84 Journal New York Ent. Soc. ivoi.. ii. 



piTt'ect, living, female imago was secured, and sulisequenlly a 

 small number, including three males, were reared in confinement. 



In the collection of the American Museum of Natural History 

 is a nest of I'lS/^a niaiiilata thoroughly infested with this same 

 jiarasite. 'J'his nest I have been permitted to examine through 

 the kindness of the Curator, Mr. Beutenmuller. The only particular 

 point of difference noted is the fact tliat, the cells of /'. maculata 

 being much larger than those of the yellow-jacket, the cocoons of 

 the parasite in the museum nest are never superimposed, but very 

 frecpientlv three such cocoons are placed side by side, firmly 

 compacted, in the bottom of one vespa cell. 



From information afforded me by Dr. E. B. Southwick he has 

 probably reared the same parasite from the nest of Polistcs 

 iiirfrii'iis Say. 



Througli the kindness of Dr. C. V. Riley and Mr. W. H. 

 Ashmead I am informed that this parasite is a Tryphonid, evidently - 

 allied to the genus Sp/ia-flp/uv^its of Westwood. It may be descrii)ed 

 as follows : 



Sphecophagus (?) prasdator sp. nov. (Figs. 5. 6.) 



'1^. — Length 7 to 8 mm. ; expanse of wings 11 mm. Head sub-quadrate from 

 above, dull black, excepting a narrow stripe around the inner periphery of the 

 eyes, and a triangular patch on the base of the mandibles whitish or b'ght red. 

 Cheeks somewhat gibbous and produced posteriorly, dark red. Mandibles rufous, 

 bidenlate, with the teeth dark. Labrum light red. Ocelli large, placed in a close 

 triangle. Antenniv filiform, as long as four-fifths of the entire body, 28-jointed, 

 first joint globular pyriform, third joint slightly longer than the first and second 

 combined, concolorous, light red. Thorax dark red, minutely punctate ; collar, 

 posterior margin of the prothorax, and teguhic whitish ; parapsidal grooves distinct, 

 converging towards the posterior third of the mesothorax ; scutellum prominent, 

 light red, ob-pyriform, posteriorly rounded; postscutellum corrugated at the sides, 

 with black patches ; metathorax well produced posteriorly, carinated and areolated. 

 Antf rior wings with stigma and parastigma well developed ; areolet wanting ; both 

 recurrent nervures well bent. I-egs concolorous, lighter red than the thorax and 

 abdomen ; anterior tibial spine well developed ; intermediate and posterior tibia: 

 two-spined. Abdomen a little longer than the head and thorax combined, minute- 

 ly punctured, lighter red than the thorax, becoming slightly darker towards the 

 apex ; first abdominal segment well bent towards the apex, rapidly wiilening 

 posteriorly for three-quarters of its length, twice as long as wide. 



r^. — Length 5.5 mm.; expanse of wings 10 nmi. Head black, with broader 

 whitish stripe along inner margin of the eyes ; face below the insertion of the 

 antenn:f, cheeks and mandibles white. Antenna; 28-jointed, nearly as long as the 

 entire body, under surface of the first joint whitish. I'rothorax all whitish except- 



