British Hymenoptera. 221 



punctured, the puncturation of the thorax is coarse ; in 

 minutus, atricornis, and minutissimus the 1st segment is 

 impunctate or nearly so ; minutus is its closest ally, but 

 the thorax in that species is more shining, less closely 

 and more largely and deeply punctured, and all the seg- 

 ments of the abdomen are less closely punctured, espe- 

 cially the 2nd and 3rd. Length 6 mm. 



Hah. A common species, and generally distributed. 



23. HaUctus minutus, Kirby. 



Kirby, Mon. Ap. Angl. ii., p. 61 ; Smith, Cat. Brit. 

 Hym., 2nd ed., p. 100. 



Deep shining black ; S" with the apex of the clypeus, 

 labrum, and mandibles pale. Antennae beneath fulvous ; 

 head closely punctured in both sexes. Thorax shining, 

 not so finely punctured as in nitidiusculus, and more 

 remotely. Wings with the nervures pitchy brown. 

 Metathorax rounded posteriorly, longitudinally rugose at 

 the base. ^ with the abdomen very shining; basal 

 segment finely and rather remotely punctured on its 

 apical half ; following segments punctured at the base, 

 impunctate towards the apex ; surface with a few scat- 

 tered short white hairs, beneath with the segments with- 

 out fringes or lateral tufts of hair ; (for genitalia see 

 pi. ix., fig. 17). Legs black; tarsi piceous, paler towards 

 the apex. 



? . 1st segment of abdomen very shining, with a few 

 shallow punctures towards the apex; following segments 

 irregularly and remotely punctured, apical margins of 

 the segments scarcely discoloured, surface sparsely 

 clothed with greyish hairs. Legs with grey hairs. Length 

 6 mm. 



Hah. Not common ; Chobham, Shere, &c. ? pro- 

 bably often mistaken for nitidiusculus, and vice versa. 



24. HaUctus hreviceps, B. Saund. 



E. Saund., Ent. Mo. Mag. xv., p. 200. 



2 . Easily distinguished from its allies by its short 

 wide head, which is much wider across the eyes than 

 long, its largely and deeply punctured thorax, and the 

 testaceous nervures of its wings. The basal segment of 

 the abdomen is very shining, but punctured at its apex, 



