﻿158 
  PROCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  NATIONAL 
  MUSEUM 
  vol. 
  M 
  

  

  Holarctic 
  genus 
  Tracheliodes. 
  But 
  as 
  I 
  have 
  pointed 
  out 
  in 
  my 
  review 
  

   of 
  that 
  myrinecotherous 
  entity,^ 
  Aimoldita 
  has 
  little 
  in 
  conunon 
  with 
  

   Tracheliodes 
  save 
  the 
  same 
  number 
  of 
  segments 
  in 
  the 
  labial 
  palpi. 
  

   The 
  strongly 
  flanged 
  and 
  foveolate 
  occipital 
  carina, 
  the 
  transversely 
  

   carinate 
  pronotum, 
  the 
  sharply 
  margined 
  prepectus, 
  the 
  presence 
  on 
  

   the 
  mesopleura 
  of 
  a 
  vertical 
  carina 
  before 
  the 
  middle 
  coxae 
  and 
  of 
  well- 
  

   developed 
  sternauli 
  and 
  hypersternauli. 
  the 
  well-developed 
  lateral 
  

   carinae 
  on 
  the 
  propodeum, 
  and 
  finally 
  the 
  slender, 
  elongate, 
  clavate 
  

   abdomen 
  of 
  which 
  the 
  first 
  segment 
  is 
  petioliform 
  and 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  

   nodose 
  apically, 
  all 
  indicate 
  that 
  these 
  African 
  species 
  cannot 
  be 
  placed 
  

   in 
  Traelieliodes 
  without 
  doing 
  violence 
  to 
  recognized 
  generic 
  concepts. 
  

   Instead, 
  as 
  predicted 
  elsewhere,** 
  these 
  features 
  attest 
  the 
  close 
  relation- 
  

   ship 
  that 
  ArnoJdita 
  bears 
  to 
  the 
  Foxita 
  complex, 
  of 
  which 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  

   considered 
  a 
  highly 
  specialized 
  and 
  aberrant 
  member. 
  

  

  Ethology. 
  — 
  Like 
  the 
  majority 
  of 
  the 
  members 
  of 
  the 
  Foxita 
  coni- 
  

   plex, 
  the 
  species 
  of 
  Arnoldita 
  are 
  xyloecetes. 
  Arnold 
  states 
  that 
  A. 
  

   senex 
  was 
  bred 
  from 
  the 
  abandoned 
  burrows 
  made 
  by 
  bostrychid 
  beetles 
  

   in 
  an 
  old 
  wooden 
  post 
  at 
  Helenvale, 
  near 
  Bulawayo, 
  Southern 
  Rho- 
  

   desia.^ 
  All 
  the 
  species 
  of 
  Arnoldita 
  have 
  a 
  relatively 
  large, 
  much 
  

   thickened 
  head, 
  with 
  the 
  face 
  strikingly 
  broad 
  below, 
  and 
  the 
  man- 
  

   dibles 
  extraordinarily 
  large 
  and 
  well 
  developed. 
  This 
  peculiarity 
  is 
  

   evidently 
  correlated 
  in 
  some 
  manner 
  with 
  the 
  biology 
  of 
  these 
  wasps 
  : 
  

   The 
  mandibles 
  are 
  probably 
  used 
  either 
  for 
  excavating 
  the 
  burrows 
  in 
  

   wood 
  or 
  pithy 
  stems, 
  or, 
  as 
  in 
  Tracheliodes 
  s 
  for 
  seizing 
  and 
  carrying 
  

   the 
  prey 
  back 
  to 
  the 
  nest. 
  

  

  Distribution. 
  — 
  The 
  genus 
  Arnoldita 
  is 
  an 
  entity 
  restricted 
  to 
  the 
  

   Ethiopian 
  Region. 
  At 
  present 
  three 
  species 
  are 
  known 
  : 
  the 
  Southern 
  

   Rhodesian 
  forms 
  senex 
  and 
  canalife/ra., 
  and 
  perarmata 
  which 
  ranges 
  

   from 
  the 
  northern 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  Belgian 
  Congo 
  to 
  Nigeria. 
  The 
  

   following 
  key 
  will 
  serve 
  to 
  differentiate 
  these 
  forms 
  : 
  

  

  KEY 
  TO 
  THE 
  SPECIES 
  OF 
  ARNOLDITA 
  

  

  1. 
  Fore 
  femora 
  armed 
  below 
  with 
  a 
  median 
  tooth 
  ; 
  antennal 
  sockets 
  contiguous 
  

  

  to 
  nearest 
  lower 
  inner 
  orbit; 
  mesonotum 
  with 
  two 
  small 
  pits 
  anteriorly; 
  

   mandibular 
  apices 
  obliquely 
  truncate, 
  the 
  inner 
  margins 
  with 
  a 
  large 
  preapi- 
  

   cal 
  tooth 
  ; 
  front 
  with 
  a 
  porrect 
  spatulate 
  horn, 
  the 
  lateral 
  margins 
  of 
  which 
  

   are 
  reflexed 
  and 
  the 
  apex 
  emarginate 
  (Belgian 
  Congo 
  to 
  Nigeria). 
  

  

  perarmata 
  (Arnold) 
  

  

  Fore 
  femora 
  edentate 
  below 
  ; 
  antennal 
  sockets 
  relatively 
  remote 
  from 
  nearest 
  

  

  lower 
  inner 
  orbit; 
  mesonotum 
  without 
  two 
  pitlike 
  foveae 
  anteriorly 
  (South 
  

  

  African 
  forms) 
  2 
  

  

  2. 
  Mandibular 
  apices 
  truncate, 
  inner 
  margins 
  edentate; 
  mesonotum 
  simple, 
  not 
  

  

  bisected 
  anteriorly 
  by 
  a 
  carinule 
  ; 
  front 
  with 
  two 
  iwrrect 
  median 
  processes 
  ; 
  

   clypeus 
  quinquedentate 
  senex 
  (Arnold 
  ) 
  

  

  "Lloydia, 
  vol. 
  5, 
  pp. 
  230-231, 
  1942. 
  

  

  •Rev. 
  Ent. 
  (Rio 
  de 
  Janeiro), 
  vol. 
  13, 
  pp. 
  88&-390, 
  1942. 
  

  

  'Ann. 
  Transvaal 
  Mus., 
  vol. 
  11, 
  p. 
  352, 
  1926. 
  

  

  