234 G. E. J. NIXON 



one and a half times longer than the hind tibia, a little longer than in polyporicola. 

 Legs more slender than in polyporicola and tergite i more strongly rugose. Length : 

 ca. 4 mm. without ovipositor ........ apharea sp. n. 



Mexico: Guerrero, Omilteme, 8,000 ft., viii., 1 $, the TYPE, Chilpancingo, 

 4,600 ft., ix., 1 $, (H. H. Smith). Brazil: Nova Teutonia, 3.x. 1938, 1 $, 

 (Plaumann). Type in the British Museum (Nat. Hist.). 



Neither this species nor polyporicola has the head noticeably triangular in a facial 

 view. 

 8 Propleurum infuscate ; radius not closing the radial cell ; tergite (2 -+- 3) beyond the 

 median field with a median patch of fine striation ; tergites (2 -f 3)~5 with a 

 sharply discrete yellow apical band and tergite (2 + 3) itself with its brown surface 

 appearing emarginate on each side because of a large, lateral yellow patch ; ovi- 

 positor sheath twice as long as the hind tibia, paler on basal half . . merella sp. n. 



Brazil: Nova Teutonia, 2.ix.iQ35, 1 $, the TYPE, {Plaumann). Type in the 

 British Museum (Nat. Hist.). 



Related to spilopterus but differing chiefly in having relatively longer hind tibial 

 spurs and shorter ovipositor sheath ; the metapleurum is slightly less bulging than 

 in spilopterus. 

 - Propleurum yellow ; radius almost completely closing the radial cell (Text-fig. 290) ; 

 tergite (2 + 3) beyond the median field without medial striation ; almost the apical 

 half of tergite (2 + 3) yellow testaceous but the pale area not sharply discrete as in 

 merella ; tergites 4 and 5 with a similarly broad, pale, apical band ; ovipositor 

 sheath shorter, about one and one third times longer than the hind tibia, evenly 

 darkened throughout. 



Hypopygium bright yellow ; tergite 1 rather short, not narrowed behind, and, 

 like the short, more or less evenly rectangular median field of tergite (2 + 3), 

 strongly rugose (Text-fig. 237) ....... sterope sp. n. 



Brazil: Nova Teutonia, g.ix.i938, 1 $, the TYPE, (Plaumann). Type in the 

 British Museum (Nat. Hist.). 



This is a somewhat isolated species, characteristic on account of the unusually 

 long radius. The head, in a facial view, is not at all elongate, but the clypeus shows 

 the same type of emargination as occurs in apharea. Apex of ovipositor (Text-fig. 

 291). 



PROTOMICROPLITIS Ashmead gen. rev. 



Protomicroplitis Ashmead, 1898 : 167 [No species]. 

 Protomicropolitis Ashmead, 1900 : 292 [species included]. 



Type-species : Protomicroplitis mediatus Cresson, first included species (Ashmead, 

 1900). 



I have based my interpretation of the genus on a specimen of mediatus from Cuba 

 named by Muesebeck and kindly lent to me by W. R. M. Mason. 



I am using Protomicroplitis to contain a large number of species-groups, often very 

 different among themselves but all, I think phylogenetically related and representing 

 a different line of descent from the species-groups I have included in Hypomicrogaster 

 and Promicrogaster. It may be found useful later on to raise some of these species- 

 groups to generic status but such a step should, I am convinced, be taken only on the 

 basis of wider study than I have carried out. 



In Protomicroplitis, tergites 1 and (2 -+- 3) are subject to great variation but never 

 form the combination of shapes that characterizes the two other genera mentioned 



