344 NORTH AMERICAN MELANOPLI (ORTHOPTERA) 



Melanoplus viridipes viridipes Scudder (PI. XXII, fig. 3) 



1891. Pezotettix viridulus McNeill, Psyche, vi, p. 75. (Nomen nudum.) 



[Normal and Bloomington, Illinois.] 

 1897. Melanoplus viridipes Scudder, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., xx, p. 255, pi. 



17, fig. 4. [tf 1 , 9 : Rock Island, Moline, Ogle County and Riviere de 

 Pare, Illinois; Vigo County, Indiana. 5 ] 



1897. Melanoplus juvencus Scudder, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., xx, p. 266, pi. 



18, fig. 1. (No locality for male type; see Rehn and Hebard, Proc. 

 Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1916, p. 212.) 



The assignment by Blatchley in his "Orthoptera of North- 

 Eastern America," p. 367, 1920, of deceptus and similis to synon- 

 ymy under viridipes only shows how glaringly superficial was 

 both his knowledge and treatment of the group. Had his field 

 work been done in any but a casual manner he would certainly at 

 least have recognized in Indiana the presence of two very distinct 

 species. 



Bruner reported viridipes in 1897 from along the Missouri 

 River in Nebraska, but no such material is in the Bruner Col- 

 lection, and we believe that, like several others, this name has no 

 place on the Nebraska list. 



In this species the male cerci vary from two and a third to three 

 times as long as the proximal width. The distal half of the cercus 

 is conspicuously narrower than in viridipes eurycercus, while the 

 majority show to different degrees a weak distal broadening which 

 is never developed in the eastern race. 



As only a few measurements have been given for this race, the 

 following have been taken. 



6 Material from this locality had been reported as viridulus and viridipes 

 by Blatchley in 1892 and 1894. Examination of the series shows that it 

 includes material of typical viridipes, atypical viridipes viridipes and also the 

 species here described as hubbelli. Morse recognized the fact that a distinct 

 species was represented in the series but referred that material to his deceptus 

 at the time of original description, so that in the series of hubbelli from Vigo 

 County, Indiana, there are specimens which are paratypes of both viridipes 

 viridipes and deceptus. 



