179 



ON THE BRACONIDOUS CRYPTOGASTRES. 

 By Claude Morley, F.E.S., &c. 



The Cryptogastres form a small and natural group in the 

 family Braconidse, and are so often bred out of lepidopterous 

 larvae that perhaps a succinct account of them may not be out 

 of place. I was led to look through the specimens in my collec- 

 tion by the great number of individuals which were on the wing 

 during last year, and, as some of these appear of unusual occur- 

 rence, I have added a few notes on their habitats and time of 

 appearance. The group, as a whole, may be at once recognized 

 from all the other Parasitica by the dorsum of the abdomen — 

 appropriately termed the " carapace " by Marshall — being com- 

 posed of but a single piece through the fusion of the three basal 

 segments, though occasionally the sutures are more or less 

 visible, always, however, connate and firmly soldered together, 

 and never with a flexible connecting membrane, as in the 

 Ichneumonidse. They are all dull and rugose insects, usually 

 black, though sometimes more or less testaceous or fulvous. I 

 shall be very thankful at all times for bred hymenopterous 

 parasites. 



The six British genera may be thus distinguished : — 



(8) 1. Wings clouded ; abdomen elongate (Chelonidse). 



(5) 2. Abdomen dorsally trisegmented. 



(4) 3. Intermediate tibiae strongly sinuate externally Phanerotoma. 



(3) 4. Intermediate tibiae straight . Sph^eropteryx. 



(2) 5. Abdomen dorsally entire. 



(7) 6. First cubital cell of upper wing entire . . Chelonus. 



(6) 7. First cubital cell bisected by a nervure . . Ascogaster. 

 (1) 8. Wings hyaline ; abdomen subovate (Sigalphidae). 



(10) 9. Second segment longer than third, two follow- 

 ing visible ....... Alloderus. 



(9) 10. Second segment shorter than third, remainder 



concealed Sigalphus. 



The usual distinctions between these two families seem to 

 me too slight to be retained ; from the Chelonidaa, the Sigalphidae 

 is known by having three instead of two cubital cells (which does 

 not hold in Ascogaster), and the reflection of the ventral borders 

 and length of the concavity cannot be seen in carded specimens. 

 Phanerotoma and Sphcsropteryx I have not met with, and but a 

 single species of each — P. dentata, Panz.,* and S. irrorator, Fab. 

 — occurs in Britain. Marshall gives a somewhat unsatisfactory 

 table of the European Cheloni — or, I should perhaps say, treats 

 them unsatisfactorily, since there is no table. He first presents 



* Since this was written I find that I swept a single Phanerotoma den- 

 tata in Tuddenhani Fen, Suffolk, on 27th August, 1906. 



