Vol. xxii] ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS 199 



The American species of Diatraea Guilding (Lepid., 



Pyralidae). 



By Harrison G. Dyar, U. S. Nat. Mus., Washington, D. C. 



I have referred (Proc. ent. see. Wash., xi, 29, 1909) to the 

 fact that Sir G. F. Hampson, in his revision of the Crambinac 

 (Proc. Zool. soc. Lond., 1895) describes the genus Diatraea 

 in his synoptic table as having a frontal prominence, whereas 

 the type species, saccJiaralis Fabr., is really without this struc- 

 ture. It is true that in the text the frontal prominence is not 

 mentioned, the statement being "frons with a tuft of hairs." 

 I was formerly inclined to regard this as an error in the diagncn 

 sis, subject to correction, but the examination of further mater- 

 ial has convinced me that the frontal prominence is a variable 

 character, of less than specific value. The generic table will 

 need correction, but the genus Diatraea may include species 

 with or without the frontal prominence. 



In the same paper Hampson recognized but three American 

 species of Diatraea. This number will have to be considerably 

 amplified. I arrange the species at present in the following 

 manner : 



§ I. Saccharalis group. 



Diatraea saccharalis Fabricius. 



This species is divisible into a number of well-marked geo- 

 graphical forms. Two of them occur in the United States. 

 The typical saccharalis reaches us by the way of the West 

 Indies and occurs in Florida. The race crambidoides Grote 

 comes from Mexico and occurs in the Gulf States. The fol- 

 lowing subspecies are before me : 



Diatraea saccharalis saccharalis Fabricius. 

 Phalaena saccharalis Fabricius, Ent. Syst., Ill, 2, 238, 1794- 

 Cranibus leucaniellus Walker, Cat. Brit. Mus., XXVII, 161, 1863. 

 This form is small, the wings rather narrow, but squarely 

 tipped and not especially pointed. The front is smooth and 

 flat, scarcely at all projecting before the eyes and without any 

 trace of the frontal cone or tubercle. Specimens are before 

 me from French Guiana (W. Schaus), Cuba (W. Schaus, 



