MYRMECOPHILOUS NOTES FOR 1920. 23 



tropa fuliginosi, Box. — These three insects, which are new to science, 

 were all taken in a nest of A. (D.) fuliginosus at Woking on September 

 27th, August 14th, and May 30th respectively. I am indebted to my 

 friend Mr. L. A. Box for the descriptions of the same (see antea, pp. 

 15-16), who at the same time described a species of Synopeas taken by 

 me at Barmouth on June 23rd, 1906, in a nest F. fusca, under the 

 name Synopeas fuscicola. 



Braconidae. 



Axpilota nervosa, Hal. — A specimen of this Braconid was taken in 

 the same fuliginosus nest as the above mentioned Proctotrypids on 

 September 27th. This is the second time I have taken this species with 

 fuliginosus, it having occurred with the ant in question at Darenth 

 Wood in June 1909 [Ent. Rec. 22 15 (1910)] . 



Chalcididae. 



Spalangia erythromera, Fbrst., was taken in the Woking fuliginosus 

 nest on September 27th, and also bred on December 10th from some 

 carton and other refuse taken from the nest on the former date, and 

 placed in a small plaster nest. As far as I know there were no ant 

 larvae present, but plenty of a fat, broad Dipterous larva, which all 

 pupated later. This however proves nothing, as the Spalangia larva 

 may leave its host before pupating, and have been present as a pupa in 

 the debris. This conspicuous jet black species is, in any case, most 

 certainly a regular guest of fultginosus. 1 first took it in Britain with 

 this ant at Wellington College in April, 1906, and bred it in large 

 numbers the same year from a nest of the ant. It has subsequently 

 been taken by me at Darenth Wood, Oxshott, Weybridge and Woking, 

 and always with the same ant, which it will be remembered is also of 

 a jet-black colour. 



Diptera. 



Pseudacteon formicarum, Verrall. — This little fly was captured 

 hovering over $ $ of F. sanguinea at Woking on August 14th. I had 

 dug up a sanguinea nest and thrown the earth, etc., on a large white 

 cloth. There were no ants on the cloth, or to be seen, except the 

 sanguinea £ $ , and several of the little flies were observed hovering 

 over these ants. It is rather important to emphasise this, as Wasmann 

 in a recent and very valuable paper on this fly [Biol. Zentralb. 38 

 317-29 (1918)] considers it to be only associated with A. (D.) niger, as 

 he thinks the ovipositor would not be long enough to reach between 

 the segments of the gasters of larger ants. I have no doubt he is 

 correct in thinking that niger is its principal host ; but there can be no 

 possible doubt that on this occasion the flies were endeavouring to 

 parasitise the sanguinea £ $ , and their behaviour was just the same as 

 I have always noticed, when they have been hovering over niger, and 

 other small $ ants. 



Heteroptera. 



Pilophorus cinnamopterus, Kirsc. — Larval in numbers and some 

 imagos occurred on fir trees over rufa nests at Weybridge on July 16th 

 and August 11th, and Megacoelum beckeri, Fieb., larvae on the former 

 occasion. I had hoped to find out something of the life-history of 

 these two species, and the reason for their assoeiation with ants, and for 



