GENUS HAEMATOPINUS 547 



FAMILY HAEMATOPINIDAE, ENDERLEIN 



Head broadest behind, but not drawn out into a narrow tube anteriorly. 

 Eyes rudimentary or wanting, and may be placed on a short process of 

 the head, directed obliquely forward. Proboscis very long, and may 

 extend backwards to the anterior part of the thorax. Pharynx long and 

 narrow ; fulturae very narrow, and lying close to the pharynx. Mandib- 

 les distinct and two-jointed. Thorax broad, usually with sharply defined 

 sternite ; stigmata on the mesothorax only. Legs formed for clinging, the 

 forelegs usually more slender than the other pairs. Pretarsal sclerite 

 present, and a tarsal process on the Inner side of the tarsus, directed 

 distally. Tibia with a thumb-like process. Abdomen flattened, stigmata 

 on the third to eighth abdominal segments ; the tergites and sternltes often 

 with small chitlnous plates, absent in the male. One row of hairs on 

 each tergite and sternite ; these hairs are wide apart and are usually 

 sparsely distributed. 



Enderlein divides this family into three subfamilies, as follows: In 

 the Haematopininae the antennae are five- jointed; the eyes are rudimen- 

 tary, and are situated on forwardly-directed lateral processes of the 

 hinder part of the head ; the forelegs are of the same size and strength 

 as the other pairs; a pretarsal sclerite is present; the mandibles are well 

 developed and two-jointed. In the Linognathinae the antennae are 

 also five-jointed, but the eyes are wanting, and there is no lateral process 

 of the head; the forelegs are more slender than the rest, and there is no 

 pretarsal sclerite. The Euhaematopininae are distinguished from the 

 other two subfamilies by having only three joints to the antennae. 



Neumann, in discussing Enderlein's classification of this group, 

 criticized particularly his treatment of this sub-division. The first six of 

 the genera enumerated in the above key represent the original genus Hae- 

 matopinus of Leach, which Enderlein has raised to family rank and 

 divided into two subfamilies, Haematopininae and Linognathinae ; the 

 first of these contains the genus Haematopinus of Enderlein, the 

 latter the remaining five genera. Neumann regards this splitting up 

 of the old genus as neither useful nor necessary, though he admits it 

 is possible that it may be justified later by the discovery of new 

 forms. For the present he prefers to regard these new genera as sub- 

 genera, retaining the original name Haematopinus, Leach. He takes ex- 

 ception to Polyplax especially, pointing out that the characters on which 

 it is founded are not sufficiently constant, or peculiar to the group of 

 species included. He unites the genus Hoplopleura of Enderlein, which 



