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The classification is based largely on the anatomy of adults and first instar larvae. Behavioral characters have been utilized also, but these are generally associated with obvious structural modifications, and only in exceptional cases can it be said that the behavioral characters provide taxonomic information not already implicit in the anatomy.The classification presented is, of course, tentative. We anticipate that many changes will be made in it as knowledge of the genus increases and, in particular, as the larvae of additional species are discovered.For some years the genus Meloe has been segregated from other genera of Meloidae in either a separate subfamily (MacSwain, 1956) or tribe (Selander, 1964). In this work it is treated as a genus of the tribe Meloini, which is defined so as to include, besides Meloe, the genus Spastonyx. The latter taxon was formerly considered to be a North Carolina (Sherman, 1913;Brimley, 1938 (Sch0yen, 1916) and ornamental anemone in England (Hodson and Beaumont, 1929), while adults of M. proscarabaeus have seriously damaged fields of red clover in Germany (Zimmermann, 1922 Eurasia (Assmuss, 1865;Beljavsky, 1933;Minkov and Moiseev, 1953). Similar but apparently less frequent injury to bees in Libya has been traced to M. cavensis (Zanon, 1922).Larvae of both these species of Lampromeloe are well adapted for penetrating the body of a bee. The head bears several stout spines near the front and is drawn to a point anteriorly, rather than being rounded as in larvae of other subgenera. In addition, the body is relatively large, ranging in length from 3 to 4 mm, is more strongly compressed than usual for the genus, and has strong, robust legs. 2 Assmuss (1865) mentioned finding two feeding grubs ("zweiter Form" larvae) of what he assumed to be Meloe proscarabaeus in a tree hive of -the honey bee. The colony was suffering from foul brood and was almost devoid of bees. Assuming that the larvae were indeed meloids, their presence in the hive could presumably be accounted for by the lack of brood care.2 Cros (1933) mentioned examining first instar larvae of an unidentified species of the nominate subgenus of Meloe which were reportedly responsible for the decimation of apiary populations in Modesto, California. Since the larvae of this species lack the structural modifications associated in species of Lampromeloe with penetration of the body wall of the bee, Cros expressed doubt that the larvae were capable of damaging the bees physically. Lack of information regarding the association of these larvae with bees makes it impossible to determine the nature of the damage inflicted on the bees or, for that matter, whether the Meloe larvae were actually responsible for the deaths. Bees attacked by larvae of Meloe variegatus and M. cavensis are said to become exceedingly irritated and convulsive before death occurs (Beljavsky, 1933). A heavily attacked bee may die within minutes.The actual cause of death is unknown. Since the larvae commonly enter the body of the bee from the ventral...

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The sexual behavior of 11 species of Pyrota is described. Analysis of the functional significance of anatomical secondary sexual characters in these species and a survey of similar modifications in others indicates that the general pattern observed is characteristic of the genus. Adults exhibit little aggressive behavior, and courtship involves prolonged physical contact between the sexes. Male courtship activities follow a regular cyclic pattern, as he alternately mounts above the female to perform one series of acts (palpation, dorsal antennation, and rocking) and orients behind her to perform another (leg grasp, palpal insertion beneath her elytra, lifting of her body, posterior antennation, abdominal curvature and stroke, and genital hold). Copulation entails abdominal pumping by the male.As a prelude to comparative studies, a new classification of the Meloidae is proposed. Characters of sexual and related behavior at the subfamilial level and anatomical characters associated with them are discussed in an evolutionary context. Nemognathinae and, by inference, Eleticinae have simple courtship behavior, copulate dorso-ventrally for short periods of time, and do not prepare sites for oviposition. Meloinae have more elaborate courtship, copulate in a linear position for extended periods, and oviposit in specially prepared cavities in the ground.Compared with that in other Meloidae, courtship behavior in Pyrota is both complex and highly distinctive. Interspecific differences, considered in detail for six species, involve variation in the precise manner of performance of acts and their temporal relationships. Systematically the ethological data are in reasonable accord with those from other sources except that the courtship behavior of P. concinna is more divergent from that of its presumed relatives than would be expected on the basis of anatomical and ecological characters. An explanation of this discrepancy is proposed in terms of the evolutionary reinforcement of ethological differences functioning in interspecific reproductive isolation.