124 



wishes of the author of the genus. This has been the result 

 particularly with the work of Fabricius where his carelessness 

 in the inclusion of extraneous forms has resulted in such 

 extraneous forms being made types of his genera. Such a 

 case is that of Prosopis and Hylaeus. The type fixation here 

 has not been recent but it has been disregarded until recently 

 and the change of names so forced upon ns is far from pleas- 

 ant. ]jut it seems to me that instead of grieving over our 

 Avounds and delaying the acceptance of necessary changes we 

 should hasten the process of type fixation and be done with the 

 whole unpleasant business. Recent investigations on my part 

 of the status of several of the older names in the bees has thor- 

 oughly convinced me that no possible stability in nomenclature 

 can be secured without a thoroughgoing acceptance of the prin- 

 ciple of a single type for every genus and family. Such re- 

 searches are entirely out of the reach of most of us who have 

 not free and continuous access to the larger entomological 

 libraiies, and it is to be hoped that those who have such op])or- 

 tunity will hasten the completion of tliis work. More than 

 this, it seems to me that the next revision of our nomenclator- 

 ial code should further clarify our rules regarding type 

 fixation and an important addition made which wonld refuse 

 to recogniize any subsequently formed genera for which no 

 type is established upon publication. 



Hylaeus Fabricius, whatever the original intention of the 

 author, (as has been recently called to our attention by Morice 

 and Durrant) was fixed as the proper name for the bees which 

 all more recent authors have called Frosopis when Latreille in 

 1S02 fixed Apis annulata Linne as its type. Whether we accept 

 the Ehiugen list or not, the type of Prosopis 'Murine" of that 

 list (1801) is congeneric with the type of Hylaeus and that of 

 Prosopis Fabricius (1804) is identical witli that of Hylaeus. 

 There is no escape then from sinking Prosopis and reviving 

 Hyhu'us even if Fabricius, as nearly as he ever came to recog- 

 nizing geno^ra, wished to make Hylaeus^Halicfus and to give 

 tlic name Prosopis to the bees so long known under that name. 



