lo ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. [January, 



treme forms of one and the same species, I sent a specimen of 

 what I presumed to be clepsydra to Mr. Samuel Henshiaw, with 

 the request that he compare it with specimens at Boston and 

 Cambridge. His reply, dated Cambridge, July 7, 1893, is as 

 follows: " Your ' presumed clepsydra agrees in every point you 

 mention with the clepsydra in the M. C. Z. [Museum of Com- 

 parative Zoology] collection, and also with the Say type in B. 

 S. N. H. [Boston Society of Natural History] Harris collection, 

 as far as it can be compared with it. In the Say specimen, one 

 of the sup. app. is wholly destroyed, and also the apical portion 

 of the other; the inf. app., clypeus, and comparative robustness 

 of the Say specimen agree with your ' presumed clepsydra' rather 

 than with eremita.'^ 



I possess one of the original % types of eremita Scud., given 

 to me by Dr. Hagen. The following table shows the differences 

 which I find between this type and a male ' ' presumed clepsydra' ' 

 almost exactly like the one sent to Mr. Henshaw. With the ex- 

 ception of number 2, these are the "points you mention" re- 

 ferred to in Mr. Henshaw' s letter: 



^. eremita Scud. ^ type. Presumed ^. clepsydra Say J^. 



1. More robust in form, e. g., great- i. Less robust, e. g., greatest width 



est width of thorax 8 mm. of thorax 6.5 mm. 



2. A black line on the suture be- 2. No such black line. 



tween nasus and frons. 



3. Clypeus broad (5 mm.) in pro- 3- Clypeus narrower (3 mm.) in 



portion to its height (3 mm.) proportion to its height (2.6 



mm). 



4. Auricles on second abdominal 4. The same with four teeth, the 



segment with five teeth, the outer one very small, 



outer two smaller. 



5. Median basal tooth of 10 not 5- Compressed, sharp at tip when 



compressed, blunt at tip when viewed from behind. 



viewed from behind. g Sup. app. abruptly narrowed in 



6. Sup. app. not abruptly narrowed the basal third; extreme apex 



in the basal third ; extreme apex prolonged into a distinct, acute 



barely with an acute point. process. 



^ T r u If 1 7. Inf. app. more than half as lonff 



7. Inf. app. one-half as long as sup. /• kk j „ „,.^ % 



aoD & ^' as sup. app. and more acute at 



^^' tip. 



None of these differences are constant, and they vary indepen- 

 dently of each other. I can find no characters that are invariable, 

 and consequently regard the two specimens here tabulated as 

 two extremes of 07ie and the same species. 



These conclusions are based on a study of forty males from 

 the following localities: An original type of eremita Scud, from 



