This is the most common . of the eastern species and 

 is closely allied to obtusus Ball. 



General color black, with all the carinae, the narrow margins of 

 the pronotum, scutellum and pleural pieces, fulvotestaceous; usually 

 there is a broad fulvous vitta near the lateral angles of the scutellum. 

 Head broader than in some of our species, almost semicircular in 

 outline. Vertex -rather wide at apex, narrowed to a point at base; 

 viewed from above, produced hardly one-half its width before the 

 eyes. Frons strongly narrowed at base where the median carina 

 is nearly obsolete. Antennae black on a narrow pale base. Pronotum 

 deeply sub-angularly emarginate behind. Scutellum 5-carinate. Ely- 

 tra nearly hyaline, becoming distinctly smoky at apex; nervures 

 strong, the punctures distinct at base and as far as the apical areoles; 

 stigma unusually short and broad, sometimes more elongated. In 

 dark examples the apical nervures are more or less clouded with 

 fuscous and the pale commissure is twice interrupted with fuscous. 

 Metapleura and base of the abdomen covered by a testaceous band; 

 the base of the genital segments of the same color in the female. 

 Legs pale, lineate or clouded with fuscous. 



Length of body 3-3.50 mm.; length to tip of elytra 4.25-6 mm. 



The writer has taken both sexes by sweeping grasses 

 in pine woods during 1921 at the following localities in 

 in Mississippi: Columbus, June 23-25; Okolona, June 28; 

 Tupelo, July 2 ; Port Gibson, July 22 ; Poplarville, July 28 ; 

 Lucedale, Aug. 8 ; and Hattiesburg, Aug. 10. The writer also 

 has on hand a male collected by himself at Columbia, S. C., 

 Aug. 7, 1917 and a series from Chester, Ga., June 14, 1904. 



Oecleus decens STAL 

 (1862 Ber. Ent. Zeit, vi, p. 307) 



This is chiefly a western species. It was described from 

 Mexico and is known from New Mexico and California. 



I have on hand three females taken by Prof. J. S. Hine 

 at Cameron, La., Aug. 14, 1903, that agree for the' most 

 part with the meager description of Stal. 



Very close to borealis but distinguished at once by the vertex 

 which is of about the same proportionate width as in borealis but 

 distinctly more produced before the eyes. Elytra are entirely trans- 

 parent hyaline, without the smoky apex of borealis, and the nervures 

 are pale but distinctly and darkly punctate. Otherwise as in borealis 

 but larger. 



Length of body 4.25 mm.; length to tip of elytra 5.50 mm. 



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