222 U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 209 



Genus Notocyphus Smith 



Notocyphus Smith, 1855. Catalogue of the hymenopterous insects in the . . . 

 British Museum, pt. 3, p. 172. Type: Notocyphus saevissimus Smith; 

 designated by Smith, 1873. 



This is a genus of the Neotropics, with a single polytypic species 

 invading the southwestern portion of the United States. In 1951 

 (U. S. Dep. Agr., Agr. Monogr. No. 2, p. 920) I considered this species 

 identical with the Mexican Notocyphus plagiaius Smith, but notes on 

 the type of plagiatus sent to me from the British Museum by 

 Mr. I. Yarrow indicate that it is probably distinct. 



Notocyphus dorsalis Cresson 



This species is divisible into three subspecies on color characters, 

 as indicated in the key below. 



Keys to the subspecies of Notocyphus dorsalis 



MALES 



1. Forewing entirely fuscous; range: Texas and northeastern and north-central 



Mexico Ic. dorsalis dorsalis Cresson 



Forewing fuscous on its apical third, its basal two-thirds more hyaline (pi. 1, 

 fig. 12) 2 



2. Range: Arizona and southern California 



lb. dorsalis arizonicus, new subspecies 

 Range: central Mexico to Guatemala . la. dorsalis restrictus, new subspecies 



FEMALES 



1. Side of pronotum black; frons orange in the middle, black next to the eyes; 



range: central Mexico to Guatemala . la. dorsalis restrictus, new subspecies 

 Side of pronotum partly orange-red; frons orange 2 



2. Usually less than the lower 0.4 of the side of the pronotum black; range: 



Arizona and southern California . lb. dorsalis arizonicus, new subspecies 

 Usually more than the lower 0.4 of the side of the pronotum black; range: 

 Texas and northeastern and north-central Mexico. 



Ic. dorsalis dorsalis Cresson 



la. Notocyphus dorsalis restrictus, new subspecies 



Male: Similar to the male of the subspecies arizonicus, but the 

 wings are a little more suffused with blackish. 



Female: Forewing 9.5 to 16 mm. long. Black. Mouth parts and 

 antenna more or less tinged with red-brown; head and thorax marked 

 with orange-red as follows: frons except laterally, upper half of 

 posterior orbit narrowly, and a broad median stripe on the top of the 

 thorax extending from the neck either on to the postnotum or to 

 the articulation of the abdomen. 



Type: 9, L. Thiel, Guatemala, 1925, S. Sebastian Retalhulen 

 (Washington). 



