ASHMEAD : CLASSIFICATION OF THE CHALCID FLIES 327 



Subfamily IV. Sphegigasterin^. 



1856. Miscogasteroidye, Faniilie 14 (partim), Forster, Hym. Stud., II., p. 24. 



1856. Miscogastroidse, Familie 14 (partim), ojnis cit., p. 51. 



1875. Spliegigastrides, Subtribus (partim), Thomson, Hym. Skand., IV., p. 217. 



1875. Caratomides, Subtribus, Thomson, opus cit., p. 216. 



1887. Pteromalinse, Subfamily (partim), Howard, Ent. Amer., II., pp. 33 and 35. 



1897. Sphegigasterinse, Subfamily III., Ashmead, Proc. Ent. Soc. Washington, IV., 



p. 248. 



1898. Chrysolampin£e, Subfamily, Dalla Torre, Cat. Hym., V., p. 16. 



This subfamily is distinguished from the three preceding subfamiUes by the dis- 

 tinctly petiolated abdomen, and from the two which are to follow, which also have 

 the abdomen petiolate, by other characters ; from the Spalangiinse. by having a 

 totally different shaped head, and by the venation ; from the Diparinse by thoracic 

 and antennal characters. 



Four very distinct minor groups, here called tribes, have been recognized. 



TABLE OF TRIBES. 



1. Antennae inserted near the mouth border or just above the clypeus 2 



Antennae inserted on or near the middle of the face, far above the clypeus. 3 



2. Head usually lenticular, much wider than the thorax, deeply concave behind, rarely normal ; parapsi- 



dal furrows complete Tribe I. Asaphiui. 



3. Front wings with a slender marginal vein 4 



Front wings with a thick, stout, usually short marginal vein Tribe II. Pachyneurini. 



4. Head transverse, the temples not very broad Tribe III. Sphegigasteriui. 



Head very large, the temples very broad, the frons sometimes cornuted Tribe IV. Cratomini. 



Tribe I. Asaphini. 



Tliis tribe is readily distinguished from the others in the subfamily by the 

 antennce being inserted near the mouth border, or just above the clypeus ; they are 

 never inserted near the middle of the face. 



It is based upon the genus Asaphes Walker, which was rechristened Isocratus by 

 Dr. Forster, and placed by him in the subfamily Spalangiin^, with which group it 

 has nothing in common. 



The habits of the genera falling in this tribe are fairly uniform, the vast majority 



of the species being parasites upon plant-lice, Apliididx, and upon the bark-lice, 



CoccidsR. 



TABLE OF GENERA. 



1. Females 2 



Males 10 



