parcus Cresson 1867 (Cuba); the 

 European Sphex exaltata Fabricius 1775, Pompilus minutus Linden 

 1827, Pompilus jemoralis Dahlbom 1829, Priocnemis parvulus Dahlbom 

 1845, Priocnemis obtusiventris Schi0dte 1837, Pompilus pusillu^ Schi0dte 

 1837, Calicurgus propinquus Lepeletier 1845, and Salius schenckii 

 Kohl 1884; an undetermined Chilean species; and two undeteiTnined 

 species from Mexico related to P. navajo. 



In 1951 (U. S. Dep. Agr., Agr. Monogr. No. 2, pp. 913-914) the 

 subgeneric name Priocnemis was erroneously applied to Priocnemissus 

 and true Priocnemis was called Myrmecosalius. The error originated 

 with specimens of a European species of Priocnemissus misdetermined 

 as Priocnemis exaltata, the genotype oi Priocnemis, which gave a false 

 idea of the proper application of this name. 



