256 Mr. E. Saunders' Synopsis of 



are accordingly more produced backwards and farther 

 from the back of the eye ; the mandibles are simple at 

 the base, and not produced into an angular tooth ; the 

 abdomen is rather wider and more pubescent, its surface 

 less shining, and more distinctly, though exceedingly 

 finely, rugulose ; lastly, the apical ventral segment is 

 truncate at its extremity. These may seem to be good 

 characters, still they all tend to vary in a long series. 

 The most characteristic are doubtless the large head and 

 simple mandibles, as in most cases where development 

 of the head takes place a character such as the basal 

 mandibular tooth would be developed too, whereas here 

 the reverse takes place, and the simple mandibles are 

 with the large-headed form. 



2 . Only differs, so far as I know, by the white 

 pubescence on the abdomen and face, which takes the 

 place of the black in varians ; still, however, the white 

 is often mixed with the black, sometimes more and some- 

 times less. I have one specimen which has no black 

 hairs on the abdomen at all, except on the two apical 

 segments, and taken alone it would stand as a really 

 good species. I have others with white hairs at the apex 

 of each segment, mixing with black towards the base ; 

 others again with only indications of white pubescence, 

 and this tendency to vary, unaccompanied, so far as I 

 can see, by any structural character, makes me very 

 doubtful as to the distinctness of the species. 



24. Andrena fucata , Smith. 



Smith, Zool. v., p. 1743 ; Cat. Brit. Hym., 2nd ed., 

 p. 54 = chipearis, Nyl. 



This species is also closely allied to varians and helvola, 

 but the fulvous scopge of the 2 and the more strongly 

 dentate mandibles of the (? will serve to distinguish it. 



(? . The other characters which are worth notice 

 are its slightly longer antennae, the longer pube- 

 scence of the face, the shape of the 3rd submar- 

 ginal cell in the fore wings, which is more narrowed 

 above, its upper margin not being nearly half as long as 

 its lower, and the position of the recurrent nervures, 

 which are received slightly nearer the apices of the 2nd 

 and 3rd submarginal than in the allied species. Apical 

 ventral valve testaceous, and rounded at the extremity. 



? . Face clothed with white hairs, inclining to 



