MORGAN HEBARD 163 



This species is known as far west as Ithaca, New York; Wil- 

 liamsport, Buffalo Gap and Buena Vista Springs, Pennsylvania, 

 and Collison Ridge, Virginia, 11 while the southernmost locality 

 is a ridge near Covington in the latter State. South of New 

 England it probably occurs only at some elevation in the 

 mountains. 



Melanoplus islandicus Blatchley (PI. XI, figs. 3 and 4.) 



1898. Melanoplus islandicus Blatchley, Psyche, vm, p. 196. [ $ , 9 ', La 

 Salle Island in Les Cheneaux Islands, Michigan.] 



1920. Melanoplus islandicus Blatchley, Orth. of Northeastern Amer., p. 

 388, figs. 135 d and e (outline of cercus greatly foreshortened and mis- 

 leading). 



E. M. Walker described M. abortivus from DeGrassi Point, 

 Ontario, in 1898, which name he placed as a synonym of islan- 

 dicus in 1899. 



In 1920 Blatchley incorrectly considered sylvestris Morse a 

 race of islandicus, while in 1932 Hebard incorrectly considered 

 islandicus a race of mancus (Smith). Both of these errors oc- 

 curred because the vital differences of the penis were unknown. 



This species is sylvan, terrestrial and very local in distribu- 

 tion. Its nearest relative, from study of the characters of the 

 penis, can now definitely be said to be celatus Morse, but in 

 spite of the fact that both show variation, even in the large 

 series now before me no suggestion of intergradation is anywhere 

 indicated. 



In islandicus the shaft of the penis is much longer and more 

 slender than in any other species of the group. The male cercus 

 is never enlarged distad and is there normally moderately nar- 

 row and quite sharply rounded. Slightly wider cereal apices 

 than usual may appear in any series, but in the hilly country 

 of the central and southern portions of eastern Ohio the cereal 

 apices average still wider while the males from Monterey, Vir- 

 ginia though variable in this respect show it even more decidedly. 

 Unusually short and broad are the cerci in the single male from 

 Sounding Knob, Virginia. These differences I believe indicate 



11 McNeill's 1891 record from Illinois has been published as incorrect, 

 properly referable to Melanoplus rusticus obovatipennis. 



TRANS. AMER. ENT. SOC., LXIH. 



