174 AMERICAN HYMENOPTERA. 



center, a siibquadrate mark on the front, sinus of the eyes and a line from it to 

 the clypens, and a stripe behind the eyes yellow ; anteuna> black, with the scape 

 yellow in front; flagelluni ferruginous beneath. Thorax black, with an inter- 

 rupted yellow line on the posterior border of the prothorax and a short one ex- 

 tending from it down the anterior border, borders of the tegulse, a spot under the 

 wings and two spots on the scutellum and postscutellum yellow. Abdomen black, 

 the fii-st segment with a narrow, apical, yellow border, narrowly interrupted me- 

 dially; the remaining segments with a wide, apical, yellow border, strongly in- 

 dented medially and notched laterally; in many cases these notches become 

 black spots in the yellow. Legs yellow with the coxfe. except a small spot, tro- 

 chanters and femora except tips, black. Wings hyaline, with the nervures 

 brown. Length 12.5 mm. 



% . — Same as the female, except the abdomen, the markings of which vary 

 greatly ; some have the apical yellow borders of all except the first segment tri- 

 dentate, others have the lateral indentations changed to spots ; between these two 

 extremes thei'e is every gradation. 



Worker. — Much smaller than the female; the yellow borders of all but the first 

 abdominal segment are narrower and tridentate. Length 10 mm. 



Var. A. — No line on the anterior border of the prothorax. 



Var. B. — No line on the anterior border of the prothorax and scutellum only 

 bearing two spots. 



Hab. — Unitetl States, Canada. 



I am inclined to believe that this species is V. arenaria Fab., but 

 the description of Fabricius is so incomplete that I do not feel 

 positive, 



V. borealis Kirby 9- — Eyes remote from the mandibles. Head black, 

 with the mandibles except teeth, the clypeus except the outer edges and a va- 

 riable mark in the center, a snbquadrate spot on the front, a narrow line from 

 the sinus of the eyes to the clypeus and a more or less interrupted stripe behind 

 the eyes white; antennse black, with the scape white in front; body black and 

 wliite, covered with black and gray hairs. Thorax black, with the posterior 

 border of the prothorax and a short line extending from it down the anterior 

 border, a triangular spot under the wings, two spots on the scutellum and two on 

 the postscutellum white. Abdomen bla<'k, sometimes with a very fine white line 

 on the posterior border of the first segment; second abdominal segment with a 

 narrow, apical, white border, interrupted in the middle and slightly broadened 

 laterally; third, fourth and fifth segments with a broad, apical, white border 

 deeply indented or interrupted medially, the third segment with a rounded in- 

 dentation on each side, which, in the fourth and fifth segments, become dots; 

 anal segment with a white spot on each side. Legs black, with the tarsi, inside 

 of tibife and femora, and a spot on the front of the two antei'ior coxaj white. 



% . — Similar to the female, except the abdomen, which has all the segments 

 bordered apically with white, the first straight, indented or interrupted medially, 

 the others more or less strongly tridentate; sometimes the spots on the postscu- 

 tellum are absent or very small. 



Hab. — United States, New York, Mt. Washington, British Co- 

 lumbia ; Amherst, Mass. 



