210 [September, 



once given for some part of the so-called " species," and are not allowed 

 to discard it altogether. Suppose even that this rubripes is to us a 

 mere mystery, that we can see no reason why any at all of the forms 

 known to us should or should not be supposed to have been included 

 in it, still we ai-e not allowed to drop the name ; somebody before us is 

 almost sure to have applied it to some form which is known to us, and 

 unless we can absolutely prove that he was mistaken, we are apparently 

 bound to follow him — or, if we can prove this, which is seldom likely 

 to be the case, still there must remain some species called rubripes, L., 

 and it is for us to decide, as best we can, what form shall bear that 

 name, and be supposed to be the rubripes of Linne. 



SYNOPSIS OF BEITISH TENTHREDOPSIS, $ $ . 



1. Apical margin of clypeus deeply excised in the middle. Ground colour 



black, but -with the intermediate segments of the abdomen widely red 

 laterally and copious pictura albida on head and thorax. Tegulse and 

 edges of pronotum white. Hind-wings as in all our $ $ of this genus 

 {vide infra) except that of coquebertii excisa, Th. 



— Apical margin of clypeus sub-truncate, or very gently sinuated inwards 



throughout, with no definite excision 2. 



2. Wings with " continuous external neuration," vide Ent. Mo. Mag., March, 



1903, p. 53 3. 



— "Wings without " continuous external neuration." Body, except its pic- 



tura albida, may be entirely black, but more often with the abdomen 

 almost entirely red (beyond the propodeum), Tegulse and edge of 

 pronotum dusk}', never white or yellow coquebertii, Kl. 



3. Black, or red and black (not yellow) forms. In all British specimens ex- 



amined by me, the thorax beneath (breast, pleurae, &c.) is entirely 

 black 5. 



— The general coloration is yellowish, marked above more or less (but only in 



certain limited areas) with black. The breast, pleura?, &c, are 

 normally (? always) pale and immaculate. Larger insects than those 

 of our other sections ; may be as much as 12 mm. long ! 4. 



4. The apex of the last visible ventral-plate is distinctly sinuated inwards 



(Konow says, " semicirculariter," but this must not be taken too 

 literally, Enslin's " viertelkreisformig " is nearer to the truth !) The 

 last visible dorsal segment has a well-marked D -shaped impression 

 before its apex, and this impression (at its apex only) is imperfectly 

 chitinized (membranaceous). The general ground-colour is orange, 

 with copious pictura of a paler tint on head, thorax, and propodeum. 

 A patch of black occupies the whole ocellar region and extends beyond 

 it, and there are other black markings (more or less variable) on the 

 thorax and abdomen above, some of them, mere streaks, hardly to be 



