70 
Psyche 
[March 
added another genus, Pseudonotoncus, which is related to 
Notoncus. I find that specimens of the type, Ps. hirsutus 
Clark, which long awaited description in my collection, have 
a typical Melophorine gizzard. Diodontolepis, a genus, 
which I based on Melophorus spinisquamis Ern. Andre in 
1922, was again merged with Melophorous by Emery in 
1927, but this was a blunder, as any myrmecologist who has 
seen specimens of the insect will admit. According to Clark, 
its habits too, differ from those of Melophorus. 
The old genus Melophorus was divided by Emery into 
three subgenera : Melophorus sens, str., Prolasius Forel and 
Lasiophanes Emery. In this he followed Forel (1911) who 
had declined to split the genus though he was impressed 
by the heterogeneity of the species, some of which he char- 
acterized as Cataglyphis-like, others as Pheidole-like and 
still others as Formica- and Lasius-like. I believe that Pro- 
lasius and Lasiophanes which have monomorphic lasiiform 
or formiciform workers should be regarded as distinct 
though very closely related genera of Antarctic origin. Up 
till 1934 only one species had been assigned to Prolasius, 
namely P. advena of New Zealand, but I found in 1931 that 
several of the Australian species placed by Forel and Emery 
in Melophorus clearly belong to Prolasius, and Clark has 
very recently described several others. The true Melophori, 
thus restricted to species with polymorphic workers, may 
be divided into three subgenera mainly on thoracic struc- 
ture, namely Melophorus sens. str. comprising the Catagly- 
phis-like forms, Erimelophorus subgen. nov. the Pheidole- 
like forms with huge-headed maxima workers, and Tricho- 
melophorus subgen. nov. for M. hirsutus Forel and its var- 
ieties. This subgenus is characterized also by peculiar 
sculpture and very long dense pilosity. The following there- 
fore represents my conception of the generic and subgen- 
eric composition of the tribe Melophorini : 
Genus Lasiophanes Emery (1895). 
Genotype: Formica nigriventris Spinola (1851). Other 
species : bruchi Forel, bolivari Santschi, hoffmanni Forel, 
perplexus Santschi, picinus Roger, sauteri Forel, uxorius 
Emery, valdiviensis Forel, edwardsi Donisthorpe, negren- 
sis Donisthorpe, rufoniger Donisthorpe. 
