by T. D. A. Cockerell. 261 
The female has much the appearance of JZ. damaraénsis, Friese, but 
the latter is less robust, with the tegument at the base of the abdomen 
red, the dark edge of mandibles narrower, the middle tarsi less 
abbreviated, and the anterior margin of hind basitarsi very convex. 
MEGACHILE OPACULA, Sp. nov, 
2 (Type). Length about 12°5mm.; rather robust, black, including 
the antennz ; hair of head and thorax long and white, faintly creamy 
at sides of face, black on vertex, thin and mixed with black on 
mesothorax and scutellum ; cheeks with a broad dense band of pure 
white hair; long golden hairs from beneath mandibles; mandibles 
broad, quadridentate, very obscurely reddish sub-apically ; clypeus 
densely punctured all over, without a smooth line, the lower margin 
arched, concave; sides of vertex shining; mesothorax and scutellum 
dull, very densely rugosopunctate ; tegule bright ferruginous, with a 
dark basal spot; wings greyish-hyaline; stigma dark reddish, nervures 
piceous ; legs reddish-black, with pale hair, red on inner side of tarsi ; 
hind basitarsi broad, but not excessively so; abdomen finely punctured ; 
first segment with tufts of creamy-white hair at sides; segments with 
extremely narrow white hair-bands, broadening at sides, on fifth only 
at sides ; sixth segment with short black hair ; ventral scopa white, 
fulvous or yellow at sides posteriorly, black on last segments. 
¢.- Length about 1] mm., with the same red tegule ; face densely 
covered with pale golden hair; anterior tibize red in front, their tarsi 
simple, anterior coxze without spines; hair of thorax above long and 
pale ochreous, mixed with black ; hair-bands of abdomen ochreous- 
tinted, and more distinct ; fifth abdominal segment with coarse black 
hair, and a narrow red margin; sixth with dense white tomentum 
above, the keel broadly rounded, minutely crenulate, and very feebly 
emarginate in middle; no median spine beneath; venter with broad 
pure white hair-bands. 
Type from Pinetown, 29th October, 1916 (H. W. Bell Marley). 
Males from Krantz Kloof, Natal, 7th February, 1915 (H. W. Bell 
Marley) ; another from same place, April, 1916 (H. W. Bell Marley) ; 
Stella Bush, December, 1916 (H. W. Bell Marley). 
The male is not unlike M. frontalis, Smith, but that is much smaller, 
with rufo-testaceous nervures, and has the keel of sixth segment 
distinctly denticulate. Superficially, the female is like Jf. familiaris, 
Ckll. 
