BRITISH ICHNEUMONS. 27I 



$ . Head stout, broader than thorax, transversely rectangular ; frons 

 closely punctate ; mandibles and pal[)i pale. Antennae elongate, fuscous ; 

 centrally white-banded ; flagellum towards the base somewhat attenuate, 

 with the joints there elongate and red. Thorax black ; metanotuni 

 rugosely punctate with the areae distinct; areola long and narrow, parallel- 

 sided ; incomplete apically and, at least sometimes, carinate longitudinally 

 in the centre. Abdomen oblong-linear with segments two to four entirely 

 or mainly fulvous ; post-petiole glabrous and shining ; second segment 

 elongate, sub-aciculate, strongly contracted basally, with the thyridii at its 

 basal third. Legs slender, fulvous ; hind tibiae at base and apex, apex of 

 tarsi, and sometimes their co.xae and apices of femora, black. Tegulae 

 fulvous, radix white, stigma piceous. The 6 is black with thyridii, incisures 

 and legs, except apex of hind femora and the apex of their tibiae, red. 

 Length, 5-6 mm. 



The caudate production of the thorax beyond the coxal insertion in 

 both sexes, the linear post-annellus of the ? , and the short petiole, shining 

 and hardly punctate irons, black mouth and antennae, with the slightly 

 dilated scape of the (?, will distinguish this species, which bears the facies 

 of a Diadromiis. Bridgman referred his P. formosus to this genus, but he 

 has placed his type specimen under the present species in his collection. 



Bridgman took the female of his P. formosus^ at Earlham, near Norwich, 

 in September. He does not, in his Norfolk Ichneumon list, reiterate the 

 record of A. longulus, taken at Norwich, in June, recorded by him loc. cit. 

 supra. Marquand records P. formosus from the Land's End district ; and 

 Rev. T. A. Marshall has named an example, subsequently damaged, which 

 I took at Ipswich, early in September, as A. longulus. It is widely dis- 

 tributed on the Continent, but has not been bred, 



2. placidus, Wes)n. 



Aethecerus placidus, Wesm. Nouv. Mem. Ac. Brux. 1844, p. 206; Brisch. Schr. Nat. 

 Ges. Danz. 1878, n. 6, p. 59 ; Berth. Ann. Soc. Fr. 1896, p. 365, ? ; Thoms. O. E, xv. 

 1641, (5 ?. 



9 . Head black, somewhat narrowed behind the eyes ; frons a little 

 nitidulous, finely and sparsely punctate ; apex of clypeus with a central 

 sub-obsolete foveola ; mandibles and palpi pale. Thorax black. Abdo- 

 men black, with the second and third segments, most of fourth, and apices 

 of the following and of the first, red. Legs red, with apices of hind femora 

 and tibiae, often the hind coxae and base of their tibiae, infuscate ; hind 

 coxae with a minute, acute, oblique granule. Tegulae red, radix white, 

 stigma infuscate. The $ appears to differ only in having the coxae, the 

 hind trochanters and most of the quadrate central segments, black ; the 

 genal costa inflexed, and the cheeks apically excavate, but with the genal 

 costa not strongly reflexed. Length, 5-6 mm. 



It may be known from A. niiidus by the posteriorly sub-constricted 

 head, shorter vertex, and more sparsely punctate frons ; the acute granule 

 of the hind coxae will further distinguish the female. 



This species has not before been noted in Britain, and is doubtless 

 much mixed with the following. I was so fortunate as to capture a male 

 at Burgh Castle, near Lowestoft, on 9th August, 1898. Its continental 

 range appears to be somewhat restricted. 



