HYMENOPTEROUS FAMILY STEPHANID^. 829 



front with three short acute tubercles placed in a triangle, 

 behind which the head is transversely rugulose ; behind the eyes 

 is a broad ci-eam-coloured stripe, which extends to the base of 

 the mandibles. The thorax rugose, with large punctures on the 

 metar.horax ; the anterior and intermediate legs ferruginous. 

 Abdomen : the first segment, which forms the petiole, trans- 

 versely striated ; the I'ost of the abdomen smooth and shining ; 

 the ovipositor more than one-third longer than the body ; the 

 wings hyaline, the nervures black." 



This species is from Waigiou Island, near ISTew Guinea. It 

 appears to show affinities with D. salomonis Westw. and P. 2nctipes 

 Roman, both froijQ the same region, but the details are too scant 

 to place it with certainty. 



Megischus tarsalis Smith. 



Megischus tarsalis Smith, Journ. Proc. Linn. Soc. Lond. v. 

 p. 137(1861), $. 



" M. niger, pedibus anticis et intermediis ferrugineis, tarsis 

 posterioribvis rubris, alis subhyalinis. 



'^Female. Length 9 lines. Black; the head coarsely sculptuiated, 

 on the face transversely so ; the front with a transverse ridge, 

 before which are two acute tubercles touching the eyes, and a 

 central, more elevated one, a little in advance. The thoi'ax coarsely 

 punctured, the prothorax forming an elongated neck; the anterior 

 and intermediate legs feii-uginous ; the dilated apical portion of 

 the posterior tibiae and the tarsi bright ferruginous; the posterior 

 coxa? rugose, the femora bidentate ; wings fuscous, the nervures 

 dark brown. Abdomen : the ovipositor the length of the body ; 

 the basal segment or petiole finely striated transversely, the 

 following segments smooth and shining ; the ovipositor with a 

 wide fascia of white a little before the apex. Bah. Bachian. 



"This species difi'ers from M. coronator in the form and situation 

 of the tubercles on the front of the head ; the neck is much 

 longer and more slender ; the ovipositor is as long as, but not 

 longer than the body." 



Schletterer tentatively synonymizes this species with S. taisatus 

 Sichel, with which it corresponds in the infumation of the wings, 

 length and colour of tei^ebra, sculpture of petiole, and, to some 

 extent, in the sculpture of head and thorax. It differs in having 

 the head black, thorax coarsely punctate, and in the much 

 smaller size. The details given are insufficient for certain 

 identification. 



Bibliography. 



Andre (Ed.). Species des H3'menopteies d'Europe et d' Algeria, vii. bis, 1901. 

 AsHMEAD (W. H.). Classification of Iclineumon Flies, 1900. 

 BiscHOFF. Ergebniss d. Deutsch-Zud-Afric. Exped. 1907-08; iii. 1911. 

 Blanchard (E.). Orbigny, Dictionnaire universelle'd'histoire natuvelle, xii. 1848. 

 Boisduval(J. A.). Voyage de I'Astroliibe, 1832. Faun. luit. ii. 1835. 



