OCR Text |
Show 1901.] HYMENOPTERA FROM NEW BRITAIN. 245 towards the apex with rufous ; the apex of the last segment has a wide rounded incision in the middle ; the sides of the incision project into a blunt tooth ; outside there are two shorter, blunter teeth ; the central part is roundly raised and surrounded by a wide depression ; the apical half in the centre is distinctly keeled. The ventral surface is more or less brownish ; the epipygium is obliquely raised and obliquely narrowed towards the apex, which is acutely pointed. The wings are uniformly fuscous-violaceous, with black stigma and nervures. Comes nearest to M. alecto Smith, from N e w Guinea: that species may easily be known from it by the central keel on the last segment of the abdomen extending backwards to the base of the segment, it being also much broader; the apex of the abdomen too is not toothed, only incised in the middle, and the apical tooth of the mandibles is much longer and stouter, and the apex of the clypeus and the space between the antennae only are covered with pale hair. MEGACHILE OTHONA, sp. nov. Nigra; abdomine late rufo-vestito; pedibus anticis rufis; alis fusco-violaceis. 8 • Long. 12 mm. The lower part of the front, the face, and clypeus are thickly covered with pale fulvous hair; the front and vertex are strongly punctured. The mandibles are closeby puuctured, except at the apex ; the apical tooth is sharply triangular ; separated from this by a short space is a shorter triangular tooth, followed by a much larger, more projecting, rounded one. Thorax closely and distinctly punctured. Legs black ; the anterior femora, tibiae, and tarsi in front rufous ; the femora are also rufous above and the tarsi dark testaceous ; the tooth on the front coxae is stout; the tarsi are thickly covered with pale hair. Wings fuscous-violaceous; the nervures and stigma deep black ; the 2nd transverse cubital nervure has the lower part slightly oblique; the upper is sharply oblique, with the top on a different angle from the rest. Abdomen above densely covered with brick-red depressed pubescence, except on the basal and on the greater part of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th segments ; the apex in the middle has a shallow incision; the part behind this is depressed ; the part ou either side is irregularly, slightly toothed. The apical segment roundly, broadly projects in the centre above ; below it is broadly curved inwardly. This may be M. placida Smith, from Gilolo (Proc. Linn. Soc. 1861, p. 60), but as no mention is made of the form of the mandibles or of the anal segment, this is a mere guess. Allied to this species is the following from N e w Guinea :- MEGACHILE MALAYANA, sp. nov. Nigra; capite thoraceque dense nigro-pilosis; abdominis dorso rufo-vestito ; alis fusco-violaceis. 8 • Long. 11-12 mm. P R O C ZOOL. Soc-1901, VOL. I. No. XVII. 17 |