1913] North American Species of Megastigmus. 159 



brownish yellow, dark brown in front. Mesopleurse brown. Post- 

 scutellum yellow in the middle, brown on the sides; scutellum brown in 

 front of the furrow, yellow behind. Propodeum brown, finely reticulate 

 punctate, with a pair of strongly curved carinas most distinct posteriorly 

 marking off a nearly circular central area. 



Scape and pedicel yellow beneath, rest of antennae dark brownish. 

 Legs pale yellow; posterior coxa at base brownish; posterior femora 

 slightly tinged with brownish. Wings hyaline; stigmal club surrounded 

 by a distinct oval cloud. 



Abdomen brownish above, sides brownish yellow, indistinctly 

 marked with darker brownish. Ovipositor black. 



Fig. .3. Megastigmus nigrovariegatus . 



Described from one 9 , Vancouver Island, a paratype. 



In some specimens the yellowish band around the eye is 

 complete. Sometimes the brownish area above the clypeus is 

 lacking and the posterior femora are entirely yellow. 



Male. — Length 2.8-3mm. ; abdomen .9-1.4mm. (Measurements 

 taken from alcoholic specimens). The males vary greatly in size and 

 color. The lighter males resemble the females closely in color. 

 Sometimes the head is all yellow except the upper half of the 

 occiput, in others it is black except the face and portions of the ring 

 around the eye. In some the thorax is as light as in a female, while in 

 others it is nearly black except an irregular area on the disk and two 

 greenish yellow spots near the posterior margin of the pronotum. In 

 most of the males the propodeum is dark brown to black, but in the 

 lightest specimens it is yellow. In the darkest specimens the abdomen 

 is nearly black except the yellow tip. In the light specimens the legs 

 are yellow, in the dark ones they are more or less brownish on the 

 femora and tibiae. Stigmal club much larger and darker than in female 

 and surrounded by a clouded area. 



In the National Museum collection in addition to the para- 

 type and 4 9 9 from Vancouver Island are the following speci- 

 mens belonging apparently to this species. 1 9 , Algonquin, 111., 

 June 27, 1894. Labeled "Type, Megastigmus illinoensis Ash." 

 3 9, Jamaica Plain, Mass. (J. G. Jack). 1 9, Natrona, Pa. 



