260 Rev. F. D. Morice's Notes on Australian Smijiics. 



posterior tibiae are always spined before their aj>ices. 

 Again he separates it from the genera with " contracted " 

 humeral areas (= lanceolate cells) as having this area 

 " petiolated." Really, however, it is not petiolated (though 

 Kirby so describes it), but contracted. Trichorhachiis is 

 therefore a link between Konow's Argides and Schizocerides, 

 and either the division between these must be given up, 

 or the definition of one of them must be emended, or a 

 distinct group. Trichorhachides, must be established one of 

 whose distinguishing characters will be the peculiar neura- 

 tion of the hind- wing (see the Synapsis of Genera given 

 above, p. 254). Of these alternatives I should myself 

 prefer the first, for the division of the Arginae into Argides 

 and Schizocerides seems to me to bring together genera 

 whose affinities are very remote, and to separate others 

 which are probably very near relations. Such is almost 

 sure, I believe, to be the result when very large groups are 

 established on their agreement in a single arbitrarily selected 

 character. In this particular case of the Arginae, which 

 are perhaps the most widely distributed of all Sawflies, 

 and which appear to have reached all parts of the world, 

 and branched out here and there into new groups which are 

 quite unrepresented elsewhere, I cannot think that any 

 classification of their genera is likely to be natural which 

 ignores their geographical distribution entirely. 



As I only know one Trichorhachiis $ (viz. nitidus, Kirby), 

 and this seems to differ from its <$ in nothing but the usual 

 sexual characters (simple antennae, etc.), it must suffice 

 here to tabulate such differences as I notice in the <$<$, 

 and it must always be remembered that some of these 

 differences may not really be specific. 



1. Antennae black 2. 



— Antennae yellowish 3. 



2. Wings with clear liases but clouded apices. Body above and 



below bright metallic blue, only the labium, tempora, and 

 extreme apex of abdomen yellow. Hinddegs entirely Mack. 



n a si nil is, Westwood. 



Type at Oxford. " West Australia." 



Wings clear throughout. Body above nearly dead-black, but 

 slightly nigro-aeneous on parts of the thorax, and extreme 

 apices of abdominal segments a little discoloured. Labium 

 yellow, but the rest of the face quite black, though Kirby 



