226 Journal New York Entomological Society, [^'oi. xxiv, 



same ; wings a little darker, a faint violet and blue color occurring 

 throughout both anterior and posterior wings, the violet predominat- 

 ing. Male unknown. Length 20-22 mm. 



Habitat. — California. 

 Xylocopa brasilianorum varipuncta (Patt,). 



This subspecies is more closely related to the typical brasilianorum 

 than to either of the other two described above. It differs from the 

 other three forms as follows : Female with scutellum not truncate but 

 rounded as in the typical brasilianorum; ventral abdominal carina not 

 exceedingly prominent but as in brasilianorum; wings fuliginous, not 

 as dark as in brasilianorum, brassy and copper colored with violet 

 reflections. Male not known. Length 26-28 mm. 



Distribution. — Arizona, Southern California. 



Xylocopa brasilianorum is a species of very wide range extending 

 from South America north into the southern United States. It is 

 also a very variable species, as Maidl first noted in his work on the 

 Xylocopa collection of the museum of Vienna in 1912. I agree with 

 Maidl in all his conclusions in regard to variation within this species. 

 There is no doubt that many forms have been described as new spe- 

 cies which are merely varieties or even synonyms of brasilianorum. 

 The variable characters of these forms upon which various authors 

 have established different species are color of wings mainly, forma- 

 tion of the scutellum, and size. The above variable characters occur 

 in the female, while in the male there seems to be but little variation, 

 if any. I have studied the genitalia of a large series of insects which 

 have been described as different species and, like Maidl, have found 

 very little difference among them. 



In this paper I include only those forms which are found in or 

 reported from the United States; that is, the subspecies &rfl^?7/a»o;'i<m, 

 varipuncta, ccncipcnnis, and cubcccola. Varipuncta (Patt.) is without 

 a doubt the same as mordax (Smith). In the U. S. Nat. Mus. at 

 Washington is one of the two original female specimens of varipuncta 

 with Riley's labels on it. One of the two specimens was sent to 

 Patton and he described it as a new species, Xylocopa varipuncta. 

 It is likely that Patton did not see the specimen in the U. S. Nat, 

 Mus., and it is probable that the one from which he made his descrip- 

 tion is lost. 



A representative form of the species brasilianorum may be found 



