78 



BRITISH ICHNEUMONS. 



5. saturatorius, Linn} 



Ic/iiieiiiiioii sa/ioaforiiis, Linn. F. S. 399 ; Gr. I. E. i. 237, excl. varr. 1,4; Ste. III. 

 1\I. vii. 154 ; Zctt. I. L. 361 ; Wesni. Nouv. Mem. Ac. J'rux. 1844, p. 66 ; Ilolmgr. 

 Ichn. Suec. i. 133 ; Thorns. Ann. Sue. Fr. 1S88, p. 106; Berth, lih. cit. 1895, p. 227, 

 (J 9 . J\/elanii~/iiieiti>ion satitraloritis, Thoms. O. E. xviii. 1957 Var. /. cariiifex, 

 Mitll. Prodr. n. 1799. 



9 . Head entirely dull black, a little narrowed posteriorly. Antennae 

 somewhat stout, filiform throughout ; sixth joint quadrate, the central 

 ones white above. Thorax silky, entirely black ; metathorax rugulosely 

 punctured, with complete upper areae, of which the areola is semi-oval 

 and apically emarginate. Scutellum, at least apically, white. Abdomen 

 oblong-oval, black ; second and third segments apically and often laterally 

 rufescent ; apical margin of sixth and whole of seventh white; central area 

 of post-petiole aciculate, the lateral ones coarsely punctate, its apical 

 angles obtusely rounded ; second .segment a little broader than long, 

 scabrously punctured at the base, the space between the normal gasiro- 

 caeli broader than centre of post petiole ; terebra sub-obtuse, shortly 

 exserted. Legs as in $ ; hind coxae with distinct scopulae. Stigma 

 yellowish-brown ; areolet narrowed above. 



S. Head black; mandibles very often rufescent before the apex. 

 Antennae black ; flagellum more or less ferrugineous beneath, its central 

 joints white above ; slender towards apex. Thorax black ; metathorax 

 rugosely punctured, with complete upper areae, of which the areola is 

 semi-oval or hexagonal and apically emarginate. Scutellum entirely or 

 apically whitish ; convex, with close puncturation. Abdomen sub-linear, 

 black ; segments two and three with apical margins rufescent ; seventh 

 entirely white ; genital valvulae white, sometimes black-margined. Legs 

 often entirely black, generally red ; coxae, trochanters for the most part, 

 apex of hind tibiae and hind tarsi, black ; hind coxae strongly punctured. 

 Length, 10-12 mm. 



The colour of the legs is extremely variable, ranging from mostly red to 

 nearly entirely black ; sometimes the hind trochanters of the $ are entirely 

 white, or white with the apex rufescent ; those of the i sometimes also 

 bear a white mark. In other respects it appears to be uncommonly 

 constant. 



The variety with black scutellum is /. camifex, Miill. 



1 Ichneumon fuscocastaneus, Grav. 



Mr. Edward Parfitt has recorded (Trans. Devon. Assoc. 1S81, p. 12) with no query nor hesitation 

 this species, saying simply :— " Of this I have only seen one ; it was presented to me by the late Mr. 

 Style, who purchased the Kaddon Collection. I presume, therefore, that this was taken in North 

 Devon." 



Gravenhqrst (I. E. i. 486) thus describes his single J' : — Antennae black above, with joints si.xteen 

 to twenty white ; ferrugineous beneath, with joints si.xteen to twenty paler and the two basal ones 

 black. Scutellum white. Abdomen with segments two to seven badious with the margins paler. 

 Anterior legs with the femora beneath, and the tibiae, except externally in the centre, red; their tarsi 

 fuscous. Wings infumate-hyaline ; stigma, costa and tegulae fuscous; radix ferrugineous; areolet 

 sub-irregularly triangular. Length, 5^ lines. He adds that its size and shape are similar to those of 

 /. sexlincatus (liarichnvumon biluniilatus), but that the legs are a little more slender. 



Wesmael examined this type, which was fonnd at Freiberg, in Germany, and states (Mdm. couron. 

 Ac. Belg. 1859, p. 61) that it was too mutilated to pronounce upon with certainty, though the face, 

 clypeus, &c. were intact, lie says it is a very closely punctate insect ; that the metathoracic areae 

 are strongly delineated, the areola quadrate and apically emarginate in the centre ; petiole elongate ; 

 post-petiole only slightly explanate, finely and somewhat irregularly aciculate centrally, punctate 

 laterally ; gastrocaeli inconspicuous and longitudinal ; legs normal and areolet sub-deltoid. He adds 

 that, if the seventh segment, which was vvanting, had been white, it would have been a jf of Mclanich- 

 miimon saturatorius similar to his var. 2 (Tentamcn, 66, v:ir. fcmortbus supra iiigris). 



Berthoumieu (Ann. Soc. Fr. 1895, p. 289) places this as an insufficiently described species, querying 

 its synonymy with /. sternocariis, Thoms., the ^ of which, however, has the face, clypeus and thoracic 

 callosities white and belongs, moreover, to the genus Cratichneumon. 



One wonders how Mr. Parfitt named his rarity ! 



