66 BRITISH ICHNEUMONS. 



parts reddish, palpi fuscous, mandibles red, with a long upper and an 

 almost obsolete lower tooth ; face strongly punctate, frontal orbits in- 

 distinctly reddish, clypeus anteriorly slightly rounded. Antennae stout, 

 very slightly attenuate apically, joints transverse ; black, white-ringed. 

 Thorax entirely black, punctate ; metanotum finely rugulose, with five 

 faintly defined areae, of which the areola is elongate and a{)ically sinuate ; 

 spiracles elongate ; mesosternum not divided from the mesopleurae by 

 a sulcus. Abdomen elongate-ovate, red, glabrous and shining ; petiole 

 black ; gastrocaeli nearly obsolete ; paler below, with fold on segments two 

 to four ; terebra only slightly exserted. Legs thick, stout, similar to those 

 of Stylocryptus ; coxae and femora piceous or black, tibiae and tarsi more 

 or less reddish ; anterior femora at apex within, and anterior tibiae apically, 

 rufescent ; colour of hind tibiae variable ; hind coxae finely punctate, 

 distinctly scopuliferous. Wings with the areolet pentagonal, stigma and 

 nervures fulvous. Length, 8-10 mm. 



I do not personally know the $ of Holmgren's /. ruti/us, but the above 

 description of /. gasterator agrees so exactly therewith, bearing moreover 

 so strong a resemblance to a large $ Fhygadeiw?i, as to justify the former's 

 remark, " forsan ad familiam Cryptorum referri posset," that I should have 

 considered them synonymous were it not that the latter bears distinct 

 scopulae, thus leaving little doubt that it is referable to the present species. 

 There are two females in the British Museum, from which I independently 

 took the above description. Stephens says, " taken, not uncommonly, 

 near London," and Marshall adds that it has been bred from Depressaria 

 heradiella, in Devonshire.] 



[/. bifwtatus, Desv. {jiec Ste.), is a form of var. luridus. Head black ; 

 clypeus, face and external orbits flavous ; frontal orbits not pale. An- 

 tennae porrect, length of the body ; scape with a basal flavous mark 

 beneath. Thorax black, with margin of mesonotum narrowly flavous ; 

 metanotum scabrous, with complete upper areae, of which the areola is 

 transverse ; spiracles large. Apical half of scutellum flavous ; abdomen 

 glabrous and polished (as in Colpotrochia) ; post-petiole smooth, apex of 

 first to base of third segments flavous, second with two black dots on the 

 disc ; apex of third to seventh segments black. Anterior legs with femora 

 and tibiae externally piceous, apex of former and latter within stramineous ; 

 tarsi flavous ; hind legs piceous-black, tibiae with basal third flavous 

 beneath ; tarsi fuscous. Wings with stigma and costa fuscous ; tegulae 

 testaceous. Length, 8 mm. 



There is one specimen of Desvignes' species and one of his variety, 

 which has the second segment infuscate basally, the gastrocaeli striated 

 and the abdomen narrower than that of his type, in the British Museum.] 



This is probably a southern species ; I know of no records north of 

 Suffolk, and, since it is not recorded from Sweden, it probably does not 

 occur in Scotland. It is said to be abundant near London, in June and 

 July, the var. luridus being scarcer ; it has been taken early in August, at 

 Bickleigh, in Devon, Taunton and Bentley Woods ; in May, in the New 

 Forest, as well as at Guestling ; Parfitt says it occurs on flowers, near woods, 

 in Devon, in June. Li the British Museum is a typical male bred " from 

 Orthosia miniosn." It has been bred on the Continent, where it has a 

 wide distribution, from Ai^riopis aprilina and Nociua rustica ( = Agrotis 

 nigrica7is). The ? appears to be much rarer than the $ . 



