C(ELIOXYS. MBLECTA. 515 



Hah. Luckuow ; Barrackpore ; Burma ; Tenasserim ; Cevlon. 

 $ . Length 12 ; exp. 22 mm. S . Length 11 ; exp. 22 mm. 



910. Coelioxys argentifrons, Smith, Tram. Ent. Soc. 1875, p. 48, d' ; 

 Dull. Tort: Cat. x, p. 482. 



6 . Head, thorax, and abdomen shining, finely punctured, the 

 punctures on the head and thorax very dense and somewhat larger 

 than on the abdomen, the punctures most sparse in the middle of 

 the segments ot" the latter ; clypeus broad, very slightly convex, its 

 anterior margin transverse ; scutellum narrowly rounded, almost 

 subangular posteriorly, the lateral teeth broad and blunt ; abdo- 

 men with segments 2-5 laterally slightly excavated, the hollows 

 transverse and pubescent ; the margins of segments 1-5 narrowly 

 smooth, polished, and recurved, the 6th segment produced into 

 two broad teeth with a deep hollow between, the teeth at apex 

 emarginate, the 5th segment with a small lateral tooth beneath. 

 Black; the clypeus, face, cheeks, sides of the thorax, sides and 

 apex of the median segment, apical margins and lateral basal 

 hollows of the abdominal segments with snow-white pubescence ; 

 wings light fuscous, becoming clear hyaline at base. 



Huh. Barrackpore, Bengal. c^* • Length 14 ; e.vp. 25 mm. 

 $ unknown. 



Genus MELECTA. 



Melecta, Latr. Hist. Nat. Ins. xiv, p. 48 (1805). 

 Crocisa, pt., Jurine, Hym. p. 239 (1807). 

 Symmorpha, Kluc/, Illig. Mag., Lis. vi, p. 227 (1807). 



Type, Melecta luctuosa, Scop. 

 Range. Both hemispheres. 



Head transverse, narrower than the thorax ; ocelli in a curve on 



the vertex ; antennae longish, filiform, basal 



joint of flagellum clavate; labial palpi 4-jointed, 



basal joint thrice the length of the 2nd, apical 



two minute; maxillary palpi 5-jointed. Thorax 



subglobose, the scutellum bidentate ; fore wing 



with the marginal cell narrow, rounded both 



at base and apex ; three cubital cells, the 1st 



the largest, the 2nd very strongly contracted 



Fig. 112.— Melecta towards the radial, receiving the 1st recurrent 



hbnalayana, $ . f . nervure past the middle, the 2nd transverse 



cubital nervure angled and bent inwards ; the 



3rd cubital cell arched outwards, receiving the 2nd recurrent 



nervure about the middle ; legs moderately long, pubescent, the 



pubescence dense and short. Abdomen conical at apex, truncate 



at base. 



So far as I know, no species of Melecta has hitherto been recorded 

 from India, and nothing is known of the habits of the one species 

 here described ; the European M. luciiwsa is known to be parasitic 

 on Anthophora. 



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