8'2 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



the tenth joint. Mesopleural furrow narrow, crenulated. Mandibles 

 with strong scattered punctures at the base. There is a narrow keel 

 on the basal half of the mesonotum. 



This is a Zethusculus, and belongs to Saussure's Section B. 

 (Syn. Am. Wasps, p. 29). It is one of the largest species, and 

 is probably related to Z. laevinodns, Smith, of which only the 

 female is known. Smith does not describe the form of the basal 

 two abdominal segments. The present species can hardly be its 

 male ; e. g., leevinodus has the metathorax opaque and immacu- 

 late, not smooth and shining, and with two large white maculae ; 

 in Smith's species, too, the abdomen is immaculate. 



Zethus fortistriolatus, sp. no v. 

 Black ; the under side of antennal scape, a narrow line round the 

 top of pronotum and the apices of the abdominal segments narrowly, 

 yellow, two marks on the apical slope of metanotum, narrow above, 

 becoming gradually widened from the middle towards the apex, the 

 inner side straight, the outer rounded, of a paler yellow colour; the 

 outer side of the four front tibiae testaceous. Wings hyaline, darker 

 in front, very iridescent, the stigma dark testaceous, the nervures black. 

 Pro-, meso-, and metanotum strongly, closely, slightly, obliquely 

 striated. Abdominal petiole sHghtly longer than the thorax, gradually 

 slightly narrowed from the middle to the base ; the apex flattish above. 

 The narrowed basal part of the second segment not much longer than 

 wide, the rest bell-shaped, becoming gradually roundly widened to- 

 wards the apex, which is distinctly narrower than the length of the 

 segment. ? . Total length, 16 mm. 



Nicaragua. 



Vertex strongly, irregularly striated, more or less strongly punc- 

 tured, the front closely, regularly, somewhat strongly striated, the 

 striae extending to the hind ocelli. Clypeus wider than long, the 

 middle of the apex (forming one-third of the whole) transverse, clearly 

 separated ; the punctuation is strong, the punctures longish, deep, 

 intermixed with strife ; there is a strong, short, longitudinal keel in 

 the centre of the top. Ocelli in a longish triangle, the hinder separated 

 from each other by a little less distance than they are from the eyes. 

 Temples wide, rounded, not much shorter than the top of the eyes. 

 Occiput transverse, sharply margined. Thorax more than twice longer 

 than wide, the base transverse, margined, its sides not projecting, 

 the apex broadly, roundly narrowed, the metanotum formed of two 

 rounded lobes. Pleurae strongly punctured, the punctures long, clearly 

 separated, those on the base of the propleurae almost forming striae. 

 Abdominal petiole irregularly punctured in the middle above, the apex 

 smooth, depressed towards the punctured part ; the sides strongly, 

 closely punctured, except at the base and apex ; the rest of the abdo- 

 men is almost smooth and densely covered with fuscous pubescence. 

 The scutellum is strongly, closely punctured, except on the sides, the 

 middle depressed ; the post-scutellum is obliquely depressed at the 

 base and apex, the apical slope being longer and narrowed to a blunt 

 rounded point. The pubescence on the head and thorax is longish, 



