212 Transactions of the South African Philosophical Society. 



SPHEGID^E. 



Gen. PALAKUS, Latr. 

 Palarus curvilineatus, sp. nov. 



Length 11 mm. $ . 



Cape Colony. Steynsburg, January. 



Similar in the colouration of the head and thorax to P. lineatifrons, 

 but the yellow lines on the abdomen are paler, wanting the rufous 

 tinge ; they are much narrower, the basal being also distinctly, 

 roundly curved ; the metanotal fovea is larger, it reaching to the 

 base of the segment ; it is broader there, is deeper and wants the 

 keels, the alar nervures and stigma are black, not testaceous ; 

 the first transverse cubital nervurehas not the upper part obliquely 

 bent, and the pygidium is not closely, regularly striated. 



There is a smooth line below the lower ocellus ; below it is a 

 narrow keel ; the larger yellow keel has not a fovea ; the lower 

 ocellus almost round, with a curve above the middle. Eyes dis- 

 tinctly converging above, separated there by almost the length of 

 the third and fourth antennal joints. Clypeus shining, only sparsely, 

 weakly punctured. Metanotum closely, strongly punctured, except 

 round the fovea, where there is a broad, rounded, smooth border ; 

 the fovea is transverse at the base and half the width it is at the 

 apex. The basal third of the mesonotum is broadly depressed in the 

 middle. The second ventral segment becomes gradually dilated 

 from the base to the apex ; the basal two-thirds of the pygidium 

 stoutly keeled in the centre, the sides with some broken, oblique, 

 irregular keels, forming almost reticulations ; the apex not depressed. 

 The basal spines are broad, project obliquely outwardly, and are 

 roundly curved on the inner and outer sides ; the base with some 

 large punctures, the apex smooth. The basal two yellow abdominal 

 lines are entire, the apical four interrupted in the middle. The 

 cheeks are thickly covered with long silvery-white hair ; the front 

 and vertex bear longish white hair ; the clypeus is almost bare. 

 Mesonotum and scutellum shining, distinctly, but not closely punc- 

 tured, the latter smooth in the centre. Median segment, except 

 round the fovea, closely rugosely punctured. The yellow line on 

 the post-scutellum is interrupted in the middle ; there are no yellow 

 marks on the scutellum. Legs black ; the under side of the four 

 front femora, the tibiae, and tarsi are yellow ; the tibial and tarsal 

 spines are almost white. Tegulse brownish, with a large yellow spot 

 on the base, The first and second transverse cubital nervures unite 



