SOME NEW NEMATIDS

Extract

The following descriptions of sawflies belonging to the subfamily Nematinæ include, with one exception, a number of species which have been reared from the larvæ by Mr. H. G. Dyar. Mr. Dyar is anxious to publish the descriptions of the larvæ, and the technical descriptions of the species presented herewith are made to enable him to assign his larvæ to described species and avoid the difficulties which would arise from the description of larvæ before the adult insects have been characterized. The very valuable work which Mr. Dyar is doing in rearing larvæ is resulting in the clearing up of some puzzles in the classification of insects, and has no more interesting outcome than the fact that many of his rearings, at least in the line of sawflies, prove to be of species hitherto undescribed, showing how little we really know of the insects of this group in this country. The adults of most sawflies rarely leave their food-plants, and live but a few days, and hence it is not at all to be wondered at that so many species occurring on common plants have not been taken by collectors. The collected species, in fact, are usually only those which happen to frequent flowers and those taken by random beating, which, with insects of quick flight, like many sawflies, is not a very successful method of collecting.