29 
Genus ELASMUS Westwood. 
Head, antero-posteriorly rather narrow, vertex subacute, eyes suboval, ocelli 
placed in a triangle. Antenne inserted below the middle of the face, scape not 
reaching to ocelli, flagellum not incrassate. Thorax with obsolete punctures, sutures 
of the scutellum delicate, metathorax with no carina, apex not perpendicular. 
Costa of the wings shorter than the marginal, costal cell very narrow. Abdomen 
triangular, terebra scarcely observable. Posterior tibiw spinous underneath. Me- 
sosternum smooth. Epistoma not distinguishable, epimera nearly triangular. Body 
black, metallic above. 
Thomson in his remarks after the generic diagnosis of Hlasmus says, 
‘Arterna lefva parasitiskt pa Microgaster”—a general statement. 
Ratzeburg, however, gives Aneure rhipiceros Forst. as parasitic on Psyche 
graminella ; Giraud gives E. flabellatus Westw., as parasitic on the same 
species and on Epichnopteryx helix, and H. nudus Nees, as destroying 
Cecidomyia rosaria. Of the following species all are represented in notes 
as having been bred from Tineid larve except EH. albicoxa, which was 
found in a jar with the eggs of Limnitis dissippus, from which it could 
not possibly have come. Microgasters were bred from the young larve 
of L. dissippus, and, in default of careful notes, it is very possible that 
the specimen of H. albicoxa may have come from one of the Microgaster 
cocoons. In the same way Microgasters were bred from the Tineids on 
Rbus and Apple, from which £. varius and EH. pullatus are stated in the 
notes to have been bred, and the mere entry in the note-book will not weigh 
against a unity of habit in the genus if such can be shown to be proba- 
ble. Thomson does not give his data, but the fact that Microgasters 
were bred in the cases mentioned would have seemed to afford a strong 
probability of such an unity of habit, had it not been that the last spe- 
cies of the genus, H. tischerie, was bred under my eyes, and watched 
with the desire to determine this point in mind. Not only was no Mi 
crogaster observed, but the Hlasmus larve was several times found feed- 
ing externally, just prior to pupation, upon the larve of the Tischeria. 
Yhis observation will transter Hlasmus from the ranks of injurious in- 
sects to those of beneficial. 
51. (1) Blasmus varius, n. sp. 
Male.— Length, 1.75™™; wing expanse, 3.30"™; greatest width of fore wing, 0.33%, 
Head coarsely and densely punctate, the impressions more sparse upon the face. 
Mesonotum covered with long delicate hairs, and appearing as if covered with min- 
ute overlapping scales. Scutellum apparently smooth, but, under a high power, cov- 
ered with fine wavy lines, and furnished near base with hairs. Abdomen long, slender, 
acuminate, furnished at tip with a number of stiff black hairs. General color shin- 
ing black; rounded tip of metascutellum orange-yellow; metascutellar appendage* 
membranous white, rest of metanotum metallic-green; first abdominal joint dorsally, 
striped with two transverse shaded bands of ochre-yellow; venterof abdomen ochre-yel- 
low except at tip; front cox blackat base, remainder brownish-yellow; femora brown- 
*“ Das schildchen hat an der Spitze einen hiiutigen, drieckigen, ziemlich scharf zu- 
gespitzten, lamellenartigen Anhang.” (Foérster Hymenopt. Stud. I, p.71.) 
