﻿PROCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  NATIONAL 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  issued 
  |^?fv 
  vL 
  ()5^i 
  ^tf'^' 
  

  

  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION 
  

   U. 
  S. 
  NATIONAL 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  Vol. 
  98 
  Washington: 
  1948 
  No. 
  3224 
  

  

  THE 
  SERPHOID 
  HYMENOPTERA 
  OF 
  THE 
  FAMILY 
  

  

  ROPRONIIDAE 
  

  

  By 
  Henry 
  Townes 
  

  

  The 
  family 
  Roproniidae 
  (superfamily 
  Serphoidea) 
  contains 
  only 
  

   the 
  genus 
  Roj^ronia. 
  In 
  venation 
  especially, 
  Ropronia 
  shows 
  rela- 
  

   tionship 
  with 
  the 
  genera 
  Helorus 
  and 
  Vanhornia, 
  placed 
  in 
  the 
  families 
  

   Heloridae 
  and 
  Vanhorniidae, 
  respectively, 
  but 
  differs 
  from 
  these 
  in 
  

   several 
  obvious 
  characters 
  of 
  the 
  head 
  and 
  abdomen 
  which 
  may 
  

   justify 
  its 
  separation 
  as 
  a 
  distinct 
  family. 
  

  

  The 
  general 
  habitus 
  is 
  shown 
  in 
  figure 
  12, 
  a. 
  The 
  specimen 
  illus- 
  

   trated 
  is 
  a 
  male. 
  The 
  female 
  has 
  a 
  vomeriform 
  subgenital 
  plate 
  

   and 
  the 
  ovipositor 
  not 
  exserted. 
  The 
  first 
  abdominal 
  segment 
  forms 
  

   a 
  stalk 
  for 
  the 
  remainder, 
  which 
  is 
  compressed 
  and 
  projects 
  upward 
  

   from 
  the 
  stalk. 
  This 
  character, 
  together 
  with 
  the 
  14-segmented 
  

   antenna 
  and 
  the 
  type 
  of 
  venation 
  figured, 
  easily 
  distinguishes 
  the 
  

   Roproniidae 
  from 
  all 
  other 
  groups. 
  

  

  Specimens 
  have 
  been 
  borrowed 
  for 
  study 
  from 
  all 
  collections 
  known 
  

   to 
  include 
  members 
  of 
  the 
  family. 
  The 
  location 
  of 
  individual 
  speci- 
  

   mens 
  reported 
  here 
  is 
  indicated 
  in 
  parentheses 
  by 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  the 
  

   owner 
  for 
  private 
  collections, 
  and 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  the 
  city 
  for 
  institu- 
  

   tional 
  collections. 
  All 
  the 
  types 
  have 
  been 
  studied. 
  

  

  Genus 
  ROPRONIA 
  Provancher 
  

  

  Ropronia 
  Provancher, 
  Additions 
  et 
  corrections 
  k 
  la 
  faiine 
  hym6nopt6rologique 
  

   de 
  la 
  Province 
  de 
  Quebec, 
  p. 
  154, 
  1886. 
  

  

  Type: 
  Ropronia 
  pediculata 
  Provancher. 
  Monobasic. 
  

  

  780771—48 
  85 
  

  

  