140 XT. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 2 09 



Male: Unknown. 



Female: Fulvous. Apical third to two-thirds of second abdominal 

 segment and the third and following segments infuscate. 



Specimens: 2 9 (lectotype and paratype) South Miami, Fla., Mar. 

 20 and May 16, S. Graenicher (Cambridge). 9., Frierson, La., 

 Apr. 21, 1909, E. S. G. Titus (Washington). 



Tribe Macromerini 



Cubital vein of forewing not quite reaching wing margin (pi. 1, 

 fig. 11); hind tibia most frequently smooth, though in some females 

 with an external dorsal serration; first abdominal tergite rather slender, 

 somewhat constricted subbasally so that at least in females its sides 

 are subbasally concave when seen from above ; suture or fold separating 

 epipleuron of first abdominal segment from the tergite usually absent ; 

 last tergite of male usually with a large whitish spot; parapenial lobe 

 of male genitalia apically decurved to form a hook. 



This tribe includes many small, slender species and a few middle 

 sized ones. The Old World genus Macromeris contains large, rather 

 robust species. Many of them, including all species of the Nearctic 

 genera Auplopus and Phanagenia, make mud cells for nests. The 

 nesting habits of the other two Nearctic genera {Ageniella and Priocne- 

 mella) are practically unknown. A curious propensity of this group 

 of wasps is to cut off all or most of the legs of the prey before trans- 

 porting it to the nest. 



Key to the Nearctic genera of Macromerini 



1. First tergite with a fine lateral crease that separates off the epipleuron; propo- 



deum without long erect hairs; mentum of female with a brush of about 20 

 long stout bristles which are not divided into right and left groups; under- 

 side of last tarsal segment of female with preapical bristles. 



Phanagenia (p. 141) 



First tergite without a lateral crease; propodeum with or without long erect 



hairs; mentum of female with either slender hairs, or with stout bristles that 



are divided basally into right and left groups 2 



2. Propodeum with long erect hairs; female with a bare pygidial area and with 



some strong bristles arising from the mentum; male subgenital plate rather 



large, with a high, sharp, longitudinal ridge Auplopus (p. 143) 



Propodeum usually without long erect hairs; female without a pygidial area 

 and with only slender hairs arising from the mentum; male subgenital plate 

 smaller, or its longitudinal ridge (when present) lower and more blunt . . 3 



3. Apex of front tibia on the hind side without a conspicuously larger or re- 



curved spinelike bristle; clypeus without a troughlike impression paralleling 



its lateroapical margin Ageniella (p. 167) 



Apex of front tibia on the hind side surm.ounted by a conspicuously larger and 

 recurved spinelike bristle (best developed in the female); cl}'peus with a 

 troughlike impression paralleling its lateroapical margin. 



Priocnemella (p. 219) 



