428 AMERICAN HYMENOPTERA. 



naked, their fore fringes rather short and black and their hind fringes 

 long and usually entirely black, but often with more or less light hairs. 

 Posterior metatarsi about three and one-half times as long as their 

 greatest width, and with long, mostly dark hind fringes; their outer 

 faces somewhat concaved. 



Dimensions. — Length: queen, 15 mm. to 20 mm. ; worker, 11 mm. 

 to 15 mm. ; male, 12 mm. to 18^ mm. Spread of wings: queen, 39 

 mm. to 43 mm. ; worker, 27 mm. to 38 mm. ; male, 31 mm. to 35 

 mm. Width of abdomen at second segment : queen, %\ mm. to 10 

 mm. ; worker, 6 mm. to 8i mm. ; male, 6j mm. to 8 mm. 



Redescribed from many specimens of each caste, including 

 three queens, one worker and two male homotypes. 



Habitat. — I have records of this species as follows : Ver- 

 mont (Bridport), New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, 

 Rhode Island, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Mary- 

 land, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio, Michigan (Detroit, 

 Maple), Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Wisconsin (Grand 

 Rapids), Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, North Carolina (Char- 

 lotte and Raleigh), South Carolina, Georgia, Florida (Cap- 

 ron and Miami), Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, 

 Arkansas, Kansas, Nebraska, North and South Dakota, 

 Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Idaho, Washington (Pasco, 

 Wawawai, Almota, Yakima City), Oregon (Echo and Cor- 

 vallis) and Canada (probably southern Ontario, though Bow- 

 les has recorded it from Montreal). It is mainly a Transi- 

 tion and Upper and Lower Austral species, but it runs over 

 into the Canadian Zone in some regions. It is most abun- 

 dant in the Upper Austral Zone where it is common. It is 

 a rather rare species in New England. It seems probable 

 that extensive collecting will add considerably to the range 

 of habitat given here. What are its northern and southern 

 limits ? Is it present in the old territory of Assiniboia, 

 Texas, Oklahoma, California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New 

 Mexico, or Mexico. 



Nests. — F. W. Putnam (Proc. Essex Instit., 1864) states 

 that this species makes its nests under old stumps and in 

 situations similar to those in which the nests of fervidus are 

 found. He also states that it is one of the more ferocious 

 species when its nests are attacked. 



This species has its closest relative in B. mormonoruvi . 



