PTEROMALIDAE OF N.W. EUROPE 173 



(1) Eyes separated by 1 -5 to 1-55 times their length ; POL 1 -o to 1 -2 OOL. Head 

 in dorsal view (Text-fig. 136) with temples straighter and converging more 

 strongly. Female with antennal flagellum more strongly clavate ; at most 

 the fifth and sixth funicular segments slightly transverse. Left mandible 

 with three teeth, right mandible with four . . nitidus (Walker) (p. 176) 



Eyes separated by 1-25 to 1-35 times their length ; POL 1-3 to 1-4 OOL. 

 Head in dorsal view (Text-fig. 135) with temples more rounded. Female 

 with antennal flagellum less strongly clavate ; funicular segments four to six 

 transverse (sixth strongly so). Mandibular formula 3.4 or 4.4 ... 4 



(3) Female with gastral petiole (Text-fig. 139) only 1-25 to 1-35 times as long as 

 broad, distinctly shorter than the propodeum ; femora mainly dark, tibiae 

 sometimes more or less brownish. Male with gastral petiole slightly shorter 

 than the propodeum. Both sexes with both mandibles with four teeth ; 

 median area of propodeum tending to be finely wrinkled, sometimes reti- 

 culate, without distinct median carina or costula . lasthenes (Walker) (p. 176) 

 Female with gastral petiole 1-5 to i-8 times as long as broad, virtually or 

 quite as long as propodeum ; legs (not counting coxae) usually wholly 

 reddish testaceous, occasionally the hind femora, rarely also the mid ones, 

 partly infuscate. Male with gastral petiole about as long as the pro- 

 podeum. Both sexes with left mandible with three teeth, right mandible 

 with four ; median area of propodeum with several coarse wrinkles, some 

 of which indicate a median carina and costula . rufipes (Walker) (p. 176) 



Sgen. MERISMUS s.str. 



Merismus (Merismus) megapterus Walker 



Merismus megapterus Walker, 1833 : 377, $ $. 

 Merismus clavicornis Walker, 1833 : 377, §, syn. n. 

 ? Miscogaster tenuicornis Walker, 1833 : 462, $. 

 Miscogaster ovata Walker, 1833 : 462, $, syn. n. 

 Sphegigaster Agriope Walker, 1848 : 108, 165, <$, syn. n. 

 Merismus megalopterus Schulz, 1906 : 143 [emendation]. 

 ? Kentema viride Delucchi, 1955 : 94, 96, $ $. 



Type material. Merismus megapterus Walker. Syntypes, 4 specimens. LECTO- 

 TYPE, a male bearing a Waterhouse label. 



Merismus clavicornis Walker. No specimens under this name. Under Merismus 

 flavicornis Walker there is a series of 2 <$ and 1 $ ; Walker, however, described no 

 female of flavicornis. The female in his series of flavicornis agrees well with the 

 description of clavicornis and is designated LECTOTYPE of the latter (it is probably 

 the holotype). It could easily have been transposed due to confusing the two 

 similar names. 



Miscogaster tenuicornis Walker. No specimen under this name ; none found 

 elsewhere. In his annoted copy of his List of 1846 (in my library) Walker has written 

 on the interleaf opposite page 28 " Spheg. megapterus=Miscogaster tenuicornis 

 E.M.2. 462. M. C. I. 287 ". I therefore examined the syntypes of megapterus to 

 see whether any fitted the description of tenuicornis, but found that none did. I 

 have not seen any $$ of megapterus which have the scape and legs dark enough to 



