NOTES ON HYMENOPTERA. 



Formica conge rens. — The only British specimens thar 

 I had seen previous to its recent capture Avere two males and 

 two workers from Loch Rannoch. This species constructs 

 a heaped-up nest, similar to that of the w^oocl-ant, which 

 species it very closely resembles, although a very distinct 

 insect. The worker is the most difficult to separate from 

 that of F. mifa, but it is much more pilose, its head rather 

 broader and shorter ; the eyes pilose and smaller, and the 

 scale of the petiole more pointed above ; the vertex is more 

 darkly coloured, the black colouring being sharply marked, 

 not shading off into the rufous colour of the face, and the 

 thorax is always more or less black above. 



The male has the head and thorax covei-ed with black 

 pubescence ; the female has the abdomen opaque, and covered 

 with a fine cinereous pile ; the abdomen of F. rufa is highly 

 polished and shining.* 



Formica exsecta, Nyl.— Female. — Shining; rufo-tes- 

 taceous, the flagellum, the head above, the mesothorax and 

 the abdomen nigro-fuscous ; the base of the abdomen rufo- 

 testaceous, the wings hyaline ; the nervm-es flavo-testaceous ; 

 the occiput widely emarginate, and the scale of the petiole 

 deeply notched above. (Frontispiece, Fig. 2 ? .) 



Length 3^ lines. 



Worker. —Head, thorax and legs rufo-ferruginous, slightly 

 shining; the abdomen black; the flagellum and the vertex 

 fuscous ; the occiput widely emarginate ; the scale of the 

 petiole deeply notched. (Frontispiece, Fig. 25.) 



Length 2 — 2| lines. 



Male. — Black, shining and pilose, the legs pale rufo-tes- 

 taceous, the wings hyaline, the nervures rufo-fuscons, the 



* Formica covgerens is the species of ant in the nest of which Dr, 

 Nylander first found Tinea oclnaceeUa, near Uleaborg, in Finland. — 

 H. T. S. 



