T. D. A. COCKEREJ>L. 91 



orange fulvous, and the abdominal hair hands fulvous. Characters 

 of spissa are the closely punctured abdomen, facial quadrangle 

 square, anterior edge of clypeus reddish, and tegulse red. 



(2.) Melissodes herricki Ckll. is to be compared with the larger 

 species of this group. It is large, covered with fulvous tomentuni 

 (white on cheeks, pleura and venter). Superficially it looks just 

 like M. townsendi. 



(3.) Tetralonia stretchii (Cress.) is also to be compared with the 

 larger species. The type shows the following characters : length 

 about 13 i mm. ; flagellum thick, black, with only a faint reddish 

 tint at tip; abdomen with dense white tonientum at extreme bases 

 of segments 3 and 4 ; hair at sides of apical plate bright shining 

 orange fulvous; mesothorax dull, only faintly shining on middle of 

 disc ; hair of thorax above long and erect, greyish white; clypeus 

 densely punctured all over, with no keel or median line ; no dark 

 hair on fifth abd. s. ; scopa on outer side of hind legs white, with a 

 faint creamy tint. I have not seen the palpi of this species, but I 

 assume it to be a Tetralonia because of its manifest aflinity with T. 

 idiotes Ckll., which, however, is larger (about 15 mm. long), and 

 has the fifth abd. segment covered with reddish hair, and having a 

 suffused median dark brown band. J am disposed to believe that 

 idiotes will prove to be only a race of stretchii. 



(4.) Tetralonia cressoniana Ckll., from Texas, may be compared 

 with the smaller species of this group. It has the mesothorax 

 densely pubescent ; abdomen with four white bands; apical hair of 

 abdomen very dark chocolate, almost black, except at sides of seg- 

 ment 5, where it is white. 



(5.) Melissodes suavis Cress., according to the description, falls 

 in this group, among the smaller species. Cresson says that the 

 abdomen appears white, with four narrow shining black bands, these 

 bauds being the apical margins of the segments. Apex with ful 

 vous pubescence. 



(6.) M. pygmcea Cress., by the description, falls in this group ; it 

 is a small species, about 7k mm. long. Flagellum " brown-testace 

 ous " beneath ; abdomen with segments 1 and 2 smooth and polished, 

 the rest at base with a very dense brown sericeous pubescence, and 

 at apex with broad band of very short, dense, whitish pubescence. 



TRANS. AM. ENT. SOC. XXXII. JANUARY, 1906. 



