5. STELIS. 139 



Female. Length .4 lines. — Black; the head and thorax strongly and 

 closely punctured ; the sides of the face with cinereous pubes- 

 cence. Thorax wider than the head, and with a little cinereous 

 pubescence on each side of the metathorax ; the scutellum rounded 

 behind, and armed laterally with a short stout tooth ; wings fusco- 

 hyaline, with a darker stain in the marginal cell, palest at their 

 base. Abdomen shining, incurved, and more finely punctured than 

 the thorax ; the margins of the segments testaceous, the apical seg- 

 ment subangulate. B.M. 



Male.— -Usually rather smaller than the female, but closely resembling 

 it; the apical margin of the terminal segment rounded. B.M. 



This is a very local insect ; it is parasitic on Osmia fulviventris, 

 and probably also on 0. aurulenta ; it is found occasionally in the 

 flowers of the mallow (Malvce sylvestris). I have taken it at Kings- 

 down, near Deal ; at Weybridge ; Birchwood, Kent ; Blackwater, 

 Hants ; Ilfracombe, North Devon, and at Sidmouth, South Devon. 

 It has also been taken near Clifton, Bristol, at Norwich, and by 

 Mr. Kirby at Barham. 



2. Stelis phseoptera. 



S. atra, punctulatissima, albido subpubescens, alis fusco-hyalinis, 

 ano rectangulo. 



Stelis phasoptera, Latr. Gen. Crust, et Ins. iv. 164. 



St.-Farg. Hijm. ii. 527. 



Smith, 'Zool. iii. 1154; Bees Great Brit. 152 tf $. 



Nyland. Notts, ur Scillsk. pro Faun, et Flo. Fenn. i. 274 £ • 



Schenck, Nass. Bien. 850. 



Thorns. Hym. Scand. ii. 267. 

 Apis phseoptera, Kirby, Mon. Apum Angl. ii. 232 £ . 

 Megachile phaeoptera, Latr. Hist. Nat. Ins. xiv. 54. 



Spin. Ins. Ligur. i. 136. 



Female. Length 4 lines. — Black, closely and strongly punctured ; 

 the face, cheeks, thorax on the sides and beneath having a thin hoary 

 pubescence ; the posterior margin of the thorax rounded, the scu- 

 tellum coarsely punctured, unarmed ; wings fusco-hyaline, the 

 apical margins clouded, a darker cloud occupying the marginal ceE. 

 Abdomen shining, the apex incurved and pointed, the apical seg- 

 ment rectangular. B.M. 



Male. — Exactly resembling the female, the margin of the apical 

 segment of the abdomen rounded and entire. B.M. 



This species is very local, and parasitic on Osmia fulviventris it, 

 like the previous insect, is found occasionally in the flowers of the 

 mallow. It appears in June, and may be taken during July and 

 August, but is much rarer than S. aterrima. It was formerly 

 taken about Battersea, Hammersmith, and Eulham, but has not been 

 met with for some years past ; Mr. Parfitt has taken it near Exeter ; 

 and Mr. Kirby found it at Barham. 



