540 MR. II. N. RIDLEY ON THE 



26. MONEDULA SIGNATA {Linn.}. 



Vespa signata, Linn. Syst Nat. ed. x. i. \). b'JA, ii. 1-1 (1758). 



A common South- Americau species. 



Very common on the sand-hills, wliere it makes its burrow. 



27. POMPILUS NESOPHILUS, H. sp. 



Long. Corp. 10 millim. ; exp. al. 15 milliui. 



Female. Dull black, first three segments of abdomen, the 

 sides of the fourth, and the under surface of the hiud tibiie red. 

 Wings smoky, a little lighter and subhyaline on the hind wings 

 and towards the base of the fore wings. 



Head large, eyes hardly extending to tiie base of the jaws, 

 face rather more strongly punctured than the vertex ; clypeus 

 short, slightly emarginate ; labrum short, transverse ; eyes nearly 

 parallel, front ocellus forming the apex of a rectangle with the 

 hinder ocelli, the two latter rather wider apart than the space 

 between these ocelli and the eyes ; secoud joiut of the antenncC 

 half as long again as the third. Prouotum falliug iu front to the 

 neck in a short rounded curve, rather broader than the meso- or 

 metanotum ; the metauotum is furnished with a small pro- 

 minence on each side near the base. 



Second aud third cubital cells of nearly equal size, tlie second 

 recurrent nervure striking the third cubital cell in the middle. 



Spines of the legs as usual. 



Much resembles P.sohrinus, Blanch., a Chilian species, in which, 

 however, the thorax is verdigris-green above, instead of black. 



Taken flying over paths in the centre of the island, not common 

 and difficult to catch. 



2S. Taciiytes lycoKSPicuus, n. sp. 



Long. Corp. 6-8 millim. 



Black, clothed with a very line silvery pile (that on the upper 

 part of the face with a slight golden appearance in certain lights), 

 otherwise most conspicuous on the sides of the abdomen, towards 

 the extremities of the segments ; thorax aud scutellum shining, 

 with very numerous small punctures, ]iot very close together : 

 metathorax rugosely-punctate ; tegul* testaceous ; wings clear 

 hyaline, with a strong violet iridescence ; uervures dark brown. 



Closely allied to T. iridijjennis, Smith, from Ega, but in that 

 species the thorax is longitudinally striated, and the tips of the 

 tarsi are ferruginous. 



