PTEROMALIDAE OF N.W. EUROPE 177 



Key to European Species 

 (Females) 



Body bright green to blue. Head (Text-fig. 141) less transverse, hardly twice as 

 broad as long ; eyes larger, separated by only about 1 • 1 times their own length ; 

 malar space about one quarter the length of an eye. Antennal flagellum (Text-fig. 

 142) slightly stouter and rather more clavate. Thorax more elongate ; pronotum 

 (Text-fig. 141) longer, its collar relatively less transverse and with its sides sub- 

 parallel ; mesoscutum 1 -3 to 1 -5 times as broad as long. Fore wing with marginal 

 vein about twice as long as the stigmal vein. Petiole of gaster at most about i-6 

 times as long as broad, obviously shorter than the propodeum fronto (Walker) (p. 177) 



Body dull green. Head (Text-fig. 140) more transverse, slightly more than twice as 

 broad as long ; eyes smaller, separated by 1-4 times their own length ; 

 malar space rather more than one third the length of an eye. Antennal flagellum 

 slightly more slender and rather less clavate. Thorax less elongate ; pronotum 

 (Text-fig. 140) shorter, its collar more transverse and with its sides converging 

 slightly towards the front ; mesoscutum about 1 -8 times as broad as long. Fore 

 wing with marginal vein about 1-75 times as long as the stigmal vein. Petiole of 

 gaster twice as long as broad and almost as long as the propodeum suecicus sp. n. (p. 179) 



Callimerismus fronto (Walker) 



Merismus fronto Walker, 1833 : 376, <j>. 



Miscogaster breviventris Walker, 1833 : 462, <$, syn. n. 



Miscogaster breviventris Walker, 1839 : 286. 



Miscogaster breviventris Walker, 1846 : 34. 



Callimerismus fronto (Walker) Graham, 1956 : 78-80, $ $. 



Miscogaster breviventris Walker ; Graham & Claridge, 1965 : 308-309. 



Type material. Merismus fronto Walker. Lectotype $ designated by Graham 

 (1956 : 80). 



Miscogaster breviventris Walker. Graham {in Graham & Claridge, 1965 : 309) 

 regarded breviventris as a species dubia because no specimen so labelled had been 

 found in Walker's collection in the BM(NH). Walker (1846 : 34) had synonymized 

 breviventris with Isocyrtus laetus ; but as pointed out by Graham (ibid.) the only 

 male standing under the latter name disagrees with the description of breviventris. 

 Recently, when looking over the Dale collection in the Hope Department (which 

 contains many Walker specimens), I noticed a male specimen standing as Isocyrtus 

 laetus. This male agrees very well with the description of Miscogaster breviventris, 

 and is a Walker specimen which was sent by him to Dale in 1847 > I therefore desi- 

 gnate it LECTOTYPE of breviventris. At a time when the concept of types was not 

 in vogue, Walker could easily have disposed of what perhaps was his only specimen, 

 regarding it as a duplicate after he had synonymized the species with Isocyrtus 

 laetus. The lectotype is labelled " Isocyrtus laetus Walk. Name in Dale Coll. " ; 

 and " e Coll. J. C. Dale. C. W. Dale pres. 1906. C.W.D." 



Britain, local ; in rough grassy places. 



Biology. The only record of a host for fronto is that of Walker (1848a : 77) where 

 he stated that it " destroys a subcutaneous insect in Sinapis arvensis, charlock " ; 



