XIV. Studies of the Blattide. By R. SHELFORD, M.A., 
E.LS. 
[Read June 6th, 1906. ] 
BEATESS XLV —X Vii 
I. 
REMARKS ON THE SuB-FAMILIES ECTOBIINE[ and PHYLLO- 
DROMIINA. 
A CAREFUL study of the genera composing the sub-families 
Ectobiinze and Phyllodromiine has convinced me that the 
characters usually employed to discriminate the members 
of the respective sub-families are so diverse in structure 
even within generic limits that but little reliance can be 
placed on them as criteria of distinction. The short trans- 
verse supra-anal lamina, the presence of a triangular apical 
field in the wings or of a large reflected apical area, and 
the sparse armature of the femora are the so-called 
diagnostic features of the Ectobime. Yet nearly all the 
species of the genus Anaplecta, and many species of the 
genus Theganopteryse have the supra-anal lamina produced 
and triangular; again, the triangular apical field appears 
in numerous species of Phyllodromiinz, sometimes much 
reduced in size but often as large as in Hetobia lapponica, L. ; 
now as the presence of this apical field is more or less a 
mechanical result of a peculiar method of wing-folding, it 
is a character that may be expected to re-appear in other 
sub-families of Plattidw, and such indeed is found to be the 
case, too much importance therefore should not be attached 
to it alone as a diagnostic feature. The armature of the 
femora is also unsatisfactory; for though the posterior 
femora of Hetobia and of Anaplecta are armed with only 
two spines on the anterior margin beneath, in Psewdectobia 
and Theganopteryx they are frequently strongly spined, 
whilst in Chrastoblatta and Caloblatta, two Phyllodromiine 
genera, the femora are most sparsely armed. It will be 
TRANS. ENT. SOC. LOND. 1906.—PART II. (SEPT.) 
