No. 34.] HEMIPTERA OF CONNECTICUT I PENTATOMIDAE. 771 



Stiretrus Laporte. 



Species of oval, very convex form having the scuteilum large, 

 covering most of the abdomen ; f rena short, not extending beyond 

 basal third of scuteilum. One species occurs in North America. 

 S. anchorage (Fabricius). 



Spec. Ins., ii, 341, 1781. 



Shining, strongly punctate ; dark metallic green, head with 

 anterior margin narrowly reddish ; pronotum with large yellowish 

 lateral patches, enclosing two or three green spots ; scuteilum 

 margined with yellow except at base, median line yellow toward 

 apex ; hemielytra more or less broadly margined with yellow, 

 membrane dark ; connexivum spotted. Length 8 mm. Rare. 



This species is very common in the southern states where it 

 appears in a number of very different color varieties. The speci- 

 mens taken in New England all belong to var. fimbriatus Say, to 

 which the foregoing description applies. This species feeds on a 

 variety of more or less injurious insects including the larvae of 

 the gipsy moth. 



Lyme, 27 Aug., 191 1 (A. B. C). 



Perillus Stal. 



Rather broad, moderately convex species, having the scuteilum 

 moderate in size, narrowed apically, the frena extending to the 

 middle ; front femora armed with a subapical spine or tooth of 

 variable size; tibiae shallowly sulcate toward apex, the anterior 

 not dilated. Ventral spine of abdomen short, not passing the hind 

 coxae. 



Key to Species. 



Anterior femora with a cylindrical blunt spine ; color brown ; length 



about 9 mm circumcinctus 



Anterior femora with a low conical tubercle; color otherwise; 

 length about 6 mm exaptus 



P. circumcinctus Stal. (PI. xviii, 22.) 



Stett. Ent. Zeit, xxiii, 89, 1862. 



Brown, sometimes with reddish tinge, strongly and sparsely 

 punctate, the punctures mostly dark ; pronotum with anterior and 

 lateral margins, and median stripe, pale yellowish, also margin and 

 incomplete median stripe of scuteilum ; hemielytra and connexivum 

 with lateral margins pale. Length 9-10 mm. 



Feeds especially upon the larvae and adults of the potato beetle, 

 but seldom if ever becomes numerous enough in this region to 

 render any conspicuous service in this regard. The size and shape 

 of the femoral tooth is useful in separating this species from the 

 next, but this structure is somewhat variable in both and cannot 

 always be depended upon. 



