INTRODUCTORY REMARKS. 75 



that they ought to form a separate subdivision, 

 l^. punctata was accounted by Linneus a Vespa, 

 but its tongue subemarginate, antenna anteriores, 

 and silver nasus give it a nearer affinity to those 

 Spheces, which Fabricius has arranged under his 

 genus Crahro. In the two families of Melitta, 

 above alluded to, the proboscis, the interior palpi 

 and auricles being excluded, is trifid(o), but not 

 inflected; in N. nificornis^ &c. it is inflected and 

 at first appears trifid, but if closely examined 

 under a good magnifier, it will be found, exclusive 

 of the interior palpi, to be quinquefid(/>). N. va- 

 riegata is furnished both with interior and exterior 

 lacinice, consequently in that the tongue is sep-r 

 temfid(^). With respect to the palpi they are 

 sexarticulate in Melitta, and I believe so in Nomada 

 ruficornis, ^c.{r), but in N. variegata they con- 

 sist of only a single joint (5). The interior palpi 

 are quadriarticulate in Melitta and N. riificornis, 

 &c. {t), but in N. variegata they have twojoints(M), 

 With respect to the second joint of these palpi, in 

 the form of which Fabricius makes the essence of 

 the genus to consist, it is neither elongate nor lin- ' 

 guaeform in any of these families of either genus, 

 the species of which I have had an opportunity of 



(0) Tab. 2. **. a. %. 1. Tab. 3. **. c. fig. 3. (/))Tab. 5, 



-*. b. fig.2, 3. (ry)Tab.6. **. b. fig. 2, 3. (r) Tab. 5, 



*. b. fig.4. rf. (5) Tab.6. **. b. fig.4. rf. (/)Tab.5. 

 *. b. fig. 3. I. {u) Tab. 6, x .*. b. fig. 3. h. 



examining, 



