Cambridge Entomological Club, 1874
PSYCHE

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Article beginning on page 114.
Psyche 8:114-118, 1897.

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[September 1897.
to approach during the warmer part of
the day, when it often flies away to a
distance of several rods and circles
about, returning to the place whence
it started, or dances up and down in the air, snapping loudly. The 9 sometimes
makes a soft flutter or shuffle of wings in flight, probably corresponding to the snapping of the 8, and both sexes can
fly silently at will. I have seen the $
stridulate when at rest, also, by rubbing the hind thighs against the tegmina,
producing a "scritching " sound audible
at a distance of three or four feet.
The
intercalary vein is toothed, in a low but continuous series, for its entire length in the rf , and on the distal half or more in the. 9, in which the teeth are lower and barely perceptible.
It begins to appear in the winged
state about July 15, 011 which date 1
have taken it in northern Vermont,
and if may be found during the rest
of the season. Henshaw has taken it
at Bar Harbor, Me. I have specimens
from the following localities : Deering, Portland, Norway, and Speckled Mt.,
Stoneham, Me. ; Keene (Prof. Weed),
No. Conway, Pinkham Notch, Mts.
Pequawlcet and Washington, N. H. ;
Jay, Vt. ; Greylock Mt., Adams, and
Palmer, Mass. ; and Canaan, Ct.
Harris described it under the name of
lattfennis, and there are two specimens
in M. C. Z. labeled Cambridge, indi-
cating that it may be found in the
vicinity of Boston, though I have yet
to meet with it there personally.
NOTES ON THE GENUS DELTOCEPHALUS. .
BY CARL F. BAKER, ALA. POLYTECHNIC INST., AUBURN, ALA. The following notes are called forth
by Prof. Osborn's late "Review of the
Genus Deltocephalus " in Proc. Iowa
Acad. Sci., more especially by the
changes he has proposed in connection
with the species described in the Prelim. List Hetnip. Colo. The new species in
the latter work were so described on
my own authority and the true type
specimens are in my collection. Hence
I may be supposed to know why they
were called new.''
Prof. Osborn's generalizations on the
genus Deltoce$/;aIt/s seem to me at
least very premature, especially in
consideration of the fact that less than a third of the American species occur-
ring in collections were known to him
at the time his paper was written. It
seems questionable from a study of all
the species if the genus can be naturally separated into groups along the lines he has indicated. Likewise, the excluding
from the genus of simfilex, coqzdletii
concentricus, bimaculutus and flavo-
virens seems to me decidedly premature.
His reconstruction of the genus, based
upon a study of but a small proportion
of our species, cannot but prove unten-
able. The genus, as it occurs in
Europe, so far as our present knowledge
goes, is a fairly homogeneous group.




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September 1897.1 PSYCHE. 115
Yet, Osborn's resurrection of the Bur-
meisterian genus which has not for years been used in this sense by European
authorities, would break it up. We can-
not cut out genera of wide extra-lirnital occurrence to fit American species.
DeZtocephalus bilineatscs G. & B.
In Osborn's synopsis this species is
placed with those having" 'l pronotum
short, more than twice broader than
long," while in the type the width of
the pronotum is somewhat less than
twice the length.
Qeltocefhalus albidus 0. & B. This
species is not uncommon in v anous .'
localities in Colo. from Fort Collins to Rabbit Ears Pass on the Continental
Divide. I have it also from Onaga,
Ks. (Crevecoeur). In the Colo. speci-
mens the pronotal lines are often quite
indistinct, while the elytral markings
are often very dense, size and structural characters remaining constant. In the
" Revicw " the face of this species is
figured as having the genae with outer
margin evenly curved from eye to
clypeus, which would be a remarkable
character. They are annulate below
the eyes, as in all other known species
of the genus.
Deltoce$haZzs injiatd. & B. This
species is of frequent occurrence at Fort Collins, Colo., and in the adjoining
foothills.
Deltocephalus reflexus 0. & B. I
have this species from New Bedford,
Mass. (Hough) ; North Windliam, Ct.
(Morse) ; Onaga, Ks. (Crevecoeur) ;
and it also occurs here at Auburn, AIa.
DeZtocephahts concentricus Van D.
Osborn without explanation, refers
Thamnotettia flwomarginata to this
species and places them both in
Thamnotettix. Both forms are common
in the mountains of northern Colorado.
I possess large series which show no
intergradation between the two forms.
Flauomar@~ata at least deserves a
varietal name. The latter was described
from a single female which lacked the
inner transverse nervure on both sides.
However in a large series this is
exceptional.
It seems to me as great an error to
depend upon characters drawn from the
vertex alone, as upon those from the
elytra alone. Errors in generic refer-
ence of Jassids are sure to occur as long as species are described from one or a
few individuals taken in a single
region. Flavomaċ´rg'inat answers the
Burmeisterian characterization of the
genus as closely us do some of the species referred unquestionably to Deltoce-
ċ´phaZz by Osborn, As characterized by
Burmeister, the width of vertex between
the eyes should scarcely equal the
length. Yet, for instance, siynatifrons
placed as unquestioned Deltocephalz~s
by Osborn, according to two of the
latter's own figures, has the width of
vertex between the eyes nearly a half
greater than the length at middle.
A proper understanding of some of
our dimorphic Jassids is nearly impos-
sible to any except those who are doing
work similar to Prof. Osborn's, yet this reference, which I do not say is incorrect, is made entirely without explanation or
even indicated evidence.




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116 PSYCHE.
[September 1897
Deltocephalus inimicus Say. I have
specimens of this species from Illinois
(Algonquin, Nason) entirely lacking the
very characteristic black spots. I still believe, however, that these spots form
one of the best characters for this species. It is a case similar to that of the genus as a whole ; there are no grounds for the
reduction of the species because certain individuals may vary in what has been
regarded as the most important distin-
guishing character. The beginner, using
Prof. Osborn's table, would make the
spotless form a new species.
DeltocephaZus wee& Van D. If the
frontal sutures in this species were
carried to a point at the tip of the vertex as figured by Osborn, it would be a
character sufficient to separate this
species as a very distinct genus.
DeltocephaZus sexmaculatus G. & B.
The reducing of this species to signati- frons is not only entirely unwarranted
but impossible. The unique type * is
before me, and also a large series of
mature examples collected in the moun-
tains of northern Colorado last summer.
I cannot imagine how Prof. Osborn
could reconcile even the figures of sex- maculatus in " Prelim. List Hemip.
Colo. " with those of signatifrons in
the " Review." The species are totally
distinct as shown by color, form and
detail of structure. Moreover, sexma-
culatus is a much smaller species, its
9 being but 2 mm. in length, while
Osborn gives s/g?zatzfrons as 3.5
* 1 do not know the origin of the Van Duzee "type " liicb Osborn speaks of examining. The original descrip- tion was prepared from a single specimen, and that sped- men has been in my collection ever since. mm. He offers no explanation for this
discrepancy.
Deltocephahis nigrifrons Forbes.
Fuscinervosus is at least a distinct
dark variety of this species occurring
on the Pacific slope. Among other
differences it has the female segment
evenly, shallowly concave with the
median tooth rounded. In ntgr~j+ons
this is much more deeply and angularly
emarginate, the sides of the emargin-
ation arcuate and the tooth angular.
Vanduzei is entirely distinct, far nearer to ptdicarius than it is to ntgrz~rons.
It is much smaller, very dark, and has
the female segment broadly, evenly,
deeply, angularly emarginate, and
entirely without a median tooth. I
think for the present, at least, even
fuscinervosus should be considered
distinct.
I have very large series of all these
forms and so far have found no diffi-
culty in their separation. For the in-
cluding also of perpunctata there are
not yet sufficient grounds. Perpunc-
fata is a very common species here in
the South, and fairly constant in both
generic and specific characters. As
known at prcsent, it differs from nig-
rifrons in size, form, and in important 8 characters. Van Duzee described these
in part. Osborn does not leave any of
these names with even varietal value.
In other words he assumes that it would
be possible for all occurring in a single region to be bred from a single par-
ent. I do not believe this can be
done. Some of these forms are just
as distinct and free from intergradations



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September iXw.1 PSYGYE. 117
as for instance his oczdatus, debilk,
minimus and sylvestri.~, yet it is not
even suggested that these may possibly
be forms of one mutable species. A
very close resemblance in general
appearance between members of differ-
ent genera is not uncommon in this and
in other groups, as for instance among
some of the Heliconiid butterflies.
Finally, Prof. Osborn's characteriz-
ation of the conglomerate species nigri- frons as a whole, is totally inadequate, as it would readily include several very distinct undescribed species from the
southwest U. S., Mexico and South
America.
Deltocephaltis Javicosta Stil.
1862 Stil. Kongl. Vet. Akad. Handl.
Bd. 3. No. 6. p. 53 (flavicosta).
1892 Van Duzee, Can. Ent. XXIV.
p. I I 6 fflavocostatus) .
This species is common throughout
the. moister tropical and subtropical
regions of America, at low altitudes.
Osborn now records it from Iowa. I
have it from Maryland, D. C., Ohio,
Kansas, and various points in the low-
lands of Mexico and South America,
the Herbert H. Smith collection con-
taining specimens from Cornmba,
Chapada, Villeta Paraguay, and Piedra
Blanca in Bolivia. The Nat!1 Museum
collection contains specimens from Va.,
and D. C., the latter taken on grape.
The more southern forms are quite
generally lighter.
This is Uhler's manuscript retrorszis.
Van Duzee's redescription was fortn-
nately under practically the same name.
It seems rather peculiar that Osborn did not reduce this species also to a synonym of nigrifrons.
DeZtocepJzaZns bimaculatus G. & B.
In the " Review," flavovirens is made
a synonym of this species, though no
reasons for so doing are given. I have
before me large series of the males and
females of both species, and they are as distinct as any two species in the genus. They are well separated as originally
described.
Deltocep/;a/?/s debilis Uhl. I have
seen nothing from this country approach- ing the European falleni, but we have
abdominalis and minki, which are
both good and distinct species, long
known, described and figured in Europe,
and represented in my own collection
by very large series of both European
and American specimens. Debills is
certainly quite variable but it runs into neither abdominalis nor minki. It
would make a peculiar case indeed if
two species, in Europe entirely distinct, should have in this country intergrada-
tions so numerous as to make them
inseparable, and yet the aggregate of
these intermediate forms be known
under a later American name.
Even in forms of debilis with the
elytra entirely black, I have never seen a specimen with the face black after the manner of abdominalis. The three
species can be easily separated on the
form of the female segment, variable
though it may be in debilis. They also
differ in the male claspers, an impor-
tant character used long ago by Fieber,
but not mentioned for any of the species in Osborn's paper. If Prof. Osborn




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118 PSYCHE. [September 1897.
had studied this character in all the
species and varieties of DeZiocefhaZzis, most of the errors in reference he has
made would have been avoided.
Abdominalis is common in Colorado.
/)finki I have from New Bedford, Mass.
(Hough). The record for 772inkz' by
Provancher was undoubtedly correctly
given and should not be referred to
debilis in the bibliography.
I}eltocepha.lus a&is G. & B.
1890 Van Duzee, Psyche, V. p. 390
(~nelsheimeri j .
1891 Osborn, la. Ag. Exp. Sta.
Bull. 13. p. roo (debilis).
1892 Osborn, Rept. la. Ag. Soc.
for 1892, p. 688 (debilis).
1892 Osborn, Papers on Iowa Insects.
p. 56 (debilis).
i8qz Osbosn, Proc. la. Acad. Sci. I.
pt. 2, p. 12 (debilis).
1892 Harrington, Ottawa Naturalist,
VI. 13. 32 (melsheimeri) .
1893 Osbom, Bull. 30 Div. Ent.
p. 45 (debilis).
1894 Van Duzee, Trans. Am. Eut.
Soc. XXI. p. qz (melsheimeri).
1895 Gillette & Baker, Prelim. List.
Hem. Colo. p. 84 & 88 (affinis and
mclsheimeri) .
1897 Osborn & Ball, la. Ag. Exp.
Sta. Bull. 34. p. 627 (melsheimeri).
1897 Osborn & Ball, Proc. la. Acad.
Sci. IV. p. 21 I (melsheimeri).
This, one of the con~monest species
of the genus, has been tossed about
from " pillar to post" for some time.
In the "Prelim. List He~nip. Colo."
ecin~cns given the name melsheimeri
by Van Duzee were so left. One form
recognized as certainly not the melshei- meri of Fitch was named affini.7. This
species as seen above, has been repeat-
edly erroneously referred to meZsheimeri by both Van Duzee and Osborn. The
original description might apply equally well to affinis and to the true meZshei- meri, except as to length. Fitch cle-
scribes mdsheimeri as 2.5 mm,, while
affim's will average 3.5.
The matter
could only be definitely settled by an
examination of the original Fitch type in the Nat'l Museum, and this, now before
me, shows the true ~~zelsheimeri to be an entirely different thing.
Deltocefhahis melsheimeri Fh.
18j1 Fitch, Homop. N. Y. State
Cab. p. 61; reprint in Lintner's
9th Rep. p. 401. (melsheiineri).
1897 Osborn & Ball,
la. Ag. Exp.
Sta. Bull. 34. p. 637 (minimus).
1897 Oshorn & Ball, Proc. la. Acad.
Sci. IV. p. 21 I (miniinus).
Not knowing the true melsheimeri
Osborn has redescribed it as minimus.
Still, a good dc&ription of the genuine
mslsheimeri was much needed.
Itseems to be a quite generally distrib- uted species in northern U. S. east of
the Rockies.
Deltoce-phalus unicoloratus G. & B.
1895 Gillette
& Baker, Prelim. List
He~nip. Colo. p. 89 (unicoloratus) .
1897 Osborn & Ball, la. Ag. Exp.
Sta. Bull. 34. p. 636 (oculatus).
1897 Osborn & Ball, Proc. la. Acad.
Sci. IV. p. 312 (oculatus).
I have the type of this species before
me.
It is not especially near to monti-
cola as suggested by Osborn.
There is




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September 18~7.1 pS2Th?B. 119
some excuse for Osborn's redescription
as the original description of unicolor- atus (not unicolorous") is not exact
as regards female segment. A bent
condition of the abdomen gave a very
improper view for this part.
Relaxing
and remounting show it to be identical
with oculatus.
DeltocepJialus a?.genteolus Uhl. I
have typical specimens of this species
from Dr. Uhler, and also abundant
material collected by myself on the plans in northern Colorado. I have also the
types of curtitennis and terebrans and
further specimens of both collected in
1896. Such an error as the reference
of these two species to argcnteolus
seems inexcusable. A~enteohs is
small, slender, the female segment
nearly truncate, the head immaculate,
and the general color when fresh a bril- liant, resplendent green. Curtipennis
and terehrans are much larger, the
head more obtuse, and heavily maculate,
the female segment deeply emarginate,
and the general color dull brownish
cinereous. Terdrans was referred to
Eutettix on account of the rather
unusually strong transverse depression
before the tip of vertex. It is an
Athysamis and may prove the fully
winged form of cwtipennis, but .there
is less than no proof for it now, and
hence for the present they must be kept
separate.
THE LARVA OF CROCOTA OPELLA
GROTE.
Esg. Slightly more than hemispherical,
not narrow at base, fiat below; shining
pearly, faintly yellowish; diameter .55 mm. Reticulations obscure, narrowly linear, like fine lines traced on the otherwise smooth and level surface, more or less elongate, irregularly hexagonal.
Stays I. Head bilohed; pale reddish
brown; width .3 mm. Body whitish with
very long black hairs, single, normal, i-t- present. Hair spinulated, i-iv black and especially long. Tubercles large, the edges adapted in slope to each other, luteous gray. Stage ZZ. Head whitish, eye black, mouth brown; width .38 mm. Body whitish, the
warts concolorous; i very small, one-haired; ii large, many haired. Feet all pale. Hairs slender, hlack, many of fair length and a few much larger, distributed all along the body. Last stage. Head hlack above, clypeus
and sutures brown; width 1.8 rnm. Body
uniform dull gray: warts and plates hlack. Hair stiff, black, short and uniform except


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