tee SN LRQA SELLE AAI LILI EO ri GLI I LII LLL ti EG as y Pe IE VILL PA AEIL ALP OSTI ODA ee Ee EEE ee ee ee Att ttt teen HARVARD UNIVERSITY LIBRARY OF THE MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY FROM THE WILLARD PEELE HUNNEWELL (CLASS OF 1904) MEMORIAL FUND Qo. bos. The income of this fund is used for the purchase of entomological books ay Rees apa THE COLHOPTERA OF THE BRITISH, ISLANDS. LONDON: PRINTED BY GILBERT AND R!VINGTON, LIMITED, SI. JOHN'S HOUSE, CLERKENWELL. THE COLHOPTERA OF THE BRITISH ISLANDS. 4A DESCRIPTIVE ACCOUNT OF THE FAMILIES, GENERA, AND SPECIES INDIGENOUS TO GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND, WALT INOLES AS HOVE OCAL IMME S ILADLICATS» fl Gn BY THE REV. CANON FOWLER, M.A., F.LS. SECRETARY TO THE ENTOMOLOGICAL SocreTy oF LONDON, AND Epitor (FoR COLEOPTERA) OF THE ‘‘EntoMoLoaist’s MONTHLY MAGAZINE.” VOL: Iv. LAMELLICORNIA—SERRICORNIA—LONGICORNIA—PHYTOPHAGA. e LONDON: L. REEVE AND CO., 5, HENRIETTA STREET, COVENT GARDEN. FE : ; 7 x AT VLOMOS VANES oes | Yeo) OOS fe (i a é {J if aps _ 2 7. PM aN AGH OMAG = a0 MWe co oa M8 “ 7 . we é . -. = s 7 ? a - XY = A ARAMYS Py AVG 5 an o : n = 7 7 ANE BE, GIG A aMSy CANES aa Ay — ' =) vA rs | Lh " Bi fe > h* o S - x — ‘ | 7 7 ro 7 b ° a -_ Vd ’ AA Dr =) =e = gi : the! I i ainmidaly ee OOP oe PR is wus ae ve aa a | i t 4 j | Aj rry RAG vet. ‘ - . \ . } * ~. 7 ; . i : = 7 - COTO PPE RA, LAMELLICORNIA. THIS is perhaps the most sharply detined of all the large series into which the Coleoptera have, for convenience sake, been divided : it contains two strongly-marked families, the Lucanidew and Scarabeide, which are distinguished by having the antenne terminated by a distinct and usually large club, which is composed of from three to seven lamellie or plates: these in the Lucanide are immoveable, and the club is pec- tinate, but inthe Scarabzidwz they are in some cases capable of being shut closely together or opened like the leaves of a book, while in others they are received into the first joint which is hollowed. The chief pecu- liarity, however, that strikes the ordinary observer with regard to the Lamellicornia generally is the immense development of the mandibles in many of the species, and more especially the great horns that arise from the head, thorax, and clypeus of the males: the use for which these horns are destined has given rise to much discussion. Mr. Darwin (“ Descent of Man,” page 297) says ‘‘that the extraordinary size of the horns, and their widely different structure in closely-allied forms, indicate that they have been formed for some purpose; but their excessive variability in the males of the same species leads to the inference that this purpose cannot be of a definite nature. The horns do not show marks of friction, as if used for any ordinary work. Some authors suppose that as the males wander about much more than the females, they require horns as a defence against their enemies ; but as the horns are often blunt, they do not seem well adapted for defence. The most obvious conjecture is that they are used by the males for fighting together; but the males have never been observed to fight; nor could Mr. Bates, after a careful examination of numerous species, find any sufficient evidence, in their mutilated or broken condition, of their having been thus used ;” the latter remark, of course, applies only to the species with largely developed horns, as those in which the mandibles are much developed (e.g. Lucanus) fight very fiercely; Mr. Darwin comes finally to the conclusion that the horns have been acquired as ornaments, and that this hypothesis agrees best with the fact of their having been so immensely and yet not fixedly developed, and concludes his remarks on the group VOL. IV. B z LAMELLICGORNIA. as follows :—“ Sexual selection, which implies the possession of consi- derable perceptive powers and of strong passions, seems to have been more effective with the Lamellicorns than with any other family of beetles. With some species the males are provided with weapons for fighting ; some live in pairs, and show mutual affection ; many have the power of stridulating when excited ; many are furnished with the most extraordinary horns, apparently for the sake of ornament; and some, which are diurnal in their habits, are gorgeously coloured. Lastly, several of the largest beetles in the world belong to this family, which was placed by Linneus and Fabricius at the head of the order.” It does not, however, appear to be proved that any insects select their mates from any regard to personal appearance; in fact, in the case of the Lepidoptera the female evidently exercises no choice in the matter as far as has at present been observed, and until it be proved that inseets act in this matter as mammalia and birds undoubtedly do, the hypothesis of the horns of the Lamellicornia being ornaments gradually developing from sexual selection does not seem to be a sound one; at present, how- ever, their use has not been explained. This series of Coleoptera, as above mentioned, includes most of the largest beetles in the world, notably the great Goliath beetles, and others which nearly equal them in size; several authors have proposed to place them at the head of the whole order, partly on the ground of their size and development, and partly, in some cases, because of their internal structure ; the question, however, requires very careful con- sideration, and in the present state of our knowledge it is far better not to disturb the existing arrangement. The larve of the Lamellicornia are thick and fleshy; the head is corneous and rounded, without ocelli; the maxillz are composed of two lobes, which are either free or connate; theantenne are inserted at the sides of the head on a_ projection which looks like a first joint; the joints vary in number from three to five; the thoracic segments are of about the same length as the abdominal segments, and do not differ from them much in character ; the latter are nine in number, occasionally ten; the anal segment is as broad as the preceding, and is in many cases divided in the middle by a transverse furrow, so that it appears as if divided into two joints ; in the greater number of species the abdominal segments from the first to the seventh are divided into three raised folds or ‘‘ bourrelets,” which unite at the sides in a triangular tubercle bearing one of the stigmata; of these latter there are nine pairs in all, the first situated on the sides of the prothorax, and the eight others on the first eight abdominal segments, all on each side lying in the same horizontal line ; the legs are rather long, with the tarsi very small or completely wanting, in which case the tibiae bear a minute claw at apex, which, however, is often absent at least on the posterior legs ; the apex of the body is curved, so that the insect is not capable of walking on a flat surface; these larve feed on vegetable substances and dung, but occasionally on animal matter; those that live in wood or at the roots of plants and grass take three years or more to come to maturity, whereas the coprophagous species go through their metamorphoses in a very short time (v. Chapuis et Can- déze, Cat. des Larves des Coléoptéres, p. 112—115) Erichson divides the larve of the series as follows:— LAMELLICORNIA. : I, Lobes of maxille connate. (Pleurosticti.) i. Mandibles obtusely dentate at apex, and furnished with transverse striz on their posterior surface. 1. Ninth segment of abdomen divided in middle by a furrow, which makes the segment appear as if divided peaaie tW.On gs es Fu) ase hk eC DNAS TED mss) . Ninth abdominal segment simple 5 koe is . CETONIDES. eee nits furnished with a smooth tooth at apex, pos- CigHor surface not furrowed ; ninth abdominal segment as in the Dynastides. . Pe eee ee ne eo MT OnOND MED ES: II, Lobes of maxilla separ ate. (Laparosticti.) The Laparosticti are further divided as follows by Chapuis and Can- déze, following M. De Haan and others :— i. Segments divided into transverse folds. 1. Antennz composed of four or five joints. A. Mandibles furnished with numerous teeth . . . GEOTRUPIDES. B. Mandibles bidentate or tridentate. a. Mandibles distinctly tridentate. . . . . . . COPRIDES. b. Mandibles obtusely tridentate . . . . . . . APHODIIDES. 2. Antennz composed of three joints . . . . . . . TROGIDES. ii. Segments simple, without transverse folds. 1. Antenne composed of three joints; posterior legs very small . . : (PASSALIDES.) 2. Antenne composed of four joints ; legs strongly de- WOOO 6.46 io ode Mele Moo ef aby pear . . LUCANIDES. The Lamellicorns are very poorly re aonted in Britain, although some of the species, such as the Stag-beetle, the Rose-beetle, and the Cockchafer, are among our largest and most familiar species, as also are the large species of Geotrupes, better known as the Dor- or Shardborne- beetle. The two great families of the series may be divided as follows:— I. Club of antenne subpectinate with the lamelle not capable of being placed closely together. . . . : ; . . LUCANID. IJ. Club of antennz with the lamellz capable of being placed close together and forming a compact club. . . . . . . . . « SCARABIDS. LUCANIDA. This family, which corresponds to the group Priocera of Dumeril, may be divided into two great divisions, the Lucanini and the Passalini, which are chiefly distinguished by the shape of the mentum and ligula ; as, however, none of the Passalini are represented in the European fauna, we need not here consider them; the family Lucanide, in its widest sense, according to the Munich catalogue, contains seventy-two genera and five hundred and twenty-nine species; the genera, however, of the Passalini, which in this catalogue number only twenty-seven, have been since raised to sixty, and considerable additions have also been made to the Lucanini. The Lucanide are chiefly found in tropical countries ; only six genera containing fourteen species oecur in Europe, of which three genera, each B 2 4 LAMELLICORNIA. [Lucanide. represented by one species, are found in Britain; they are, as a rule, very conspicuous insects, and are chiefly remarkable for the great development of the mandibles in the male ; in spite, however, of their formidable appearance, the mandibles of the male are not as strong or as capable of inflicting a severe wound as the short and comparatively in- significant-looking mandibles of the female. The following are the chief characteristics of the family:—Antenne with a pectinate club, usually geniculate, 10-jointed ; labrum nearly always connate with the clypeus ; mandibles often much developed; maxille with two lobes; anterior coxal cavities closed behind; mesosternum short, metasternum large, epimera of mesosternum reaching the cox; elytra rounded at apex, covering abdomen; abdomen composed of five, rarely six, free segments; tarsi 5-jointed, the last joint very long. The insects belonging to this family are almost entirely wood-feeders, but occasionally appear to be carnivorous; Professor Westwood (Classi- fication, i. 157) refers to two cases, in one of which a Lucanus was observed descending a tree with a caterpillar in its jaws, and in the other a specimen of Doreus parallelopipedus was found in the act of biting a Helops caraboides for the purpose of sucking its fluid. The larva of Lucanus cervus has been described by several writers ; it is white with ferruginous head, nearly cylindrical, and of a soft fleshy consistence ; the segments are not raised in three folds as in so many of the larve of the Scarabeeide ; the antennez are short, and the legs moderate ; the last segment of the abdomen is not so large as the preceding ; with the help of its powerful mandibles it gnaws its way through the wood upon which it feeds; when full fed it forms a kind of cocoon out of the minute chips or dust which it has gnawed, and in this undergoes its transformation to the pupa and the perfect insect, the large horns in the former being folded upon the breast and ventral face of the abdomen; the larva does not appear to come to maturity for several (some authors say as muny as six) years; occasionally it does considerable damage by gnawing into the roots as well as into the solid wood (wv. Westwood, l.c. i. 188). The three British genera of the Lucanide may be distinguished as follows :— I. Eyes more or less divided; ligula and maxillw covered by the mentum; antenne geniculate; posterior femora ex- tending beyond margin of elytra. i. Eyes divided for scarcely half their diameter . . . . Lvoanus, L. ii. Kyes divided for nearly the whole of their diameter . Dorcus, MeLeay. II, Eyes entire ; ligula and maxilla not covered by mentum ; antenne straight; posterior femora not extending beyond Marpiuofielyiray, GL. Ss! ce sw Ck 6SINODENDRON, FE LUCANUWS, Linné, This genus contains about twenty species, four of which are found in Europe, and the rest occur in North America, India, China, Japan, &c.; our single species is the largest member of the Coleoptera that is found in Britain. Lucanus. | LAMELLICORNIA., 5 Z. cervus, 1. Black or pitchy black with the elytra lighter or darker castaneous, usually darker in the females than in the males; antenne strongly geniculate with 4-jointed pectinate club ; scutellum punctured at base with traces of a raised line; legs long, anterior tibie more or less strongly toothed externally. In the larger males the head is much broader than the thorax, and sometimes quite as broad as the elytra ; the mandibles are strongly developed, and are sometimes very large; they are furcate at apex, and furnished with a large tooth in the middle ; in the smaller males (L. dorcus, F.) the head is about as broad as the thorax, and the mandibles are toothed before middle; the head and thorax in the male are finely pubescent, dull, and rugosely punctured, and the latter is very transverse and not convex, with the sides angled behind middle; in the female the head and thorax are witiout pubescence, the head is much narrower than thorax, strongly and rugosely punctured, and the thorax shiny, ample, and convex, finely but distinctly punctured on disc and rugosely at sides; in both sexes the thorax shows a trace of a longitudinal raised central line; the man- dibles are very short but very strong in the female, and the legs are much shorter and stouter than in the male; the elytra are more finely punctured and duller in the male than in the female. L. 20-50 mm. On palings, &c., and very often captured on the wing towards evening; generally distributed and common throughout Kent and Surrey, and not uncommon in other southern counties; Arnndel; New Forest; Southampton; Havant; Devon; it also occurs in Essex, Berks, Suffolk, &c.; it is rare in the Midlands, but has been recorded by Mr. Blatch from Bewdley, and by Mr. Garneys from Calke near Derby ; it does not, however, occur further north ; Dillwyn says that he has found it cast up upon the shore at Swansea, and adds, ‘as it has a Welsh name, ‘ Huil Cornoc,’ it might be supposed to be frequent, but with this exception I have never found it in the principality.” DORCUS, McLeay. This genus contains about fifty species, which are widely distributed, representatives occurring in North America, India, China, Japan, the Malay Archipelago, &c.; four are found in Europe, of which one only occurs in Britain ; the larva does not differ materially from those of other allied genera ; it appears chiefly to attack ash, elm, and willow trees. D. parallelopipedus, L. Oblong, subparaliel, dull black, rather depressed, more shining in female than in male; elytra closely and rugosely punctured ; male with the head and thorax very dull, the former as broad as the latter, labrum broa i and short, truncate ; mandibies larger, with a very large and obtuse tooth in middle ; head and thorax very finely and diffusely punctured and shagreened between the punctures ; intermediate and posterior tibiae with a spinose tooth on their external side behind middle ; female with the head narrower than the thorax, and the mandibles much less strong, with feeble central tooth; head and thorax rather shiny, the former thickly and rugosely punctured in front with two tubercles about middle, the latter not punctured very closely 6 LAMELLICORNIA. [ Dorcus. or distinctly on disc, somewhat rugosely at sides; elytra a little more strongly punctured than in male, and the external spine on tibia more pronounced. L. 15-20 mm. In rotten wood of ash, elm, &c. ; often found on palings and sometimes in cellars and stables ; London district, rather common and generally distributed; Kent ; Glanvilles Wootton ; New Forest ; Devon ; Swansea; Bath; Gloucester; Bewdley ; Birmingham district; Shrewsbury; Repton; Sherwood Forest; Lincoln ; Chureh Stretton, Cheshire ; it appears to cease further north in England, and has not occurred in Scotland; it may, however, be regarded as of general occurrence from the Midlands southwards; one specimen has occurred at Armagh in Ireland (Rev. W. F. Johnson). SINODENDRON, Fabricius. This genus contains three or four species, one from Europe and the others from North America; they are by Thomson and others raised to the position of a distinct family, Sinodendride ; they are easily dis- tinguished from the members of the two preceding genera by having the eyes entire, the posterior femora not extending beyond the margin of the elytra, and the elytra more or less distinctly striate. The larva is beautifully figured by Schiddte (De Metamorphosi Eleutheratorum, Part viii. Fig. xviii. 1); it does not differ materially from the ordinary Lucanide form ; the head is rather small, and the front part of the body considerably thicker than the hinder part, which appears to be less curled up towards the abdomen than is usually the case ; it ives in wood of ash, willow, &c., and sometimes does considerable damage, although it appears chiefly to attack trees that are either decayed or about to decay, and therefore its ravages are more apparent than real. S. cylindricum, L. (juvenile, Muls.). Oblong, cylindrical, parallel- sided, very convex, shining black, very strongly sculptured ; head small, strongly punctured, with a rather long recurved horn in the male, which is furnished behind towards apex with long yellowish hairs; in the female the horn is reduced toa larger or smaller tubercle, and is glabrous ; thorax strongly depressed in front, very strongly punctured behind depression, more closely in female than in male, with smooth central line ; in the latter sex the anterior angles of the thorax are very promi- nent, and the anterior depression is furnished with large and very shallow punctures ; its posterior margin is strongly raised and tridentate, the central tooth being large and blunt, and almost taking the form of a short horn; in the female the anterior angles are not prominent, and the depression with its margins and teeth are evident but much less apparent, the latter being merely indicated by blunt prominences ; scutellum smooth ; elytra very strongly punctured and more or less dis- tinctly striated, with a row of smaller punctures on each side of suture ; antenne ferruginous or pitchy red ; legs black, with tarsi lighter, strongly spinose externally. L. 8-12 mm. In rotten ash, beech, willow, &e.; generally distributed throughout England and Sinodendron “4 LAMELLICORNIA. 7 Wales, and rather common from the midland counties southwards ; it is, however, rarer further north; Scotland, rare, Tay, Dee, and Moray districts; it is probably not uncommon in Ireland. (Platycerus, Geoffrey ; Systenocerus, Weise. As this genus of the Lucanide, represented by the single species P. caraboides, has been included in all our old catalogues, it can hardly be passed over without notice ; the genus is allied to Lucanus and Dorcus, but differs in having the eyes entire, and in the shape of the club of the antennz, the first joint of which is very small, the second and third narrow and laterally elongate, and the last very large, subovate; from Sinodendron it differs in its depressed form, and in the fact that the posterior femora project beyond the sides of elytra. P. caraboides, L. Blue or greenish, rather shining; head and man- dibles larger in male than in female, the former rather closely punctured and pubescent ; thorax transverse, with margins strongly raised, rounded at sides which are sinuate behind, thickly and distinetly punctured ; elytra with rows of punctures which are rather thick and comparatively fine; interstices somewhat rugose; under-side pitchy black, rather strongly pubescent ; legs black or pitchy black. L. 8-12 mm. Stephens records the species as very rare in Britain, and says that ‘“‘specimens have been taken by Mr. Waring of Bristol” and others in Scotland, and that it has also occurred near Oxford, and in the west of England ; I have a specimen in my collection which I purchased from the collection of the late Mr. E. Brown of Burton-on-Trent, and which was labelled ‘‘e coll. Children ;” Erichson records the species as widely dis- tributed throughout Germany, and Thomson speaks of it as ‘not rare on young leaves of oak, birch, and aspen, and as spread over all Scandi- navia ;” it appears that it may very probably be really indigenous in our country, although very rare. ) SCARABAIDE. This family, which is co-extensive with the Petalocera of Dumeril, is one of the largest and most important families of the Coleoptera ; in the Munich catalogue about six hundred genera, containing about six thousand and fifty species, are enumerated, and since its publication a large number of genera and species have been added to it, as may be judged from the fact that in the Supplement of the Cétonides by M. Bergé, published in 1884, no less than eight hundred and fifty species, and about one hundred and fifty new genera are enumerated as having been described since the publication of the Munich catalogue in 1869. The largest known members of the Coleoptera belong to this family, and some of them, as has been already mentioned, are distinguished by the very great development of the horns on the head and thorax ; a great number of them are dung-feeders, and as such act as most useful scavengers ; among these may especially be mentioned the members of 8 LAMELLICORNIA. [Scarabeide. the genus Afeuchus, which roll up balls of dung with their hind legs, and deposit their eggs in the centre ; the larva, when hatched, finds its food prepared for it, and when it has consumed it, it is full-grown and ready to turn into the pupa state; the famous Ezyptian “ Sacred beetle” or “ Scarabeus”’ isa close ally of this genus, if it is not to be identified with it; we perpetually find representations of tlis beetle in Egyptian mummies and sarcophagi; it was apparently regarded as sacred partly because of its valuable work as a scavenger, and partly because its motions while rolling along the balls of dung were regarded as mysti- cally representing the motions of the earth and sun, &e. ; one of these Egyptian figures is represented in Vol. I., Introduction, page xvi. - The earliest known beetles mentioned by the ancients belong to this family, viz. the Coprion, Heliocantharus, and Cantharus; the latter beetle is referred to in the “ Pax” of Aristophanes (L. 1-7, &c.), where two attendants are introduced as feeding the Cantharus in the following dialogue :-— Oixérns A. Alp’ alpe paay os TaxLoTa Kavbapy. Oixérns B. idov" dds adTa, TA KaKioT GToAovMEVH, kal uhmor auras malay ndiw payor. O. A. dbs uaav éerépay e& dvidwy meTAaTUEYHY. O. B. idov war’ atOis* mov yap, hy viv Sy ’pepes ; ov KaTépayer ; O. A. ba Toy AP GAN ekapracas dAnv évéxauwe wepikvAtoas Toiv Todolv. Which may be freely translated :— Servant 1. Bring a cake as quickly as possible for the Cantharus. Servant 2. There it is, give it him, aud may curses light on him, and may he never taste a sweeter cake. ; Servant 1. Give him another cake kneaded from asses’ dung. Servant 2. Well, there is another; but where is that which you just offered him ? Did he not eat it all? SERVANT 1. Yes, by Jupiter, he seized it and rolled it up into a ball with his feet and gulped it down whole. As arule the species belonging to this family are dark-coloured, but occasionally, as in Phaneus, they are very brilliantly coloured and strongly metallic, and thus upset the theories of those who have believed that the plant-feeding beetles are alone metallic and gaily coloured, whereas all the dung-feeders are inconspicuous. With the exception of the genus Aphodius, the family is very poorly represented in Europe, and is chiefly characteristic of warmer and tropical climates. The family has been classified in various ways by different authors ; Erichson divides it into two divisions, the Laparosticti and the Pleuro- sticti, but as the Melolonhini appear to be intermediate between these, I have followed the triple division adopted by Dr. Leconte and Dr. Horn in the Classification: of the Coleoptera of North America, p. 237. Scarabeide. | LAMELLICORNIA. 9 I. Abdominal spiracles situated in the membrane connecting the dorsal and ventral corneous plates, the last one covered by the elytra. a always separate fromthe mentum . . . ScaraBEIDH® LAPAROSTIOTI. II. Abdominal spiracles in part situated on the superior portions of the ventral segments, the last one usually visible behind the elytra; the rows of spiracles feebly diverging. Ligula sometimes free, usually connate with the mentum. . . . SCARABEIDE MELOLONTHINI. III, Abdominal spiracles (except the anterior ones) situated in the dorsal portion of the last ventral segments, forming rows which diverge strongly ; last one or two spiracles usually visible behind the elytra. Ligula always connate with the mentum, ScARABHIDH PLEUROSTIOTI. SCARABAIDZ LAPAROSTICTI. The British species belonging to this division may be separated into the following tribes :— I. aves with six visible ventral segments. . Intermediate coxe longitudinal, va widely distant ; scutellum hidden or almost hidden . . . COoOpRINA. ii. Intermediate cox oblique, not or scarcely distant; ‘scutellum distinct, sometimes very large. 1. Antenne with nine joints; epimera of metasternum covered APHODIINA. 2. Antenne with eleven joints; epimera of metasternum free atapex . . a) ee 2 os es eC EOTRUPENA. JI. Abdomen with five visible ventral segments sla SB be ate UROre INE, COPRINA. The species belonging to this tribe are round or oval, and often very convex ; they are very easily known by their linear and longitudinal intermediate coxze, which are very widely separated, and by having the scutellum hidden or almost hidden ; the clypeus is large and entirely covers the mouth organs ; in some genera organs of stridulation are found in both sexes; the species live almost entirely in dung; it is to this tribe that the Egyptian Scarabei or “sacred beetles” belong; ten genera, containing seventy species, are found in Europe, of which only two genera, containing eight species, occur in Britain; these may be distinguished as follows :— I. Upper surface a convex ; third joint of labial palpi distinct , See ee eC OPRIS;§Gcoy- II. Upper surface “depressed ; “third joint of labial palpi very small, obsolete . . decite pet seat aes. ONTHORNNGUS Late COPRIS, Geoffroy. This genus contains more than fifty species, which are widely dis- tributed, but are chiefly found in hot and tropical countries ; only two occur in Europe, of which one is found in Britain; it is the nearest relation of the true Scarabei of hot climates that we possess ; the genus differs from Onthophagus by its convex and more oblong form, emarginate clypeus, and proportionally much shorter thorax; the species burrow 10 LAMELLICORNIA. | Copris. obliquely for some distance below the dung which they frequent in order to deposit their eggs in safety. Cc. lunaris, L. Suboblong, convex, of about the same size as Geotrupes stercorarius, entirely black, shining, with the under-side of head and anterior femora, and sides of the pro- meso- and metasternum clothed with ferruginous hairs ; head semicircular in front, with a frontal horn, and with a somewhat uneven raised margin, which is sharply incised in centre; thorax strongly reflexed in front, rather deeply channelled longitudinally, differing in the sexes ; scutellum apparently wanting ; elytra strongly striate, with the strize very feebly, and in some cases almost imperceptibly, crenate, interstices slightly convex, sparingly and exceedingly finely punctured ; pygidium visible, strongly reflexed, coarsely punctured ; legs black, tarsi clothed with reddish hairs. L. 14-20 mm. Male with a long pointed horn on the head, which is, as a rule, very slightly recurved towards apex ; at its base on the inner side are two small teeth, and the whole inner surface is rugose and uneven; the thorax is deeply excavated on both sides in front, and furnished at the sides of the excavation with a broad and short, but very distinct, horn, or horn-like prominence. Female with a short horn on head which is emarginate at apex, and the thorax very closely punctured in front with two shallow impressions answering to the excavations in the male, on each side of which is a more or less obsolete prominence ; occasionally these are almost wanting, and the depressions are only feebly indicated. The formation of the thorax is variable, and occasionally small specimens of the male are found which have the thorax formed as in the female, and the horn on the head short as in that sex; the apex of the horn, however, appears not to be emarginate in the male, even in these specimens, but always more or less acuminate ; in no case does the female ever present the formation of the male thorax. Sandy places; in dung; local, but sometimes not unccommon where it occurs ; Greenwich, Charlton, Birch Wood, Bexley, Chatham, Croydon, Richmond; Bungay, Suffolk ; Bournemouth ; Shoreham ; Bath (common in one field only, R. Gillo); Whit- more, Staffordshire (Chappell). ONTHOPHAGUS, Laireille. This genus is one of the largest in point of numbers that are found among the Scarabeide ; it contains upwards of three hundred and fifty species ; these are found chiefly in hot and tropical countries, and appear to be more characteristic of the Old than the New World, although this may perhaps be found not to be really the case; the species are distin- euished by their ovate and rather depressed form and almost crescent- shaped thorax, which is long in proportion to the elytra; the third joint of the labial palpi is obsolete, and the tarsal claws are distinct, and situated at the end of a rather long onychium. Onthophagus. | LAMELLICORNIA. ii The larve of Onthophagus, like the perfect insect, are found in dung, and are very useful scavengers ; the female forms a separate mass of dung for each larva, about the size of an acorn, and buries it at a greater or less depth in the earth ; in this she de- posits an egg, and closes the opening; in about ten days the larva hatches, and begins to devour its abode, and in about two and a half months reaches its full size, and changes into a pupa; the pupal state only lasts for a short time; the larve are white, with the head yellowish, sometimes with a longitudinal greyish streak on the front part of the body, subcylindrical from the head to the middle abdominal seg- ment, and then somewhat gibbous to the sixth segment, which is furnished with a prominence on disc that is used by the larva for locomotion ; from thence to apex the body is curved downwards ; the legs are rather long, and are destitute of claws, as is the case with other dung-feeding species. Thirty-three species of the genus are found in Europe, of which seven occur in Britain; although they are easily recognized if compared together, yet the descriptions usually given by Erichson and Thomson, &c., are in one or two cases somewhat hard to work species out by, and a little apt to cause confusion. I. Colour unicolorous black. i. Head with one or two horns in male; length 5-10 mm. 1. Head with two horns in male; thorax punctured. O, Taurus, LD. 2. Head with the vertex in male prolonged into a plate terminating ina long horn; thorax punctate- granulate... : - > =) OF NUDANS EA: ii. Head with a transverse raised ridge i in male ; length 4-44 mm.. . -. aes O. ovatus, LD. Il. Elytra yellowish- testaceous or fusco- testaceous, either almost unicolorous or with more or less pronounced dark markings; head with a horn on vertex in male. i. Elytra with dark markings very cloudy and indis- tinct, and, as a rule, almost unicolorous testaceous . O. ca@Nnopita, Herbst. ii, Elytra with dark markings distinct. 1. Head and thorax bronze-green or coppery ; dark markings on elytra not, or scarcely, reticulate. A. Sculpture of thorax more or less granulate ; average size larger; pygidium more distinctly punctured . : lee spiel, \OvaWACGALE:. B. Sculpture of thorax asperate- punctate ; aver- age size smaller ; pyeeun more obsoletely punctured es O. FRACTICORNIS, Preys. 2. Head and thorax black, ‘with very slight bronze reflection ; dark markings on elytra more or less plainly eS Cr ey ee ee ee VD NUCHICORNIS, L. O. taurus, L. Black, rather dull, sometimes with a slight greenish metallic reflection on thorax ; head rather long, semi-ovate, with a raised margin, rugosely punctured; antenne reddish, with blackish club ; thorax rounded at sides and base, with anterior angles blunt, rather diffusely and not strongly punctured ; elytra with feeble and obsoletely punctured strize, the interstices dull, sparingly punctured and sha- greened ; legs blackish or dark reddish-brown. L. 7-10 mm. Male with two lone horns on vertex of head, which are curved and divergent. 12 LAMELLICORNIA. [| Onthophagus. Female with the head more thickly and strongly punctured than in the male, with two transverse keels, one between antenne and one between eyes; the thorax also is more strongly punctured than in the male, and is strongly reflexed in front. In some of the males the horns are very short and straight, or even almost wanting. In dung; very rare and somewhat doubtfully indigenous; Brockenhurst and Lyndhurst, New Forest (Stephens) ; Exmouth, rare (Parfitt’s Devonshire Catalogue, p. 68); the species is rather common in Jersey, and many of the specimens in our collections come from that and the adjacent islands, O. nutans, F. (verticicornis, Laich). Black, dull, occasionally with a greenish reflection on the vertex of the head and on thorax; head varying in the sexes, antenne brown with blackish club; thorax thickly punctured, each puncture being flanked with a raised granule, rather short, with anterior angles projecting; elytra with fine and obsoletely punctured striz, interstices finely granulate ; legs black, tarsi sometimes brownish. L. 7-8} mm. Male with the head subtriangular, sparingly and finely punctured, with the vertex produced into a broad plate which is continued into a large flat curved horn; thorax reflexed in front, strongly sinuate or emarginate in middle of anterior margin. Female with the head rounder and more thickly and strongly punc- tured, with two transverse carine; thorax reflexed in front, depressed on both sides, and produced in middle in the form of two tubercles. In the male the horns are sometimes more or less obsolete, and the head shorter, In dung; not common; Chingford ; Walthamstow ; Bath (in some numbers in one field only in May, R. Gillo) ; Swansea. OQ. ovatus, L. Much smaller than either of the preceding species, black, dull, occasionally with a feeble metallic reflection on thorax ; head rounded in front, with a raised margin which is slightly emarginate in middle, rather diffusely punctured behind, more thickly in front ; thorax short, rather thickly punctate-granulate, anterior angles blunt ; elytra with obsolete and very feebly crenate strie@, interstices granulate in irregular rows ; legs black, tarsi sometimes pitchy. L. 4-45 mm. Male with a raised transverse ,carina between eyes; female with two carine on head, of which the front one is curved; the latter is some- times indicated in small specimens of the male. In dung, vegetable refuse, &c.; generally distributed and common throughout the London district and the south ; not so common in the Midlands and further north ; Bewdley ; Church Stretton; Bath; Swansea; Barmouth; Repton; Blackpool ; More- cambe ; not recorded from the Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, very local, Forth district only; it is probably local in Ireland. O. coenobita, Herbst. Head and thorax of a rather bright neous green colour, or coppery, elytra of a rather brighter testaceous colour than in the three following species, with the dark markings very indis- Onthophagus | LAMELLIOURNIA. | 13 tinct, and often almost wanting, so that the elytra appear unicolorous ; head rather long with strong raised margin; antenne reddish with blackish club ; thorax rounded at base and sides, slightly sinuate before anterior angles which are strongly projecting, very thickly and asperately punctured ; elytra with very shallow strie, which are obsoletely punc- tured, interstices broad sparingly and rather distinctly punctured ; legs black with tarsi somewhat ferruginous, posterior tibie with apical sete unequal. L. 43-635 mm, Male with the head sparingly punctured, and the vertex raised into a plate at back, terminating in a more or less curved horn; thorax reflexed in front, simple. Female with the head more closely punctured and furnished with two transverse keels, the one at back of vertex being rather strongly raised ; thorax reflexed, slightly projecting in middle of apical margin. In dung; generally distributed and common in the London district, and the greater part of the south of England, but much less common further north, and not apparently recorded from the northern counties or from Scotland; Swansea; Bath ; Needwood Forest ; Repton, Burton-on-Trent. O. vacea, L. Head and thorax dark bronze-green or coppery, rather dull, elytra testaceous or reddish-testaceous with distinct irre- gular dark-green markings, which in an ordinary light often appear almost black; head rather large, strongly margined, varying in the sexes; antenne red with blackish club; thorax finely and rather thickly granulate, a character which is usually g given as distinguishing the species, but is unsatisfactory, as the punctures on the thorax of the allied species are asperate, and give the upper surface a granulate appearance ; the base and sides are rounded, and the latter are not sinuate before the anterior angles which are obtuse ; elytra with shallow and very obsoletely punctured striz, interstices finely granulate in irregular rows ; legs black, tarsi dark ferruginous ; the species is vari- able in size, but on the average is larger than any other of our British species. L. 7-10 mm. Male with the head elliptical in front, with the vertex extended into a sloping plate, dentate on each side, and terminating in an erect spini- form horn; thorax reflexed in front, sinuate in middle of apical margin. Female with the head round in front, and furnished with two trans- verse keels, the hinder of which is more elevated and more or less distinctly raised into a short horn at each side ; thorax reflexed in front, with a slight prominence in middle of apical margin which is more or less distinctly bituberculate. In some small males the plate ou vertex is small and terminates in an abbreviated horn, and the thorax is shaped as in the female. In dung ; local; generally distributed and common in the London district, Kent, Surrey, and the greater part of the south of England; Brent Knoll, Somerset, in \ 14 LAMELLICORNIA. | Onthophagus. sheep’s dung ; I know of no locality further north than the districts here men- tioned. O. fracticornis, Payk. Head and thorax dark bronze-green or coppery, rather dull, elytra livid-testaceous with distinct irregular black markings; head rather large with raised margin, antenne brown with blackish club; thorax with base and sides rounded, the latter slightly sinuate before anterior angles, which are rather prominent, upper surface thickly and asperately punctured ; elytra with shallow and obsoletely punctured strie, interstices flat, rather distinctly punctured, almost in two rows; legs black with tarsi more or less ferruginous ; pygidium sparingly and obsoletely punctured; posterior tibiee with apical sete unequal. LL. 4-8 mm. Male with the head rather longer and more sparingly punctured than in female, with the vertex raised into a broad plate, which is feebly dentate on each side, and terminates in a more or less curved horn, thorax reflexed in front, simple in both sexes. Female with the head furnished with two transverse keels, smaller and more thickly and strongly punctured than in male. In some males the plate and horn on vertex is much abbreviated, and occasionally resolves itself into a carina, much as in female. In dung; local, and commoner near the coast than inland; not uncommon in the London district; Shirley, Wimbledon, &c. ; Whitstable; Deal; Dover ; Hastings ; Bournemouth; New Forest; Isle of Wight ; Burnham, Somerset; Bath; South Wales; Barmouth; Dean Forest; Bewdley Forest; Huntingdonshire ; Cleethorpes, Lincoln- eee ; fee district ; not recorded from the extreme north of England or from cotiand. O. nuchicornis, L. This species is closely allied to the preceding, but may easily be recognized by the following characters : the head and thorax are of a dull-black colour with very little metallic reflection ; the thorax has the sides rounded without any sinuation before anterior angles, and the elytra have the dark markings more or less distinctly reticulate ; the pygidium also is more distinctly punctured, and the apical seta of the posterior tibie are equal; the plate on vertex, which terminates in a horn, is not quite so broad, and the anterior margin of the thorax in the female is protuberant in the middle; the average size appears to be rather smaller, but this is a character that cannot be de- pended upon, as the species belonging to the genus are extremely variable in size. L, 5-8 mm. In dung; the most widely distributed of all our species; not uncommon in the Midlands and the south, but very rare in the north and in Scotland; London dis- trict, not uncommon, Shirley, Chingford, Forest Row, Belvedere, Addington, Greenwich, Gravesend; Delamere Forest; Whitstable; Deal; Hastings; Glanvilles Wootton; Isle of Wight; Devon; Burnham, Somerset; Swansea ; Barmouth ; Sutton Park, Birmingham; Hunstanton; Lincoln; Cleethorpes; Blackpool; South Shields, very rare; Scotland, very rare, Forth district, ‘‘ Ayrshire, Mr, J. P. Duncan, Murray’s Cat.” Aphodiina. | LAMELLICORNIA. 15 APHODIINA. The species belonging to this tribe are of small size, and of more or less oblong and convex form; the mouth organs (except in one genus, igialia, in which the mandibles are visible from above) are concealed by the clypeus, as in the Coprina; the antenne are 9-jointed with a 3-jointed club, and the posterior tibiz are furnished with two spurs ; the tribe is well represented both in the Huropean and the British tauna, its members taking the place in colder and temperate climates of the larger Scarabzeidze of warm and tropical climates ; the genera found in Britain may be distinguished as follows :— I. Mandibles concealed beneath the clypeus. i, Thorax without transverse furrows or coste. 1. Eyes with at least the anterior margins free. A. Elytra simply striated.* a. Elytra rounded at apex . . ApHopivs, Lil. b. Elytra with the sutural angles produced into a small tooth at apex . . . . . . PxLaetogonus, Muls. B. Elytra more or less distinctly carinate, a. Thorax without longitudinal furrow at base . . Hepraunacus, Muls. b. Thorax with a broad longitudinal furrow at all QOS WIG) 65 a 6 6 a on 6 8 o 0 Oberon, Tier 2. Eyes entirely concealed. . . . oo « . « AMMGoIUS, Muls. il. “Thor ax costate or furrowed transversely. 1. Hind tarsi with elongate more or less cylindrical joints Rayssremus, Muls. 2. Hind tarsi with triangular joints . . . . PsamMostius, Heer. II. Mandibles visible beyond ‘the clypeus; eyes covered . . Meraia, Latr. APHODIUS, Illiger. This genus contains between three and four hundred species, and it is very probable that the number will be largely increased ; a certain pro- portion are found in tropical countries, but as a rule they are charae- teristic of temperate and colder climates, in which they take the place of the larger Scarabeeidz which are found in hotter regions; they are extremely useful scavengers, and during the spring, summer, and autumn may be found abundantly in dung ; they may also be observed flying and settling in swarms on roads and other places frequented by sheep, horses, or cattle. I have seen Aphodius punctato-sulcatus on the wing on the Malvern Hills as early as January 16th. The larva of Aphodius fossor is described and figured by Chapuis et Candéze (Les Larves des Coléopterés, p. 124, Plateiv. fig. 3); it is of a bluish-white colour with the head brown, and the mandibles long, slender, and black ; the antenne are compara- tively long, and are 5-jointed; the anterior pair of legs are shorter than the inter- mediate and posterior ; the abdominal segments are divided into transverse folds ; in general form and appearance the larva does not differ materially from that of other species of 4 phodius and other allied genera. * A. poreus, F., has the interstices of the elytra depressed, and therefore appears at first sight to be an exception. 16 LAMELLICORNIA, [ Aphodius. No less than one hundred and nineteen species of the genus are found in Europe, of which thirty-nine occur in Britain ; these may be divided as follows :— I. Seutellum large or very large. i. Elytra yellowish or brownish-yellow ; posterior _ tibiae with apical setee unequal i. Elytra black; posterior tibize with apical sete equal. 1. Upper surface yl ae ; strie of elytra near suture suleate . . 5 2. Upper surface convex ; striw of calytra finer, not suleate : Elytra black, with apex more or less broadly pede posterior tibize with apical sete equal Il. Seutellum moderate or small. i. Posterior tibia furnished with short apical setz which are of equal length. 1. Base of thorax distinctly bordered through- out. A. Thorax very slightly sinuate before pos- terior angles, more or less plainly im- pressed in front in male; mesosternum not carinate. a. Thorax black, with anterior angles red ; elytra bright red. a*, Abdomen nearly always more or less red; thorax longer in proportion. . . b*. Abdomen black; thorax shorter in proportion . Thorax black unicolorous ; ‘elytra of a Cae -yellowish colour, with a more or less distinct dark band at sides : B. Thorax not sinuate before posterior angles, with sides nearly straight. a. Mesosternum finely carinate between intermediate coxe. a®. Upper surface entirely or almost en- tirely black. ay. Thorax closely punctured. at, Elytra dull, shorter. . . . bt. Elytra shining, lonyer 5 bt. "Thorax very diffusely punctured k b*. Elytra yellowish or reddish-yellow, with suture darker . . . . Mesosternum not carinate between inter- mediate coxe a*, Seventh stria of elytra not produced beyond the adjacent striae; clypeus straight or nearly straight, with anterior margin broadly red. at. Form more depressed; apex of elytra dull, pubescent ’ b{. Form more convex ; apex of. elytra shining, glabrous b*. Seventh stria of elytra pr roduced con- siderably beyond the adjacent strie ; . ERRATICUS, L. . SUBTERRANEUDS, I. A. Fossor, L. . HEMORRHOIDALIS, L. . F@TENS, Ff. A. FIMETARIUS, LD. > bbb . SCYBALARIvS, F, . ATER, De G. . consrans, Duft. . GRANARIUS, L. . NITIDULUS, F. . SORDIDUS, F. A, RUFESOENS, F. Aphodius. | LAMELLICORNIA, clypeus as a rule rather strongly sinuate, black, or with very narrow reddish anterior margin. af. Elytra not er not strongly widened behind, more or less red or pitchy red. af. Size larger; spurs of posterior tibia longer : by. Size smaller; spurs of posterior tibize shorter. *. Elytra lighter; head distinctly and rather strongly punctured . «*, Elytra darker ; head very aes, punctured Saxe bf. Elytra strongly widened behind ; upper surface entirely black . 2. Base of thorax not bordered except at most near posterior angles. A. Elytra black or black with an oblique red spot ; thorax with sides straighter : B. Elytra of a more or less livid yellowish colour ; thorax with sides somewhat rounded ii. Posterior tibia furnished with short bristles at apex intermingled with larger ones. 1. Base of thorax bordered. A. Elytra very dull with interstices rugose. a. Forehead with obsolete tubercles; interstices depressed; elytra of a dark reddish colour ; length 4-5 mm. b. Forehead without tubercles’: ; interstices flat ; elytra black ; length 2-3 mm. B. Elytra with interstices punctured, more or less sbiny. a. Mesosternum carinate between intermediate coxee. a*, Elytra black or black with reddish or yellowish-red markings. af. First joint of posterior tarsi dilated, shorter ; thorax unicolorous black bt. First joint of posterior tarsi not di- lated, longer. at. Thorax black with reddish spot at anterior angles which is sometimes obsolete ; elytra black with indistinct cloudy reddish markings . . bt. Thorax black; elytra black with two well-marked yellowish-red spots oneach . b*. Elytra yellowish with suture alone dark c*, Elytra yellowish with variable black spots and streaks. at. Size smaller; anterior angles of thorax reddish ; anterior dark marking in second interstice of elytra situated before middle . bt. Size larger; sides of thorax entirely reddish; anterior dark marking in VOL. IV. A. LAvPponuM, Gyll. A. F@rTipus, F. A. PUTRIDUS, Cr. A. NEMORALIS, Er, A. pbtaaratrus, Ll. A. Livipvus, Ol. A. porous, F. A. SCROFA, F, A. TRISTIS, Panza, A. PusILuus, Herbst. A. QUADRIMACULATUS, L. A. MERDARIUuS, F. A. INQUINATUS, F. 17 18 LAMELLICORNIA. second interstice of syne situated in middle b. Mesosternum not carinate between inter- mediate coxa. a*, Thorax finely bordered, at sides ; inter- mediate coxee placed nearer together. at. Legs pitchy black or pitchy; elytra yellow with conspicuous black markings b+. Legs more or less testaceous or yellowish. at. Elytra yellowish with distinct black markings; prominences on forehead distinct at least m male. *, Palpi black or dark brown, some- times lighter at base. . **_ Palpi reddish or reddish-yellow bf. Elytra of a livid colour with sides sometimes furnished with a darker band, often with apex and margins towards apex lighter ; prominences on forehead obsolete b* Thorax rather strongly bordered at sides ; intermediate coxe placed further apart. at. Posterior angles of thorax obtuse, well marked, at. Size smaller; male with the apical spines of anterior tibiee pointed at apex; thorax, as a rule, more dis- tinctly punctured . bt. Size larger; male with the apical spines of anterior tibize blunt at apex ; thorax, as arule, less punctured, often almost smooth b+. Posterior angles of thorax rounded, at. Sides of thorax fringed with long hairs bt. Sides of thorax without hairs 2. Base of thorax not bordered except at most near posterior angles, A, Size smaller; head with prominences distinct B. Size larger; head without or with very obsolete prominences. a. Thorax closely and distinctly and mode- rately strongly ae Sie apex of elytra finely pubescent . : b. Thorax rather finely or extremely. finely punctured ; apex of elytra not pubescent. a*, Elytra much longer in proportion to thorax; form subcylindrical, convex; thorax almost smooth ; length 10-12 mm, b*, Elytra shorter in proportion to thorax ; upper surface depressed ; thorax finely but distinctly punctured ; length 6-9 mm. [ Aphodius. (A. MELANOSTICTUS, Schmidt.) A, TESSULATUS, Payk. A. consPpuURCcATDS, L. A. sTioricius, Panz. A, CONSPULUS, Cr. . A.PUNCTATO-SULOATUS, Sfurm. A. PRODROMUS, Brahm. . CONTAMINATUS, Herbst. . OBLITERATUS, Panz. b> > A. ZENKERI, Germ. A, LURIDUS, F. A. RUFIPES, DL. A. DEPRESSUS, Kug. A. erraticus, L. (Colobopterus erraticus, Muls.). Broad, depressed, black with the elytra of a dirty-yellow colour, sometimes with more or less obscure cloudy dark bands at sides; head thickly and finely punc- Aphodius. | LAMELLICORNIA. 19 tured, antenne and palpi black ; thorax large, rather thickly and finely punctured, margined at sides and base; scutellum long and pointed, thickly punctured ; elytra depressed, truncate at apex, with fine crenu- late striz and very broad thickly and finely punctured interstices; legs black, posterior tarsi with the external spur slightly longer than the first joint of the tarsi. L. 7-8 mm. Male with a distinct tubercle on the centre of the forehead. In dung; generally distributed and common throughout the greater part of England and Wales, but not so common in the extreme north ; Scotland, not common, Solway, Tweed, and Forth districts; Ireland, near Dublin and Waterford, and probably common. A. subterraneus, L. (Hupleurus subterraneus, Muls.). Oblong, sub- parallel, a little narrowed at apex, depressed, shining black ; head finely punctured, clypeus rugose, antenne yellowish with club darker, palpi reddish-brown ; thorax large, slightly narrowed in front, with very diffuse and irregular large coarse punctures ; scutellum large, pointed, thickly and rugosely punctured ; elytra with very strong finely crenate striz, those near suture being strongly sulcate with the interstices carinate ; legs black with tarsi ferruginous. LL. 43-6 mm. Male with the central frontal tubercle larger than the other two; * thorax with a small fovea in front. In dung; not as common as many of the other species, but widely distributed from the midland counties southwards; it is less common further north, and has not been recorded from Scotland. Ireland, near Belfast. A. fossor, L. (Teuchestes fossor, Muls.). One of our largest species ; oblong, very convex, shining black; head short sparingly and finely punctured, antenne and palpi brown, the former with blackish club ; thorax large, convex, with large irregular scattered punctures ; scutellum large, obsoletely punctured; elytra with rather weak feebly crenate strie, interstices broad, impunctate ; legs black, tarsi reddish-brown. L. 8-10 mm. Male with the three frontal prominences, especially the central one, distinct, and with the thorax plainly foveate in front. In dung, &c.; common and generally distributed throughout the greater part of England and Wales, but not so commonin the north; Scotland, not common, Solway and Dee and probably other districts; Ireland, near Belfast, Armagh, and Dublin, and probably common. 4. hemorrhoidalis, L. (Otophorus hemorrhoidalis, Muls.). A small and short convex species, which is at once distinguished from all the other smaller species by its very large scute!lum; black, rather shining with a more or less distinct red spot at the shoulders of the elytra, which are also more or less broadly red behind ; head rather thickly and finely punctured, palpi brown, antenne brownish-yellow “ In most of the species of the genus there are three more or less distinct tubercles on the forehead arranged transversely, the central one being the most pronounced especially in the male ; occasionally they are very obsolete, and sometimes quite absent. c 2 20 LAMELLICORNIA. [ Aphodius. with blackish club; thorax large, coarsely punctured with an inter- mixture of fine small punctures; elytra short with rather strong crenate strie, the interstices flat and very finely punctured ; legs black or pitehy with reddish tarsi. L. 3-43 mm. Male with the thorax broader and more diffusely punctured on dise than in the female, and with the central frontal tubercle more distinct. In dung; generally distributed and common throughout the greater part of England and Wales ; not so common further north, and very doubtful as Scottish, the only record being “ Fields near Colinton and irrigated meadows at Restalrig’’ (Ent. Edin.), which Dr. Sharp considers as very probably erroneous. I have no record of the species from Ireland, but it almost certainly occurs in that country. A. foetens, F. Subovate, rather broad, convex, shining black with the elytra bright red, and the anterior angles of thorax yellowish-red, abdomen almost always red; head finely punctured, antenne red with reddish- yellow club, palpi red with the base of the last joint blackish; thorax ample, with large and irregular scattered punctures, the space between being ex- tremely finely punctured; scutellum moderate, punctured ; elytra with rather strong crenate striz, the interstices broad and almost smooth ; legs black or reddish-black with the tarsi reddish. L. 5-7 mm. Male with the central frontal tubercle sharply raised, and the thorax impressed in front. In dung; local; London district, not common, Mickleham, Shirley, Addington ; St. Peter’s, Kent ; Pegwell Bay ; Folkestone ; Hastings; Dover; Glanvilles Wootton ; Devon; Bath; Burnham, Somerset; Swansea; Hunstanton; Midland districts, widely distributed ; Scalby, York; Cleethorpes; Liverpool; Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, very rare, Forth district ; Dr. Sharp once found a colony of the species at North Queensferry on June 20th, 1865; Ireland, near Dublin. A. fimetarius, L. Black, shining, with the elytra bright red and the abdomen entirely black; very closely allied to the preceding, but apart from the colour of the abdomen it may be distinguished by its narrower form, shorter and evidently more transverse thorax, and pro- portionally longer elytra; the forehead in the male has the usual three tubercles obsolete, and in the femele they are almost wanting; the metasternum, moreover, in the former sex is impressed. L, 4—6 mm. In dung ; very abundant and generally distributed throughout the kingdom, In the “ Entomologist’s Monthly Magazine,” vol. xxii. p. 163, will be found a note by myself regarding an article by M. des Gozis in the “Revue d’Entomologie ” for 1885, Nos. 4 and 5, concerning certain closely allied species of Coleoptera; in this article he says that a con- venient character for separating A. fotens and A. jfimetarius is presented by the apical region of the elytra, which in the former is finely punctured, but is still smooth and shining, and differs in no respect from the interstices on the disc; in A. fimetarius, however, it is rugose and dull, and thus differs very much from the interstices on the disc which are smooth and polished ; it is certainly true that the apical region is more punctured in A. fimetarius than in A. fetens, yet this may be Aphodius. | LAMELLICORNIA. 21 applied to the whole of the dise as well, as may be seen by examining them under a strong power ; the difference, however, is very slight, and is much more apparent in some specimens than in others, and cannot therefore be always depended upon. A. scybalarius, F. Oblong, convex, black, shining, with the elytra dirty-yellow, almost always furnished with a narrower or broader dark longitudinal band at sides, which is often not sharply defined ; head thickly punctured, antenne brownish-yellow with blackish club; thorax with large irregular punctures which are usually thicker at base and sides, the spaces between them exceedingly finely punctured ; scutellum moderate, punctured, smooth at apex; elytra with rather strong crenate strie, interstices broad and very finely punctured, almost smooth; legs lighter or darker pitchy-brown with tarsi lighter. L. 45-7 mm. Male with the central frontal tubercle strongly raised, thorax impressed in front. In dung, haystack and flood refuse, &e.; common and generally distributed throughout the greater part of England, but apparently commoner on or near the coast than inland; rarer in the north; Scotland, not common, Forth and Moray districts ; Ireland, near Dublin, and probably widely distributed. A. ater, De G. Short and rather broad, convex, black, or black with the elytra of an obscure reddish colour, head and thorax somewhat shiny, elytra dull; head rather sparingly punctured, clypeus rugose, antenne and palpi pitchy brown, the former with a large club which is strongly pubescent and so of a greyish colour ; thorax thickly and strongly punctured with an intermixture of smaller punctures, the punctuation being very close at the sides; scutellum moderately large; elytra with rather fine and finely crenate striz, interstices flat, sparingly and finely punctured; legs black with tarsi pitchy or reddish brown, L. 33-45 mm. Male with the central frontal tubercle raised, the thorax more closely punctured on disc than in female, and the metasternum impressed. In dung; common and generally distributed throughout the kingdom. A. constans, Duft. Oblong, convex, shining black ; head punctured, clypeus rugose, antenne dark brown with blackish club ; thorax closely punctured, the punctures being of uneven size, with a more or less distinct smooth longitudinal line in centre ; scutellum moderate, finely and rugosely punctured at base; elytra black or dark pitchy brown becoming obscurely lighter towards apex which is reddish-brown, with rather fine crenate stria, the interstices being flat, finely punctured, and obsoletely wrinkled transversely ; legs black or brown with the tarsi reddish-brown. L. 4-5 mm. Male with the central frontal tubercle raised, and with a somewhat eurved elevated raised line on clypeus. 22 LAMELLICORNIA. [ Aphodius. In dunz, &c.; local and, asa rule, rare; Belvedere (T. Wood) ; Ventnor, Isle of Wight ; Devon; Bath, common in early spring (Gillo); Cheshire; Tintwistle, Yorkshire (Chappell); Northumberland and Durham district, Wallington (Power) and near Hartley; Scotland, very Jocal, Tay district, recorded by Dr. Sharp as common in ox-dung at Rannoch in the first week of May, 1866. This species very closely resembles A. granarius, but may be at once known by the much thicker punctuation of the thorax. A. granarius, L. (concolor, Muls.; retusus, Waltl.). Oblong, moderately convex, black, very shining; head thickly and rugosely punctured, antenne brownish-yellow with blackish club; thorax with very diffise and scattered large punctures which are more numerous in smaller examples, the spaces between exceedingly finely punctured, almost smooth ; scutellum rather large, almost impunctate, or with only a few punctures ; elytra with rather fine crenate strie, black with the outer margins and apex more or less obscurely reddish-brown ; legs lighter or darker reddish-brown with the tarsi ferruginous. L. 3-5 mm. Male with the frontal tubercles more distinct than in female, and the clypeus furnished with a transverse raised line. In dung, vegetable refuse, &e.; very common in the London district, and through- out Kent and Surrey, and widely distributed along the South Coast of England ; rarer in the Midlands and further north; Northumberland and Durham district, Meldon, South Shields, &c., rare; not recorded trom Scotland; Ireland, near Belfast. A. nitidulus, F. Elongate, almost cylindrical, shining; head reddish with vertex dark, finely punctured, antennz reddish-testaceous ; thorax fuscous with sides more or less broadly red, finely and unevenly punctured ; scutellum moderate, punctured at base; elytra long, tes- taceous or reddish-testaceous, with the suture very narrowly brown, with rather fine crenate strie, the interstices being flat and exceedingly finely punctured, almost smooth ; legs reddish-brown or brownish-yellow. L. 4-5 mm. Male with the central frontal tubercle more distinct and with the thorax as broad as the elytra and very finely punctured, whereas in the female the thorax is narrower than the elytra and more strongly punctured. In dung ; local; London district, rather common, Darenth Wood, Asktead, Plum- stead, Mickleham; Loughton; Southend; Deal; Sandwich; Eastbourne; Wey- mouth; Devon; Swansea; Hunstanton; Harwich; Cleethorpes; Liverpool ; it usually occurs near the coast, and is not found in any of the midland counties, in the north of England, or in Scotland. A. sordidus, F. Oblong, moderately convex, shining; head reddish with vertex darker, antenne and palpi yellow ; thorax dark with side margins broadly, and anterior and posterior margins narrowly, reddish, exceedingly finely punctured, with diffuse large punctures at sides ; scutellum brown, punctured at base ; elytra long, with moderate finely crenate strie, of a dirty-testaceous colour with a spot at each Aphodius. | LAMELLICORNIA. 23 shoulder and a second behind middle dark, one or both of these being sometimes absent; apex dull, pubescent; the suture also is narrowly dark ; legs reddish-yellow with the femora, in part at least, lighter. L. 3-63 mm. Male with the intermediate frontal tubercle more distinct. In dung; local; London district, not common, Battersea, Plumstead, Greenwich, Loughton, Belvedere, West Ham; Brighton; Devon; Swansea; Cleethorpes ; Liverpool ; Blackpool; Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, rare, “not common near Edinburgh; Fite,’? Murray’s Cat.; the species appears to be chiefly con- fined to the coast. A. rufescens, F. (rvfus, Moll.). Somewhat smaller than the preceding, and more convex, shining; colour variable, the elytra being of a reddish-testaceous colour with or without a dark cloudy band at sides, or entirely pitchy red, or dark pitchy brown, so that the whole insect appears of a dark pitchy colour; the clypeus is reddish and the vertex of head dark, and the thorax dark with more or less broadly red margins ; the reddish portions in dark specimens are sometimes very obscure: the species very closely resembles A. sordidus, but is dis- tinguished by its more convex form, and by the disc of the thorax being evidently more closely punctured, and by having the apex of the elytra shining and glabrous ; the intermediate tibia. moreover, are furnished with five or six long cilia in the male, on their inner side. L, 4-54 mm. In dung; local; Mickleham, Greenwich, Whitstable, Addington, Belvedere, Ton- bridge; Pegwell Bay; Hythe; Hastings; Dover; Bath ; Burnham, Somerset ; Men- dip Hills; Swansea ; Tewkesbury; Birmingbam district ; Hunts; Essex; Hunstanton ; Cleethorpes ; York ; Scarborough; Liverpool ; Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, common in the south, Solway, Tweed, and Forth districts ; Lreland, Armagh ; the species appears to occur more often near the coast than inland. A. lapponum, Gyll. Oblong, rather broad, black, shining, with the elytra of a lighter or darker reddish colour, sometimes pitchy and oceasionally almost black; antenne reddish with club darker, palpi pitchy ; thorax transverse, very finely and closely punctured with the anterior angles pitchy ; elytra with rather feeble crenate striae, the interstices being broad, very slightly convex near suture, and sparingly and extremely finely punctured; legs pitchy, with tarsi lighter. L. 4-51 mm. Male with the central frontal tubercle raised, and the metasternum impressed in middle; the thorax also is broader and less closely punctured on dise than in female. In dung, especially sheep’s dung; a northern anl mountain species, and rare in England and Wales except in the extreme north ; Llangollen ; Snowdon; Tintwistle aud Greenfield, Yorkshire; Teesdale; Northumberland and Durham district ; Scot- land, Highlands, common in sheep’s dung on moors and hill-sides, Tweed, Solway, Forth, Clyde, Tay, Dee, Moray, and probably all the other districts; Ireland, New- castle, co. Down (Champion). A. foetidus, F. (putridus, Herbst., nec Sturm). Much smaller 24 LAMELLICORNIA. | Aphodius. than the preceding, oblong, rather convex, black with the anterior angles of thorax and the elytra red, the latter usually furnished with cloudy dark markings; head very thickly punctured, antenne reddish- brown with club dark, palpi pitchy ; thorax a little narrower than elytra, very thickly and finely punctured, especially at the sides, the punctuation consisting of larger and smaller punctures intermingled ; occasionally the whole margins as well as the anterior angles are reddish; scutellum moderate ; elytra with rather fine, plainly crenate, striz, interstices broad, very finely punctured ; legs reddish-brown, with femora darker. L, 8-43 mm. Male with the three frontal tubercles obsolete, and the metasternum impressed ; in the female the forehead is almost smooth, and the elytra are a little dilated behind. In dung, especially sheep’s dung; rare, but occasionally found in some numbers where it occurs; Bewdley Forest (Blatch); Tintwistle and Greenfield, Yorkshire (Chappell) ; Northumberland district, rare (Bold) ; Scotland, very local, Clyde, Forth, and Tay districts. A. putridus, Sturm nec Herbst. (sedulus, Har.), Oblong, almost obovate, convex, rather more strongly raised behind, black, shining, with the elytra pitchy or reddish with lighter red markings at base, shoulders, and before apex; the apex is rather dull; head finely punc- tured, palpi reddish-brown; antenne reddish-brown with club some- times darker ; thorax slightly rounded at sides and narrowed in front, with the anterior angles obscurely reddish, thickly and finely punctured, the punctuation consisting of larger and smaller punctures intermingled ; elytra with rather fine crenate strize which become deeper towards apex, interstices very finely punctured; abdomen brown, reddish at apex legs brownish-red; the light-red markings on elytra are conspi- cuous in some specimens, but very obscure in others. L. 23-3 mm. Male with the frontal tubercles stronger than in female, and the metasternum impressed. In dung; local and, as a rule, not common; London district, not common, Mickleham, Esher, Ashtead, Addington, Tonbridge; Eastbourne; New Forest ; Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, local, in sheep’s dung, Forth, Tay, und Dee districts; Ireland, Newcastle, co. Down (Champion). A. nemoralis, Er. Obovate, convex, but somewhat depressed on dise, considerably widened behind, black, very shining; head very thickly punctured, antenne and palpi reddish-brown, the latter with blackish club; thorax rather finely and thickly punctured, much more thickly at sides which are almost straight ; scutellum moderate, pune- tured at base; elytra often brownish or obscurely brownish-red at base with rather fine crenate striae, and with the interstices, especially at the sides, plainly punctured; legs black, or reddish-brown with femora darker, tarsi ferruginous. L, t-4} mm. Male with the frontal tubercles more distinct, the thorax somewhat Aphodius. | LAMELLICORNIA. 25 broader and more diffusely punetured on disc, and the metasternum impressed, In sheep’s or deer’s dung in woods; rare; Scotland, Tay and Dee districts (Brae- mar, Aviemore, &c.). Erichson records it as not rare in the Thiiringer Walde in deer’s dung. A. plagiatus, lL. Elongate, narrow, convex, subcylindrical, shining black with a very slight «neous reflection; head finely and more or less thickly punctured, with the frontal tubercles almost absent ; the central one, however, is plainly traceable ; antenne brown with blackish club; thorax with sides almost straight, very finely punctured, with large punctures intermingled ; these are diffuse on disc, but much thicker at sides; scutellum punctured at base; elytra either entirely black, or with a large oblique red patch on disc of each, with fine crenate strie, interstices large and flat scarcely visibly punctured ; legs variable, either black with tarsi ferruginous, or reddish-brown with blackish femora, or entirely reddish-brown. L. 23-3 mm. Male with the metasternum slightly impressed in middle and pubescent. Damp places; under stones, in flood refuse, &c.; rarely in dung; local, but not uncommon where it occurs; Deal; Sheerness; Dover; Hastings; Barmouth ; Wisbeach ; Peterborough ; Norwich; Liverpool: the form with immaculate elytra appears to be the commonest ; this was introduced by Mr. Crotch (Proc. Ent. Soe. London, Nov. 19, 1866) as A. niger, Gyll.; that species, however, does not appear to have been hitherto found in Britain ; it is closely allied to A. plagiatus, but is rather larger, and has no eneous reflection (this, however, is often scarcely visible in A. plagiatus); the posterior tarsi, moreover, have the exterior spur shorter, and the metasternum is more finely and sparingly punctured, and not pubescent in the male. A. lividus, O]. Oblong, convex, shining, of a livid testaceous colour, with the base of the head, the disc of thorax, and the suture of elytra, together with a more or less broad and cloudy band on each of the latter, dark; as a rule the dark band covers the greater part of the elytra, leaving the apex, margin, and a line before suture light; head finely punctured, rugose in front, antenne and palpi testaceous ; thorax extremely finely punctured with fine and scattered larger punc- tures which are more numerous at sides; elytra with rather fine but distinctly crenate striz, interstices exceedingly finely punctured ; legs short and stout, reddish-brown with femora yellow. L. 3}—-44 mm. Male with central frontal tubercle larger, and the metasternum impressed in the middle. In dung, manure heaps, &e, ; very local; London district, not uncommon, Norwood, Lee, Darenth Wood, Sittingbourne, Greenwich, Forest Hill; Kingsgate, near Margate, in abundance (T. W.od;; Holy Island; Northumberland district, rare, Heaton and Long Benton. A. porcus, F. Oblong, rather depressed, black, dull, with the elytra of a dark red colour; head comparatively small, very thickly punctured, antenne yellow with greyish club, palpi reddish-yellow ; 26 LAMELLICORNIA. [Aphodius. thorax thickly and regularly punctured with the interstices finely sha- greened, and with a more or less distinct smooth central line ; scutellum with coarse punctures ; elytra with strong strie which are feebly crenate, with two depressed and channelled, very finely setose, and furnished interstices rows of rugose punctures which are not, as a rule, distinctly marked ; legs brownish-red, usually with the femora dark brown or blackish, L. 4-5 mm. Male with the frontal tubercle obsolete, the prothorax slightly shiny and the metasternum impressed; female with the central frontal tubercle stronger,* and the thorax duller. In dung; local and, as a rule, not common, but sometimes abundant where it occurs; London district, not common, Mickleham, Box Hill, Richmond, Adding- ton; St. Peter’s; Kingsgate; Ramsgate; Ventnor, Isle of Wight; Bath ; Swansea ; Sutton Park, Birmingham ; Scotland, rare, Solway and Forth districts ; Ireland, near Belfast. A. scrofa, F. A very small species; oblong oval, rather depressed, black, dull, clothed with greyish pubescence ; head sparingly punctured behind, finely punctured in front, antenne and palpi brown, the latter with blackish club; thorax regularly and rather thickly punctured, often reddish-brown at sides ; elytra with strong crenate strie, and the interstices with two rows of granulations; sides and apex pitchy ; legs reddish-brown. L. 2-3 mm. Male with the clypeus even and impunctate, and the metasternum impressed in middle, female with the clypeus slightly convex and punctured. In dung; extremely rare as British ; Pentire Point, Cornwall (Stephens) ; Sonth- port (Sidebotham) ; it is not an uncommon species in Central Europe. A. tristis, Panz. Rather short and broad, moderately convex, shining black, sides of thorax and the elytra rarely pitchy; head thickly punctured, frontal tubercles obsolete, antenne yellowish- brown with blackish club, palpi brown; thorax rather thickly punc- tured, the punctuation consisting of larger and smaller punctures inter- mingled ; seutellum rather depressed, with trace of a raised central line; elytra somewhat widened behind, with strong crenate stria, interstices finely punctured, either entirely black, or pitchy, or black with obscure reddish markings at shoulder and before apex; legs blackish or reddish brown ; posterior tarsi short, with the first joint of tarsi dilated in both sexes, and shorter than the spurs of the tibie. L. 3-45 mm. Male with the posterior, tarsi somewhat dilated and pilose on their inner side. Sandy places; in dung; not uncommon where it occurs, but very local; Esher, i ee * I give this fact on the authority of Thomson (Skand. Col. vi. 57); it is, how- ever, if correct, contrary to the usual order of things, and I should be inclined to assign the stronger tubercle to the male. I have never seen the species alive. Aphodius. | LAMELLICORNIA. a Wimbledon, Leith Hill, Whitstable; New Forest ; Bristol; Swansea; Sutton Park, Birmingham. A. pusillus, Herbst. (cewnosus, Ahr.). Oblong, slightly broader, as a rule, behind, moderately convex, black, shining, with the anterior angles of thorax reddish, and the apex of elytra and sometimes a patch before apex reddish-brown ; occasionally the sides of thorax and the whole elytra are reddish; head thickly and finely punctured, frontal tubercles obsolete, antenne reddish-brown with dark brown club, palpi dark brown ; thorax black, with the anterior angles reddish, rather thickly punctured, the punctuation consisting of larger and smaller punctures intermingled, the former being sparing on disc and more numerous at sides; scutellum very finely punctured; elytra strongly crenate-striate, the strie becoming deeper behind, interstices exceedingly finely punctured ; legs pitchy or reddish brown. L. 25-3} mm. Male with the metasternum impressed, and the thorax broader than in female. In dung, haystack refuse, &c. ; somewhat local, but by no means uncommon; Lon- don district, generally distributed and common; Pegwell Bay ; Dover; Folkestone ; Hastings; Brighton; Devon; Burnham, Somerset; Bath; Sutton Park, Birming- ham; Wallasey, Cheshire; Northumberland and Durbam district; Scotland, not rare, Solway, Forth, Tay, and probably other districts; Ireland, near Belfast. This species is related to A. granarius, but is evidently smaller and narrower, and has the thorax much more closely punctured, A. quadrimaculatus, L. (4-pustulatus, F.). Oblong, moderately convex, black, shining, each elytron with two well-marked and distinct large yellowish-red spots on each, one at shoulder and another before apex ; head rather thickly and finely punctured, with frontal tubercles obsolete, palpi black, antenne brown with black club; _ thorax thickly punctured, the punctuation consisting of larger and smaller punctures intermingled, unicolorous black ; scutellum finely punctured at base; elytra with distinct crenate striz, interstices broad and flat and extremely finely punctured; legs black with tarsi reddish, or entirely brown or reddish-brown. L. 23-3; mm. Male with the metasternum impressed, and the spur of the anterior tibiz obtuse at apex, female with the metasternum even and the spur of the anterior tibize acuminate. In dung; rare; Red Hill, Reigate, Coombe Wood ; Windsor; Bristol ; Swansea ; Norfolk ; Scotland, Edinburgh (Stephens); it has not, however, been recorded by Dr. Sharp. A. merdarius, F. Oblong, not very convex, head and thorax shining black, the latter with the anterior angles, and the side margins as a rule more or less narrowly, yellowish-red; elytra testaceous with the suture rather broadly black ; head finely punctured, with frontal tubercles very obsolete or wanting; antenne and palpi brown, the former with blackish club; thorax very finely punctured with an inter- 28 LAMELLICORNIA. [ Aphodius. mixture of fine but larger punctures ; scutellum finely punctured at base ; elytra with crenate stri#, interstices finely punctured, rather more thickly so at sides than on disc; legs blackish-brown, brownish, or yellowish-brown. L. 3-4 mm. Male with the metasternum impressed in middle and the spur of the anterior tibize curved; in the female the metasternum is simple, and the spur of the anterior tibiz is straight. In dung ; common and generally distributed throughout the kingdom. A. inquinatus, F. Oblong, convex, shining, black, with the an- terior angles of thorax usually pitchy red, and the elytra of a dirty- testaceous colour, with dark patches longitudinally arranged near suture and a more or less irregular dark band before sides, which is oceasionally obscure ; head rugose in front, antenne and palpi blackish-brown, the former with the club darker; thorax finely punctured with larger punctures intermingled which are more numerous at sides ; scutellum diffusely punctured ; elytra with shallow crenate striz, extremely finely pubescent ; legs reddish-brown with the under-side of the femora lighter. L. 33-53 mm. Male with the intermediate frontal tubercle more strongly marked, and the disc of thorax less closely punctured than in female; the metasternum also is slightly impressed and clothed with greyish pubes- cence. In dung ; somewhat local, but generally distributed and as a rule common through- out the greater part of England; rarer, however, further north; Scotland, local, Tweed and Forth districts ; it is probably common in parts of Ireland. (A. melanostictus, Schmidt. Very closely allied to the preceding, but, as a rule, much larger, with the ground colour of the elytra of a darker testaceous colour and the legs more developed, and usually lighter ; the latter point, however, appears to be variable ; the sides of the thorax are entirely reddish-testaceous, and the anterior black marking in the second interstice of the elytra is situated in or about the middle, whereas in A. inquinatus it is always before the middle; the dark markings, however, in these species of Aphodius, are often very irregular. L. 38-7 mm. (14-33 lin., Erichson). Apparently very local and rare in Britain; it was introduced by Mr. Rye on specimens from the Manchester district (Ent. Monthly Mag. xv. 280); Wallasey, Cheshire, and Crosby near Liverpool (rare, resembling suffused specimens of A. inquinatus, Ellis); Withington, Cheshire (Chappell). ) (I inserted this species on the authority of Mr. Rye, but felt somewhat doubtful about it, as specimens sent me by Mr. Chappell did not appear to agree with Mr. Rye’s description ; I am, however, now strongly of opinion that the specimens on which the species has been introduced are merely forms of A. inquinatus, and I am led to this belief through the paper by Dr. Ellis, published, since | wrote the above description, in the Entomological Society’s Transactions, xv., 1888, in which he fully discusses the question ; the chief distinguishing character, as he points out, lies in the male, which in melanostictus has the metasternal plate extremely finely punctured and Aphodius. | LAMELLICORNIA. 29 completely destitute of hair, whereas in inguinatus it is thickly and deeply punctured and distinctly hairy, and he goes on to say that on submitting his specimens of the (so-called) melanostictus and those of Mr. Chappell to a careful examination, they all agreed with the males of inqguinatus in the latter character ; as the character of the elytral markings is by no means a dependable one, the species and its allies being very variable in this respect, it seems most probable that A. melanostictus has been wrongly recorded as British ; I have, however, preferred to retain it in brackets, as it is possible that it may be in some collections.) A. tessulatus, Payk. Of shorter and broader form than the pre- ceding species, and with the dark markings of the elytra more confluent, and, as a rule, covering a larger part of the elytra; head and thorax shining black, elytra testaceous or fusco-testaceous with variable dark markings, which sometimes take the form of transverse waved bands, and sometimes of more or less confluent longitudinal patches ; head rugose in front, antenns brown with blackish club, palpi blackish-brown ; thorax with the sides more or less obscurely pitchy or pitchy red, or with the anterior angles reddish, or entirely black, very finely punctured with larger punctures intermingled ; scutellum rather broad, finely and sparingly punctured at base, elytra with shallow crenate striz, interstices exceedingly finely punctured, quite glabrous; legs brown or reddish pitchy brown, with the tarsi, and sometimes the tibie, lighter. L. 33-45 mm. Male with the thorax broader, more convex and more sparingly punctured on disc than in female, and with the central frontal tubercle more distinct. In dung, local and, as a rule, not common; Mickleham, Woking, Chatham, Chobham, Hainault Forest, Tonbridge Wells; Broadstairs (common in late autumn, T. Wood); Folkestone; Deal; Swansea; Sutton Park, Birmingham ; Hartlepool ; Scotland, very local, Forth district; Ireland, Portrush, co. Antrim (Rev. W. F. Johnson). A. conspurcatus, L. Oblong, convex, shining; head black with a reddish spot on each side, rugose in front ; antenne brownish-yellow with dark club, palpi black or dark brown ; thorax with the sides, and often the base, reddish-testaceous, finely punctured with an intermixture of larger punctures; scutellum rather broad, punctured; elytra with punctured strie, testaceous, with seven rather small and distinct dark markings on each, two in the second interstice, one in the third, two in the fourth (one of which is close to base), and two in the sixth ; the interstices are very finely punctured ; legs clear brownish-red, with the femora yellow on their under-side. L,. 4-5 mm. Male with the thorax broader and more sparingly punctured on disc than in female, and with the central frontal tubercle more distinct. In dung; very local; Loughton, Essex; Woodford; Hainault Forest; New Forest; Swansea; Wallasey, Cheshire; Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, very rare, Forth and Tay districts. A. sticticus, Panz. Allied to A. nquinatus, but duller, and with 30 LAMELLICORNIA. [A phodius. the striz of the elytra stronger, and the sides of thorax, and not merely the anterior angles, testaceous; the head also has a reddish spot on each side near eyes, and the markings of the elytra are much more confluent behind and more longitudinal, ordinarily presenting the appearance of a rough longitudinal network at sides and apex, a broad space around scutellum being left immaculate ; as, however, in other allied species, these markings are variable ; head distinetly but finely punctured, more closely in front; antennz and palpi yellow, the former with brownish club; thorax finely punctured, with an intermixture of larger punctures ; scutellum brown, with a yellow spot in centre, punctured at base; elytra with rather deep crenate striz, interstices finely punctured ; legs clear brownish-red, with the femora yellow, at least beneath. L. 3-5 mm. Male with the thorax broader and more sparingly punctured than in female, and the metasternum impressed; the clypeus is obsoletely tuberculate in both sexes. In dung; very local, but sometimes not uncommon where it occurs; Darenth Wood, Shirley, Ripley, Ashtead, Box Hill, Chingford, Tonbridge, Belvedere ; Glanvilles Wootton ; New Forest; Bath (local, September, R. Gillo) ; Llangollen. Stephens records it from Edinburgh, but this would appear to be in error. A. consputus, Cr. (Melinopterus consputus, Muls.). Oblong, not very convex, shining; head black with two well-marked spots above eyes testaceous, diffusely punctured behind, more closely in front ; antenne brownish-yellow with club blackish, palpi brown; thorax rather broadly testaceous at sides, and sometimes narrowly behind ; the anterior margin is also very narrowly yellowish; upper surface more or less thickly and finely punctured with an intermixture of larger punctures ; elytra livid testaceous with apex, sides, and suture, and sometimes a small spot on each before apex light testaceous. or light testaceous with a longitudinal livid band on each, varying in breadth and more or less cloudy, with fine, but distinctly crenate or rather punctured striz, interstices finely punctured, but more plainly than in some of the preceding species ; legs testaceous, with the femora on their inner side sometimes blackish. L. 3-45 mm. Male with the thorax broader and much more finely and sparingly punctured on disc than in female, in which sex the larger punctures are sometimes set close together on disc, and cause it to appear rather strongly and closely punctured ; in the male the metasternum is impressed. In dung; rare; Gravesend (Champion); Sheppey (Walker); Broadstairs (T. Wood, fifteen specimens in late autumn) ; Ashford, Kent (1. H. Hart); Bushey Park (Lowe). A. punctato-sulcatus, Sturm (sabulicola, Thoms. ; Melinopterus punctato-sulcatus, Muls.). Head and thorax black, shining, the latter with margins testaceous ; elytra of a more or less distinct livid-testaceous colour with a broad, more or less cloudy, fuscous band on dise of each ; head with indistinet traces of frontal tubercles, finely and sparingly Aphodius. | LAMELLICORNIA. 31 punctured behind, rugose in front, antenne yellow with blackish elub, palpi black; thorax extremely finely punctured with large punctures intermingled, which in the male are very sparing on disc and thicker at base and sides, and in the female are more thickly scattered throughout ; scutellum rather large, almost smooth behind ; elytra with rather shallow crenate striz, interstices finely punctured; legs brownish-testaceous, L 4-6 mm. Male shorter, subdepressed, elytra clothed with grey pubescence, metasternum with a glabrous impression ; female oblong, subcylindrical, elytra very finely pubescent at apex. In dung; common and generally distributed throughout the kingdom ; one of the commonest of our species of Aphodius. A. prodromus, Brahm. ( ? sphacelatus, Panz.; Melinopterus pro- dromus, Muls.). Very closely allied to the preceding in colour and general appearance, but differs in the following particulars : average size lar.er; head longer without a trace, or scarcely a visible trace of frontal tubereles ; dise of thorax in male almost impunctate ; sides of thorax, as a rule, rather more broadly testaceous ; elytra with the interstices finely and thickly punctured on each side, with the space between almost smooth ; the spur of the anterior tibie is blunt at apex in male and pointed in female, whereas in A. punctato-sulcatus it is sharp in both sexes; one of the best characters appears to be in the sculpture of the elytra. L. 44-7 mm. In dung ; not so abundant as the preceding, but common and generally distributed throughout the kingdom. 4. contaminatus, Herbst. Oblong, convex, somewhat depressed on dise, head and thorax black with an neous reflection, very shining, anterior angles and usually sides of latter of a reddish or yellowish- pitehy colour; antenne black with the two first joints brownish- yellow, palpi yellow with last or last two joints brown ; elytra of an obscure dirty-testaceous colour, strongly pubescent, with fuscous markings, which are somewhat irregular, but usually take the form of longitudinal patches, more or less confluent, on the interstices ; head flat with frontal tubercles obsolete, distinctly punctured, reddish in front in most eases ; thorax suborbicular, only a little shorter than broad, with the dise sparingly and finely, and the sides more thickly and strongly, punctured, and the sides set with long outstanding hairs (a character that will easily distinguish the species); scutellum smooth; elytra with rather distinet punctured strie, interstices rather plainly punctured, especially at sides ; legs yellowish-brown or brownish-testaceous with knees darker. L. 5-65 mm. Male with the thorax larger, the elytra more strongly pubescent, and the metasternum slightly impressed in middle ; anterior tibiae with apical spur rather stout and obliquely truncate at apex. In dung; generally distributed throughout the kingdom, and usually common ; it 32 LAMELLICORNIA. [A phodius. was, however, decidedly scarce at Repton, near Burton-on-Trent,* and is probably somewhat local; it is sometimes exceedingly abundant and swarms on the Mal- vern Hills and in many other localities, being exceedingly fond of hovering over and settling near dung on the roads and pathways in the sunshine. A. obliteratus, Panz. (Melinopterus obliteratus, Muls.). Closely allied to the preceding, but easily distinguished by the absence of long outstanding hairs at sides of thorax, and by the more obscure dark markings on elytra; oblong, convex, head and thorax shining black, the former reddish in front and the latter with anterior angles and often all the side margins yellowish; antenne blackish, with the first two joints yellow, palpi reddish-brown, often darker at apex; thorax finely punc- tured, much more sparingly in male than in female; scutellum smooth ; elytra finely pubescent, with punctured striz, interstices finely punctured, of a dirty-testaceous colour with more or less obscure cloudy dark markings; legs testaceous, with knees darker. L. 4—5 mm. Male with the thorax larger and the pubescence of elytra longer, and the metasternum impressed ; the apical spur of the anterior tibie is also thicker. In dung; local, but not uncommon where it occurs; Birch Wood, Darenth Wood, Caterham, Mickleham, Addington, Tonbridge; Amberley ; Hastings; Isle of Wight; Bath ; Needwood Forest, Staffordshire ; Liverpool district; Scotland, rare, Tweed and Forth districts; Ireland, Armagh, rare (Rev. W. F. Johnson). A. Zenkeri, Germ. Rather short, oblong, ferruginous with the head and thorax dark on disc and with more or less obscure dark markings before apex of elytra; the head and thorax are sometimes almost entirely dark with red margins, and sometimes entirely reddish ; antenne and palpi reddish or ferruginous with club of the former some- times a little darker; head with frontal tubercles, thickly punctured, rugose in front; thorax very thickly punctured, the punctuation con- sisting of larger and smaller punctures intermingled ; scutellum finely punctured ; elytra with broad, flat, and rather shallow erenate strie, the interstices being smooth and feebly carinate in middle, and depressed and finely punctured on each side ; legs clear ferruginous or brownish-red. L, 33-4 mm. Male with the central frontal tubercle more strongly marked, the thorax broader, and the metasternum impressed in middle. In dung; very local and usually rare; Mickleham; Sevenoaks; Addington ; Llangollen ; Withington, Cheshire; Bretby Park, Derby (Harris, August 1887); the species was first detected as British by Dr. Power, who found it at Mickleham, A. luridus, F. (Acrossus luridus, Muls.). Oblong-oval, rather depressed, moderately shining; antenne and palpi black; head and thorax black, the former flat, without tubercles, finely punctured, semi- * During the several years that I worked this neighbourhood I never remember to have met with a specimen, and my friend the late Mr. W. Garneys records it as scarce in the district ; in fact I used to regard it as one of the better species. Aphodius. } LAMELLICORNIA. 33 circular, with strongly raised front margin; thorax rather thickly and finely punctured, the punctuation consisting of large and small punctures intermingled ; elytra with fine and finely crenate striz, interstices flat, rather finely but distinctly punctured in irregular rows, colour very variable, lurid-testaceous with dark, more or less longitudinal, markings, sometimes entirely black, and occasionally simply testaceous with the strie dark ; between these two extremes every variety oceurs ; legs black with tarsi ferruginous, or pitchy, or sometimes entirely reddish. L. 6-9 mm. ; Male with the spur of the anterior tibize obtuse at apex and somewhat inflexed ; in the female it is acuminate. In dung; generally distributed throughout the greater part of the kingdom, but somewhat local in certain districts; the black variety is rather uncommon. A. rufipes, L. (capitatus, De G.; Acrossus rufipes, Muls.). Elongate, oblong, subparallel, moderately convex, almost subeylindrical, pitchy black, or pitehy reddish-brown, with the forehead and middle of thorax often darker, and the front of head and sides of thorax lighter ; antenn and palpi clear ferruginous or reddish-brown; head flat, very finely punctured, semicircular in front with distinct raised margin ; thorax ex- ceedingly finely punctured, almost smooth on dise, with larger punctures at sides and anterior angles ; scutellum smooth; elytra long, scarcely dilated behind, with distinct, but rather feebly crenate striz, interstices flat, extremely finely punctured ; under-side and legs reddish or reddish- brown. L. 10-12 mm. Male with the metasternum slightly impressed in middle, and the forehead even; female with the frontal suture distinet, and with the clypeus obsoletely raised in middle. In dung ; common and generally distributed throughout the kingdom. A. depressus, Kueg. (nigripes, Gyll.; atramentarius, Er. ; Acrossus depressus, Muls.). Oblong oval, moderately convex, but somewhat depressed on disc, shining black, unicolorous, or with the elytra bright red ; head flat, finely punctured, semicircular in front, with distinct raised margin, antenne black, palpi clear red; thorax finely but dis- tinctly punctured, the punctuation consisting of larger and smaller punctures intermingled ; scutellum punctured at base ; elytra somewhat dilated at sides, with finely crenate striz, interstices flat, comparatively distinctly punctured ; legs black with tarsi ferruginous. L. 6-8 mm. Male with the forehead even, and the thorax larger and more finely punctured than in female; in the latter sex there is a trace of the central frontal tubercle, which perhaps confirms Thomson’s observations regarding A. porcus (see page 26). In dung ; somewhat local, but widely distributed throughout the kingdom as far north as the Orkney Islands; the form with red elytra is the typical form, and appears to be very rare as British. VOL. IV. dD 34 LAMELLICORNIA. { Plagiogonus, PLAGIOGONUWS, Malsant. This genus contains three or four species from Europe, Algeria, and Syria; they differ from Aphodius in having the sutural angles of the elytra produced into a tooth at apex, and perhaps ought nut to be separated from that genus, as the differences are very slight. P. arenarius, Ol. (rhododactylus, Marsh.). The smallest of our species belonging to the Aphodiinu ; rather elongate, moderately convex, very shining, black or pitchy black, oecasionally brownish; antenn and palpi reddish, the former with a large blackish or brownish club ; head large, very finely punctured, elypeus large separated from head by a very fine and distinct line; thorax slightly narrower than elytra, almost straight at sides, with the posterior angles emarginate, rather sparingly and strongly punctured, with an intermixture of finer punc- tures; elytra usually a little lighter than thorax, somewhat widened behind middle, sutural angles toothed at apex, with fine strie which become much stronger and sulcate towards apex, interstices sparingly and very finely punctured ; legs reddish-brown or pitchy. L. 2-25 mm. In the male the clypeus is almost even and obsoletely punctured in middle ; in the female it is evenly punetured and somewhat raised in middle. Chalky and sandy distriets ; in dung; occasionally by sweeping ; local; Chatham, Caterham ; Amberley ; Riddlesdown ; Shipley, near Horsham ; Eastbourne ; Swansea ; Newmarket Heath. It is sometimes rather plentiful where it occurs. HEPTAULACUS, Mulsant. The members of this genus are often included under the genus Oxyomus, which in its widest sense includes about a dozen species, of which six are European, and the remainder have been recorded from South Africa, Tahiti, and Chili; they are easily known from Aphodius by having the interstices of the elytra more or less carinate. IJ. Thorax shiny, rather diffusely and not strongly punc- tured; elytra yellow with the second and fourth interstices marked with black . sn ae homaered hc II. Thorax dull, strongly, very closely, and more or less rugosely punctured ; elytra pitchy black or reddish with round yellowish-red spots se ae vorebe Murky Preise III. Thorax rather shiny, somewhat closely but not rugosely and only moderately strongly punctured ; elytra unicolorous reddish. 2. « « - + © © = + . . H. vittosus, Gyil. iH. sus, Herbst. Somewhat elongate, subparallel, pubescent ; head and thorax reddish-brown, the latter with margins lighter; the an- terior margin of the elypeus is also broadly lighter ; elytra obscurely testaceous with the second and fourth interstices mottled with black ; head sparingly punctured, antenna and palpi reddish-yellow; thorax a little broader than long, diffusely and not strongly punctured, more diffusely on disc, more thickly however in female than in H. sus, Herbst. H, TESTUDINARIUS, F’. Heptaulucus. | L.AMELLICORNIA. 35 male, with long and rather thick sete at sides; elytra with six raised longitudinal lines on each, the spaces between these being rather broad and very finely punctured, sides set with thick and long hairs; legs yellowish-brown with femora yellow, posterior tarsi elongate. L. 3-45 mm. In the male the thorax is a little broader than in the female, and is more diffusely punctured on dise, and the clypeus is more even. Sandy places, in dung ; very local, but not uncommon where it occurs. Deal ; Hastings ; Sandwich ; Chesil Bank; Dartmoor, Devon; Burnham, Somerset ; Swan- sea; Norwich; Wallasey, Cheshire (one specimen, Wilding); it is recorded in Stephens’ [lustrations (Mand. iii. 208) as “taken most abundantly by J. Rawlins, Hsq., in a field by Rivelstone Wood, near Edinburgh,” but Dr. Sharp considers that the record is erroneous, H.testudinarius, Ff. Smaller than the preceding, finely pubescent, of a dull black colour, with the elytra black or pitchy, and marked with rather large and irregular round yllowish-red spots; head large, with clypeus somewhat raised in middle in both sexes, and emarginate at apex, thickly sculptured ; antennze and palpi brownish-red, the former with a very large blackish club; thorax transverse, very thickly and strongly punctured, the punctures being large and more or less confluent towards sides; elytra with six raised lines on each, the spaces between being broad and very obsoletely punctured; legs reddish-brown. L. 25-4 mm. Male as a rule much smaller than the female, and with the spurs of the anterior tibie curved at apex; in the female the latter are simple and pointed. Sandy places, in dung; very local, and not common; Woking, Bagshot, Esher, Chobham, Hampstead Heath, Bow, Coombe Wood; Swansea; Sandburn Wood, York (Hey). H. villosus, Gyll. Of about the same size on the average as the preceding, but more shining, and with the thorax less closely and more finely punctured ; the general colour is reddish-brown with the thorax darker, and the anterior portion of head and some more or less indistinct and cloudy markings on elytra lighter; antenne and legs reddish- testaceous, the club of the former small; thorax transverse, rather thickly punctured ; elytra with six raised lines on each, which, however, are less sharp and much less strongly marked than in the preceding species ; posterior tarsi comparatively short. L. 3-4 mm. The male is asa rule smaller than the female, but the other sexual differences are slight. Sandy and chalky places; very rare; Mickleham (where it has been captured by Mr. Champion and Mr. Marsh by beating hazel) ; Freshwater, Isle of Wight (Water- house) ; it has also been taken recently (June 1887) in the island by Mr. Champion ; Newmarket Heath (Stephens); Llandudno (Sidebotham); Southport (one specimen taken on June 19th, 1858, by Mr. B. Cooke). D2 36 LAMELLICORNIA. { Oxyomus. COXYOMUS, Laporte. The single British species belonging to this genus in its restricted sense may be easily known by its small size and unicolorous black colour, and also by the broad longitudinal furrow at the base of thorax, and the strongly sculptured furrows and interstices of elytra ; it is often found in hotbeds in certain localities. O. porcatus, F. (sylvestris, Scop.). Black or fuscous black, dull, rather elongate and subparallel, with the upper surface somewhat de- pressed ; head large, finely and sparingly punctured, antenne and palpi reddish-testaceous ; thorax as broad as elytra with sides almost straight, anterior margin reddish, upper surface strongly and unevenly punctured, with a broad furrow reaching from about middle to base; elytra with ten strong furrows set with large strong punctures, the interstices being carinate, and the punctures divided by transverse lines ; apex of abdomen and legs reddish-brown. L. 2-2} mm. In the male the metasternum has a shallow longitudinal impression in the middle. In vegetable refuse, cut grass, dung-heaps, &c.; often in hotbeds; local; London district, not uncommon ; Hastings; Shirley Warren, Southampton ; Bath ; Swansea ; Norfolk; Wicken Fen, Cambridge; Cheshire ; Repton, Burton-on-Trent; Lincoln ; Scarborough ; New Brighton; Crosby, near Liverpool; it has not apparently been recorded from the extreme northern counties of England or from Scotland. AMMGCIUS, Mulsant. This genus contains about sixteen species, of which twelve are found in Europe, and two have been described from the Cape of Good Hope ; they are distinguished from Aphodius by the fact that the eyes are entirely concealed when the head is retracted, and from Rhyssemus and Psammobius by not having the thorax transversely costate or sulcate ; only one species is found in Britain. A. brevis, Er. (elevatus, Panz., nec Ol.). Obovate, short and broad, considerably dilated behind, very convex, shining black, head large, broadly emarginate in front, finely punctured behind, clypeus somewhat rugose, antenne and palpi red; thorax rather narrower than elytra, somewhat narrowed in front, with large and coarse scattered punctures which are usually thicker at base and sides ; scutellum rather large ; elytra only double as long as thorax, very convex, raised behind, with very strong crenate striae, which become deeper behind, interstices smooth ; legs pitch-black with tarsi ferruginous, posterior tarsi with the exterior spur longer than the first joint of the tarsus. L. 33-45 mm. Male with the metasternum slightly impressed in middle. In partly dry cow-dung; very locai; first taken by Mr. Haward, in May 1859, on the sand-hills at Southport, Lancashire, and afterwards found abundantly in the same locality ; it has, I believe, also occurred in one or two neighbouring localities. vo ~) Rhyssemus. | LAMELLICORNIA. RHYSSEMUS, Mulsant. This genus contains about fifteen species, of which eight occur in Kurope, and the rest have been recorded from North America, Ceylon, North Africa, Madagascar, &c.; they are very closely allied to Psammobius, but are distinguished by the structure of the hind tarsi and the granulation of the interstices of the elytra; as in the last-mentioned genus, the head is asperate, and the thorax sulcate. R. germanus, L. (Psammobius asper, Steph.). About the size of Oxyomus porcatus, and of the same shape, fuscous black, dull, antenne and palpi reddish-yellow ; head thickly and finely granulate; thorax short, convex, with four or five transverse furrows, dividing four trans- verse elevated costee, the two posterier of which are sinuated and inter- rupted in middle ; elytra elongate, punctate- striate, aba the interstices granulate in two rows ; ; legs reddish-brown. L. 2-23 mm. Male with the metasternum impressed with a re roundish impression in middle, Under rotting vegetable matter, and at roots of decaying plants; very rare, and doubtful as British; sandy coasts near Bristol (Stephens); said by Curtis to have been taken near Swansea; I know of no recent captures. PSAMMOBIUS, Heer. This genus contains about five-and-twenty species, of which fifteen are found in Europe; the others are widely distributed, species having been recorded from North and South Africa, Arabia, Ceylon, Java, Cuba, North America, &c.; they are distinguished from all our other allied genera except Rhyssemus by their deeply and transversely sulcate thorax. I. Thorax without lateral or basal seta; first joint of pos- terior tarsi longer than exterior apical spur of tibiw; tarsi longer, with claws of the usual size . .« . PP. cmsus, Panz. II. Thorax with a fringe of clavate sete at base and ‘sides; first joint of posterior tarsi shorter than exterior apical spur of tibize ; tarsi shorter, with claws small and weak. . Size smaller and narrower ; striz of elytra rather finely | pnetred : . P. suncrcoxrtis, Z7/. . Size larger and broader, strie of elytr a broader and more/coarsely punctured). 3) 9.) s 28. 2 =) 2 = « J2- ROROLOOLDIS; M0. P. cesus, Panz. (Pleurophorus cwsus, Muls.). Elongate, narrow, subeylindrical, parallel-sided, pitchy black, shining, with the antenne reddish ; head thickly wrinkled and granulate ; thorax as broad as elytra, not narrowed in front, sparingly and very strongly punctured, with a fine central furrow, abbreviated in front, and two feeble transverse furrows on each side, one just behind the anterior margin and the other in the middle ; elytra with strong and crenate striz, interstices flat and 38 LAMELLICORNIA. [ Psammobius. smooth ; legs short, ferruginous, with the posterior tarsi slender, and not very short, claws of the usual size. L. 23-3 mm. Under stones and on the wing ; extremely rare, and somewhat doubtful as British ; Stephens (Illustr. iii. 211) refers to it as “a rare species, at least towards the eastern parts of Britain; in the western it appears to be more abundant. ‘Near Bristol and Pentire Point, Cornwall,’ Dr. Leach:” I know of no recent capture. P. sulcicollis, IJ]. Obovate, convex, strongly sculptured, brownish- black, brown or reddish-brown, rather shining, antennz reddish-yellow or ferruginous ; head reddish on anterior margin, granulate in front and with oblique ridges behind ; thorax somewhat narrower than elytra with four deep transverse furrows, base and sides set with short clavate sete ; elytra with strong and deep striz, which are crenate or punctured at their base, but not very evidently so; legs brownish-red, tarsi short with small and feeble claws. L. 23-3 mm. Male with the metasternum slightly impressed in middle ; some specimens appear to be considerably more dilated behind middle than others, but I do not know whether this is a sexual difference. Sandy places on the coast, in and on the sand ; oceasionally under seaweed ; local and not common; Deal; Dover ; Westward Ho! North Devon; Burnham, Somerset ; Bristol ; Weston-super-Mare ; Swansea; Norfolk ; Scarborough; Crosby, near Liver- pool; Southport, Lancashire ; Scotland, extremely local, Tay district. Dr. Sharp (Scottish Nat. iv. 179) says of it, “‘ This is a maritime species, but occurs in a sandy place on the banks of the Tay above Perth.” Mr. W. Garneys has recorded it from Repton, near Burton-on-Trent, in hotbeds, but I think he must have made some mistake regarding it. P. porcicollis, Ili. Larger and broader than the preceding, which it closely resembles; it may easily be known by the much broader and more coarsely crenate striz of the elytra; the thorax is more ample, and there are scarcely any traces of the oblique ridges at the back of the head which are evident in P. suleicollis. LL. 3-33 mm. Sandy places, beneath the surface of the sand, under small stones, and also at the roots of stunted or low herbage (such as Ononis); very rare; a few specimens have been taken at Whitsand Bay, four miles from Devonport, by Mr. J. J. Walker; one specimen was known previously, which was found in Mr. Kirby’s collection mixed with P. sulcicollis, FEGIALIA, Latreille. This genus contains about a dozen species, of which three occur in Europe ; all of these are found in Britain; the other species have been described frora Northern Asia, North America, and Egypt; they are distinguished from all the other Aphodiina by having the mandibles visible beyond the clypeus. I. Thorax punctured or almost smooth; colour, as a rule, black, or dark pitchy-brown. i. Thorax very coarsely punctured; posterior legs not thickened’ fla oa i “eee aid We hire oyeth SABO DED, Payh: Agialia. | LAMELLICORNIA. 39 ii. Thorax very finely punctured, almost smooth ; posterior leps- thickened’. 3 6) wba Oe ae a ee OAL ARENARTAS 2 II. Thorax strongly rugose ; colour always rufous ; posterior legs thickened) *'. 8/32 429 CRS wae? A aD SE ees A ee AMES ZB. sabuleti, Payk. Oblong, subparallel, black or pitchy black or brownish, not very shining, upper surface convex but with dise of elytra subdepressed ; head punctured behind, rugose or slightly granulate in front, antenne and palpi red, maxillary palpi with the last joint slender and acuminate; thorax about as broad as elytra, scarcely narrowed in front, very coarsely punctured, with the base sinuate on each side; elytra with very strong crenate striz ; legs ferruginous, or pitchy with tarsi lighter, posterior tibize narrow and only a little widened at apex, posterior tarsi rather long. L. 3-45 mm. On the sandy banks of rivers and streams both near the coast and inland; local; it has not occurred, apparently, in the London district or the south of England ; Bristol; Swansea; banks of Usk; Bewdley ; Matlock; banks of Bollin, Cheshire ; banks of Irwell and Mersey; Scarborough; New Brighton; Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, local, Solway, Forth, Tay, Dee, and Moray districts. ZZ. arenaria, |. (globosa, Kug.). Strongly ovate, very convex, somewhat globose, short and broad, of a shining black er reddish-brown colour, with long yellowish or brownish hairs at sides; head convex, thickly granulate in front, antennz yellowish-red; thorax short, trans- verse, extremely finely and almost invisibly punctured, smooth; elytra strongly convex and much dilated behind, with fine and rather feeble striz, which are very obsoletely punctured, interstices broad and smooth; legs ferruginous, posterior tarsi very short, tibiz dilated. L. 4-45 mm. Sandy coasts; somewhat local in places, but apparently generally distributed around the coasts of the whole kingdom, and, as a rule, one of the commonest of the sand-hill beetles; it is extremely sluggish in its movements; immature specimens are often quite rufous, and in some collections have been made to do duty for 2. rufa. HE. rufa, F. Oblong, rather elongate, subparallel and almost subcylindrical, elytra somewhat depressed on disc, colour entirely rufous or light ferruginous; head rugose and finely and very thickly granulate, antenne and palpi yellowish-red, last joint of maxillary paipi somewhat securiform; thorax about as broad as elytra, somewhat narrowed in front, coarsely wrinkled, and finely punctured between the wrinkles; elytra strongly striate, the striz being feebly crenate or punctate at their base; legs rufous, intermediate and posterior tibie darker at apex, and much dilated, tarsi short. L. 33-45 mm. _On sandy coasts; very local; first taken by Mr, F. Archer in June 1862 at New Brighton, and for a long time considered one of our rarest British beetles; it has, however, been recently taken in some numbers by Dr. Ellis, Mr. Wilding, and others at Wallasey (Cheshire), Liverpool, and New Brighton, and probably occurs in other localities in the Liverpool and Lancashire district. The late Mr. Garneys had a specimen in his collection which, as far as I remember, he told me he captured at Barmouth, North Wales. 40 LAMELLICORNIA. | Geotrujina. GEOTRUPINA. The species belonging to this tribe are, as a rule, of large size and rounded convex form; in some species the males have the thorax, and sometimes the head, armed with horns and tubercles; the antenne are 11-jointed, and terminate in a 3-jointed club, which is variable in form; the ventral segments are six in number, and the pygidium is covered hy the elytra; four genera are found in Europe, of which two occur in Britain; three or four other tribes intervene between the Aphodiina and the Geotrupina, of which the Hybalina and Hybosorina oecur in Europe, but are not represented in our fauna. I. Antenne with club longer than funiculus, not lamellate ; posterior angles of thorax right angles; size smaller . . . ODONTEUS, Klug. II. Antennz with club shorter than funiculus, lamellate ; pos- : terior angles of thorax obtusely rounded; size larger. . . GxorrupsEs, Latr, ODONTEWUS, Klug. The three or four species that form this genus have been by many authors included under the genus Bolboceras, Kirby, which contains upwards of a hundred species that are widely distributed throughout the world; the species belonging to Odonteus proper have been described from North America and Europe, and appear to be distinguished by having the eyes entirely divided instead of only partially divided as in Bolboceras ; the single European species is extremely rare in Britain, and may be at once known from Geotrupes by its smaller size, the long club of the antenne, the right-angled posterior angles of thorax, and the long recurved moveable horn on the head of the male; it lives in dung, but has usually been taken in Britain on the wing. O. mobilicornis, I’. (armiger, Scop.; 3 bicolor, F.). Short oval, very convex, upper surface glabrous, colour black or pitchy, occasionally, in immature specimens, feriuginous, under-side reddish or brownish-yellow, clothed with yellowish pubescence; head thickly and rugosely punctured in front; thorax punctured, with a fine longitudinal channel in centre which is abbreviated in front, posterior angles right angles; elytra with strong punctured stria, interstices impunctate or almost impunctate ; antenne and legs yellowish, tibie darker, front tibie with eight teeth. L. 6-8 mm. Male with an elongate, curved, moveable horn on forehead; thorax in front horned and foveolate on each side, and furnished with two teeth in the centre. Female with two feeble prominences on forehead, and three on the front of thorax. Tn small males the horn on forehead is much shorter, and the horns and foyesx on thorax are more or less obsolete. Odonteus. | LAMELLICORNIA. 41 In dung; generally taken on the wing; very rare; Charlton (Lady Maryon Wilson, one specimen taken in or about the year 1795 *) ; Darenth Wood (Rye); Croydon (Mason); Hollington and Guestling, near Hastings (Butler, &c.) ; Stephens records it from Hertford, Darenth Wood, Birch Wood, Dartford, Dorking, Coombe Wood, Wisbeach, Bristol, Norfolk, and Suffolk. Mr, Mason’s specimen is one of the most recent instances of its capture in Britain: seeing a beetle flying past, he knocked it down with his stick to see what it was, and found it to be this very rare species. GEOTRUPES, Latreille. This genus contains upwards of a hundred species, which are chiefly found in temperate climates ; the majority occur in Europe, Northern and Central Asia, and North America, and very few appear to be inha- bitants of tropical countries ; forty-five species are found in Europe, of which seven occur in Britain; they are large dark oval and convex insects, and may be known by the short thick lamellate club of antenne, the obtusely rounded posterior angles of thorax, and the coriaceous lobes of the maxilla. G. stercorarius, L., is one of the beetles that is most familiar to the ordinary observer of nature; it is the ‘‘ shard-borne ” beetle of Shakespeare, and goes by the popular names of “Dor Beetle,” “ Dumble-dor,” or “ Clock,” and in some districts, as Mr. Rye observes, it is vulgarly called the “Lousy Watchman,” from the fact that it is perpetually infested with a brown Acarus, a species of Gamasus ; it flies with a heavy flight on still warm evenings in summer and autumn with a loud humming noise, and occasionally blunders into people’s faces, in which case it inflicts rather a sharp blow ; the species of Geotrupes live, as a rule, in dung, but are also found in decaying fungi, and sometimes at exuding sap; they have the power of making a sharp squeaking noise by rubbing the back of the hind femora against the abdomen. The larva of G. stercorarius has the greater part of the abdominal segments of a slate colour or bluish-grey tint; the head and thorax are brownish, and part of the first abdominal segment is dirty-white ; the female beetle digs a burrow about a foot or a foot and a half deep in the earth below a patch of dung, of which she carries down portions, and in them deposits an egg, from which in about eight days the larva hatches, and proceeds to feed on the food thus prepared for it; when this is consumed it is ready to assume the pupal state, and after a short time emerges as a perfect beetle; the larve of the Geotrupina, like those of the Coprina and Aphodiina, have the segments divided into transverse folds, but differ from these two tribes in the fact that the mandibles are furnished with several teeth, instead of being simply bidentate or tridentate. I. Thorax of male with three horns in front . . . . . G, TypHa@us, L. II. Thorax of male without horns. SS ee ee ee ———————— OS * This specimen is in Dr. Power’s collection : Lady Maryon Wilson was one of our earliest working Coleopterists, and used to take many good species at the end of the last century, such as Ludius ferrugineus, Crioceris merdigera, &e.; of the latter species I have two or three specimens taken by her in my collection. 42 LAMELLICORNIA. [ Geotrupes i. Form oblong oval; striae on elytra stronger; elytra without distinct cross striation ; size larger. 1. Elytra with seven striz on each between suture and humeral prominence. A. Abdomen longitudinally smooth in middle, neither punctured nor pubescent . . . . . . G.SPINIGER, Marsh. (stercorarius, Er.) B. Abdomen entirely (even in the middle) punc- tured and pubescent. . ... =: . . =. +. G. STERCORARIUS, L. (putridarius, Er.) 2. Elytra with nine striae on each between suture and humeral prominence. . . : . G.murator, Marsh. iis Form short oval, subhemispherical ; F ‘strie of elytra feebler ; elytra with more or less distines cross striation, which is sometimes almost obsolete; size smaller. 1. Upper surface with sculpture more distinct ; thorax sparingly punctured . . : . G, syLvaticus, Punz. 2. Upper surface with sculpture less distinct, as a rule very shiny. A. Thorax closely punctured throughout. . . . G. VERNALIS, L. B. Thorax almost impunctate on disc, plainly punctured at sides. .. . . =... =. - . G. PYRENEUS, Charp. G. Typhoeus, L. (s.g. Typheus, Leach; Minotaurus Typheus, Muls.), Black, shining, rather depressed, with the under-side and legs clothed with blackish hairs; antenne black with club lighter ; man- dibles rounded at sides, emarginate externally before apex and pointed ; head diamond-shaped in front with a strong raised margin, and a more or less defined longitudinal keel, sparingly punctured in male, rugose in female ; thorax short, as broad as elytra, with the sides rounded ; elytra with strong strie which are feebly punctured at their base, and become finer towards sides and obsolete at apex; legs black. L. 11-18 mm. Male with the thorax armed in front with three horns, of which the outer two reach as far as the front of the head, and are somewhat curved, and the intermediate one is much shorter and acuminate. Female with the thorax much more strongly punctured at sides than in male, with two tubercles and a raised transverse ridge on its anterior margin. In some males the horns are much abbreviated. Sandy places, under cow-dung ; somewhat local, but generally distributed from the midland districts southwards; rarer further north ; Liverpool district, rare, one dead specimen found at Stourton (Gardner) ; Dunham Park, Manchester ; ; not recorded from the extreme northern counties of England, or from Scotland ; Ireland, near Dublin, Belfast, &e. G. spiniger, Marsh. (stercorarius, Er., nec L. ; mesoleius, Thoms. ; puncticollis, Malin.). Oval, convex, black, not very shining, upper. surface without pubescence, under- side of a deep shining violet- blue colour, sometimes greenish or coppery, clothed with shaggy pubescence and punctured, with a smooth longitudinal space in centre, which is neither punctured nor pubescent ; head triangular, rugose, with a raised Geotrupes. | LAMELLICORNIA. 45 longitudinal line , thorax in both sexes rather thickly punctured at sides, with the dise very diffusely punctured, and with a longitudinal line in centre, abbreviated in front, and chiefly indicated by an irregular single or double row of large punctures ; the greatest breadth is behind middle; elytra at base about as broad as thorax, with rather strong but finely-punctured striz, of which seven are placed between the suture and humeral prominence ; legs black, posterior tibie with three carine on their outer side. L, 14-20 mm. Male with the thorax larger than in female, the posterior femora armed before base with a sharp tubercle, and the trochanters produced into a spine at apex ; the anterior tibie are longitudinally keeled in the middle beneath, the keel being more or less distinctly toothed, ending in a sharp tooth at the base of the third inflexed marginal tooth, and not enlarged before that tooth; the posterior femora and the apex of their trochanters are strongly toothed, the femoral tooth being somewhat the stronger of the two, and slightly recurved. In dung; generally distributed and common throughout the kingdom. G. stercorarius, L., nec Er. (putridarius, Er.). Closely allied to the preceding, but rather larger on an average, with the body more shining and more metallic ; the chief distinguishing character, however, lies in the fact that the abdomen is punetured and pubescent through- out, even in the middle; the mandibles are simply sinuate at apex instead of bisinuate as in the preceding species; the thorax is im- punctate or almost impunctate on dise, and not so thickly punctured at the sides, and the central line is less strongly indicated, and scarcely, if at all, punctured ; the antennz are usually lighter, but this is not a de- pendable character ; in the male the anterior tibie are longitudinally keeled beneath, but the keel is not denticulate, and ends in an acute toothlet at the base of the third marginal tooth (which is scarcely inflexed), and is enlarged outwardly in a curve before this toothlet ; the posterior trochanters and femora are toothed, with the teeth equal in size. L. 16-23 mm. Ip dung; not so common perhaps as the preceding species, but apparently gene- rally distributed throaghout the kingdom. (G. foveatus, Marsh. (intermedius, Ferr.; punctato-striatus, Steph.; putridarius, Muls.; stercorarius var. minor, Er.; stercorarius var. 6, Thomson). This species of Marsham is retained in Dr. Sharp’s catalogue and the European catalogue of Heyden, Reitter, and Weise, on the authority of Baron von Harold, who has made a particular study of the genus (Col. Heft. xi. pp. 87-101); there is, however, great confusion with regard to it, and I must say that I agree with Mr. Rye (to whose remarks on the species in the Entomologist’s Annual for 1874 I am much indebted in the descriptions above given) in regarding it either as a myth or a hybrid; the anterior tibie appear to be altogether as in G. spiniger, Marsh., but the body is shining and metallic as in G. stercorarius, L., and 44 LAMELLICORNIA. [ Geotrupes. as in the latter species the abdomen is entirely punctured and pubescent; it is therefore plainly intermediate between the two species; according to Marsham the species is most like G. spiniger, but has four excavated punctures on the thorax, the disc of which is more remotely and the sides more thickly punctured; the seutellum is violet, the margins of the sulcate elytra and thorax blackish-blue; the posterior femora are furnished with one or two small teeth, and the anterior tibize with six teeth; the length is 14 mm. Mr. Rye confesses that he is unable to determine the species from any of his specimens, nor have I heard of any other person who has been able to do so; the question must therefore still be left in abeyance. Dr. Sharp in his Catalogue of Scottish Coleoptera mentions G. fuveatus as occurring throughout Scotland, but he omits G. spiniger altogether, which appears to be the most common and widely distributed species of the genus; he obviously therefore regards them as synonymous.) G. mutator, Marsh. Closely allied to the preceding in size and general appearance, but at once distinguished by having nine strie instead of seven between the suture and humeral prominence of the elytra; the upper surface, as a rule, appears to be slightly violaceous, but is sometimes bluish or greenish as in the preceding species; the under- side is metallic, sparingly punctured and pubescent, especially in middle ; the mandibles are strongly rounded externally and slightly sinuate at apex; the thorax in both sexes is finely and diffusely punctured at sides and smooth in the middle, and in the middle is furnished with a fine central line, which is abbreviated in front, and is marked with a few punctures or almost impunctate ; posterior tibie with three carine on their outer side; the general form is somewhat more oblong than in the two preceding species. L. 15-22 mm. Male with the posterior femora near base, and the trochanters at apex, armed with a sharp tooth; anterior tibize with a keel underneath which is serrate and terminated in two teeth at apex. In dung; generally distributed and more or less common in the London district and the south of England ; Burnham, Somerset ; Bath; Bristol; Swansea; Tewkes- bury ; Needwood Forest, Staffordshire ; I do not, however, know of any locality further north than those here mentioned. G. sylvaticus, Panz. Smaller and rounder than either of the pre- ceding species, upper surface without pubescence, of a shining blue-black colour with the margins more distinctly blue, under-side clothed with blackish pubescence, shining blue or violet-blue, closely punctured ; head rugose with a distinct prominence in centre, antenne reddish, with the exception of the first joint, which is dark; thorax as broad as elytra, broadest behind middle, narrowed in front, diffusely punctured on dise, more closely at sides, with a trace of a longitudinal furrow at base ; scutellum with a few coarse punctures arranged longitudinally in middle; elytra with feeble and obsoletely punctured striz, the interstices with Geotrupes. | LAMELLICORNIA. 45 plain cross striation, and finely and diffusely punctured ; mesosternum without prominence; legs black, posterior tibiz with two transverse carine on their outer side. L. 10-16 mm. Male with the anterior tibiz furnished on their under-side with a central keel, which is serrate and tuberculate. In dung, rotting fungi, &c.; common and generally distributed throughout the kingdom. G. vernalis, L. Short oval, almost semiglobose, very shining, cyaneous with the margins strongly metallic, bluish or greenish; under- side closely punctured, clothed with blackish pubescence; antenne black; head rugose with an obsolete frontal tubercle; thorax closely and thickly punctured, the punctuation consisting of larger and smaller punctures ; scutellum with a few punctures at base; elytra with five rows of punctures, interstices with more or less distinct cross striation, sometimes almost smooth ; mesosternum with a sharp cariniform promi- nence; legs black, posterior tibiae with two carinz on their outer side; the sculpture of the thorax will at once distinguish the species. L. 10-14 mm. Male with the posterior femora dentate and serrate underneath on their anterior margin, and with the central keel of the anterior tibie also serrate, the latter being furnished with an emarginate tooth at apex. In dung, decaying fungi, &c.; local, but widely distributed; London district, not uncommon, Greenwich, Plumstead, Esher, Coombe Wood, Belvedere, Wimbledon, &c. ; New Forest ; Devon; Llangollen; Swansea ; Barmouth ; Midland districts, generally distributed ; Carlisle; not recorded by Bold from the Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, rare, Highlands, Clyde, Tweed, Moray, Sutherland, and probably other districts; Ireland, near Dublin, Portrush, &e. G. pyrenzeus, Charp. (vernalis, Steph., nec L.; politus, Muls.). Closely allied to the preceding, of which it appears to have been con- sidered a variety by some authors; it is, however, very easily dis- tinguished by the following characters: form narrower in proportion to its length; upper surface more brilliant, smooth and shining; thorax impunctate or almost impunctate on dise and diffusely punctured at sides, with the posterior angles less rounded; abdomen impunetate and shining in middle beneath; male with the teeth on the under-side of the anterior tibie five or six instead of at least eight as in the preceding species. L. 10-14 mm. Sandy heaths; in dung; local; London district, not uncommon, Esher, Belve- dere, Wimbledon ; in the latter locality it occurs commonly in the spring and autumn on the common ; it is the G. vernalis of Stephens which he records from Ripley, Hertford, Epping, Croydon, Suffolk, New Forest and Devonshire, and as pleutitul on Wimbledon Common, TROGINA. This tribe contains one genus, 7’rox; another genus, Omorgus, was formed by Erichson to inelude certain of the larger species, but the characters were indefinite, and it has not been retained; the members 46 LAMELLICORNIA, [ Trogina. of the tribe are oblong and convex, with a rough scabrous surface, and are often covered with a crust of dirt; they live in dry decomposing careases, hides, horns, &e.; the antenne are 9- or 10-jointed with the club 3-jointed ; the ventral segments are five in number and free; the abdomen is covered by the elytra; all the coxe are contiguous; the legs are comparatively slender and not strongly fossorial; the larva much ome those of the Be but are distinguished by having the antenne 3-jointed instead of 5-jointed. TROX, Fabricius. This genus contains about a hundred species, which are very widely distributed in tropical, temperate, and cold countries, ranging from Siberia in the north to Patagonia in the south; eleven species occur in Europe, of which three are found in Britain, one of which is somewhat doubtfully indigenous. I. Size larger; form broader ; elytra considerably widened behind. . Striv of elytra strongly punetured . . . . . . . . YT. saBuULOsus, L. Striz of elytra feebly punctured . . . . . . TT. HIsPipus, Laich. IL. Size smaller; form narrower ; elytra not much widened behindee ete bo Se Fe Lee Re es est ORB ER SeLe T. sabulosus, L. Obovate, black or greyish-black, very dull ; head narrowed in front, rugose, antenne reddish; thorax transverse, slightly narrowed in front, anterior angles projecting, posterior angles sharp right angles, upper surface uneven, very thickly punctured, sides and base and also sides of head fringed with yellowish sete ; elytra with flat, broad, strongly punctured striz, alternate interstices raised and furnished with bunches of depressed short yellowish or greyish-yellow sete; legs dull black. L. 7-8 mm. Sandy places; in dry carcases, rams’ horns, &c.; not common; Sundridge (Kent), Mickleham, Wimbledon, Coombe Wood, Headley; Dover; Hastings; Devon ; Newmarket Heath ; Bewdley ; Cannock Chase; Scotland, very rare, Tay district. T. hispidus, Laich. Of the size of the largest specimens of 7’. sabulosus, and very similar to it in form and sculpture; it differs, however, in having the striz of the elytra finely punctured, and in the fact that the interstices are tuberculate, the rows being alternately large and small; the tubercles are furnished with bunches of moderately long erect yellowish sete. L. 8 mm. The species was introduced as British by Mr. Waterhouse in 1860 on the authority of a specimen or specimens of which he did not know the locality, and there is also a specimen in the Rey. A. Matthew’s collection, which was taken by the Rev. H. Matthews. T. scaber, L. (arenarius, F.). Much smaller and narrower than either of the preceding species, and less convex, oblong-oboyate, slightly Trox.| LAMELLICORNIA. 47 widened behind, of a greyish-black colour, very dull; forehead thickly punctured; antenne reddish; thorax slightly narrower than elytra, narrowed in front, anterior angles projecting, upper surface uneven, sides fringed with thickly set yellowish sete; elytra with very shallow flat strie which are obsoletely notched by cross punctures, interstices alternately furnished with larger and smaller bunches of very short brownish-yellow or yellowish sete; legs blackish or reddish-brown. L. 53-6 mm. Sandy places; in dry carcases, bones, hides, &c.; rather local, but not uncommon in several midland and southern localities, but very rare further north; London district, rather common, Blackheath, Dulwich, Mickleham, Coombe Wood, Forest Hill, Tilgate Forest, Tonbridge; Brandon, Suffolk; Hastings; Glanvilles Wootton (common in stock-doves’ nests inside old apple trees) ; New Forest ; South- ampton; Braunston Burrows, Devon; Bristol; Swansea ; Bewdley ; Tewkesbury ; Scarborough ; Stretford and Dunham Park, Manchester ; not recorded from the Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, very rare, Solway district, ‘“‘ Jardine Hall, Murray’s Cat.” SCARABAIDA MELOLONTHINI. As will be seen from the description before given (p. 9), this group is intermediate between the other two groups into which the Sea- rabeeide are here divided. Dr. Horn and Dr. Leconte again divide the group into the Laparostict and Pleurostict Melolonthini, according to the position of the abdeminal spiracles; as, however, none of the species belonging to the former of these groups are found in Britain, they need not here be discussed, A considerable number of genera and a large number of species are found in the group, but they are, with the exception of one or two genera, more characteristic of tropical than temperate climates; nineteen genera occur in Europe, containing about two hundred species; of these five genera, represented by only seven species, are found in Britain, and only two genera and three species have been recorded from Scotland. I. Tibiz with one spur, which is sometimes obsolete ; pos- terior tarsi with asingleclaw. :- +... . . . = « II. Intermediate and posterior tibie with two spurs; pos- terior tarsi with two equal claws. i, Antenne with the club composed of three lamella. 1. Anterior tibiz short, with joints 2-4 scarcely longer ERAMDS OAM etait dale chs er a ee es who HOMATLOMETA, Steph. 2.*All the tibie long, with the joints elongate. A. Upper surface with fine and very short pubescence ; scutellum elongate triangular . ...... B. Upper surface with long hirtose pubescence, es- pecially on thorax and scutellum ; scutellum some- what rounded’). 2 gs es s RALZOTREOGUS) Hair. ii, Antenna with the club composed of seven lamella in the male and six inthefemale. . . . . . . . MEnotontHa, F. Hoptia, Z/l. Serica, MeL. 48 LAMELLICORNIA. [ Hoplia. HOPLIA, Illiger. This genus contains about seventy or eighty species, of which twenty are found in Europe, and the remainder are widely distributed, repre- sentatives occurring in Siberia, China and Hong Kong, India, Madagascar and South Africa, Teneriffe, and North, Central and South America; one species only occurs in Britain, which may be easily known by the long single elaw of the posterior tarsi. H. philanthus, Fiiss. (argentea, Ol.; pulverulenta, F.). Upper surface finely squamulose, thorax clothed sparingly with small pale sete; head black, much narrower than thorax, anterior margin strongly marked; thorax black, narrower than elytra, contracted in front and produced in middle of base, together with head finely, closely, and somewhat rugosely punctured; scutellum rounded; elytra depressed, rather uneven, finely and rugosely punctured; pygidium exposed, closely punctured; legs rather stout, anterior and intermediate pairs with unequal claws, posterior pair with a single claw. L. 63-8 mm. Male entirely dark or dark with fuscous or reddish-brown or reddish- testaceous elytra; scales on upper surface more scanty and cinereous, on the under surface thick and bluish; antenne and legs black; female thicker and narrower, with the elytra always reddish-brown or reddish-tes- taceous; scales on upper surface, especially of thorax, greenish, or greenish- cinereous, on the under-side distinctly greenish; antenne and legs red, On flowering shrubs and plants; local, but usually common where it occurs; Battersea Fields, Tooting, Woking, Chatham, Lee, West Wickham, Sheerness, Purley, Highgate, Tonbridge, &c.; Pegwell Bay; Dover; Glanvilles Wootton ; New Forest ; Isle of Wight; Southampton; Cornwall, Devon, and Somerset; Swansea ; Forest of Dean; Bewdley Forest; Knowle, near Birmingham; Ely ; Newmarket Notts; Manchester; Southport; Northumberland and Durham district, ‘“ abundant on our western border and about Lanercost” (Bold); it has not, however, been recorded from Scotland; it probably occurs in Ireland in several localities. HOMALOPLIA, Stephens. This genus contains thirteen or fourteen species, of which seven are found in Europe, and the remainder occur in Siberia, Algeria, Abyssinia, and Asia Minor; they are allied to Serica, but are less elongate and more depressed, and may be known by the shorter anterior tibie and different pubescence; the single British species is one of the most local and rare Ve our Tepacteorin,. S H. ruricola, I. Oblong, rather cepressed, head and thorax black, elytra reddish, with the suture and margins sharply and rather broadly black; head thickly punctured, with anterior margin raised, antenne reddish with club often darker; thorax transverse, eradually rounded and narrowed in front, strongly and not very thickly punctured, pilose, FHomatloplia. | LAMELLICORNIA. 49 especially at sides; scutellum dull black, rather large, sparingly punctured; elytra with rather irregularly punctured striz, interstices with large punctures, which are arranged more or less in rows in the first and third interstices; under-side pubescent, rather sparingly punctured; legs black, with tarsi ferruginous. L. 5-7 mm. Male with the pubescence of head and thorax black and the setz at sides of elytra thicker; female with the pubescence greyish and the sete at sides of elytra thinner. On flowers, &c. ; very local and, as arule, rare; Stephens records as its only locality near London a portion of the western margin of Darenth Wood, between the lane leading from the village and Dartford; Dr. Power has taken it in Darenth Wood very sparingly, and it has also occurred at Mickleham; Sandwich (Waterhouse), Dover (C. G. Hall) ; Box Hill, Surrey and Rodborough Common, Gloucestershire (W. A. Blatch); Newmarket Heath, Cambridge, Sussex, and Swaffham Bulbeck, Norfolk (Stephens). In the Entomologist’s Monthly Magazine for November, 1888, Mr. C. O. Waterhouse, in recording the capture of Adrastus pusillus near Sandwich, writes, ‘‘One calm sunny morning, Homaloplia ruricola was flying about in numbers amongst the grass in one spot. By examining a great number, I succeeded in obtaining several examples of the black variety, a form which I had not previously met with;” the abundance of this usually rare species at a particular spot anda particular time is very interesting as proving how very difficult it is to regard any “rare” species as otherwise than local.* SERICA, McLeay. This is a large and extensive genus and contains considerably more than a hundred species, which are very widely distributed, but are chiefly inhabitants of tropical countries ; only eight oceur in Europe, of which one is found rather commonly in Britain. The larva of S. brunnea, apart from its size, bears a close resemblance to that of Melolontha vulgaris ; the body however is more thickly pubescent, and the apex of the abdomen is furnished with thicker and longer hairs ; the pupa is provided at the apex with a pair of strong horny points or spines which together form a crescent. S. brunnea, L. Oblong, more or less obovate, subcylindrical, of a bright brownish-red colour, dull, with a slight frosted appearance; head dark, rugose, with rather large eyes, antenne testaceous, 9-jointed, with the club composed of three lamelle; thorax very transverse, slightly narrowed in front, rather diffusely punctured ; elytra with nine rather deep striz on each, interstices narrow, rather strongly punctured; legs rather long, reddish-testaceous. L. 8mm. Male with the club of the antenne longer than the funiculus, the anterior angles of the thorax blunt and rounded, and the exterior claw of the anterior tarsi enlarged; female with the club of antenne shorter than the funiculus and the anterior angles of the thorax projecting. In sandy places; often on the wing ; sometimes on and about poplars or decaying birch trees ; often found dead in spiders’ webs ; somewhat local, but apparently very widely distributed throughout England and Wales, Ireland and the lowlands of * This species has been taken very recently (June 1889) at Cobham Park by Dr, Sharp and Mr, J, J. Walker. : VOL. IV. E 50 LAMELLICORNIA. | Serica. Seotland. Dr. Ellis (fhe Naturalist, June 1885, p. 249) remarks that he used to see this species flying in swarms round the gas lamps about Mossley Hill, Liverpool, and frequently netted them in mistake for Noctuze. RHIZOTROGUS, Laireille. This genus contains upwards of two hundred species, which are nearly all found in temperate or cold climates; seventy-five occur in Europe, of which only two are found in Britain, and one of these is exceedingly rare; they much resemble Melolontha in general appearance, but are smaller, and may be easily known from the fact that the club of the antenne is composed of only three lamelle. The larva of Rhizotrogus appears very closely to resemble that of Melolontha and does not need a separate description; that of &. Falleni (= ochraceus, Er.) will be found fully described by Schiédte (Part viii. p. 314); the larve of R. solstitialis are occasionally destructive to the roots of corn and grass, I, Elytra lighter; pygidium granulate. . . . . . R. SOLSTITIALIS, L. II. Elytra darker; pygidium sparingly punctured . . . R. ocuRAcEus, Knoch. R. solstitialis, L. (Amphimalla solstitialis, Latr.) Oblong, rather elongate, moderately convex, of a fuscous or brownish-red colour; head dark, clypeus red, with a strong raised margin, antenne 9-jointed, reddish-testaceous; thorax a little narrower than elytra, with sides rounded and gradually narrowed in front, posterior angles almost right angles, upper surface thickly and finely punctured, with a trace of a longitudinal furrow in middle; scutellum large, rugosely punctured, very thickly clothed with long yellowish hairs; elytra with more or less distinct raised lines, sparingly and feebly punctured, and very sparingly pilose; under surface densely pilose except in centre of abdomen; legs rather long, reddish-testaceous. L. 14-16 mm. Male with the club of the antenne much longer than in female, the thorax densely villose, especially at sides, and the anterior tibie simple externally; female with the thorax scarcely villose, and the anterior tibize armed with three teeth externally. About hedges and trees, flying at dusk; frequently occurring in profusion where it is found, but decidedly local; London district, generally distributed; St. Peter's, Kent; Dover; Hastings; Sandown, Isle of Wight; Southampton ; Devonshire ; Bath ; Swansea; Barmouth; Blandford; Ely; the only locality that I have heard of further north is “Ramparts, Tynemouth Castle,” G. Wailes Esq. (Stephens, Ill. iii. 221). R. ochraceus, Knoch. (Amphimailla Falleni, Muls.). Very like the preceding but ofa darker colour and easily distinguished by the sculpture of the pygidium, which is sparingly punctured and thinly pilose; in the male the thorax is densely villose, and in the female sparingly pilose; occasionally forms occur both in this and the preceding species in which the thorax in both sexes is sparingly clothed with long ashy pubescence and is not villose in the male; the average size is decidedly smaller, L, 11-15 mm. Ehizotrogus. | LAMELLICORNIA. 51 Very rare; Holyhead, Wales (Stevens and Brewer); one specimen recorded by Stephens from ‘‘ probably Derbyshire or Yorkshire.” MELOLONTHA, Fabricius. This genus contains about twenty species, of which seven are found in Europe; the remainder are widely distributed, representatives occurring in China and Japan, India and Ceylon, Manilla, Java, Borneo, &c.; the species are, as a rule, of large size, and may be known by the faet that the antennal club is composed of seven lamelle in the male and six in the female; the antenne are 10-jointed,a character that will at once separate them from Phyllopertha and our species of Rhizotrogus (Amphimalla); the Melo!onthe are exceedingly destructive insects, as in the perfect state they devour leaves and in the larval state they consume the roots of grass. The larva of Melolontha vulgaris, the common cockchafer, has been described by many authors; it is large, thick, and fleshy, of a dirty white colour, with the head ferruginous and shining, and the legs pale ferruginous; the antenne are a little longer than the mandibles, and are 4-jointed; the anterior pairs of legs are rather shorter than the intermediate and posterior pairs, which are of equal length ; the segments are transversely rugose, and the last is Jarge and apparently divided by a false articulation ; the upper surface of the body is furnished with short upright bristles, and long separate hairs which are intermingled with these; the pupa is rather large, with the abdominal portion slightly curved, but does not present any striking peculiarities. The female cockchafer lays her eggs early in the summer, about six or eight inches below the surface of the ground; in from four to six weeks these hatch, and the insects continue in the larval state for three years; during the first year they attain a lengthof from 16to18mm.,and when full grown they are about one and a half inches long; in early spring they come up near the surface and feed on the roots of corn, grasses, and other plants, descending again deeper towards winter ; at the end of the third summer they are full fed, and go down into the earth for a depth of two or more feet, where they form oval cells, and change into large fleshy pup, which have the abdomen terminated by two small pointed cerci; the insect continues in the pupa state about four weeks; the perfect beetles emerge about October, but do not leave the ground until the beginning of the following summer, when they come out in May and the beginning of June, and begin to feed on the foliage of oaks, chestnuts and other trees; they remain torpid under the leaves during the day, but fly towards dusk. As both in the perfect and the larval state these beetles do a great amount of damage, it is obvious that it is most important to find some means of preventing or checking their ravages; Miss Ormerod recommends that on ground where the insect is known to be present good drenchings of some fluid such as tobacco water or gas water should be used to drive the insect from the roots; it is however questionable whether this would do much good, as the larva can endure much more E 2 or 2 LAMELLICORNIA. | Melolontha. poisonous substances, and if merely dislodged for the time would soon return again; hand-picking or beating is occasionally of service, as the beetles are easily captured on warm days, as they are very sluggish and cling beneath the leaves; on one occasion, referred to by Miss Ormerod (Manual of [njurious Insects, page 208) eighty bushels of the beetle were collected on one farm; birds and pigs, however, are the great enemies of the insect, rooks ‘and sea- culls especially devouring them with eagerness both in the larval and perfect state; these birds therefore should be always encouraged ; rooks are often credited with pulling up plants or corn, but if each separate case were examined, it would be found that they destroyed little if anything beyond the infested plant, which would in any case have died, and left the larva free to attack others; the pest in all probability might be much diminished by ploughing the land, turning in pigs and poultry and encouraging the rooks, &c., and then going over it with a heavy roller, which would destroy the remainder that had escaped. Two species of Melolontha are found in Britain; they may be dis- tinguished as follows :— I. Pygidium elongate in both sexes and Braga narrowed to apex ; average size larger. . . - «= MavunGaris; a. II. Pygidium shorter, constr icted at base and very slightly widened at apex ; average sizesmaller . . . . . . M. HIPPOCASTANI, F. M. vulgaris, F. Oblong, moderately convex, but somewhat de- pressed on disc ; head black with clypeus reddish in front, anterior margin raised, with rather long yellowish pubescence at sides, antenne 10-jointed, reddish-testaceous ; thorax transverse, black, or occasionally reddish, rounded at sides and narrowed in front, posterior angles pro- jecting, strongly and not very closely punctured on disc, more thickly at sides, pubescent; scutellum large, almost semicircular, sparingly punctured, black; elytra ‘ferruginous or reddish-testaceous, finely pubescent, with four raised lines on each, almost alutaceous, the seulp- ture being shallow and consisting of large and small punctures inter- mingled and more or less running into one another; under-side clothed with greyish or yellowish pubescence, which is much longer on the front part than on the abdomen; legs reddish-testaceous. L. 92-26 mm. Male with the thorax villose at sides, and the antenne terminated by a club consisting of seven lamellae, which is longer than the funiculus ; the third joint of the antenne is somewhat dilated at apex, and bears a small setigerous tubercle. Female with the thorax simply pubescent, and the antenne terminated by a club consisting of six lamellae, which is shorter than the funiculus, About trees, &c.; flying at dusk; common and generally distributed from the midland distiieta southwards, but gradually becoming less common further north, Liverpool district, by no means abundant (Ellis); Scotland, local, Solway, Clyde, _ Forth, Tay and Argyle districts; Ireland, generally distributed, and common in the ‘south. Melolontha. | LAMELLICORNIA. * 53 M. hippocastani, F. Very like the preceding, but, on an average, a little smaller, and more darkly coloured; the general pubescence is thicker and of a more mealy appearance, and the hairs on the elytra are thicker and almost scale-like ; the pygidium also, or rather its process, is more densely pubescent and constricted at base ; in the male the third joint of the antenne is thickened at apex and armed in front with a sharp tooth, and in the female the first lamella of the club is shorter than the remainder, L, 18-24 mm. On and about trees, &c.; very local; Banks of Windermere (Stephens) ; North- umberland and Durham district, Long Benton and in the woods below: Gilsland, not uncommon in the latter locality. Scotland, local, Clyde, Forth, Tay aud Moray districts; Ireland, Roebuck and Greystones near Dublin; it does not occur in England further south than the Lake district, and in Scotland appears partly to take the place of the preceding species. In giving the lengths for the Lamellicornia some authors appear to have reckoned to the apex of the elytra, and others to apex of pygidium ; hence has arisen a discrepancy in certain cases, which I cannot otherwise explain. (Polyphylla, Harris. Although all the specimens of Polyphylla fullo that have been taken in Britain are undoubtedly importations, yet as they are contained in all our old collections it is scarcely possible to pass over the insect without a short notice; the genus may easily be distinguished from Melolontha by the fact that the tarsal claws are toothed at base, and that in the female the club consists of only five lamelle.) P. fullo, F. (Melolontha fullo, auct.). A very large species, upper surface chestnut-brown, dark brown, or almost black, clothed with patches of white scales, which give the insect a variegated appearance ; on the head they take the form of two lines near eyes, on the thorax of a longitudinal central line and lines and marks at sides, and on the elytra they are very irregular, and cause them to present a marbled appearance ; the scutellum is thickly clothed with whitish or yellowish scales, and the under-side is very closely pubescent, the pubescence of the front part being villose ; the sculpture of the upper surface is coarse ; antenne and legs lighter or darker reddish. L. 24-34 mm. Stephens remarks that all the known British specimens have been captured on the sandy coasts of Kent, between Hythe and Ramsgate, chiefly in the neighbourhood of Deal and Sandwich, at which latter place eight examples were taken in July, 1815. Mr. W. Marshall, of Bexley, Kent, has in his possession a specimen taken alive near Belvedere, Kent ; it had certainly been imported. SCARABZIDA PLEUROSTICTI. In this group the abdominal spiracles, with the exception of the anterior ones, are situated in the dorsal portion of the last ventral a4 LAMELLICORNIA. [Scarabaide Pleurosticti. seoments, forming rows which diverge strongly; the last one or two spiracles are usually visible behind the elytra; the clypeus is often pro- longed and margined in front, but is very rarely concave as in the Melolonthini, and the mandibles oecasiona]ly project beyond the clypeus ; the antenne are 9 or 10-jointed, and the club is 8-jointed; the tarsi are all complete. The group contains a very large number of genera and species, many of them being amongst the most brilliant and conspicuous of all the Coleoptera; they are much more characteristic of tropical than of temperate countries; the groups may be divided into three tribes, the Rutelina, Dynastina, and Cetoniina ; no representatives, however, ot the second tribe are found in the British fauna; the other two may be divided as follows :— T. Tarsal clawaunequal.. . « « « « « = + = 5) 3) 29s ewan De areal claws equal. a yor <- geheren nie eget EP ibd tied ak earls Gt OR RON TIANA RUTELINA. Upwards of a hundred genera and a large number of species are com- prised in this tribe; of these only three genera, represented by fifty species, occur in Europe, and two genera, represented by only two species, are found in Britain ; many of the species, especially those belonging to the true Rutele, are exceedingly brilliant and conspicuous insects ; those, however, that are found in Europe are comparatively obscure ; the true Rutele have the antenne 10-jointed and prominent mandibles, whereas in the European species, which all belong to the Anomale, the antenne are 9-jointed and the mandibles do not project beyond the clypeus ; the tarsal claws are unequal, the outer one being the largest; in some genera, however, e.g. Anomala, the difference of size is not striking, whereas in Phyllopertha and others it is very evident. I. Base of thorax bordered ; upper surface pilose . . . PryLiopertna, Kirby. II. Base of thorax not bordered; upper surface not pilose ANOMALA, Sam. PHYLLOPERTHA, Kirby. About fifteen species are contained in this genus, of which five occur in Europe; the others have been described from North and South Africa, Japan, Hong Kong, Siberia, and Mexico; our single species is sometimes very destructive to pasture land, and does considerable damage to gardens; they are commonly known as fieldchafers, May- bugs, bracken clocks, fernshaw beetles, fernwebs, and in Norfolk as “‘ chovey.” The larva is figured and described by Curtis (Farm Insects, p. 217, 32, fig. 5, and p. 221), who also mentions the perfect insects as very destructive to rose trees and fruit trees; these larve are very similar to that of Melolontha vulgaris, but are, of course, much smaller ; like the rest of the Lamellicornia larve their bodies are curved, but they are comparatively active; they are ochreous white, with the head darker, and the mandibles blackish at the tips; the body is clothed with a few brown hairs ; when full grown they form cells a considerable distance below the surface of the Phyllopertha. | LAMELLICORNIA. 55 ground, in which they change into pale-coloured pupz ; these larvae are most destruc- tive to turf; as Curtis remarks, by their consuming the roots the grass dies ; the dead turf becomes rotten, and will sink in patches under the feet, owing to the burrows which the maggots have made in the earth ; and the rooks and starlings add to the disorder by pulling up the turf to feed upon them; they appear to continue in the larval state for three years ; the remedies for their destruction appear to be much the same as those adopted to get rid of Melolontha vulgaris ; as, however, the larve are more tender than those of the latter insect, it is probable that external dressings of gas liquor and salt water, or of lime, potash and other alkalies would have a greater effect in destroying them.* P. horticola, L. Oblong, depressed, rather shining, pilose ; head and thorax of a greenish or cyaneous colour, metallic, shining, elytra reddish-testaceous, with suture, as a rule, usually darker ; head 1ugose in front, antenne reddish with dark club; thorax narrower than elytra, transverse, narrowed in front, posterior angles prominent, dise coarsely punctured; scutellum large, almest semicircular, dark, sparingly punctured ; elytra rather strongly, but not deeply, punctured in some- what irregular rows ; legs long, especially in the males ; under-side of front parts villose. L. 7-10 mm. Male with the body more thickly pilose, and the exterior claw more broadly dilated. On flowers, young trees, &c. ; commonly and generally distributed throughout the kingdom ; more abundant in some years than in others; occasionally quite black specimens occur; small specimens are also rarely found in which the head and thorax are black with a bluish tinge, and the elytra are light testaceous, with the margins and suture black ; these belong to the var. suturalis, Stephens ; there is an old specimen of this variety in Dr. Power’s collection, but this is the only one that I have seen. ANOMALA, Samouelle. This is a very extensive genus, and comprises upwards of three hundred species, the majority of which are found in tropical countries ; they range however as far north as Siberia; fourteen or fifteen species inhabit Europe, of which one only is found in Britain ; they may be known from Phyllopertha by their much more convex shape and the absence of a margin at the base of thorax, as well as by their glabrous, or almost glabrous, upper surface; our single British species is very variable in colour. A. Frischii, F. (@nca, De G.; Julii, Fab.,Gyll., Payk, &.). Slightly obovate, strongly convex, moderately shining, head and thorax greenish geneous or greenish, sometimes cyaneous, elytra reddish, or reddish-brown, usually with a more or less distinct metallic reflection, sometimes entirely of a dark green metallic colour, concolorous with thorax ; very rarely the elytra are cyaneous, and the head and thorax are greenish, or the whole * It should perhaps be mentioned that this beetle is a good bait for trout, chub, and other fish; my earliest Coleopterous reminiscence is the collection of a number of these ‘‘ fern-webs” as a small boy, in North Devon, for a relation who required them for fishing. 56 LAMELLICORNIA. { Anomala. body is cyaneous; head thickly punctured, antenne reddish with club blackish ; thorax transverse, narrowed in front, sinuate at base, disc rather strongly and evenly punctured, posterior angles blunt ; scutellum large, thickly and strongly punctured; elytra with punctured strie, interstices of irregular breadth, the first the broadest, the wider ones flatter and more thickly: punctured ; under-side more or less metallic, thinly pubescent in front and at sides of abdomen ; legs black or pitchy. L. 8-12 mm. Male with the external claw of the anterior tarsi slightly dilated. Sandy places on the coast, also by beating young trees; sometimes on the wing; generally distributed along the mid and southern coasts of England and Wales, but rarer further north; Scotland, rare, Clyde, Forth and Tay districts; Ireland co. Kerry, co. Cork, and near Belfast ; it usually occurs on the coast or near the sea, but sometimes is found inland, and has been taken at Woking, Richmond, &e. The unicolorous green variety is very rare, and bas occurred at Ripley, Surrey, Richmond, and Braunton Burrows, North Devon. The Anomala Donovani of Stephens appears to be a very rare variety of this species ; it is described by him as follows on the authority of two specimens, locality unknown, in the British Museum, and two taken by Donovan in Glamorganshire :—‘‘ Black brass, slightly shining ; elytra punctate-striate, testaceous, the suture, apex, and sides bronzed-black, the dise with a bruwn-red band across the middle ; legs pitchy.” CETONIINA. This tribe contains a very large number of genera and species, which are perpetually being added to, as the members of the tribe are such conspicuous insects that they attract the attention of even the most casual observers, and are therefore more often collected by travellers than perhaps those of any other group; some idea of the extent of the tribe may perhaps be gathered from the fact that since the publication of the Munich catalogue of the Scarabeide in 1869, no fewer than one hundred and forty-eight genera and eight hundred and fifty new species have been described ; ten genera, represented by thirty-six species, occur in Europe, of which four genera and seven species are found in Britain ; they may be known from the Rutelina by having the tarsal claws equal, and may be divided as follows :— I, Elytra emarginate at sides; epimera of mesothorax visible from above. i. Legs stout; anterior tibiae with three teeth on their outer side; tarsi not longer than tibiae SD hry ee ii. Legs less stout ; anterior tibiz with two teeth on their outer side; tarsi much longerthan tibiae . . . . . II. Elytra not emarginate at sides; epimera of mesothorax not visible from above. i. Elytra taken together longer than broad; thorax glabrous Uae Ta eae Oe ee ee ee ii. Elytra taken together not longer than broad ; thorax pilose d Sec ; = Creronia, Fab. (OXYTHEREA, Muls.) GNORIMUS, Serv. Tricuivs, F. Cetonia. | LAMELLICORNIA. 57 CETONIA, Fabricius, This genus comprises nearly two hundred species, seventy-six of which are enumerated by M. Bergé in his supplement to the Munich Catalogue as having been deseribed since 1869; it is probable therefore that the genus is much more extensive than is at present known ; its members, as a rule, are very brilliantly coloured; of the sixteen European species we possess two as British. The larva of Cetonia aurata is described and figured by Curtis (Farm Insects, page 108) ; it closely resembles the larva of Melolontha vulgaris, but may easily be distinguished by having a horny rusty spot on each side of the prothoracic segment ; the legs also are longer and the upper surface is clothed with transverse series of ferruginous hairs ; these larvee live two or three years under ground ; when they have attained their full growth they form an oval case of earth at a considerable depth as large as a walnut, which is covered outside with the excrement of the animal, and in this cell they change to yellowish pupae; the larve, and also the perfect insects are often found in ants’ nests. The perfect beetle is sometimes very destructive to roses ; hence its popular name of the ‘ Rose beetle” or “ Rose chafer;” they also attack strawberries, turnips, and beans, and may be found on whitethorn, mountain ash, elder, lilac, candytuft, and various other flowers ; it is not, however, very often that they commit any very serious depredations. I. Elytra sinuate at apex near suture; process of meso- sternum globular, impunctate; posterior tibize with a strong raised tooth in middle; upper surface bright OMNES 5 6 5 5 o bo & a 0 0 6 5 6 o Op Muna im Il. Elytra not, or scarcely, sinuate at apex near suture; process of mesosternum truncate, punctured ; posterior tibiae with a ridge terminating in a small point in middle; upper surface more or less bronze or coppery . C. FLORICOLA, Herbst. Cc. aurata, L. Oblong, depressed, of a bright golden green colour, shining; under-side of a bright reddish coppery colour; head thickly punctured, clypeus rather long, antenn» black, with first joint metallic ; thorax gradually and rather strongly narrowed in front, sinuate at base, sparingly punctured on disc, more thickly at sides, scutellum large, elongate triangular, with a few scattered punctures at base or in middle ; elytra depressed behind middle, with traces of raised lines, and with very shallow horse-shoe shaped punctures, which are partly arranged in lines and partly scattered ; from middle to apex there are also more or less distinct transverse wavy whitish lines or small markings ; the apex near suture is sinuate and presents an eroded appearance ; pygidium coppery, thickly rugose ; mesosternal process globular, impunctate ; legs stout, black, more or less metallic. L. 14-20 mm. Male with segments 1-5 of abdomen longitudinally impressed in middle. On flowers, &c.; generally distributed and common in the London district and the South of England; Scilly Islands; not uncommon, although local, in the Midlands as far north as the Birmingham district ; Gloucester, rather common ; Bath, not common; Swansea; much rarer further north; Liverpool district, Rainhill; Isle of Man ; not recorded from the Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, very rare, Lowlands, Solway and Clyde districts; Ireland, near Belfast. 58 LAMELLICORNIA. [ Cetonia. C. floricola, Herbst. (enea, Gyll.; metallica, F.). Very like the preceding, but of an olivaceous neous colour above, and a more violet, coppery colour beneath; the elytra are not, or scarcely sinuate at apex near suture, and their sculpture is rather thicker and more confluent ; the process of the mesosternum is truncate at apex and punctured, and the tooth in the centre of the posterior tibiz is much less pronounced ; the colour of the upper surface varies somewhat and is occasionally greenish, but I have never seen a specimen that could be mistaken for C. aurata, even at first sight. L. 14-20 mm. On flowers, &c.; local, and entirely confined to the North; Northumberland district, ‘‘near Stranton, Rev. R. Kirwood.’’ Scotland, local, Highlands, Tay, Dee, and Moray districts (Rannoch, Aviemore, &c.). (Oxytherea, Mulsant.) This genus has sometimes been included under Cetonia, but differs in the characters that have been before mentioned ; it contains between fifty and sixty species, which, like the Cetoniz, are chiefly found in tropical countries; four species are found in Europe; of these one has occurred occasionally in Britain, but is somewhat doubtfully indigenous. O. stictica, |). (funesta, Poda). Black, with a slight bronzy-green or coppery reflection, shining, with the upper side thinly clothed with upright whitish hairs, thorax, elytra, sides of abdomen, and pygidium sprinkled with white spots ; head thickly punctured, clypeus rather long ; thorax somewhat thickly and strongly punctured, with a trace of a raised line and two rows of white spots on disc, and a white line within the outer margins ; scutellum acuminate, smooth ; elytra with rows of horse- shoe shaped punctures; interstices sparingly and simply punctured ; pygidium punctured ; process of mesosternum broad ; sides of breast with long and thick pubescence ; legs black. L. 9-12 mm. Male with the segments of the abdomen impressed in middle, and with the first four segments furnished with a longitudinal row of white spots in middle; in the female these spots are wanting; in the male, moreover, the hinder tibiw are dilated internally at apex. On flowers, &c.; very rare and doubtfully indigenous as British; Stephens mentions three or four specimens as having been captured near Windsor by Mr. I. R. Griesbach, aud also records it from Chichester ; two specimens were taken by Mr. Sidebotham and one by Mr. Edleston, on the flowers of Rosa spinosissima on the Lancashire coast, in July, 1862 (vy. Ent. Monthly Mag. i. 236); Mr. Reston also records it as having been taken upon shrubs in a garden at Whulley Range, Manchester. GNORIMUS, Fabricius. The species belonging to this and the following genus are very easily distinguished from the two that precede by having the elytra not emarginate at the sides, and the epimera of the mesothorax nct visible from above, and by the fact that the thorax is very much narrower than Gnorimus. | LAMELLICORNIA. : 59 the elytra; the genus contains eight species, which are found in Europe, Armenia, Siberia, Japan, and N orth America ; five oceur in Europe, of which two are British ; one of these is a very conspicuous insect, and at first sight resembles a Cetonia; they are both rare and are very seldom now found in the country. J. Upper surface mostly black . . . os =e nec to 5 Cove RNDIS 7 II. Upper surface golden green, brilliant; . ... 20) Sm aem) Gg NOBILIS, L. G. variabilis, L. (octopunctatus, F.; Trichius 8-punctatus, Gyll.). Deep black, moderately shining; head thickly and rugosely punctured, eyes prominent, clypeus rather large, antenne and palpi brown ; thorax much narrower than elytra, contracted in front and rounded at sides and base, thickly and coarsely punctured, with an obsolete depressed central line, anterior angles very blunt, posterior angles rounded, but often marked by a small tooth ; scutellum almost semicireular; elytra with feeble striz, thickly and rugosely punetured, with several small whitish- yellow spots, which are mostly ranged transversely and irregularly across the middle or just behind middle; abdomen with whitish spots at sides ; pygidium finely rugose with whitish-yellow spots; the latter, however, are not apparent in the female; breast more or less thickly pubescent, more so in male than in female; legs black, apex of tarsi sometimes bright red. L. 16-20 mm. Male with the first four joints of the anterior tarsi thickly clothed with a brush of yellow hairs at apex, the pygidium convex and not furnished with tubercles at apex, and the intermediate tibiz constricted and curved at base; the elytra are raised at apex into a more distinct blunt tubercular prominence than in female; in the latter sex the tarsi are not furnished with brushes of yellow hairs, and the pygidium is distinctly bituberculate ; in my single female specimen the claws and apex of tarsi are bright red, but I do not know whether this is a sexual difference. In the rotten wood of oaks, &c.; occasionally in flowers; rare; Tooting and Purley, Surrey ; rotten oaks, Windsor Forest; in the latter locality it used to occur annually in some numbers, and most of our specimens come from this district ; it has not, however, occurred there fora long time past. Stephens also records it from Penge and Brixton. G. nobilis, L. (Trichius nobilis, Gyll.). Very like the preceding in shape, sculpture, and general appearance, but at once known by its colour, which is brilliant golden green with the under-side coppery or reddish coppery ; there are two whitish spots on thorax, and the elytra and abdomen, and also the pygidium in male are marked more or less distinctly with whitish-yellow spots or patches, which are very small on the elytra; the thorax has the margins broader behind than in G. variabilis, and the posterior angles more marked; the scutellum is strongly transverse, and the spiracles of the last two abdominal segments are usually free; the sexual characters are much the same, except that the 60 LAMELLICORNIA. [ Gnorimus. tubercles on the pygidium of the female are less strongly marked, and the intermediate tibie of the male are more strongly curved and constricted. L. 14-18 mm. On flowers and in orchards, in the rotten wood mould of fruit trees, rare; Dart- ford, Kent ; Tonbridge (Horner) ; Devonshire; Stephens records it from Darenth, Birch and Coombe Woods, Greenhithe Wood, and Carlisle (Illustr. iii. p. 231), and also from Devonshire (Manual, p- 170). This and the preceding species appear to have become exceedingly scarce of late years; it is quite possible they may occur again; but at present they seem to be becoming extinct in Britain. TRICHIUS, Fabricius. This genus contains at present thirteen species ; like those belonging to the preceding genus, they are mostly northern in their range; three are found in Europe, and the remainder have been described from Northern Asia, North America, and Japan ; one has been found in Teneriffe ; our two British species, under various names, appear to range right across Europe and Northern Asia, one of them having been found in Kamtschatka ; they are of an orange or yellow colour, with dark bands, and owing to their velvety appearance and strongly villose thorax and abdomen present rather the appearance of a humble-bee than a beetle, especially when on the wing. I. Average size larger ; abdomen thickly villose at sides . TT, FAascratus, LZ. Il. Average size smaller; abdomen bare, or almost bare, AUBIGES = \as elect at Sie Pie ee ee I ABDOMEN ATINGEA er: T. fasciatus, L. Black, with the head and thorax clothed with very strong yellowish pilose pubescence, which is very long and thick ; pygidium and breast with the pubescence long, thick, and pilose, but lighter ; abdomen more thinly pubescent; elytra of a velvety-looking bright orange or yellow colour, with the scutellary region, as a rule, and the suture narrowly, a fascia at base usually meeting at scutellum, a fascia on middle not meeting at suture, and the apex, black; these markings vary in size and extent, but the first yellow band never reaches the shoulder ; the apical patch is usually more or less round, raised, and shining, the apex of the elytra being raised into a blunt tubercle; head rather long, thickly punctured ; clypeus bare in front, emarginate ; antenne reddish-brown, with club black; thorax much narrower than elytra, rounded at sides, and contracted in front, more finely punctured in the male than in the female, the sculpture, however, being hidden by the pilose pubescence; scutellum black, pilose and punetured ; elytra dull, with scattered vellowish hairs, very feebly sculptured ; pygidium finely rugose, with a white spot on each side at base. L. 10-13 mm. Male with the anterior tarsi with the first joint dilated externally, and Trichius. | LAMELLICORNIA. 61 the spur at apex of tibia longer, and also with the pubescence of the whole body longer. Female with the first joint of the anterior tarsi simple, the spur of the anterior tibiz shorter, and the pubescence of the whole body shorter. On flowers ; very local, and, as a rule, decidedly uncommon ; it has been recorded by Dr. Leach from Exeter, and by Mr, Dillwyn as taken in some numbers on umbel- liferous plants near Swansea (v. Steph. Il. iii. 280), and Mr. Llewellyn has con- firmed the latter record by taking it at Neath, South Wales; it occurs, however, principally in the North, and has not been recorded from any localities in England except those above mentioned; it is very pro able that the Welsh record must be referred to the succeeding species ; Scotland, local, Highlands, Tay, Dee, and Moray districts. Mr. Dillwyn’s note on his capture of the species at Swansea is worth pre- serving (Catalogue of Swansea Coleoptera, p. 31) :—* About forty of these beautiful insects have been taken in the neighbourhood, and I have generally seen them in pairs. With the exception of one pair, which I found ou a double Sweet William, they were all taken on umbelliferous plants, and all, or nearly all, on the flowers of Athusa Cynapium. It has also been taken both at Coytrahene and St. Hilary, in this county, by my friend the Rev. J. M. Traherne, and one was caught by my son, Mr. L. LI. Dillwyn.” According to Erichson the larva is found in decaying trunks of various deciduous trees, such as alders, birches, &c, He does not, however, give any description of it. T. abdominalis, Mén (gallicus, Heer. ; zonatus, Schmidt). Very like the preceding, but, on an average, smaller, with shorter pubescence, and with the sides of the abdomen almost bare; the clypeus is shorter and less emarginate, and the thorax is broader, with the posterior angles more marked ; the black fascia at base is always interrupted, and the first yellow band reaches the shoulder ; the intermediate tibize are less dis- tinctly toothed, and the male has the posterior tibie slightly clavate at apex. L. 9-12 mm. On flowers, &c. I have had four or five specimens in my collection (from the late E. Brown’s collection), but I have never been able to make out anything satisfactory with regard to their capture, nor do I know of any certain locality for the insect ; Mr. F. Smith introduced 7’. zonatus, Germ., as British (Zool. p. 2216 [1848 ]), but did not know the localities of the specimens. Mr. S. Stevens believes that his examples were taken in Wales. The following is Mr. Smith’s description of “7. zonatus, Schmidt (gallicus, Dej. Cat.; abdominalis, var., Schmidt, Dej. Cat.”). ‘ Male.— The lateral margin of the thorax immaculate, the central segment of the abdomen transversely striated, and having two yellow macule; the anterior cox have a yellow macule in front. Female.—The lateral margins of the thorax yellow, sometimes interrupted; the ventral segments immaculate. The elytra in both sexes black, having the suture black, with two transverse yellow fascize united to a longitudinal one, which reaches the angle of the shoulder; the base never has a transverse black band; the yellow fascia are nearly or of quite equal width.” In 7. fasciatus the anterior coxe in the male are not maculate, nor are the ventral segments, and in the female the thorax has a lateral 62 LAMELLICORNIA. [Trichius. yellow mark. Mr. Smith adds that he has some idea that the Swansea and other West of England specimens may prove to be 7’. zonatus, and the northern specimens to be J. fasciatus (Zoologist, Aug. 15, 1848). Mr. S. Stevens is also of the same opinion, and believes that it was taken at Neath in 1845. I have in my collection an undoubted specimen of J. fasciatus labelled “ Wales,” from Mr. E. Brown’s col- lection, but it is possible it may have been so labelled in error ; others, however, are labelled “‘ Scotland,” as if to distinguish them ; it seems strange that the question has not been cleared up during all these years, especially as Mr. Dillwyn seems to have taken them in numbers. SERRICORNIA. This series, like the Clavicornia (vide vol. i. p. 217) can only be retained for the sake of convenience, as it contains a number of genera and species, which, as far as general appearance go, might certainly with better reason be referred to the last-mentioned group ; if, with Thomson, we remove the Ptinide and Cisside and their allies to the Clavicornia we obtain, perhaps, a more even series, but in this case such genera as Ptilinus and Dorcatoma form strong exceptions, while num- hers of the Ptinide and Anobiide have more or less filiform antenne, and cannot in any way be regarded as true Clavicorns ; we have, more- over, still left in the Serricornia the species belonging to Corynetes and its allies which have strongly clavate antenne, although it must be allowed that in many instances the club is more or less serro-clavate ; it is very obvious, therefore, that the series isa very artificial one, and I should much prefer to drop it altogether, especially as, in writing a work like the present, one’s views on Classification become very much modified as it proceeds ; on the whole, however, I have thought it best to keep to the original arrangement I intended to follow. As before remarked (i. 217), the retention of these large divisions, as long as it is remembered that they are more or less artificial, presents many points of advantage to the general student, although the simple division into families is, perhaps, more scientifically correct. The composition of the series has also been much disputed ; as far as our fauna is concerned we may divide it into three groups, the Sternox?, Malacodermata, and Ptinoidea, but the Cebrionide (through Campylus) aud Rhipidocerida form strong connecting links between the first two, and might, perhaps, be ranked with either, and the Malacodermata are closely allied to the Ptinoidea through Haplocnemus, Ernobius, &c. The following are their chief characteristics :— Sternoxi. Integument hard; form, with very few exceptions (e.g. Trachys) more or less elongate, and always more or less pointed behind ; size very variable, but, as a rule, moderately large ; head sunk in thorax, vertical or depressed ; clypeus not, or very rarely, separated off by a Serricornia. | SERRICORNIA, 63 distinct suture ; antennz nearly always serrate or pectinate, inserted on the forehead between the base of the mandibles; prosternum produced into a spine or process received in a cavity on the mesosternum; anterior coxe globose, distant; posterior coxe, transverse, and immovable, receiving the femora; elytra, as a rule, more or less plainly sinuate behind the posterior coxa, usually striate ; anterior coxal cavities open behind ; tarsi plainly 5-jointed ; abdomen composed of five segments, the anterior two being often connate. Malacodermata. Integument soft and flexible; upper surface pubescent or pilose, never glabrous; form variable, but usually more or less elongate and narrow, sometimes, however (as in Cyphon and Scirtes) short ovate or sub-hemispherical ; size variable, but usually moderately large ; head often large, with the eyes strongly projecting; antenne nearly always long, filiform, serrate, or gradually thickened towards apex, rarely (e.g. Corynetes) with a distinet club; prosternum at most produced into a point, but never produced into a spine or process received in a fovea of the mesosternum ; anterior coxe conical, very rarely subcylindrical, exserted, always contiguous at apex, which is somewhat prominent; posterior cox, as a rule, contiguous ; anterior coxal cavities nearly always open behind; tarsi usually five-jointed ; elytra rarely striate ; abdomen composed of six or seven, rarely five, free segments. Ptinoidea. Integument, as a rule, hard, or moderately hard ; form very variable ; size usually small, sometimes minute ; thorax very often like a hood or cowl, covering, or partly covering, the head; antenne filiform, sometimes serrate, sometimes with a loosely-formed club ; mandibles stout; prosternum short, not produced behind; anterior coxe not rounded, usually short-conical and more or less exserted ; pos- terior coxe transverse ; anterior coxal cavities, as a rule, open behind (but closed in the Cisside and in Lyctus) ; tarsi five-jointed (four jointed in the Cisside) ; abdomen composed of five segments, the first of which is much elongate in the Lyctide, and to a less extent in the Cisside and Sphindide. As, however, the adoption of these divisions is much objected to by some authorities, it may be the best course to proceed according to the plan already adopted with the Clavicornia (vol. iii. pp. 2—8), and arrange the Serricornia in families, giving the chief characteristics of each, which taken in conjunction with the characters above mentioned for the three groups, may perhaps enable the student to identify his genera with some approach to accuracy. STERNOXI. Buprestide. Head vertical, with the mandibles short and stout, inserted into the thorax as far as the eyes, which are very large, ellipti- cal, and never emarginate; antenne inserted upon the front, short, 64 — SERRICORNIA, | Sternoxt. nearly always serrate ; posterior angles of thorax not produced ; abdomen with the first and second ventral segments connate ; anterior trochanters large and free; surface more often metallic than in the succeeding families, often very brilliant. Throscide. Antenne inserted on the front, received in grooves beneath ; eleven-jointed, sometimes serrate, sometimes, as in our single genus, with a serrate, three-jointed club ; prosternum with an anterior rounded lobe protecting the mouth; first and second abdominal seg- ments not connate, though closely connected ; posterior angles of thorax more or less produced ; prothorax firmly articulated with the mesuthorax ; anterior trochanters not marked ; front coxal eavities closed behind by the mesosternum ; insects small, not brightly coloured or conspicuous, without the power of leaping when placed on their back. Eucnemidez. Distinguished from the preceding by having the prothorax somewhat loosely articulated with the mesothorax, and the fact that its members have the power of leaping when placed on their back at all events slightly developed ; closely allied to the Elateride, but separated by having the antenna inserted at the inner margin of the eyes and the labrum concealed ; the species are larger and more con- spicuous than in the Throscidz. Blateride. Antenne pectinate, serrate, or somewhat filiform, in- serted immediately before eyes; labrum visible and free; prothorax very loosely articulated with the mesothorax, so that the power of leap- ing when the insects are placed on their backs is strongly developed in by far the majority of cases ; thorax with the posterior angles more or less produced ; front coxal cavities open behind, but entirely prosternal ; anterior trochanters not conspicuous ; abdomen composed of five ventral segments, which are free, or apparently free, the front two being some- times closely connected, but not connate; legs comparatively short, retractile ; size and colour very variable; in many cases, however, the species are large, and often brilliantly metallic. MALACODERMATA. Dascillidz. Antenne filiform, very rarely serrate, not thickened at apex; labrum distinct ; anterior coxal cavities open behind ; posterior coxe immoveable, receiving the femora; elytra not striated, covering the abdomen; abdomen composed of five ventral segments. Lycide. Antennx often pectinate, always more or less serrate ; trochanters not applied to femora, but in a line with them; anterior coxe long, with distinct trochantins; abdomen consisting of seven ventral segments, which are simple in both sexes ; intermediate cox clistinct ; claws simple. Lampyridew. Very closely allied to the preceding, but with the Malacodermata. | SERRICORNIA. 65 antenne largely flabellate or simple, the trochanters applied obliquely to the femora, the claws often bifid, and the abdominal segments often cut in various ways in the male; the intermediate coxe are subcon- tiguous, and the female is sometimes apterous. Telephoride. Antenne inserted between the eyes which are entire, at most only faintly serrate, usually quite simple, long or very long; trochanters applied to femora; edge of thorax often plicate (e.g. Szlis) ; abdomen ‘very soft, composed of six or seven segments, which are often divided or excised ; elytra not, or obsoletely, striate ; prosternum very short ; legs long, claws simple or bifid. Melyridz. Antenne serrate or pectinate, very rarely moniliform, inserted in front of the eyes on the produced part of the head ; labrum distinct ; prosternum short ; body occasionally with extensile vesicles ; abdomen composed of six free ventral segments, the sixth being occa- sionally indistinct ; surface often very hairy and brilliantly coloured ; tarsi 5-jointed, with the fourth joint entire, often furnished beneath with membranous pads or lobes ; posterior coxee prominent internally. Cleride. Antenne usually serrate, often pectinate (Z%llus), but with the terminal three joints almost always tending to form a club (Corynetes and Necrobia being the ultimate forms), inserted behind the base of the mandibles ; body hairy, and tarsi with lobes beneath (points which ally the family to the Melyridz) ; thorax subcylindrical, with the sides not margined; abdomen composed of six ventral segments ; posterior coxe flat. Drilidz. Antenne usually highly pectinate in the males; females apterous (this character may not be general) ; palpi often very abnormal (a character which brings the family near the Limexylonide ; it is also closely allied to the Lampyride and Lycide, with which it has often been included as a tribe, and with which it agrees in the formation of the tibie, tarsi, and abdomen). Limexylonide. Antenne 11-jointed, serrate or subfiliform, inserted at the sides of the head, which is narrowed behind ; maxillary palpi of the male very large and flabellate (in the European species) ; all the coxe contiguous ; abdomen consisting of five or six (according to Thomson six or seven) ventral segments; tarsi elongate, 5-jointed, with the joints entire ; integuments soft ; elytra, in our genera, covering or nearly covering abdomen, PTINOIDEA. Ptinide. Antenne long and filiform, or very faintly serrate, never clavate, inserted upon the front, more or less contiguous at base, as a rule 11-jointed; head retractile; thorax narrower than elytra, and usually constricted at base ; elytra, as a rule, more or less rounded and VOL. IV. IV G6 SERRICORNIA. [ Ptinoidea. sometimes globular, occasionally oblong, completely covering abdomen ; legs long, not retractile; trochanters large, femora usually clavate ; tarsi 5-jointed, with the first joint not shorter than the second ; tibial spurs obsolete ; abdomen composed of five ventral segments, of which the first is not elongate. Anobiidez. Closely allicd to the preceding, but chiefly distin- guished by the formation of the antenne, which are either serrate or pectinate (occasionally flabellate), and have the three terminal joints nearly always elongate or thickened ; they are either 10- or 11-jointed, and are inserted immediately in front of the eyes, and more or less distant at base; form usually oblong or cylindrical, occasionally sub- globose; head often covered by front of thorax; legs retractile, trochanters short; tarsi 5-jointed, with the first joint not shorter than the second; tibial spurs obsolete ; abdomen composed of five ventral segments, of which the first is not elongate. Bostrichidz. Closely allied to the two preceding ; form cylin- drical and strongly convex; head strongly reflexed and covered by the front of the thorax, which is hood-shaped; antenne short, with a 3- jointed club, inserted immediately in front of the eyes, at some distance from one another; anterior coxal cavities open behind ; abdomen com- posed of five segments of equal length; tarsi 5-jointed, with the first joint very small, often more or less obsolete ; tibial spurs distinct. Lyctidz. By many authors regarded as a tribe of the preceding, but easily distinguished by the distinct 2-jointed club of the antenne, the elongate first ventral segment of the abdomen, and the fact that the anterior coxal cavities are closed behind; antenne 11-jointed ; head prominent ; tarsi 5-jointed, with the first joint obsolete ; form elon- gate and narrow. Sphindide. Head short, prolonged in front; antenne 10-jointed, with a 3-jointed club; anterior coxal cavities closed behind ; abdomen composed of five free ventral segments, of which the first is the longest; tibie arcuate; tarsi compressed, with the last joint elongate, 5-jointed in the male, heteromerous in the female; size small, form oblong. Cisside. Distinguished from all the preceding allied families by having the tarsi 4-jointed; head and front of thorax often horned or furnished with lamelle in the male; antenne 8—10-jointed, with the last three joints forming a loose club; anterior coxal cavities closed behind ; elytra entirely covering abdomen, which is composed of five ventral segments, the first being the longest ; size small or very small ; form short and convex; upper surface, as a rule, rather strongly pubes- cent; by some authors the family is regarded as a depauperized form of the Bostrichide, in which the first tarsal joint is obsolete, so that the tarsi are often apparently 4-jointed. Buprestide. | SERRICORNIA, 67 BUPRESTIDZ. This genus contains a very large number of genera and species; in the catalogue of the Buprestidae published by. Gemminger and Von Harold in 1869 one hundred and fourteen genera and about two thousand seven hundred species are enumerated, and in the supplement published by M. Kerremans in 1883, twelve new genera and between nine hundred and a thousand new species have been added; by far the great majority of the species belonging to the family are found in tropical countries ; they are amongst the most brilliant and strikingly coloured of all the Coleoptera ; in fact, owing to the splendour of their metallic tints, they are often mounted in articles of jewellery, and their elytra are employed for the embroidering of dresses, scarves, and other articles of wearing apparel, so that they are perhaps amongst the most familiar of all beetles to the ordinary observer. The representa- tives of the family contained in the European fauna are comparatively few and obscure, but two or three genera are fairly well represented in the south of Europe; the total number of genera that occur on the Continent is twenty-seven, represented by upwards of three hundred species ; in Britain, however, only four genera and ten species occur, some of which are extremely rare and are confined to the south of England ; only two species are found very rarely in Scotland. The following are the chief characters of the Buprestide vertical, with the mandibles short and stout, inserted into the thorax as far as the eyes, which are very large, elliptical, and never emarginate; antenne inserted upon the front, 11 jointed, short, usually serrate, at least towards apex. Thorax fitting closely to elytra, prosternum with a process behind which fits into the mesosternum, or sometimes attains the metasternum; anterior coxal cavities open behind; mesosternum short, with the epimera reaching the cox ; metasternum with broad episterna, and with the epimera visible; elytra covering abdomen, or leaving only the pygidium exposed, wings ample; abdomen apparently composed of only five segments; legs short, tarsi 5-jointed. The larvee are very remarkable, being chiefly distinguished by the great develop- ment of the prothoracie segment, the smallness of the head, and the rudimentary condition or total absence of the legs; the head is retractile within the prothorax, the antennez are very short, and there are no visible ocelli; the mandibles are short, hard, and toothed at the extremity and eminently fitted for gnawing the wood in which they live; the maxilla, however, are very small; the meso- and metathorax are much shorter and narrower than the prothorax ; the abdominal segments are nine in number, the anal segment being projecting and presenting the appearance of a tenth segment; the stigmata are crescent-shaped, and consist of nine pairs, of which eight are situated on the eight first segments of the abdomen and the ninth on the mesothorax, or between that segment and the prothorax. These larvee live under bark or often in solid wood, through which they bore galleries; hence they have often been imported, and several continental genera, such as Dicerca, Ptosima, Chrysobothris, &c., have been included as indigenous in HZ 68 SERRICORNIA, [ Buprestide. our old catalogues; occasionally exotic species have been found in Britain under curious circumstances, which seem to show that they may exist for a great many years in the larval state. The four British genera may be distinguished as follows:— I. Tarsi elongate. i. Thorax truncate af base; posterior cox scarcely dis- tant, with the plates distinctly dilated internally . . ANTHAXIA, Esch, ii. Thorax excised and sinuate at base; posterior cox widely distant, with the plates scarcely dilated in- termally 6% 2 bw Se Se et eS Soe © k, « GRIDS, Bor II. Tarsi short; posterior cox widely distant. i. Antenne with the four last joints serrate ; prosternum acuminate at apex; bodyelongate . . . . . . ApuHanisticus, Latr. ii. Antenne with the five last joints serrate; prosternum rounded at apex; body short and broad . . . . . TRacuys, F, ANTHAZXIA, Eschscholtz. a This genus contains upwards of a hundred and fifty species, which are very widely distributed, but are less characteristic of tropical climates than the greater part of the genera belonging to the family; they range from Siberia to the south of South America, and right across Europe, Asia, and North America; more than fifty species are found in Europe; they are small but very brilliantly coloured insects, and often occur abundantly on flowers in Southern Europe; at the least alarm, however, of a passing footstep or a shadow they take to flight, or gather in their limbs and drop among the herbage, a habit which is common to a large number of the Buprestide, and to many other conspicuous and brightly coloured insects, such as the Sagridze and many of the Curculionide. The larva of Anthawxia candens is described by Schiddte (Part iv, p. 373); it is remarkable for the size of the prothorax, which is three times as broad as the middle of the abdomen, and it is furnished with two large scansorial warty promi- nences on both the dorsal and ventral surfaces of the metathorax ; the whole surface of the larve of the Anthaxiz, except the head and prothoracic scuta, is covered with small transverse folds, and is sparingly pilose. A. nitidula, L. Oblong, subparallel, of a beautiful golden green colour, shining, with the sculpture of tle upper surface finely rugose, which gives it a frosted appearance; head much narrower than thorax, eyes large, antenne of a dark metallic colour; thorax almost double as broad as long, truncate at base, transversely rugose, with sides rounded in front, posterior angles almost right angles; scutellum distinct, roundish; elytra subparallel, but rather sharply narrowed before apex, depressed, with thick and shallow rugose sculpture; under-side shining; legs rather long and slender, more or less metallic. L. 4-5 mm. On flowers of whitethorn and celandine in May and June; very rare; taken near Brockenhurst by Turner, Dr, Power, and others; Dr. Power informed me shortly before his death that the plant on which the beetle was chiefly taken was the common celandine, Ranunculus ficrria; it las usually been supposed to have Anthaxia. | SERRICORNIA, 69 occurred on the whitethorn only in the New Forest; the specimens differ con- siderably in size; in continental examples the female often has the thorax of a purplish colour, and the elytra sometimes cyaneous. Stephens (Illust. iii. 238) records Anthaxia salicis from Lordship Lane, Dulwich, but there evidently must have been some error in his record, as it has long been erased from our lists. AGRILUS, Solier. This genus is a very large and extensive one, and, as far as is at present known, contains nearly five hundred species, which are very widely distributed over the surface of the globe, from Siberia in the north to Patagonia in the south; the majority, however, occur in tropical countries; about fifty are found in Europe, of which five only occur in Britain; they are obtained by beating young birches, oaks, hazel, thorn bushes, &e. The larva of A. biguttatus, which is found under the bark of oak, is described by Schiédte (Part iv. p. 374), but does not appear to present any striking characteris- tics; that of A. viridis has been described by Aubé, who detected it in the stems of young beech trees, which were much injured by its attacks ; according to West- wood (Classif. i. p. 230) the larva is apod, broadest in front, and gradually diminishes towards the extremity of the body, which is armed with two horny points. These Jarvee change to pup at the beginning of May, and the perfect insect appears about the middle of June ; the pup, as is the case with all the Buprestide, have neither ‘* styli motorii ’’ nor cerci. The five British species may be divided as follows :— T. Size larger; tarsal claws split at apex. i. Sculpture of elytra less close ; elytra blue or greenish, with two distinct white spots beforeapex . . . . A. BIGUTTATUS, F. ii. Sculpture of elytra closer; elytra coppery or purplish-red, with white spots before apex almost always absent.) igi a sie) 2) tees © Woy ie AS SINDATUS, O], II. Size smaller; tarsal claws toothed at base. ij. Colour unicolorous olive-green, rarely greenish- bronze, very rarely bluish. 1. Antenne strongly dilatedin male. . . . . . A. Laticornis, Z/l. 2. Antenne simple, not dilated in male. A. Last segment of abdomen emarginate, longi- tudinally impressed in male; average size smile “gq eb Uo | tee oo oe 1d oe, cn, Wy ACUI OUE, JUL B. Last segment of abdomen rounded, not im- pressed in male; average size larger . . . . A. ViRIDIS, L. A. biguttatus, I’. nec Rossi (pannonicus, Piller; Anambus biguttatus, Thoms,). Of a brilliant blue or bronze-green colour, occasionally xneous; head rugosely punctured, with the forehead impressed, antenne short, of a dark metallic colour; thorax transverse, very slightly rounded at sides, uneven, transversely rugose; scutellum with a strong transverse engraved line; elytra depressed on disc, slightly broader at base than thorax, rather strongly acuminate towards apex, with shoulders plainly marked, rather closely and rugosely sculptured, with a very distinct small spot of white hairs on each near suture before apex; under-side 70 SERRICORNIA. [Agrilus. shining, punctured, with three white spots on each side of abdomen; legs more or less metallic. L. 8-12 mm. Male with the anterior tibia terminating in a small hook on their inner side. Found flying about old oak stumps, and settling on them; the larva is f.und in the bark of oak stumps in fresh clearings in woods; very local; Darenth Wood (where it has been taken in numbers by Dr. Power, and also by Mr. Champion) ; Hampstead and Cuckfield (Stephens). A. sinuatus, Ol. (chryseis, Curt.). Of a coppery-red or purplish colour, dull, under-side bronze-green; very closely allied to the pre- ceding, but with the elytra more closely sculptured and more evidently granulate, and almost always without a white spot before apex; the abdomen, moreover, is without the white spots at the sides, and the front margin of the prosternum is deeply and triangularly emarginate; the last segment of the abdomen is entire; the average size is smaller than in A. liguttatus. L. 7-8 mm. On low thorn bushes ; very rare; near Brockenhurst, July and August (Turner, Matthews, and others) ; near Windsor and London (Stepheus). A laticornis, II]. (daticollis, Kies.), Elongate, narrow, gradually contracted behind, somewhat depressed on disc, of an olivaceous green colour; head rather strongly and rugosely punctured, forehead flat, vertex of head obsoletely furrowed, antennz as long as head and thorax, very strongly widened in the middle in the male; female with the antenne thinner than in the male, but still somewhat dilated; thorax transverse, somewhat widened in front, coarsely and rugosely punctured, more or less strongly impressed at base; scutellum with engraved trans- verse line; elytra long and narrow, granulate, narrowed at apex; legs dark metallic. L. 4-5 mm. Besides the difference in the antenna, the male has the last segment of the abdomen longitudinally impressed in middle, and the anterior tibia sinuate towards apex and terminating in a small hook. By beating young hazels, oak, birch, &c.; local, but not uncommon where it occurs; Darenth Wood, Leith Hill, Coombe Wood, Shirley, Ashtead, Baleombe, Tonbridge, &c. ; Portsmouth district ; New Forest ; Bewdley Forest ; Buddon Wocd, Leicestershire ; Hopwas Wood, Tamworth ; Robins Wood, RKepton; York. A. angustulus, III. (olivaceus, Gyll.). Very closely allied to the preceding, but distinguished by the antenne not being dilated in male, and by the fact that the second abdominal segment in the same sex has two small prominences in the middle of apex; these, however, are occasionally obsolete, and cannot always be regarded as a reliable character; in the female the sutural angle is simple, whereas in A. laticornis it is slightly produced; in general shape and structure the species so closely resembles the preceding that it does not require a separate description. L. 3)-5 mm, Agrilus.| SERRICORNIA. 71 By beating young birch, hazel, &ec.; local, but not uncommon where it occurs ; Darenth Wood (in abundance), Hsher, Reigate, Ripley, Ashtead, Caterham, Chob- ham, Woking, Tonbridge, &c¢.; Guestling, near Hastings; Southsea; New Forest ; Haywood, Glanvilles Wootton ; Hertford; Suffolk; Bewdley Forest ; Trench Woods ; Robins Wood, Repton ; York. A. viridis, L. (viridipennis, Lap.; quercinus, Redt.). Rather larger than the two preceding species, but closely allied to them in colour and general appearance ; it is, however, distinguished by having the eyes sinuate on their inner margin, the thorax with tke basal lateral fovez less deep, and the elytra not broadly rounded at apex, and the apex plainly serrulate, whereas in the other two species the denticulation is very indistinct; the last ventral segment of the abdomen, moreover, is rounded and has no impression in the male, and the forehead is even and not furnished with a shallow furrow on vertex; from A. laticornis the species may, of course, be distinguished by the formation of the antenne. L. 5-7 mm. On young trees, especially oaks; very rare; Buddon Wood.and Mount Sorrel (Power) ; Woodford (Turner); York (R. Cooke); Scotland, very rare, Solway and Argyle districts; there are very few specimens of the species in our collections, and probably large specimens of A. angustulus are often confused with it, APHANISTICUS, Latreille. This genus contains about forty species, which are widely distributed, species having been recorded fiom Egypt and Algeria, Madagascar, Natal, Ceylon, Japan, Mexico, the Malay Peninsula, the Australian region, &c. ; seven are found in Europe, of which one only oceurs in Britain, and that very rarely. A. pusillus, Ol. (/ineola, Geim.). Elongate, black, shining, with a feeble neous reflection, upper surface rather convex ; head large, very strongly furrowed, almost bilobed; antenn short, with the first two joints thickened, and the last four serrate ; thorax transverse, convex, with three transveise impressions, posterior angles acute ; upper surface of head and thorax very finely wrinkled, alutaceous ; scutellum small, triangular ; elytra at base about as broad as base of thorax, slightly widened behind middle, and narrowed towards apex, finely punctured in somewhat irregular rows, apex obtusely truncate ; legs black. femora dilated on their inferior margin, tarsi short with the joints lobed. L. 13-22 mm. Grassy places, by sweeping; also occasionally by beatinz hedges, and in moss ; rare; Woking, Coombe Wood, Chatham, Strood, Southend; Deal (Champion) ; Folkestone (Waterhouse) ; Bury Hill, Arundel ; Carisbrooke Castle, Isle of Wicht ; Newland Common, near GJanvilles Woctton (Dale and Wollaston) ; Kingsbridge ; Bath; Gamlinghay, Cambridge (Power) ; Scarborough (Lawson). TRACEYS, Fabricius. The species contained in this genus may be easily known by their 72 SERRICORNIA. | Zrachyse very short broad form, which is almost triangular, being wide in front and much narrowed behind; the antenne have the five last joints serrate, and the femora are not dilated ; the thorax is transverse, and is strongly produced in the middle of base ; the genus is rather an exten- sive one, comprising, as at present known, more than ninety species ; twelve of these occur in Europe, and the remainder are widely dis- tributed ; the majority, however, appear to occur in the Malay Penin- sula and the adjacent region; several species have comparatively recently been described from Siberia and the Amur district and Japan, which makes it probable that the genus will ultimately prove to be very much larger than is at present known. The larva of 7. minuta is figured in two yositions by Schiddte (Part iv., pl. ii., f.18 and 19); it presents a very curious appearance, owing to the very large pro- thoracic segment into which the small head is sunk, the very short mesothorax, which is, however, as broad as the prothorax, and the large number of scansorial warty appendages, of which eight pairs are dorsal and seven pairs ventral; the sides of the segments are also furnished with large knobbed prominences which are slightly setose, and the segments themselves are much incised at their junction; the ninth segment is much narrower than the preceding, and the anal appendage seems as if it were a continuation of the latter segment; the larva is light-coloured, with the scuta dark; these latter are small, with the exception of that on the prothorax, and vary considerably in shape, that on the metathorax being almost cruciform, and those on the first seven segments of the abdomen being almost hammer-shaped; the legs are obsolete: this larva mines the leaves of the hazel, on which plant the perfect insect is very often found, There are three British species, which may be distinguished as follows :— I. Upper surface black with more or less distinct whitish pubescence. i. Size larger; upper surface more depressed; elytra with punctuation not strong, and more or less con- Tact ie peal ek On eet ay ae amo ii. Size smaller; upper surface more convex; elytra with punctuation strong, and arranged in more or less : Fepular Tows = 2 2 6 © 6 = © =. % 2 + % 6 C, PUMIDA, 77D. II. Head and thorax coppery; elytra dark blue, with the punctuation rather strong, and arranged in more or less regularrows . +--+ + » © « « + + »« © »« J. TROGLODYTES, Gyll, T. MInvuTA, L. T. minuta, L. Black, with a slight eneous reflection ; form short and broad, narrowed behind; head smooth, very strongly impressed between eyes; antenne short, with the last five joints serrate ; thorax much broader than long, narrowed in front, with two transverse impres- sions on each side, finely and not distinctly punctured ; scutellum very small ; elytra broader than thorax, with shoulders strongly marked, rather depressed and uneven on disc, much narrowed towards apex, irregularly and indistinctly punctured, with four well-marked wavy bands of depressed whitish hairs, which are sometimes more or less obsolete; levs black, tarsi very short. L. 25-3} mm. By beating sallows, hazels, &c.; local; London district, not uncommon, Cobham, Trachys. | SERRICORNIA. 73 Ckatham, Darenth Wood, Coombe Wood, Chattenden; Hastings; Portsmouth dis- trict ; Dorset ; Lords Wood, Southampton; Huntingdonshire; Wood Ditton, Cam- bridge ; Langworth Wood, Lincoln, T. pumila, [1]. (intermedia, Lap.). Allied to the preceding, but at once distinguished by its smaller size, and shorter, more ovate, and more convex form, as well as by its more shining appearance, more even surface, and the very strong and much more distinct and regular punc- tuation of the elytra; the shoulders of the latter are not so much marked and the sides are more rounded near base, and the pubescence is uneven, and often obsolete, and when present does not take the form of waved bands; the size is very variable. L. 1;-22 mm, By sweeping herbage ; occasionally at the roots of plants (Marrubium vulgare, &e.)? and in moss on chalky hill-sides ; extremely local; Mickleham, Surrey, where it has been found in numbers by Dr. Power, and subsequently has been taken by Mr. Champion; Soutlrwick, near Southsea (Moncreaff); I know of no other British locality for this insect; it used to be erroneously inserted in our catalogues as 7. nana, F'., which is a different species that has not hitherto occurred in Britain. T. troglodytes, Gyll., nec Lap. (pygmea, W. C., nec F.). Of much the same shape as the preceding, but easily distinguished by its colour; head and thorax of a dark shining ecoppery colour, the former deeply excavate and channelled, the latter even, except for slight depressions at sides, finely and sparingly punctured, and occasionally impunctate ; elytra without pubescence, of a dark blue colour, convex, rather strongly but not deeply punctured in rows, and in part trans- versely rugose ; under-side brownish-bronze; legs dark, more or less metallic. L. 23 mm. By sweeping herbage, flowers, &c.; occasionally in moss; very widely distributed, but always rare; Coombe Wood (Stephens); Chatham (J. J. Walker) ; Folkestone (Waterhouse) ; Guestling, near Hastings (Butler); New Forest; Glanvilles Wootton (Dale and Wollaston); Holm Bush, Brighton (Power) ; Weston ; Barmouth (Chap- pell) ; Cambridge (Stephens); St. Faith’s, Norwich (Power); Hornsea; Knowle, near Birmingham (Blatch) ; Scotland, very rare, Solway district (Sharp). THROSCIDA. This family has been by several authors classed with the Eucnemide, but appears to be distinct by reason of the formation of the anterior coxal cavities, which are formed by the pro- and mesosternum, whereas these parts in the Eucnemide and the Elateride are entirely prosternal ; this character is also found in the Scaphidiide, and has been before alluded to as being to a certain extent present in Hphistemus (Vol. III. p- 7); from the Elateride the family is distinguished by the faet that the thorax is more closely applied to the body, and that the species have not the power of leaping if placed on their back, The following are some of the chief characters:—Head sunk in thorax as far as eyes, 74 SERRICORNIA, [Throscide. which are hairy and usually emarginate or divided ; antenne inserted on the front, received in grooves beneath, 11-joimted, sometimes serrate, sometimes as in our single genus, with a serrate 3-jointed club ; prosternum with an anterior rounded lobe protecting the mouth, slightly prolonged behind into a flat process received in the meso- sternum, which is short ; elytra completely covering abdomen ; abdomen with five ventral segments; anterior and middle coxe small, rounded, and not prominent; posterior cox dilated internally ; legs short, retractile ; tarsi short, 5-jointed; the species are slow in their movye- ments, and are found by sweeping herbage or flowers, at the roots of grass, in moss, haystack and flood refuse, &c.; they are small and inconspicuous-looking insects, and in some cases are very hard to deter- mine with accuracy. According to the Munich catalogue the family contains four genera and more than a hundred species, which are widely distributed both in temperate and tropical climates; two genera, Drapeles and Throscus, are found in Europe, represented by about a dozen species; of these, four species, all belonging to the latter genus, occur in Britain, THROSCUS, Laireille. (Trivagus, Kugelann.)* This genus contains about one quarter of the species at present known as belonging to the family; these are chiefly found in Europe and North America ; a few have been recorded from Brazil, Northern India, and the Australian region, but as a rule their place is taken in the tropics by the genus Drapetes; our British species may be divided as follows :— I. Length exceeding 2 mm. ; colour, as a rule, darker. i. Eyes divided until middle; thorax less narrowed in fronts ey ete ae ee Gh st et ie ee DER MESTOLD RSS 77, ii. Eyes divided considerably beyond middle; thorax evidently more narrowed in front, at all events in the malec0 6 ss 2) Pens Ge ee ee Gis Of OAR INGRRONS bonur II, Length not exceeding 2 mm. ; colour, as a rule, lighter ; eyes divided considerably beyond middle. ji. Head with two raised lines; form longer and less oval; antenng longer . . . . © + + «© « «© « » . JT. ELATEROIDES, Heer. ii. Head without raised lines; form shorter and more oval; antenne shorter. . . . .- - =. ». . ». - YT. OBTUSUS, Curt. T. dermestoides, L. (adstrictor, Panz.). Elongate-oval, more or less narrowed at apex, of a reddish-brown colour, rather thickly clothed with fine silky recumbent greyish pubescence ; head with two feebly raised parallel longitudinal lines, eyes divided to middle; antenne as long as thorax, with a 8-jointed club; thorax broader * The name Trivagus, Kugelann, has the priority, but, as Erichson has pointed out» it is applied by its author to a genus composed of both Throscus and Bylurus, and therefore must be dropped for both. Throscus. | SERRICORNIA. 75 than long, distinctly narrowed in front, with a double punctuation, consisting of rather diffuse larger punctures and very fine smaller punc- tures ; this latter character is only visible under a strong magnifying power; the base is sinuate, and the posterior angles are strongly pro- jecting; elytra moderately convex, gradually narrowed behind, obtusely rounded at apex, with fine punctured striz, and with the interstices very finely rugose and, besides, finely punctured; legs ferruginous. L. 23-3 mm. Male with the club of the antenne larger, longer than the funiculus; female with the club smaller, shorter than the funiculus. By sweeping herbage; occasionally found on palings, in sandpits, &e.; local; generally distributed and common in the London district; Hastings; Portsmouth district ; New Forest ; Glanvilles Wootton ; Snowdon; Hertford ; Knowle; Bewdley ; Cannock Chase; Bramhall, Cheshire; Barton Moss ; Scarborough; Scotland, very local, Solway, Clyde, and Forth districts; Ireland, near Belfast : it is probable that it is often passed over by ordinary collectors, as it gathers up its legs and looks much like a seed in the net. T. carinifrons, Bonv. (elateroides, Redt., nee Heer.). This species so closely resembles the preceding that it was for many years mixed with it in some collections ; it may, however, be distinguished by the following characters:—The forehead has the two frontal carine more distinct, and the eyes are divided by a narrow horny plate considerably beyond the middle; the thorax, in the male at least, is flatter, and much more contracted in front, and the elytra are more acuminate, with the striz more delicately impressed, and the punctures on the interstices more distinct, the surface being less coarsely rugose. L. 21-3 mm, By sweeping in woods; occasionally on palings; rare, but probably overlooked ; Chislehurst (Matthews) ; Sheppey (Champion and Walker); Tonbridge (Wollaston, and recently taken in numbers at the same place by A. C. Horner); Shirley, Esher, Tilgate, Forest Hill; New Forest ; Southampton (Walker) ; Glanvilles Wootton ; according to Redtenbacher it is very common at Vienna on Parietaria officinalis. T. elateroides, Heer., nec Redt. (gracilis, Woll.). This species in general shape and structure is closely allied to T. carinifrons, from which, however, it may at once be known by its very much smaller size, as well as by the more finely sculptured elytra, of which the interstices are more thickly punctured ; from 7’. dermestoides it may further be known by having the eyes more divided, and the frontal caring more distinct and extended further to base of head ; in size it resembles 7, obtusus, but is more elongate, with longer antenne, and may be known by the presence of the frontal carine. L. 2 mm. At roots of grass, and in moss, flood refuse, &c.; often in salt marshes; usually found in early spring; rare; Chatham (Brewer); Sheerness (Walker) ; Cowley (Power) ; according to Redtenbacher it is found on Purietaria officinalis, T. obtusus, Curt. (pusillus, Heer.). The smallest of our species ; allied to the preceding, but shorter, with the elytra shorter and less 76 SERRICORNIA. | Throscus. narrowed behind, and the thorax less narrowed in front; the antenne, moreover, are shorter, and the elytra finely but not so closely punc- tured ; from all the three preceding it may be known, apart from other differences, by the fact that the head has no raised carine; it is, too, more oval than any of our other species. L. 13;-1{ mm. In moss, haystack and flood refuse, &c.; not common (although occasionally found in some numbers), and very local; Lee; Sheerness (where Mr. J. J. Walker once found it in abundance in moss on stumps of trees in winter); Chatham; Ripley, Surrey ; Forest Hill; Highgate; Eynsham; Plaistow Marshes; Dagenham; Har- wich ; Southsea district out of furze, by beating, January to June; Isle of Wight; Weymouth. EUCNEMIDZ. This family has been by some authors included under the Elaterida, to which it is closely allied; in fact, it appears to be somewhat doubt- ful whether it ought to be separated, as the only real differences seem to lie in the fact that the labrum is concealed, and in the insertion of the antenne, which, as Dr. Horn has pointed out, are inserted upon the front, at the inner extremity of transverse grooves, before which the front is expanded again ; they are placed further from the eyes than in the Elateride, but in many cases, e.g. Hucnemis and Melasis, are very far from being contiguous, a character which has sometimes been put forward for the family; another mistake that has been made with regard to this family is the statement that they do not possess the power of leaping when placed on their backs, which is so characteristic of the Elateride ; in some cases it is absent, and in others little deve- loped, but in Hucnemis, as pointed out by Ahrens seventy years ago, it is very marked, and the same is the case with other genera. The family contains nearly a hundred genera, comprising about five hundred species; they are chiefly found in tropical countries, but a fair number are found in Europe and North America; if we exclude the Thoroseidee and Cerophytidz, we may reckon fifteen genera and thirty species as occurring on the former continent, of which three genera and three species are found in Britain; these are all rare, and the genus Eucnemis has only quite recently been detected in the New Forest. The larvee of the Eucnemide appear to bear a somewhat close relation to those of the Buprestide, but those that are known differ from them by having the labial palpi and maxille either entirely wanting or quite rudimentary. Schiédte classified the larva of Melasis buprestoides amongst the Elaterids, all of which he considered to be carnivorous, but Dr. Sharp has pointed out that the larve of Hucnemis capucina are certainly not truly carnivorous, but probably live by imbibing the juices of the decayed wood in which they are found, J. Maxillary palpi with the last joint acute; antenne distant, flabellate in male, pectinate in female; thorax CACO SobiottS S56 6 4 Ab ow oe Oo 6 GG bi NSNh (OME II. Maxillary palpi with the last joint large, more or less dilated ; thorax widest behind, =~] ~T Euenemide. | SERRICORNIA. i, Antenne moderately distant, simply serrate in both sexes ; elytra without trace of strie . . . . . . HUCNEMIS, Ahr. ii, Antenne approximate, pectinate in male (in our species) ; elytra with strie more or less distinct . . MicroRRHAGUs, Eschs. MELASIS, Olivier. This genus comprises three or four species, one of which is found in Europe, and the others have been described from North and Central America ; they are elongate and cylindrical, and live in wood in which the larvee bore galleries, or, according to some authors, are parasitic on certain wood-boring insects. The larva of Melasis buprestoides is described and figured by Schiddte (Part v. p. 49, plate iii.); it much resembles the larve of certain of the Buprestidae, the head being very small and sunk in the prothorax, which is broader and much larger than the meso- and metathorax; the antenne are very minute, and the maxille and labium are obsolete; the abdominal segments are all much longer than the meso- and metathorax, and are all transverse with the exception of the ninth, which is conical and obtuse and not furnished with cerci; there are no scuta, except on the prothorax; the spiracles are of a short ovate form, those on the prothorax being the largest ; the legs are obsolete ; the larva is white, with the clypeus and mandibles ferruginous. IM. buprestoides, L.(¢ v. elateroides, Ill.). Elongate, cylindrical, clothed with fine and sparing greyish pubescence, dull black, with the antenne and legs fuscous or pitchy red, elytra sometimes lighter than the front parts; head large, vertical, rather thickly and coarsely punctured ; antenne varying somewhat in the sexes; thorax broadest in front, very gradually narrowed to base, coarsely sculptured, posterior angles projecting; elytra long, gradually narrowed to apex, rather deeply striated, interstices narrow, thickly punctured and granulate ; legs rather stout, tibie suddenly and strongly narrowed at base. L, 6-8 mm. Male with the antenne flabellate from the sixth joint, and the thorax distinctly channelled ; female with the antenne pectinate and the thorax channelled at base. In rotten wood of beech and other old trees; local, but sometimes in numbers where it occurs ; Chatham (Champion and J. J. Walker, in profusion) ; Sevenoaks ; Coombe Wood; Cobham Park; Darenth Wood; Tonbridge; New Forest; Windsor Forest ; Halesworth, Suffolk ; Bretby Wood, near Repton (Harris); Dunham Park, Manchester (Chappell). EUCNEMIS, Abrens. This genus appears to contain only one species, which is widely dis- tributed in Europe, but has only lately been taken in Britain; the larva has been described and figured by Perris, Bonvouloir, and Cussac, but has been more accurately discussed by Dr. Sharp in the Transactions of the Entomological Society of London, 1886, Part iii. pp. 297-802 ; it is chiefly remarkable from the fact that there exist on the dorsal and 78 SERRICORNIA. [ Hucnemis. ventral aspects of the segments peculiar velvety patches, and behind each of these a small stigma like cavity; it possesses no rudiments of legs and no ocelli, and the mouth, palpi, and antenne are rudimentary and scarcely traceable; the segments are much incised, so that the outline is very undulatory ; Dr. Sharp says regarding it (l.c. p. 301), “The larva of Hucnemis capucina has certainly the capacity of com- minuting the decayed wet wood in which it lives, and I presume that it makes its burrows bya process of this kind, though I have not been able to observe how it does it; it is exceedingly slow in all its move- ments, and I think it is most probably by twisting and pushing a little with its head that it makes its burrows; the peculiar very hard saw- like teeth with which the whole front margin of the head is armed appear admirably adapted for this purpose. I only found larve in the sappy or damp wood in the interior of the tree; the outer wood was dry and comparatively hard, and was penetrated in all directions by the burrows of former generations of the larve; and it was in this com- paratively hard outer wood that we found the perfect insects.” E. capucina, Ahr. Elongate oval, subcylindrical, black, shining, clothed with silky greyish pubescence, which is not very apparent ; head convex, rather finely and thickly punctured, with a raised carina extending from front to base, antenne entirely received in epipleural grooves of the thorax, pitchy brown, serrate, with the first and third joints elongate, and the second joint very small; thorax narrowed in front, depressed at base, basal margin sinuate on each side near posterior angles, upper surface distinctly punctured; scutellum semicircular, situated in a strong depression at base of elytra; elytra gradually narrowed behind, rounded at apex, irregularly and distinetly punctured, but without a trace of striz; legs strongly retractile, pitchy red, with tarsi lighter. L. 4-55 mm. Tn an old beech tree near Brockenhurst, New Forest ; taken in some numbers by Dr. Sharp, Mr. Champion, and the Rev. H. 8S. Gorham on June 13th, 1886; it has not occurred, I believe, since; the capture is most interesting as showing that we have by no means exhausted all possible discoveries of further indigenous Coleoptera, when a locality that has been so much worked as the New Forest by Turner and others is found to yield so important a species. MICRORRHAGUS, Eschscholtz. (Dirrhagus, Latreille.) This genus is one of the most extensive of the Eucnemide, contain- ing, as it does, about sixty species ; ten of these are found in Europe, and the remainder occur chiefly in North, Central, and South America and the Malay Peninsula; one or two species have been described from Ceylon; our single British species may be easily known from those belonging to the two preceding genera by its much longer antennae, which are contiguous at base, and delicately pectinate in the male. Microrrhagus. | SERRICORNIA. 79 M. pygmeus, F. (Chevrolati, Stierl.). Black, shining, cylindrical, narrowed behind, clothed with rather fine greyish pubescence ; head convex, strongly and somewhat rugosely punctured, furrowed between antenn, with a trace of a raised keel on vertex; antenne long, with the second joint short, black or pitchy black; thorax narrowed in front, convex, depressed towards base, with sharp posterior angles, thickly and distinctly punctured, with two round impressions on middle of disc, and further impressions at base ; elytra depressed at base, narrowed towards apex, with the sutural stria distinct, and the dorsal strie more or less evident, interstices rugosely punctured ; legs slender, femora pitchy, tibiz and tarsi reddish. L. 3-41 mm. Male with the antenne strongly pectinate; in the female they are deeply serrate. By sweeping fern, &c.; very rare ; New Forest (Turner, Power, Champion, &c.) ; Stephens records it doubtfully from Norfolk. (Cerophytide. This family is distinguished from all the preceding by having the posterior coxee not laminate and the trochanters of the middle and posterior legs very long ; it is by many authors regarded as merely a tribe of the Euenemide, and is represented in the European fauna by one genus and one species which has been recorded as British, but is very doubtfully indigenous, and cannot be admitted into our lists without further confirmation. Cerophytum, Latr. This genus comprises four or five species from North America, Mexico, Cayenne, and Europe ; it is the only genus belong:ng to the family. C. elateroides, L. Oblong, subcylindrical, black, finely pubescent, mouth parts and antenne ferruginous ; head thickly and rugosely punctured, with a fine and sharp raised keel on the front; antenne approximate at base, pectinate in male, serrate in female, palpi with the last joint securiform ; thorax small, without antennal scrobes beneath, strongly and thickly punctured; elytra broadest behind middle, with punctured striz, interstices rugosely punctured; legs reddish with tibix and tarsi lighter, posterior coxe not laminate. LL. 6-7 mm. Once found in the neighbourhood of Bristol (Westwood and Stephens) ; very doubtfully indigenous.) ELATERIDE, This is a very large and important, and for the most part strongly defined family ; its members are spread generally over the surface of the globe, but they are more widely distributed than those of the Buprestide, a considerable proportion being found in temperate and even cold countries, although the greater number of the species seem to inhabit tropical climates. In the Munich catalogue, published in 1869, about one handred and eighty genera and two thousand seven hundred species are enumerated, but this number has been considerably 80 SERRICORNIA. {Elateride. increased since that time; thirty-three genera and about three hundred and eighty species occur in Europe, of which seventeen genera, containing sixty-one species, are found in Britain; the family, therefore, is con- siderably better represented by indigenous species than is the case with the Buprestide. The chief characteristic of the family, and that from which it derives its name (the word ‘Elater” being the Greek for a “driver” or “ jumper”), is the power that its members possess of springing into the air when placed on their back; this is effected by depressing the head backwards so as to form a slight arch, a movement which brings the strong prosternal process to the anterior part of the mesosternal cavity ; the muscles are then suddenly relaxed, and the spine descends suddenly into the cavity; by the force of this sudden movement upon the slightly arched body the base of the elytra is caused to strike the sup- porting surface with some violence, and the whole body is forced upwards ; this property is necessarily coexistent with a loose articula- tion between the pro- and mesothorax, which, as pointed out by Dr. Horn and others, is a remarkable character in the majority of the genera of the family. This power of leaping, as above shown, is also possessed by several of the Eucnemide, and it is on account of this, to a great extent, that many authors include them with the Elateride. The following are some of the chief characters that distinguish the family :—Head usually more or less sunk in thorax, but occasionally free with the eyes prominent; eyes, as a rule, not prominent, round ; antenne pectinate, serrate, or somewhat filiform, inserted low down on the forehead, distant at base, sometimes received in grooves ; mandibles bifid at apex, maxille with two lobes, the outer one very small, maxillary palpi with the last joint, as a rule, scuriform; prothorax loosely articulated with mesothorax, prosternum produced into a process behind which is received in an excavation in the middle of the meso- sternum; anterior coxal cavities open behind; mesosternum short, meta- sternum usually long ; elytra almost always covering the abdomen (very rarely abbreviated in the female), scutellum visible; abdomen composed of five segments ; legs moderately long or short, usually slender, tarsi 5-jointed either simple or, rarely, lobed, claws simple, toothed or pectinate. The species as a rule are sombre-coloured, and in this respect differ from the Buprestide; a few, however (such as Hlater sangwineus and its allies, Corymbites ceneus, &c.), are conspicuous; some of the exotic species attain to a very considerable size; the members of the family that are best known to the ordinary student of Natural History are the so-called ‘ fire-flies,” which are really beetles belonging to the genus Pyrophorus ; the type species P. noctilucus, L., is upwards of an inch long, of an obscure brown colour, with an oval spot of a dull yellow colour near each posterior angle of the thorax; with regard to this Elateride. ] SERRICORNIA. 81 insect Professor Westwood (Classification i. p. 241) makes the following observations :—‘‘ These spots emit so strong a light during the night (that being the period when they are in motion, reposing by day, when they are but seldom observed), that it is easy to read the smallest writing by placing several under a glass, or by moving a single insect along the lines. They are termed by the natives Cucuyos or Coyouyou, and by the Spaniards Cucujo. When the insect is on the wing, two additional luminous patches are observed beneath the elytra, the light indeed shining cut from beneath the abdominal segments when stretched out. Itis said that they are attracted by the light of a flambeau, which they follow like moths, a circumstance which also occurs in glowworms,” The larve of the Elaterida are very well known in many instances, in fact far too well, as they are ideutical with the well-known “ wire-worms,”’ which are such a pest fo the gardener and the farmer; they differ from those of the Buprestide in not having the prothoracic segment dilated, and in the presence of legs; except in the disposition of the scuta and the formation of the anal segment they beara strong family relation to one another, with the exception of those belonging to a few genera such as Cardiophorus, which are very peculiar by reason of the broad membranous spaces between the abdominal segments. The following are the chief characteristics of the larvae as given by Chapuis and Candéze (Catalogue des Larves des Coléoptéres, p- 140):—Head corneous, flat above and below, with the mouth not inferior; ocelli absent ; antennas very short, 3-jointed, inserted on the sides of the head near the mandibles; labrum not visible; mandibles short, rather strong, simple or dentate; maxillary palpi with the internal lobe only slightly developed, external lobe 2-jointed, with a short 4-jointed palpus; thoracic and abdominal segments closely resembling one another, the prothoracic segment being the longest; legs short, contiguous, terminating in a simple claw or hook which takes the place of a tarsus ; abdominal segments of the same breadth as the thoracic segments, nine in number, the ninth segment variable, being sinuate or dentate at sides, and often split up at apex into dentate processes ; the whole body both above and below is almost entirely protected by corneous scuta; the colour is, as a rule, reddish-brown or yellowish, some species however are blackish-brown or purplish, and very rarely the colour is yellowish-white; the larva, as a whole, much resemble those of the Tenebrionidx, but may be known’by their flatter head and the shape of the apical abdominal segment. Some of these larva are very destructive to plants, and will be noticed under their respective genera; others again are wood-feeders, and some, such as Elater rhombeus, are positively affirmed to be carnivorous ; Chapuis and Candéze, in confirmation of the latter facts, allege that they have found an Elaterid larva devouring the larva of a species of Diptera in a decaying mushroom. The British genera may be divided as follows ; it will, however, be advisable for any student of the genus to make himself acquainted with the appearance of the genera by means of type specimens, if possible, as many of them are closely related, and the generie differences are not always very apparent from descriptions :— i. Antenne short, entirely received in strong grooves beneath? an <9 oe roa en mer a ee aS o UACON, Lap; iI. Antennzs longer, not or not entirely received in antennal grooves. i. Coxal plates suddenly dilated inwards; eyes more or Jess sunk in thorax. VOL. IV. G 82 SERRICORNIA. 1. Margin of the front elevated behind the labrum ; size smaller. A. Prosternal spine truncate behind; scutellum cordiform ; larva with the abdominal segments widely separated by membranous divisions B. Prosternal spine acute; scutellum oval ; larva, as a rule, with the abdominal segments ap- proximate. a. Posterior angles of thorax spiniform; pro- sternum broad, with sutures single . . . b. Posterior angles of thorax produced, but not spiniform ; prosternum moderate, with su- tures double. a*, Prosternal sutures excavated in front; second joint of antenne shorter than third b*. Prosternal sutures not excavated in front. at. Antenne strongly serrate, with the second joint much shorter than third . b+. Antenne more feebly serrate, with the second joint about equal to third . . 2. Margin of the front not elevated behind the labrum ; ; second and third joints of antenna very short . . Coxal pli ites gradually dilated inwards. "y Elytra without ventral epipleuree; eyes more or less sunk in thorax. A. Front not convex; mouth not inferior ;* an- tennz with the first joint not elongate. a. Claws serrate . b. Claws simple. a*. Tarsi with the first joint elongate . : b*, Tarsi with the first joint not or only slightly longer than second. a}. Thorax with posterior angles short, not overlapping the shoulders of elytra; anterior coxal cavities narrowly ape behind. . . a ey del i bt. Thorax with posteri ior r angles long, over- lapping the shoulders of elytra ; anterior coxal cavities broadly open behind B. Front convex; mouth inferior ; antenne with the first joint elongate, forming a scape. a. Claws pectinate. a*, Tarsi with the fourth joint strongly lobed beneath ; thorax longer; size much larger b*. Tarsi with the fourth joint not lobed; thorax shorter; size very small b, Claws simple. a*, Sides of thorax obtuse, margin deflexed in front; second joint of antenne longer than third Peer b*. Sides of thorax acute, margin straight i in front; second joint of antenne ; ae to third fs 2. Elytra with the ventral epipleurse narrow but * In Sericosomus the mouth is deflexed and almost therefure be regarded as an exception. | Elateride. Carpiopnorws, Esch. CryYPTOHYPNUs, Esch, ELATER, L. IscHNoDES, Germ. MEGAPENTHES, Kies. Lupivs, Latr. Metanotus, Esch. Atnous, Esch. Limontivs, Esch. Sericosomus, Redé. Synaptus, Esch. ApRastus, Esch, Aariotrs, sch. Dotorius, Esch. inferior; the genus must Elateride. } SERRICORNIA. 83 distinct, embracing the sides of the abdomen ; eyes quite free, or with tite extreme posterior margin alone hidden. A, Eyes moderately prominent; margin of front not reflexed. . . . ‘ . Corymsites, Latr. B. Kyes strongly prominent, always quite free ; margin of front strongly and sharply reflexed , CampyLus, Fisch. LACON, Laporte. About one hundred and twenty species are comprised in this genus; they are chiefly found in tropical countries, only two oceurring in Eurepe, ef which one is rather common in Britain. The larva of L. murinus is figured by Schiodte (Part v. pl. vi. fig. 2); it is elongate and parallel-sided, of a pale yellowish colour, with the sides white and the head, prothoracic scutum, and the ninth segment of abdomen fusco-ferruginous ; the prothorax is much longer than the meso- and metathorax, and the third abdominal segment is longer than the others; the sides of head and body are furnished with long hairs; the last segment cf the abdomen is nearly as broad as the preceding, serrate at the sides and terminated by two strong bifid points which represent the cerci; the legs are visible from above. GZ. murinus, [.. A rather large broad species, black or dark brown, thickly clothed with light and ‘dark brown and ereyish tomentose pubescence, which gives the. upper surface a variegated appearance ; head rather convex, punctured, antenne rather short, entirely received in grooves beneath, yellow with the first joint black; thorax a little longer than broad, convex in centre and depressed and uneven towards base, with the poster or angles very blunt and truncate, upper surface distinctly and closely punctured on disc, more closely at sides; scu- tellum large; elytra much depressed at ‘base, gradually narrowed to apex, broadest in or about middle, with very feeble and feebly punctured striz, interstices finely punctured ; legs pitchy or pitchy red, knees and tarsi light red. L. 9-14 mm. Grassy places by sweeping ; occasionally in moss, garden refuse, &c.; often on the wing; common and generally distributed in the London, Southern, and Midland districts ; tess common further north; Snewdon; York ; Manchester ; Northumber- land and Durham district; Scotland, scarce, Lowlands, Tay district ; Ireland, near Dublin, local; Furnish Island (co. Galway). CARDIOPHORWS, [schscholtz. (Caloderus, Steph.) More than two hundred species are known as belonging to this genus, of which fifty are found in Europe ; the rest are very widely dis- tributed, and range frorn Siberia to Madagascar and the Cape of Good Hope, although the majority appear to be found in temperate countries; the genus is distinguished by its very convex thorax, the comparatively short posterior angles of the same, and the cordate scutellum ; the G 2 84 SERRICORNIA. [ Cardiophorus. prosternal process is truncate behind, and the anterior coxal cavities are rather narrowly open. The larva of Cardiophorus asellus is described and figured by Schiédte (Part v. p. 494, fig. iv. 1-10) ; it is very long, slender and filiform, and is chiefly remarkable for the very great proportional length of the abdomen, which is due to the fact that the abdominal segments, which are transverse and much broader than the thoracic sexments, are separated by retractile membranous joints, the space occupied by these between each segment being longer than the segment ; the ninth abdominal segment is narrow, with a tuft of hairs at apex and a reflexed hook on each side; the head is oblong with bifurecate mandibles, scarcely narrower than the thoracic segments, which are very small in comparison with the rest of the body ; the legs are moderately long and plainly visible from above; the colour is white, with the thoracic segments flavescent, the head ferruginous, and the mandibles fuscous. There are four species, which have been reputed as British, but three of these are doubtfully indigenous, and require further contirma- tion before they can be received with any certainty. C. asellus, Er. (equiseti, Steph., mee Herbst.). Of a greyish-black colour, somewhat thickly clothed with rather long recumbent greyish pubescence, thorax moderately shining, elytra dull; form somewhat resembling that of Agriotes sputator and its allies; head thickly punctured, with vertex impressed, antenne black, gradually narrowed to apex; thorax very convex, with sides rounded, thickly and very finely punctured, posterior angles short and blunt; scutellum large, cordiform, with a deep impression; elytra somewnat depressed and uneven on dise, subparallel until posterior third and thence narrowed to apex, with distinct punctured striz, interstices very thickly punctured, dull ; legs black, knees and tarsi lighter, claws simple. L. 6-8 mm. Sandy places; at roots of grass and by sweeping herbage; very local and, as a rule, rare; occasionally, however, it has been taken in some numbers, Hsher, Faversham, Frensham, Woking, Chobham, Bireh Wood, Darenth Wood; Wey- mouth and Portland ; Chesil Beach, common, May 1886 (J. J. Walker) ; Glanvilles Wootton ; Bristol; Scotland, Edinburgh (Stephens); the latter record may have been in error, as it has not since occurred in Scotland or in any district in the Midlands or North of England. (C. ruficollis, Er. Shining black, indistinetly clothed with greyish pubescence, upper surface of thorax red, with the anterior portion black, under surface of the same red with the anterior edge and a longitudinal streak, black; head finely punctured ; thorax as long as broad, not very convex, thickly and finely punctured ; elytra broader than thorax with strong punctured striz, interstices somewhat convex, punctured and transversely wrinkled, upper surface black or bluish- black, under surface black ; legs black, tarsi more or less brownish. L. 55 mm. tee rded by Stephens from the neighbourhood of London, and also as having been found on the oak in Norfolk. C. thoracicus. Er. Black, very shining, with bright red thorax, Cardiophorus. | SERRICORNIA. 85 clothed with very scanty greyish pubescence; head finely punctured, antenne black; thorax as long as broad, convex, narrowed in front, finely and thickly punctured, under-side with a longitudinal black streak in the middle ; elytra with punctured stri, interstices finely and thickly punctured; legs black, apex of tibie, claws, and more or less of tarsi, reddish. L. 7 mm. Stephens gives the following record of this insect, which is remarkable, as it has certainly not been taken for very many years :—‘‘ Rare, but widely distributed, occurring within the metropolitan district, in Norfolk, Somersetshire, &c.; Baron Wood, Cumberland, T. C. Heysham, Esq.; Windsor, Dr. Leach ; New Forest, L. Rudd, Esq. ; Collingbourne Wood, Rev. G. T. Rudd.” C. rufipes, Fourc. Somewhat depressed, black, upper surface clothed with very fine blackish pubescence ; head thickly and rather finely punctured, antenne longer in male than in female, black; thorax, as a rule, longer than broad, broadest in middle, very finely and thickly punctured ; elytra a little broader than thorax, with strong punctured strie, interstices convex, punctured; femora and tibiew reddish-tes- taceous, tarsi pitchy, the base of each joint and the claws being red. L. 53-65 mm. A single specimen was found by Mr. John Dunsmore in 1875 by sweeping rank grasses at Corkendale Law, the highest peak in Renfrewshire, about six miles from Paisley. Dr. Sharp, however, considers that further captures must be made before the species can be considered a native one.) CRYPTOHYPNUWS, [schscholtz. This genus is more characteristic of temperate and northern countries than perhaps any other genus belonging to the family ; it contains about seventy species, very few of which occur in tropical climates, although four or five have been described from Burmah, Borneo, Java, Para, &c.; the northern range of the genus, however, is very wide, as it stretches across Northern Europe and Siberia to Kamtschatka and Alaska, and is probably generally distributed over the northern hemi- sphere. The species vary considerably in size and appearance, and Thomson divides them into three genera, Cryptohyynus, Negastrius, and Zorochros, the first of which he classes with the Elaterina, and the two last with the Cardiophorina; the genus as a whole may be known by the spiniform posterior angles of thorax, and by the carina of the same angles being large and distinct and parallel to the side margin. Twenty- seven species are found in Europe, of which six occur in Britain; these may be divided as follows :— I. Thorax with the carine of the posterior angles ceasing before middle ; size larger. i. Thorax shorter, not rugose; elytra unicolorous, 1. Upper surface and legs black; size smaller ; first joint of antenna shorter than third joint C. MARITIMUS, Curd. 86 SERRICORNIA. [ Cryptohypnus. 2. Upper surface bronze, legs red ; size larger; first joint of antennze longer than third joint C. RIPARIUs, F. . Thorax longer, sre rugose ; eae with allow markings. . - - - C. SaBULIcoLA, Bok. II. Thorax with the carinw of the posterior angles reaching beyond middle ; size smaller. i. Prosternum without furrow. 1. Elytra with several variable re spots at base and towards apex . . C. PULCHELLUS, L. 2. Elytra with two well-marked Jar ge yellow spots on each, one at base and the other before apex 2% C. QUADRIPUSTULATUS, F. . Prosternum with lateral furrow in front ; ; “elytra ered alate or with two small yellow spots on each, one at base and the other before apex . . OC. DERMESTOIDES, Herbst. (v. guadriguttates, Lap.) Cc. maritimus, Curt. (Scotus, Cand.}. Elongate and rather narrow, black, with a very slight, almost imperceptible, metallie reflection, clothed with very fine greyish pubescence ; head very closely punctured, antenne long and slender, first jomt shorter than third, second joint very short, third and fourth joints nearly equal ; thorax somewhat longer than broad, very closely and finely punctured with more or less distinct traces of a smooth central line in middle; elytra with deep stria, imterstices very closely punctured ; prosternal process only covering base of mouth parts; legs black with tarsi pitchy. b. 4-43 mm. On the banks of rivers and streams; very local; Lianberis; Bettws-y-coed ; Heysham and Lancaster district; Cumberland; Northumberland aud Durham district ; Scotland, Solway, Tay and Moray, and probably Clyde and Dee districts. C. riparius, F. Much larger and broader than any of our other species, ovate, convex, of a dark bronze colour, very sparingly clothed with yellowish pubescence; head convex, coarsely punctured, with a furrow or depression on vertex, antennx pitehy with base lighter, first joint large, second third and fourth of about equal length, the rest shorter and broader ; thorax very convex in middle, depressed strongly at base, broadest just behind middle, diffusely and finely punetured on dise, more thiekly at sides; seutellum large, rounded; elytra about twice as long as together broad, broadest in middle, with distinct impunetate striae, interstices flat, very finely and diffusely punctured ; under-side black; legs reddish-yellow with pitehy femora. . L, 5-6 mm. On the banks of streams, &c.; under stones and pieces of wood, also in floo:l refuse; common and generally distributed from the Midlands to the extreme north of Scotland ; not uncommon in the London district, but apparently rare in the south of England; Ireland, near Belfast and Dublin; co. Cork; Westport, co. Mayo; Teelin Bay, Donegal, &e. C. sabulicola, Boh. (Negastrius sabulicofa, Thoms.). Elongate, rather narrow, black, somewhat dull, elytra with irregular patches at base and before apex, and a round spot on each behind middle yellow; Cryptohypnus. | SERRICORNIA. 87 head thickly punctured, antennee comparatively short, dark with base reddish-testaceous, first joint large, second and third joints nearly equal; thorax distinctly longer than broad, gradually narrowed in front, broadest behind middle, strongly rugose, with a narrow and somewhat raised smooth central line ; carine of posterior angles extending for about one-third the length of the thorax ; elytra with sides slightly rounded and gradually narrowed to apex, very strongly striated, inter- stices thickly and distinctly punctured, convex, almost carinate towards base ; legs yellow, femora fuscous in middle. L. 33-5 mm. On the banks of streams; rare; banks of the Nith, Thornhill (Sharp), and at Dumfries (Lennon), Cc. pulchellus, L. (Negastirius pulchellus, Thoms.). Strongly convex, black with irregular yellow markings on elytra, thickly and rugosely punctured, dull, with very fine and short pubescence which gives the upper surface a somewhat leaden appearance; head very thickly punctured, antenne black with base yellowish, second and third joints of about equal length; thorax longer than broad, strongly convex, rugosely punctured, with the lateral keels extending beyond middle, and with traces of a feeble smooth raised line ; elytra half as long again as thorax with strong striz, interstices almost carinate as far as middle ; legs entirely yellow ; the yellow markings on the elytra are very irregular: in the type form there is a trilobed spot at base, a round spot behind middle, and some smaller spots at apex. L, 25-4 mm. On the banks of rivers and streams; very rare; on the banks of the Findhorn, Morayshire (Hislop) ; the species, according to Rye, is spread over the whole of Europe, on river banks, living under stones and at the roots of plants, especially of Triticum repens, on which, according to Lacordaire, its larva feeds ; it is also recorded from America. C. quadripustulatus, F. (Negastrius 4-pustulatus, Thoms.). A very small and proportionately broad species; black, with the posterior angles of thorax and two large and well-marked spots on each elytron yellow, upper surface finely pubescent ; head rather thickly punctured, antenna as long as head and thorax, lighter or darker brown with lighter base; thorax as long as broad, strongly convex, depressed to- wards base, strongly rounded at sides, finely punctured ; elytra elongate oval, more than twice as long as thorax, with rather deep and not very plainly punctured striz, interstices thickly and finely punctured 3; pro- sternal process only covering base of mouth parts; legs yellow. L. 3 mm. In damp grassy places; by sweeping, &c.; local; London district, searce but rather widely distributed, Lee, Dulwich, Penge, Forest Hill, Battersea Fields, Clapham, Putney, Cowley, &c. ; Wieken and Burwell Fens, Cambridge ; Barnstaple ; Bristol ; Tewkesbury ; Bewdley; Knowle; Salford Priors; Chureh Stretton; Rep- ton ; Lancaster ; Northumberland district, Banks of Till, Whitley, and Hetton Hall, Belford ; Ireland, near Belfast. 88 SERRICORNIA. [Cryptohypnus. C. dermestoides, Herbst. (Zorochros dermestoides, Thoms.). Black, unicolorous, finely pubescent, rather depressed ; head thickly punctured, antenne long and thin, black with base lighter, second and third joints of about equal length ; thorax about as broad as long, rather strongly convex, with sides rounded, very finely and somewhat rugosely punctured, with the lateral carine extending beyond middle, and with more or less distinet traces of a smooth central line ; elytra rather finely striated, with the interstices finely and obsoletely punetured ; legs yellowish-red, with tibize often darker, L, 2-3 mm. On the banks of streams, in gravel, under stones, &c.; iocal, but common in many high and northern districts ;- Bewdley ; Church Stretton; Llangollen ; Capel Curig and Snowdon district generally ; Repton; Ripon; Scarborough ; Lancaster district ; Northumberland and Durham district, common; Scotland, cominon, Sol-vay, Forth, Tay, Dee, Moray, and probably other districts; Ireland, near Dublin and Killarney. V. quadriguttatus, Lap. (C. tetragraphus, Germ.). This variety has two small spots on each elytron, one at base and another before apex ; it may easily be known from C. quadripustulatus by the spots on elytra being much smaller, and by not having the posterior angles of thorax reddish-yellow, but unicolorous with the rest of the thorax, Found under the same circumstances and in company with the type form in the same localities. ELATER, Linn¢, This genys contains about a hundred species, of which very few are found in tropical countries; they have a very wide range, extending from Siberia and Lapland im the north to Patagonia in the south; a large proportion of the species occur in North America; twenty-seven have been met with in Europe, of which eleven are found in Britain ; the larve do not appear to call for any particular remark ; they differ to a certain extent among themselves in punctuation, and in the form of the last abdominal segment ; as they are nearly always found in deeay- ing trees, they are not destructive to crops. In structure and sculpture the species are very closely allied, and it is therefore better to tabulate them by their colour for the sake of identification ; the posterior angles of the thorax are projecting and carinate in all the species. I. Elytra bright scarlet, anicolorous. i. Thorax shorter, less parallel-sided, and more shiny. 1. Pubescenee black; central furrow of thorax traceable throughout . Age ata pn oe cr oc 2. Pubescence rufescent or pale fuscous ; central furrow of thorax only visible at base . . . . KE. LYTHROPTERUS, Germ. ii. Thorax longer, more parallel-sided, and duller. . E. coccrnatus, Rye. 11. Elytra bright scarlet, as a rule marked with a large common elongate black spot; central furrow of thorax entirely wanting or very feebly marked at nase: s)he. Cae. TR Te PG ey axed ete eee III. Elytra bright scarlet, with the extreme apex more E. saAnauinevs, LZ. E. SANQUINOLENTUS, Schr. Eluter.| SERRICORNIA, 89 or less distinctly black; central furrow scarcely mavkedraiibAsey |i) se. 4 sls eee) hese Re ePOMONM SLE p/é IV. Elytra unicolorous brownish-red; pubesence fuscous . . E. pomoruM, Herbst. VY. Elytra brick-red or brownish-red, with apex black. i, Apex of elytra only black ; form more acuminate behind ; size smaller ey PL ce eee ee ii. Apical third of elytra black; form less acuminate behind isssizollancerecveti te Lehi. Ney (terse). Gores VI. Elytra black, with margins and a longer or shorter patch at base and behind scutellum brownish- NUON? Se) Sco serge oy a Gr od soho) oe 0, LL TIS, VG, VII. Elytra entirely black. i. Form smaller and narrower ; antennz shorter and more slender ; interstices of elytra plainly rugose. E, NIG@RINUS, Payk. ii, Form larger and broader; antenna longer and stouter; interstices of elytra punctured, scarcely EUSOSCE tee) se on no ee ee eet ee L eEHLOPS emacs E. ELONGATULUS, F'. E. BALTEATUS, L. E. sanguineus, L. (rujipennis, Steph.). Black, with bright scarlet elytra, clothed with black pubescence ; head thickly punctured, antenne black, sometimes pitchy brown towards base ; third joint almost double as long as second ; thorax about as long as its breadth at base, rather strongly and moderately closely punctured on dise, much more thickly at margins, depressed at base, with an impressed central line traceable throughout ; elytra with distinct punctured striz, interstices distinetly, although finely and not closely punctured; legs black, tarsi and apex of tibize reddish or pitchy red. L. 10-12 mm. Under bark and in decayed wood; very rare; New Forest; also recorded by Stephens from the West of Englandand Bagley Wood, Oxon ; according to Krichson and Thomson, it is chiefly confined to pine and fir trees (‘‘ Nadelholzern,” Er. ; “ Barrskéga,” Thoms. ).* E. lythropterus, Germ. (sanguineus, Steph., nee L.; semzruber, Steph.). Very closely allied to the preceding, but easily distinguished by the colour of the pubescence, which is pale, of a yellowish-red or light fuscous colour, and by the fact that the central channel of the thorax is only apparent towards base ; the punctuation of the thorax appears to vary somewhat in different specimens, but is, on the whole, a little closer on dise than in E£. sanguineus, and the thorax itself is a little longer proportionally ; in the latter species the strie of the elytra are rather strongly marked at base, and one or two, at all events, are continued without punctures to base ; in H. lythropterus, however, they distinctly cease a little before base, and are not so strongly marked ; legs black, with tarsi ferruginous. L. 10-11 mm. In decaying oaks and birch; also on the wing, over bracken, &c. ; local, but not uncommon in the New Forest, where it has sometimes been taken in numbers; it has *It is a pity that we have no exact words in English to express the German ‘‘Nadelbaume”’ and ‘ Laubbaume” (‘needle trees” and ‘leaf trees’), and the Swedish “ Barrtrad” and ‘ Loftrad.” 90 SERRICORNIA, [ Eater. also been recorded from Highgate and Coombe Woods, Salisbury, Windsor, Bar- mouth, and Crymlyn Bog, Swansea; it may be found in early spring by breaking open the dead and decaying branches that have fallen from the oaks, &c., in the winter, or in dead trunks lying on the ground ; the insect is often found at some dis- tance from the surface of the wood, and the small logs aud boughs require to be carefully split open and examined. * E. coccinatus, Rye. This insect, according to Mr. Rye, who separated the species, differs from all the other species with scarlet elytra through its narrow parallel shape, long, parallel, duller and densely punctured thorax, and the slight striz and flat interstices of its elytra ; the pubescence of the upper surface is brownish. Mr. Rye remarks that it most closely resembles the immaculate form of LH. sanguinolentus, but may be readily separated from that insect by its longer antenne, longer, duller and posteriorly canaliculated thorax, &c. L. 11-12 mm. In oaks, &e.; very rare ; Kensington Gardens and Windsor Forest (Rye) ; Sher- wood Forest (Blatch); it appears to be doubtful whether it has occurred in the New Forest; it has been taken in oaks in France in the Forest of Fontainebleau by M. Bedel and M. Grouvelle. E. sanguinolentus, Schr. (coccineus, Schiddte ; ephippium, Ol. Black, with scarlet elytra, which are almost always furnished with a long common black spot, but are occasionally immaculate ; pubescence greyish or greyish-yellow; the form is a little narrower and more parallel than in E. sanguineus or lythropterus ; immaculate specimens, as a rule, have the suture narrowly black in the middle, but they may further be distinguished from the two species just mentioned by their shorter and more convex thorax, which is more plainly sinuate before posterior angles, and presents scarcely a trace of a central furrow even at base, and further by the fact that the pubescence on the head consists of pale and black hairs intermingled, L. 8-11 mm, At the roots of heath; on nettle flowers; by beating trees, &c.; local, and usu- ally rare; Darenth Wood, Wimbledon, Richmond Park, Epping Forest ; New Forest ; Salisbury; Christchurch ; Oxford ; Bewdley Forest. E. pomone, Steph. Very closely allied to H. lythropterus, from which it differs by the pubescence being black (sometimes dark fuscous on elytra), and by haying the extreme apex of the elytra blackish ; from HE. sanguineus it may be distinguished by the latter character, and also by the absence of a central furrow on thorax, which is scarcely, if at all, traceable even at base ; from the immaculate form of /. san- quinolentus it may also be known by having the thorax rather less con- vex, the joints of the antenne slightly longer, and the elytra a little flatter. L. 9-11 mm. * The only Scotch record for this species, *f Raehills, in decayed birch trees during winter; very rare, Rev. W. Little,” is considered by Dr. Sharp to be probably erro- neous, the species referred to being possibly L. pomorum. Elater.] SERRICORNIA, 91 Very rare; New Forest (Turner); Stephens records it from Darenth Wood and Barmouth. E. pomorum, Herbst. ( ferrugatus, Lac. ; crocatus, Steph., nec Lae. ; ochropterus, Hsch.). Black, with the elytra of a dark brownish-red colour, sometimes lighter at extreme base, clothed with fuscous pubes- cence ; head thickly and distinctly punctured, antenne black with second and third joints lighter or darker pitchy, third joint longer than second, but plainly shorter than fourth; thorax about as long as broad at base, distinctly but not very closely punctured on disc, more closely at sides, depressed at base, with central furrow absent or only indicated at base ; elytra with tle pubescence rather lighter than on thorax, with distinct punctured striz, interstices somewhat convex, punctured; legs black, tarsi pitchy red. L. 8-10 mm. Under bark and in decayed branches of deciduous trees; very iocal; Dean Forest in considerable numbers (Hodgson); Cannock Chase (Blatch); Sherwood Forest in oaks, &c. (Blatch, Turner, and others); Scotland, very rare, Tay and Dee dis- tricts; Ireland, one specimen in a birch tree at Churchill, co. Armagh (Rev. W. Johnson). EH. elongatulus, F. (preustus, Steph.). The smallest of our species with red elytra; black, with the elytra brick-red except apex which is distinctly black, upper surface clothed with blackish or fuscous pubes- cence; antenne black, with the second and third joints pitechy brown or pitchy red, third joint hardly longer than second and very much shorter than fourth ; thorax somewhat longer than broad, rather sparingly punctured on disc, more closely at sides, pubescence blackish, depressed at base, with central furrow absent or scarcely traceable at base ; elytra acuminate behind, with deep punctured striz, interstices punctured and clothed with dark hairs; legs black, tarsi pitchy reddish. L. 6— 7 mm. In decaying oaks; rare; Darenth Wood (Power); New Forest; Shirley Warren, Southampton (Gore); Nuthurst, Sussex (Stephens). E. balteatus, L. Black, elytra red with the apical third black, upper surface clothed with fine greyish pubeseence; head closely punctured, antenne with the third joint longer than second and not much shorter than fourth; thorax longer than broad, feebly narrowed in front, rather thickly and finely punctured; elytra subparallel to posterior third and thence very gradually narrowed to apex, with punctured striz, interstices slightly convex and rather thickly and distinctly punctured ; legs black, tarsi pitchy red. L. 7-8 mm, By beating birches, &c.; occasionally in rotten wood of oak and birch, where it passes its earlier stages ; local, but not uncommon in many localities, and sometimes abundant where it oceurs; Darenth Wood, Bireh Wood, Shooter’s Hill, Richmond Park, Coombe Wood, Forest Hill, Esher, Mickleham, Weybridge, Leith Hill; Abbey Wood ; Devon; Barmouth ; Bewdley Forest ; Sutton Park, Birmingham ; Cannock Chase; Chartley Moss, Staffordshire; Windsor; Lincoln; York; Ripon; Scar- 92 SERRICORNIA, [ Eater. borough; Chat Moss; Northumberland and Durham district; Scotland, local, Solway, Forth, Clyde, Tay, and Moray districts. E. tristis, L. Black, with the base and outer margins of elytra and a large longitudinal patch behind seutellum reaching to about the middle of a dirty yellowish or brownish-yellow colour; upper surface clothed with blackish pubescence; head thickly punctured, antenne fuscous with base a little lighter, feebly serrate ; thorax about as long as broad at base, narrowed in front, thickly and distinctly punctured, with a fine and more or less distinctly traceable longitudinal furrow ; elytra gradually narrowed towards apex, with punctured strie, inter- stices coarsely punctured and transversely rugose ; legs black or pitchy with the tibie lighter, and the tarsi reddish; the yellowish colour on elytra is somewhat variable in extent. L. 7 mm. In mountainous districts, under bark of spruce fir; very rare; Scotland, High- lands, Tay district (Rannoch). E. nigrinus, Payk. Black, unicolorous, shining, clothed with fine greyish or greyish-brown pubescence; head thickly and distinctly punctured, antennz pitchy, rather slender, feebly serrate, third joint conical, about twice as long as second; thorax narrowed in front, some- what convex, finely and rather sparingly punctured on disc, more closely at sides, posterior angles short; elytra with distinct punctured striea, interstices punctured and very distinctly rugose transversely ; legs pitch-brown with tarsi lighter. L. 5-65 mm. Under bark of pine and fir; occasionally in oaks; rare; Tooting Common (S. Stevens) ; Cobham; Burnt Wood, Staffordshire (Chappell) ; Scotland, local, High- lands, I'ay, Dee, and Moray districts (Aviemore, Rannoch, &c.). E. wthiops, Lac. (scrofa, Germ.; rufitarsis, Desv.). This species is allied to the preceding, but is larger and broader, with the antennz longer and stonter; the third joint of the latter is cylindrical, double as long as the second; thorax hardly shorter than broad at base, moderately thickly and coarsely punctured; elytra with punctured strie, interstices somewhat convex, punctured, but scarcely transversely rugose; legs black with tarsi reddish or pitchy; the general form and coarser punctuation as well as the larger size will easily separate this species from the preceding. L.10 mm. Under bark of deciduous trees; rare; Windsor Forest (Desvignes and Turner). ISCHNODES, Germar. This genus has by many authors been included under Megapenthes, from which it may be at once distinguished by the more strongly serrate antenna, of which the second joint is very small and very much shorter than the third joint ; the genus contains one Huropean species which is very rare in Britain, Ischnodes. | SERRICORNIA. 93 I. sanguinicollis, Panz. Elongate, narrowed in front and behind, clothed with blackish pubescence, colour shining black with the thorax bright red; head coarsely punctured, antenne rather long, black or pitchy, strongly serrate; thorax gradually narrowed from base to apex, much narrower in front than at base, finely and not closely punctured, posterior angles sharply projecting and finely carinate ; scutellum large, closely punctured ; elytra gradually narrowed from base to apex, with distinet punctured striz, interstices rather thickly and coarsely punc- tured, somewhat rugose ; legs black or fuscous, tarsi often reddish. L. 5-9 mm. In rotten elm, oak, maple, &c.; very local and, as a rule, rare, but it has occa- sionally been found in numbers; Blackheath (West); Sheerness ; Esher (Power) in black fungus on old elm; Stockwell, Surrey; Greenwich ; banks of the Isis near Oxford, in rotten wood, and Sutton (Surrey) flying (Rev. A. Matthews); Stephens records it from Kensington Gardens, Copenhagen Fields, Southend, Norfolk, and Windsor. MEGAPENTHES, Kiesenwetter. Both this and the preceding genus are distinguished from Elater by not having the prosternal sutures excavate in front; from Isehnodes the present genus may be at once known by having the second and third joints of the antennz very small and of about equal size, and the thorax more parallel-sided ; the genus contains about forty species, which are very widely distributed, but oceur chiefly in tropical countries ; four of these inhabit Europe, of which two are found very rarely in Britain ; these may be distinguished as follows :— I, Upper surface dull; thorax shagreened between punc- KES -¢ og G6 Gol or SIS le 6 6 se 6 ih ienin ale II. Upper surface shining; thorax rather diffusely punctured on disc, more closely at sides, not shagreened between UNO 6 bb og ee oe eo 0 Gg oo 6 og WM MOON, Moe M.lugens, Redt. (Eetinus aterrimus, Curt., nec L., Steph., &e. ; Ampedus anthracinus, Dej.). Elongate, gradually narrowed towards apex, deep black, very dull, clothed with thin greyish pubescence ; head closely punctured, antenne in both sexes longer than the head and thorax ; thorax considerably longer than broad, with sides subparallel, but gradually rounded and narrowed in front, posterior angles sharp and projecting, very strongly carinate, upper surface covered with small fine and shallow setigerous umbilicate punctures, interspaces shagreened and dull; scutellum rather large, pointed at apex, thickly punctured; elytra not quite as broad as thorax with the sides straight gradually narrowed to apex, with distinct coarsely punctured striz, interstices rather strongly punctured; legs pitchy black or pitehy brown, with the tarsi and knees often reddish. LL. 8-10 mm. Male with the antenne more strongly serrate than in female, 94 SERRICORNIA. [ Megapenthes. In decaying timber, &c.; very rare; Highgate (Janson); Stockwell, Surrey (Montague); Mickleham (Marsh, oue example ou nettle bloom). M. tibialis, Lac. (Ampedus subcarinatus, Germ.). This species may at once be distinguished from the preceding by its much more shining appearance and the sculpture of the thorax; it is also more parallel-sided and less convex; colour black, rather shining, clothed with thin greyish pubescence; head rather thickly and strongly punc- tured, antenne feebly serrate, black or pitchy; thorax longer than broad, gradually rounded and narrowed in front, with posterior angles strongly projecting and carinate, central furrow rather distinct, punc- tuation distinct, more sparing on disc, thicker at sides; scutellum large ; elytra with rather strong punctured striw, interstices less coarsely sculptured than in the preceding species ; femora pitchy, tibie and tarsi ferruginous or reddish-testaceous ; under-side of abdomen clothed with yellowish pubescence. L. 6-8 mm. Male with the antenne considerably longer than in female. In decaying oaks; very rare; Richmond Park (Champion); Black Park, May 24th, 1857 (Wallace) ; Tooting Common (Stevens); Wanstead (Janson) ; Windsor (Griesbach ). LUDIUS, Latreille. This genus contains about thirty species, which are very. widely distributed, representatives having been recorded from Alaska, Oregon, Texas, Mexico, Cayenne, and Chili, as well as from Central Asia, Ceylon, Java, Celebes, and the Australian region; three are found in Europe, of which one has been found in Britain ; it is one of the largest and finest of our Elaterids, and one of our rarest indigenous insects; it may be known by its large broad form and ferruginous colour, the very short and almost equal second and third joints of the antenne, and the fact that the margin of the front is not elevated behind the labrum. The larva of LZ. ferrugineus is described by Schiddte (Part v. p. 514); it much resembles those of certain species of Hlater, and occurs in decaying wood. L. ferrugineus, L. A very large broad and rather dull species ; head black, thorax rufo-ferruginous, with the base and angles black; elytra ferruginous; under-side entirely black; pubescence of upper surface fine but moderately close, yellowish, of under-side very fine and scanty, greyish ; head thickly and rather strongly punctured, antenn» black, short, rather strongly serrate from the fourth joint, second and third joints very short, about equal, last joint long and pointed; thorax broad, with sides gradually rounded and narrowed from base to apex, very thickly punctured, with slight traces of a central furrow, posterior angles long and sharply projecting, and strongly carinate, but not divaricate ; scutellum oblong, thickly punctured; elytra broadest about Ludius. | SERRICORNIA, 95 base, narrowed and rather acuminate at apex, with rather fine punc- tured striz, interstices distinetly punctured; legs black, tarsi sometimes reddish; the disc of the thorax is sometimes black, and occasionally the whole thorax is black; the latter is the v. oceztanicus, Villers ; very rarely the whole insect is entirely black. L. 14-16 mm. In decayed trees; very rare; Hyde Park, London (Rev. A. Matthews) ;* Rich- mond Park, Darenth Wood, Windsor, Clengre, and Bottisham (Stephens); Swanses, in old willow (Dillwyn); the latest capture appears to have taken place in July, 1858, when a specimen was taken by a schoolboy on a poplar by the river Cam between Cambridge and Grantchester, which was afterwards in the collection of Mr. T. Brown, of Cambridge ; a few specimens are recorded as having been taken at Chesterton near Cambridge, and at Bottisham, on walnut. MELANOTUWS, Eschscholtz. This genus contains considerably more than a hundred species, of which a large proportion occur in tropical countries; twenty-one, how- ever, are found in Europe, and the genus is well represented in North America, but appears to be almost wanting in Asia; they are, as a rule, rather large dark-coloured insects, and may be known from the allied genera by their serrate tarsal claws ; the forehead is obtusely produced in front; the antennze have the second and third joints short and nearly equal; the ventral epipleurze are wanting, and the eyes are more or less sunk in the thorax. The larva of M. castanipes is described and figured by Schiédte (Part v. p. 513, pl. vii. fig. 1) ; the pupa is also figured on the same plate; the larva is large and broad, quite linear, with the head transverse, with powerful mandibles and very short antenne, and the ninth segment of abdomen longer than is usual in the allied genera, sinuate at sides and contracted to apex, where it terminates in a blunt point; there is a deep channel all down the back of the thoracic and abdominal segments; the muscular impressions are small, dark, and elliptical, and are situated on each side of the anterior margin of the segments, the prothoracic excepted; the legs are very short ; the body is furnished on each side with small bunches of long setz on every segment; the pupais long, and terminates in two distinct cerci, but does not call for any particular comment; the larva and pupa are found in decaying trees or stumps. J. Antenne stouter ; sculpture coarser ; scutellum quad- Cater we ee Giclees SRO “bh gech Jaime PUNCTORINEADUS 227. II, Antenne more slender; sculpture less coarse ; scu- tellum oblong. i. Elytra shorter, more narrowed towards apex in male; average size smaller . . . . . . . . M. RUFIPES, Herbst. ii. Elytra longer, less narrowed towards apex in male ; average sizedarger 29609. <5 7 eG) 3. S MaicAsmANIPES; -Payk. * Mr. Matthews writes to meas follows concerning this specimen :—‘‘ One day when I was in London, Turner told me that he had seen a man employed in cutting up wood in Hyde Park, who had what he called ‘a big brown snap,’ but that it had been crushed flat by the wood; I told him to get it and bring it to me, which he did on the following day ; it was crushed as flat as a shilling, and wrapped up in part of au old letter; I soaked it in water for some time, and then stuffed it with cotton and restored it to shape, and it is now a very good specimen,” 96 SERRICORNIA. | Melanotus. M. punctolineatus, Pel. (niver, F.; Hctinus aterrimus, Steph., &c.). Rather broad, subcylindrical, convex, black, dull, clothed with tine and rather thin greyish pubescence; head and thorax coarsely and very thickly punctured, antennz black, rather short and stout, pubescent, second and third joints short, the third, however, longer than the second; thorax about as broad as long, with sides subparallel behind, rounded and gradually narrowed in front, more rounded in female than in male, with a narrow raised central line and traces of a broad central furrow at base, posterior angles straight, sharply prominent and carinate; scu- tellum quadrate, thickly punctured; elytra subparallel, very gradually narrowed behind, more dilated in female than in male, with rather coarse punctured strie, interstices plainly punctured and somewhat rugose; legs black, tibiz and tarsi sometimes reddish. L. 11-13 mm. Sandy places; at roots of grass, &e.; not common; Wimbledon; Peywell Bay (Matthews) ; Deal (where it has been taken by many collectors in some numbers) ; Dover (C. G. Hall); Stephens records it from Twickenham, Swansea, and Windsor. M. rufipes, Herbst. (fulvipes, Herbst. and Steph., zee Gyll.; bicolor, F.). Elongate, pitchy black or pitchy brown, with the thorax often reddish at margins, upper surface clothed with fine greyish pubescence, which is rather long on the head and thorax, and shorter on the elytra; head thickly punctured, anteune rather long, pubescent, ferruginous, varying a little in the sexes, with second and third joints short; thorax about as long as or a little longer than broad, more thickly punctured at sides than on dise, with sides rounded and narrowed in front, posterior angles projecting and strongly carinate; scutellum oblong, depressed, thickly punctured; elytra three times as long as thorax, gradually narrowed to apex, with rather weak, but distinctly punctured, striz, interstices finely punctured; legs ferruginous. L. 10-16 mn. Male with the thorax narrower and less rounded at sides, the third joint of the antenne longer, and the elytra more gradually and strongly narrowed to apex and less parallel; the pubescence also of the antennze is longer and thinner than in the female. In rotten wood; frequently on the wing; rather common and generally dis- tributed throughout the greater part of England; Scotland, local, Solway, Forth, Tay, and Dee districts; Ireland, near Dublin, local. M. castanipes, Payk. (obscurus, F.; fulvipes, Gyll., nee Herbst.). Larger and broader than the preceding, and with the elytra longer, three and a half times as long as the thorax; the average colour also appears to be lighter; the sides of the thorax are less evenly rounded, the strie of the elytra are stronger, and the interstices more strongly punctured; the male has the thorax less strongly narrowed in front and the elytra less acuminate behind; the lateral margins of the thorax are subangulate in both sexes; the species is very closely allied to M. rufipes, and in many collections is represented merely by one sex of the latter species, Melunotus. | SERRICORNIA. 97 In decaying wood ; Tonbridge (Horner) ; Llangollen (Chappell) ; there were speci- mens also in Mr. Trueman’s Sherwvod Forest. collection ; Scotiand, Tay district, Aviemore and Rannoch (Foxcroft, &c.) &THOUS, Eschscholtz. This genus contains upwards of two hundred species, whieh are almost entirely confined to the temperate and cold countries of the northern hemisphere; of these one hundred and eleven are found in Europe, of which only eight oceur in Britain; two or three of these are very rare, but A. hemorrhoidalis (= A. ruficaudis, Steph.) is one of our commonest beetles, and its larva, which does not call for any par- ticular remark, sometimes commits considerable ravages in pastures and cornfields. The larva of A. rhombeus is described and figured by Schiddte (Part v. p. 523, pl. ix. fig. 12) ; it is less parallel-sided than is usually the case with its allies, and has the segments of the abdomen a little narrowed in front and behind, so that the sides are not even ; it is, however, chiefly remarkable for the fact that the dorsal scuta of all the segments, with the exception of the prothorax, which is longer and not so broad as the following, are very coarsely punctured, the punctures being large and often more or less confluent ; the mandibles are very stropg and projecting, and the ninth abdominal segment is large, armed with short blunt teeth at sides, and termi- nated by two short bifurcate cerci; the colour is pale yellowish, with the head and dorsal scuta fuscous. The larva is carnivorous, and lives in decaying trunks of ash and beech, where it devours the larve of Lepture and other beetles. The British species may be divided as follows ; 1t is, however, rather hard, in one or two cases, to describe the differences very distinetly, as they vary considerably in colour, and the relative lensth of the joints of the antenne and tarsi appears in some of the species to be rather a misleading character, if too much relied upon :— I. Antenne serrate from the third joint; second joint small; size larger. i. Thorax broadly emarginate at apex, with posterior angles carinate, and not, or scarcely, divaricate. 1, Upper surface brown ; third joint of antenne fully as long, or longer than fourth .°. . . . .) 2. Upper surface deep shining black ; third joint of antenne slightly shorter than fourth : ; ii. Thorax truncate at apex, with posterior angles not carinate, strongly divaricate Oe ORG. | SRS Se II. Antenne scarcely serrate, almost filiform; size smailer. i, Anterior coxx narrowly distant; male more elongate and parallel-sided than the female, and with the thorax more rectangular and longer in proportion to its breadth. 1. Upper surface duller ; punctuation of thorax closer and thicker; third joint of antennz about three times as long as second; third joint of tarsi almost concealed); “sizeisimallers ~ sa94 0.4 er values Sb a aces LONGICOLLIS, OJ, 2. Upper surface more shiny; punctuation of thorax less close; third joint of antennxz about VOL. IV. H A. RHOMBEUS, OJ. A. NIGER, L. A. UNDULATUS, De G. © io 4) SERRICORNIA. [Athous. twice as long as second; third joint of tarsi small but distinct ; size larger es . A. DIFFORMIs, Lac. ii. Anterior coxe rather widely distant ; sexual ‘differ- ences not striking. 1, Tarsi with the second and third joints lobed, the fourth simple almost concealed. A. Colour as a rule darker and more unicolorous ; punctuation of thorax stronger; third joint of anteunz plainly longer than second. . . . A. HEMORRHOIDALIS, F. B. Colour as a rule lighter, margins and posterior angles of thorax often reddish-yellow ; punctua- tion of thorax less strong; third joint of an- tenne very little longer than second . . = A VIE DAT US, hr, 2. Tarsi with the second to the fourth joints “de- creasing gradually in length, scarcely visibly lobed ; antennez with the third joint not much longer thanjsecond) = 4 =e ee se ne te CASISUBRUSOUS, Will: A. rhombeus, 0]. A large and conspicuous species, of a dark brown, ferruginous, or reddish-yellow colour, with the head and thorax sometimes darker, ‘clothed with rather long greyish pubescence ; head rather strongly punctured, forehead deeply impressed, antenne as long as head and thorax, ferruginous or rufous, serrate, last joint with con- tracted and conical apex; thorax rather flat, longer than broad, with sides subparallel, narrowed in front, posterior angles projecting, carinate, upper surface strongly punctured, sparingly on disc, thickly at sides; scutellum large and long, rather convex; elytra slightly broader than thorax, long, subparallel, very gradually narrowed to apex, with the pubescence in fresh specimens thicker behind middle, and more or less abraded, the smooth space presenting the appearance of an obscure V; the striw are rather deep, and the interstices slightly convex and not closely but distinctly punctured; legs reddish-testa- ceous. L. 16-18 mm. In decaying trees and logs; also by sweeping bracken; rare; Lea Wo d (Stephens) ; Lyndhurst and Brockenhurst, New Forest; Sherwood Forest ; Dunbain Park (Chappell) ; the only specimen I ever captured was taken about the last day of July 1877 in the New Forest on bracken. A. niger, L. Deep black, shining, more strongly convex in the female than in the male, eubparallel, clothed with greyish pubescence which is long and thick on the elytra; head distinctly and rather strongly punctured, forehead depressed, antenne rather long, black, serrate, third joint much longer than second; thorax sinuate before posterior angles, which are carinate, finely punctured, more closely at sides than on disc, with traces of a central furrow often present; elytra rather broader than thorax, with sides very slightly rounded, and gently and gradually narrowed from posterior third to apex which is broad, strive fine and shallow, interstices more or less raised in middle, finely punctured ; legs black, apex of tarsi often more or less reddish. L. 9-14 mm. Athous. | SERRICORNIA. Se Male with the antenne longer and the thorax oblong; in the female the antenne are shorter and the thorax quadrate. By beating and sweeping ; in woods, &c.; as a rule not very abundant, but rather common and generally distributed throughout the kingdom as far north as the Moray district of Scotland. - A. undulatus, De G. (érifasciatus, Herbst.; v. bifasciatus, Gyll.). The most conspicuous of our species, and one of the rarest of our indi- genous Coleoptera; elongate, subparallel, elytra somewhat depressed on dise, head and thorax dull black, elytra brown with very distinct waved bands of greyish pubescence ; the colour, however, is somewhat variable, the basal part of the elytra being sometimes considerably lighter than the apical portion, and more or less rufous; head thickly punctured, forehead scarcely impressed, antenne black, moderately long, serrate, with the second joint very small, and the apex of last joint contracted and conical ; thorax longer than broad, rather convex, narrowed in front, and strongly sinuate before posterior angles which are much produced and divaricate, upper surface very thickly and rugosely punctured, with traces of a smooth central line in centre or channelled; elytra with distinct punctured striw, interstices finely punctured ; legs black, with claws reddish. L. 12-15 mm. Male with the antennz considerably longer than in female ; according to Thomson the elytra of the male have the base and a waved central band clothed with thick greyish pubescence, whereas in the female they are entirely pubescent, with two wavy denuded bands, one before and the other a little behind middle; in a female specimen, however, which I have before me, there are three plain denuded bands on the elytra. Very rare; taken in small numbers by Turner at Rannoch, Tay district, Scotland ; it appears to be a highland or mountain species. ‘ A. longicellis, Ol. (2 crassicollis, Lac.). Elongate, dull, clothed with greyish pubescence; head and thorax very thickly punctured, black, with the sides and posterior angles of the latter often more or less yellowish-brown ; elytra yellowish-brown, with suture and side margins more or less distinctly darker, sometimes unicolorous, with punctured striz, interstices finely and more or less rugosely punctured ; under-side dark, with abdomen lighter, but variable ; legs testaceous, with femora often infuscate; the thorax in both sexes is more or less distinctly channelled ; this is often used as a character to distinguish it from several allied species, but is not dependable, as the central thoracic channel is often traceable in certain specimens belonging to species that are usually regarded as not possessing it. L. 8-9 mm. Male very different from female, with the body longer, more narrow and parallel and more depressed, the thorax narrow and rectangular, the antenne very long, and the elytra more parallel-sided, with the strize and punctuation of interstices slightly stronger. H 2 100 SERRICORNIA. [Athous. Female broader, less parallel and more convex, with the thorax broader and rounded and narrewed in front, and the antenne much shorter; the elytra are considerably broader in proportion, and are slightly widened before apex; this sex much resembles at first sight a light example of A. vittatus, but may at once be known by the sculpture of the thorax, which is much coarser and duller, and the very short second joint of the antenne. By sweeping herbage; local; rather common and generally distributed from the Midland districts southwards, but much rarer further north; the male is usually common where it occurs, but the female is always very scarce ; Northumberland dis- trict, one female only taken at Gibside by Mr. J. K. Taylor ; Scotland, very rare, Forth district, ‘‘ Dalmeny Park, near Edinburgh,” Murray’s Cat. A. difformis, Lac. (2 cavus, Germ.). Larger, more darkly coloured, and more shining than the preceding species, with which it is rather closely connected as far as structure is concerned ; the second joint of the antenne, also, is longer in proportion, and the thorax is less thickly punctured, with the central furrow less evident ; colour lighter or darker reddish-brown, with the head and thorax often darker, the sides and posterior angles being usually lighter than the disc, pubes- cence fine, greyish ; head rather coarsely punctured; thorax thickly but not rugosely punctured; elytra with fine strie, interstices finely punctured and more or less rugose transversely, especially in the male. L. 9-10 mm. Male with the head deeply impressed, the antenne a little longer than in female, and the thorax narrower, rectangular and parallel-sided ; the elytra are narrower and more parallel, with the striz finer and the inter- stices more rugose transversely. Female with the head not depressed, the antenne a little shorter, with the first joit longer, and the thorax more finely punctured, with the sides less parallel, somewhat rounded and narrowed in front, and the anterior angles much less pronounced; the strie of the elytra are rather stronger, but the interstices are more finely and less rugosely punctured ; this sex much resembles A. vittatus, but may be known by having the thorax more finely punctured, and the sides straight and not sinuate before the posterior angles. Grassy places by sweeping, &c., especially at night ; for a long time it was con- sidered one of our rarest British beetles, but has recently been taken in numbers by Mr. Butler and others in the south of England; the female, however, appears to be always very much scarcer ; Eastry, Kent (Gorham); Ramsgate, in alders (Stephens) ; Shepherd’s Well and Sandwich (Waterhouse) ; St. Peter’s, Kent (T. Wood) ; Deal (C. G. Hall); Hastings district, in numbers (Butler, Collett, &c.) ; one specimen is said to have occurred at Newton, Devon. A. hemorrhoidalis, F. (rujicaudis, Steph.). Elongate, sub- parallel, clothed with rather thick greyish pubescence, pitchy brown or brown, with the head and thorax black, sometimes brown, but usually darker than elytra, which are sometimes lighter brown; head thickly Athous. | SERRICORNIA. 101 and strongly punctured, antenne a little longer than head and thorax, pitchy, with the second joint much shorter than third, last joint more or less contracted at apex ; thorax longer than broad, with sides almost parallel, slightly narrowed in front, posterior angles short not carinate, upper surface thickly and rather strongly but not rugosely punctured ; elytra slightly broader at base than thorax, with rather strong punc- tured striz, interstices finely, but plainly, punctured; under-side of abdomen reddish-brown ; legs somewhat variable in colour, lighter or darker reddish-brown. L. 9-13 mm. On bracken, young hazels, birches, &c.; also by general sweeping ; very common and generally distributed throughout the kingdom. A. vittatus, I. Very closely allied to the preceding, of which it has by some authors been regarded as a variety ; light examples are very easily known by their colour, which is lighter or darker reddish-brown, with the vertex of head, dise of thorax, and suture and sides of elytra dark ; from this, however, the colour ranges to that of ordinary dark specimens of A. hemorrhoidalis; these can only be distinguished from the latter species by having the thorax more finely punctured, with the sides straighter before the posterior angles, and by the fact that the second joint of the antennz is longer and, as a rule, very little shorter than the third joint ; in nearly all the specimens I have seen, the species may be distinguished by the rather bright reddish posterior angles of thorax. L. 83-12 mm. On young hazels, oaks, birches, &c.; much less abundant than the preceding species, but generally distributed throughout the greater part of England and Scot- land, and probably Ireland ; Bold records it as not abundant in the Northumberland and Durham district, but according to Sharp it is common in Scotland, so he may have overlooked its occurrence or confused it with the preceding species. A. subfuscus, Mill. Smaller than either of the two preceding species, elongate, rather shining, head and thorax more or less dark, front of former and sides margins and posterior angles of latter often more or less broadly brownish-yellow, elytra brownish-yellow or brownish-testaceous; head strongly and thickly punctured; an- tenne rather long and slender in both sexes, but more so in the male than the female, yellowish-brown with lighter base, with the third joint not much longer than second; thorax longer than broad, with the sides more feebly rounded in male than in female, subparallel, posterior angles short, upper surface very finely punctured, the punctuation being sparing on disc and closer at sides, pubescence rather long; elytra broader at base than thorax, with fine striz, interstices finely but plainly punctured, pubescence short ; legs yellowish-brown or testaceous, tarsi with the second to the fourth joints decreasing gradually in length, scarcely visibly lobed. The species may be easily recognized by its small size and the fine punctua- tion of the thorax, as well as by the structure of the antenne and tarsi. L. 7-8 mm. 102 SERRICORNIA. [ Athous. By sweeping, &e.; very rare; Orkney and Shetland Islands; Mr. Chappell has recorded it from Llangollen. The A. subfuscus of Stephens which he records from the New Forest is only A. vittatus. ELIMONIUS, Eschscholtz. This genus is distinguished from Athous by having the first tarsal joint not or only slightly shorter than second, and from Corymbites, to certain species of which some of its members bear a rather strong superficial resemblance, by the absence of ventral epipleure, the eyes sunk further in the thorax, and the short and scarcely projecting pos- terior angles of the thorax ; about sixty species are contained in the genus, which are chiefly confined to Europe, Northern Asia, and North America; two or three species have been described from the Australian region; about a dozen occur in Hurope, of which three have been reputed as British, but one of these is very doubtfully indigenous, and requires further confirmation. J. Length 8-10 mm.; upper surface distinctly metallic ; thorax coarsely and thickly punctured, with central furrow, distinets'.! G).) SHR oe. 1a ee a ONmiNDELeus, Payk: II. Length 5-6 mm.; upper surface not or scarcely metallic; thorax finely and diffusely punctured, with cenival turrew Gbsolete.,,c 5 s,s + 6: s siuhes ULI TON, os, &. cylindricus, Payk. (eruginosus, Ol.). Oblong, subcylindrical, elytra somewhat depressed on disc, of a dark and more or less obscure zeneous colour, clothed with distinct greyish pubescence; head strongly punctured, antenne moderately long, obtusely serrate; thorax convex, longer than broad, with sides slightly rounded and narrowed in front, rather strongly and thickly punctured, central furrow distinct, pos- terior angles very slightly projecting; scutellum large, closely punc- tured; elytra parallel-sided, very slightly dilated behind middle, with fine punctured striae, interstices rather finely and thickly punctured and feebly rugose; legs black or pitchy. L. 8-10 mm. Male with the antenne longer, and the last joint elongate; female with the antenné shorter and the last joint oblong. In damp grassy places; by sweeping; local and not common; Birch Wood, Esher, Woking, Haslemere, Chertsey, Horsell, Sandhurst; Norfolk; Suffolk; Devon; Swansea; Burnham, Somerset; Hartlebury, Worcestershire ; York ; Man- chester ; Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, local, Solway, Tweed, Forth, and Moray districts; Ireland, near Dublin, local. L. minutus, L. (6 forticornis, Bach). Much smaller and narrower than the preceding, black, shining, with or without a slight neous reflection, clothed with fine and sparing greyish pubescence; head strongly punctured, with blackish pubescence, antenne varying in the sexes, black, second and third joints small, about equal ; thorax much longer than broad, sparingly and rather finely punctured, with sides sub- Limonius. | SERRICORNIA. 103 parallel, slightly rounded and narrowed in front, posterior angles blunt, scarcely projecting ; scutellum large ; elytra much depressed at base, with sides straight and very gradually narrowed to apex, with distinct punctured stria, interstices closely punctured and somewhat rugose; legs black or lighter or darker pitchy brown, claws somewhat dilated until middle, and then suddenly narrowed, forming a tooth, L. 5-6 mm. Male with the antenne longer, rather sharply serrate, last joint elongate and obliquely truncate at apex; female with the antenne shorter and obtusely serrate, last joint oblong. On flowers, &c.; local; London district, not uncommon and generally distributed ; not common apparently in the south of England; Glanvilles Wootton; Devon ; Bristol ; Swansea; Midland districts, generally distributed; Ipswich ; Cambridge ; Chat Moss; Northumberland and Durham district, widely spread but not common ; Scotland, rare, Tweed and Forth districts. (L. parvulus, Panz. Larger than the preceding species, slightly narrowed in front and behind, black with a greenish-brassy tinge, and much more pubescent, the hairs being yellowish or golden coloured, the antenne slighter, the tarsi and tibize testaceous, and the claws not dentate, except at extreme base. L. 6-7 mm. “One specimen taken by Mr. Sidebotham near Devizes” (Crotch, Proc. Ent. Soc., 19th Nov., 1856).) ‘SERICOSOMUS, Redtenbacher. (Sericus, Eschscholtz.) This genus contains about fifteen species, which are confined to Europe, Northern Asia, Japan, and North America; it is distinguished from Athous by having the first tarsal joint shorter, and from Limonius by the longer and somewhat spiniform posterior angles of thorax; the tarsal claws are simple, and the antenne are rather short and serrate from the fourth joint; three species are found in Europe. S. brunneus, L. (/fugaz, F.). Oblong, elothed with fine silky pubescence, dull, colour variable; head thickly punctured, antenne rather short, serrate from the fourth joint inclusive, second joint small; thorax rather longer than broad, convex, with thick and shallow umbilical punctures, central furrow more or less distinct, posterior angles strongly projecting and carinate, embracing the shoulders; seutellum large, thickly punctured; elytra rather strongly acuminate towards apex, finely striated, interstices thickly granulate; legs more or less fuscous or reddish-testaceous. L. 63-9 mm. Male narrower, with thorax more parallel-sided, black, with a more or less distinct greenish reflection; elytra dark brown or reddish-brown, with or without suture darker; under-side dark. Female broader, with thorax less parallel-sided, light ferruginous or reddish-brown with a longitudinal patch in centre, and often two others 104 SERRICORNIA. [ Sericosomus. at sides dark; the breast and base of abdomen is also blackish; some- times the whole upper surface is ferruginous or reddish-brown. Sandy places; under stones, &c.; oceasionally by sweeping ; local and, as a rule, not common ; Chobham, Surrey; Esher; New Forest (where it is more common) ; Cannock Chase; Burnt Wood, Staffordshire; Cheshire; Scotland, local, Solway, Tay, Dee, and Moray districts. The Elater fuygax of Fabricius is evidently the male cf this insect, and his EH. brunneus the female, as he distinctly describes the latter as “thorace rufo, medio nigro, elytris corporeque ferrugineis” (Syst El. ii. %37); Thomson, however (Skand. Col. vi. 97), mentions the E. fiugax of Gyllenhal as the female; Gyllenhal’s description, however, of E. fugax (Ins. Suec. i. 428) appears to refer to the variety of the male with castaneous elytra; he mentions the insect as being found on umbelliferous plants, particularly Heracleum. SYNAPTUS, Eschscholtz. (Ctenonychus, Stephens.) This genus is distinguished by having the third joint furnished with a very large membranous lobe beneath; the prosternal sutures are dilated in front and excavate, and the tarsal claws are pectinate; it is closely allied to Advastus, under which it is included by Thomson and other authors; there is only one species belonging to the genus which is found in Europe, Armenia, and Siberia; it occurs very rarely in Britain. S. filiformis, F. (Adrastus filiformis, Thoms.; Ctenonychus hirsutus, Steph.). A rather large, elongate, and subeylindrical species, black, or pitchy brown, clothed with long and thick recumbent greyish pubescence, which gives the insect a leaden grey appearance ; head thickly punctured, antenne rather long, pitchy or reddish, with the second joint slightly shorter than third; thorax longer than broad, distinctly punctured, more thickly at sides, with an obsolete central furrow, posterior angles pro- jecting and divaricate, sides rounded and contracted in front, sinuate hefore posterior angles; scutellum large, thickly pubescent; elytra long, gradually narrowed to apex, with rather fine punctured stri, interstices thickly and finely punctured; legs pitehy or reddish, with tarsi usually lighter. L. 9-10 mm. By sweeping grass at the sides of water, &c.; rare; Bristol (Stephens) ; Tintern, Monmouthshire; Gloucester, banks of Newent Canal; South Wales. Mr. Allen Harker records it as ‘‘rather common by sweeping long grass under hedges by canal banks in Gloucestershire. June.” ADRASTUS, Eschscholtz. This genus contains nine species, all of which occur in Europe, except one from New Caledonia; our common species A. /imbatus bears a strong superficial resemblance to Agriotes pallidulus, but may easily be Adrastus. | SERRICORNIA. 105 known by its shorter and more globose thorax, and the fact that the second joint of the antenne is not longer than the third joint; a second species has lately been added to our lists by Mr. E. A. Waterhouse. I, Antennze entirely clear reddish-yellow; size larger; colour lighter . oh TOU E Cie ete swat tae bees Mi eel maa ol PALETTE BAI UT QumEe Il. Antenne fuscous or brownish with base light; size smaller ; Coldurtdarker Wy 249, omer tee 0 ft ents Oras, Cie uernTE H! A. limbatus, F. A small elongate and narrow species with the head and thorax deep black, shining, and the elytra brownish-testaceous with the suture and sometimes the sides dark; pubescence greyish, rather coarse, and not thick; head rather strongly punctured, antenre rather long, longer in male than in female, reddish-yellow, or brownish-yellow with lighter base, serrate from third joint inclusive; third joint longer than second; thorax as long as broad, convex, finely puuctured, with sides almost parallel, slightly rounded in front, posterior angles projecting; elytra gradually narrowed to apex with rather strongly punctured striae, interstices finely punctured; legs reddish yellow, femora often darker. L, 4-44 mm. Grassy places in woods; by sweeping; rather local, but not uncommon and gene- rally distributed in the London, Southern, and Midland districts ; rarer further north ; Northumberland and Durham district, not common; Scotland, rare, Solway district ; Ireland, Armagh and Dublin, and probably widely distributed. A. pusillus, I. Much smaller and darker than the preceding, and with the elytra more strongly acuminate; the antennz are fuscous or brownish with the base clear reddish-testaceous; the pubescence also appears to be thicker; the size and colour will at once distinguish it; some specimens are entirely pitchy black with the shoulders alone pale; the species has been mixed with the preceding in some collections as a small and dark variety. L. 21-3 mm, Taken by Mr. E. A. Waterhouse in July by sweeping long coarse grass in open ground three or four miles from Sandwich, and also recorded by Mr. C. G. Hall from Deal and Dover ; the species is apparently common all over Europe. AGRIOTES, [Eschscholtz. This genus contains upwards of a hundred species, of which about forty occur in Europe; of the remainder a considerable proportion are found in Central America, but very few occur south of that country, and they range as far north as Siberia ; they are distinguished by having the claws simple, and the sides of thorax obtuse, the margin being deflexed in front ; the second joint of the antenne is usually longer than the third. The larva of several of the species of this genus are exceedingly destructive to garden and farm crops, and, together with one or two other larvae, belonging to other allied genera, constitute the well-known ‘ wire-worms” which are so much dreaded by all who have to do with the cultivation of the soil; they have been described and figured by many authors, and a long account of them, with beautiful 106 SERRICORNIA. [A yriotes. plates, will be found in Curtis’ Farm Insects, pp. 152-209, Plates F andG; the eggs are nearly globose or slightly oval, yellowish-white, and very minute, and are laid in the earth close to the root of a plant, or between the sheaths near the base of the stalk; from these the larvee hatch, and appear to continue in the larval state for from three to five years, feeding at the roots of corn and other plants, which they bore through and through, and soon destroy ; they obtain their name of wire-worms from their long narrow form and extreme toughness, the whole body above and below being covered with corneous scuta; in general appearance they much resemble the ‘‘meal-worms,” the larve of Tenebrio, but in structure are very different ; they are fulvous or more or less castaneous in colour, cylindrical and parallel-sided, with all the segments about equal in breadth, except the last, which is pointed at apex; the antennez and legs are very short; when the larva has arrived at maturity, it descends to a considerable depth in the earth, and there forms a cell composed of the surround- ing particles of soil; here it changes to a pupa of a yellowish-white colour, which is rather narrow and elongate, without ‘‘ styli motorii,”’ and terminated by two short cerci. In a work like the present it is of course impossible to discuss the preventive remedies that have been adopted against this pest, which is more dreaded by the farmers and gardeners than any other insect ; it may, however, be mentioned that clean farming is above all things necessary, and that the removal of all patches of weeds which might harbour the insect, and paring and burning the surface of the ground have often been found very advantageous; nitrate of soda, soot, guano, lime-water, and the refuse of gas-works are destructive to them, and rolling with a heavy roller in March and April, when the beetles begin to emerge, is sometimes very serviceable, as also is the treading of the barley in early spring by sheep, &c.; when the wire-worms attack a garden, large numbers may be taken by burying sliced potatoes near the infested plants ; these attract them, and they may be captured in large quantities. One of the greatest agencies, however, in keeping down the plague is found in the birds, especially rooks, which destroy them in countless num bers, and should by every means be encouraged; when we see rooks busy in a field, apparently pulling up blades of corn, it will usually be found on further examination that they are only destroying infected blades in search of the wire-worms; pheasants and partridges are very fond of them, and have often been found of great use in destroying them. There are two crops mentioned by Curtis which these insects seem particularly to dislike, and these are white mustard and woad, and it is said that these crops will completely free a field from them. It may perhaps be observed, in conclusion, that great as is the damage done by the wire-worm, a great deal of injury is assigned to it of which it is quite innocent, as Centipedes, Millipedes (Julus and Polydesmus), and the larvee of the Daddy Long-legs (Tipula oleracea) and many other insects, all fall under the denomination of ‘wire-worms” in the eyes of the ordinary agriculturist. Of the six British species mentioned in the following list, the first three are those that do most damage; the fourth is very rare in Britain, and the last two are much narrower and smaller insects, and not much appears to be known concerning their earlier stages. Agriotes. | SERRICORNIA. 107 I. Form broader; thorax with posterior angles not or only obscurely lighter than the rest of the upper surface. i. Posterior coxe slightly dilated internally ; punctuation of interstices of elytra feebler. 1. Elytra unicolorous. A. Size smaller; thorax longer; antenne shorter and more slender . . A. SPUTATOR, DL. B. Size larger; thorax ‘shorter ; antenne longer and stouter . . A. opscurus, DL. 2. Elytra with the interstices “alternately lighter and darkers ets A. LINEATUS, L. . Posterior cox rather " strongly dilated internally ; Tape surface unicolorous, almost black; er of interstices of elytra stronger . . A. sorpipus, Ill. IJ. Form narrow and slender ; thorax with posterior ‘angles yellowish-red ; elytra light brown with suture blackish, sometimes unicolorous. i, Size larger; punctuation of thorax finer and more diffuse; posterior angles of thorax ridged . . . . . A. SOBRINUS, Kies. ii. Size smaller; punctuation of thorax coarser and closer; posterior angles of thorax not ridged. . . . A. PALLIDULUS, J/l. A. sputator, L. (rufulus, Lac.; graminicola, Redt.). Oblong, convex, fuscous black or dark brown, sometimes castaneous, rather thickly clothed with greyish pubescence; head thickly punctured, antennz entirely yellow or brownish-yellow, second joint considerably longer than third, and longer than fourth; thorax longer than broad, convex, thickly and distinctly punctured, posterior angles considerably produced, rather sharp, plainly keeled ; scutellum large, situated in a deep basal depression of elytra; elytra with sides very slightly rounded, and very gradually contracted towards apex, broadest in middle, deeply but finely striated, interstices flat, finely punctured and transversely rugose ; legs brownish-yellow with femora often darker. L. 5-6 mm. Under stones ; at roots of grass ; in moss, flood refuse, &c. ; common and generally distributed throughout the south of England and the Midland districts; not so common further north; Scotland, rare, Solway and Tweed districts. A. obscurus, L. (variahilis, F.). Larger, more convex and _ less parallel-sided than the preceding, with the thorax shorter and duller and more thickly and strongly punctured; colour fuscous, or brown, unicolorous, or with the thorax dark and the elytra lighter or darker brown ; antennz longer and stouter than in A. sputator; thorax very strongly and thickly punctured, subtransverse, posterior angles sharp, moderately or indistinctly keeled ; elytra with sides rounded, dilated about middle, and rather strongly narrowed at apex, with fine punctured strie, and broad and flat finely punctured and transversely rugose interstices ; under-side dark brown or black ; legs brownish-yellow or reddish with femora darker, L. 8-9 mm. Under stones; in moss, &c.; generally distributed and common throughout the kingdom. 108 SERRICORNIA. [ Ayriotes. A. lineatus, L. (segetis, Bjerk.). Allied to the preceding, but easily distinguished by its colour, the thorax being fuscous, and the elytra having the interstices alternately yellowish-brown and dark brown, giving the insect a lined appearance ; head thickly punctured, antennz reddish-yellow ; thorax about as long as broad, closely and distinctly punctured, but not so closely as in A. obscurus, with the posterior angles sharp and keeled; elytra broadest in middle, with punctured strie which appear as if arranged in pairs, interstices finely punctured ; legs brownish with femora darker. L. 8 mm. Under stones; at roots of grass, &c.; common and generally distributed throughout the greater part of England, but more local further north; Scotland, local, Solway and Forth districts; Ireland, near Belfast and Dublin, and probably common, A. sordidus, Ill. (rujipalpis, Brull.). This species, in general appearance, much resembles a very large dark example of A. sputator ; apart, however, from its larger size, it may be known by the stronger punctuation and more evidently transverse striation of the interstices of the elytra, and by the darker colour of the legs and of the antenna, of which the first joint is more or less fusecous, and the third joint is longer proportionally ; from A. obscwrus it may be known by its longer thorax and more parallel shape, and from A. lineatus by its colour, and from both by the stronger sculpture of the elytra ; the posterior cox, moreover, are more strongly dilated internally. L. 8-9} mm. Sandy coasts and banks of rivers ; under stones; also rarely in flood refuse; very local and usually rare ; Sheerness (taken in abundance during the early summer of 1874 by Mr. Champion and Mr. J. J. Walker); Chatham; Strood; Walton-on- Thames ; Sunbury; Lymington; Isle of Wight; Cowes, Isle of Wight, and Seaford, Devon (J. J. Walker) ; Weymouth; Lancaster (Reston). A. sobrinus, Kies. (pallidulus, Redt., nec Ill. ; Adrastus acumi- natus, Steph.). Elongate, rather depressed, with greyish pubescence ; head and thorax black, shining, posterior angles of the latter yellowish- red ; elytra brownish-yellow, with the suture almost always distinctly dark, and the base and side margins often infuscate; head large, with eyes rather prominent, somewhat strongly punctured, antenne long, reddish-yellow with base often lighter; thorax longer than broad, with rather fine and not close punctuation, posterior angles sharp, keeled ; scutellum elongate oval; elytra slightly rounded at sides and gradually narrowed to apex, rather plainly pubescent, with fine punctured strie, interstices finely but distinetly punctured ; legs reddish-yellow. L, 53-6 mm. By beating and sweeping ; in woods, &c.; rather local; Chatham, Darenth Wood, Mickleham, Coombe Wood, Caterham; Hastings; New Forest; Devon; Bath; Midland districts, generally distributed; York; Northumberland district, not common, Prudhoe, Gosforth, and banks of the Irthing ; not recorded from Scotland. A. pallidulus, II]. (wmrinus, Germ.) Very closely allied to the preceding, but considerably smaller, with the elytra not so long pro- Agriotes. | SERRICORNIA. 109 portionately, less evidently pubescent, and having the interstices narrower and not so closely punctured ; the thorax also is more closely and distinetly punctured ; the species most closely resembles Adrastus limbatus in size and general appearance, but may at once be known by its longer and less globose thorax, and by having the second joint of the antennz longer than the third, whereas in Adrastus it is slightly shorter than third, L. 33-4 mm. By sweeping herbage, beating young oaks, birches, hazels, &c.; generally dis- tributed and common throughout the greater part of the kingdom; in fact it is to be found on almost all young trees in woods in early spring. (A. pilosus, Panz. There is a specimen of this fine species in Dr. Power’s collection ; it is elongate, fuscous or reddish-brown, rather dull, clothed with rather thick greyish pubescence ; antennze moderately long, feebly serrate, with the second and third joints almost equal; thorax convex, longer than broad, thickly and strongly punctured, posterior angles strongly projecting and sharply carinate ; elytra long, with punctured striz; interstices thickly punctured and somewhat rugose. L. 12-14 mm. This species is a native of Germany, and feeds at the roots of plants in mountainous districts. Dr. Power’s specimen is an undoubted im- portation, having been found by My. Sidebotham in a collecting bottle given by him to a Manchester working man, who probably took it ina yard where timber, dye-woods, and roots were stored, as he was in the habit of visiting such a place.) DOLOPIUWS, Eschscholtz. This genus has been by many authors included under Agriotes, from which it chiefly differs in having the second joint of the antenne equal in length to the third, and the sides of thorax acute with the margin straight in front; only one species occurs in Europe, which is very common throughout the greater part of the kingdom. D. marginatus, LL. (depressus, Esch.), Elongate, rather depressed, colour variable, the thorax being sometimes black with margins and posterior angles reddish-testaceous, sometimes reddish-testaceous with dise only darker, and sometimes entirely reddish-testaceous ; the elytra are either unicolorous testaceous, or, as is generally the rule, testaceous with the suture broadly blackish, the sides also being sometimes darker ; head thickly punctured, antenne rather long, testaceous, sometimes more or less infuseate ; thorax longer than broad, subparallel, distinctly punctured, with posterior angles projecting; elytra with punctured stri, interstices finely and closely punctured, scarcely rugose ; under- side dark ; legs testaceous. L. 5-6} mm. By beating and sweeping in woods, &e.; generally distributed throughout the whole kingdom, and, as a rule, common; abundant in many localities. 110 SERRICORNIA. [ Corymbites. CORYMBITES, Latreille. This genus contains about two hundred species, which are chiefly confined, as is the case with several of our other genera of the Elateride, to Europe, Northern Asia, and North America; several, however, have been described from the Cape of Good Hope and Natal, and a few from Ceylon, Australia, and New Zealand, so that it is probable that the genus will prove to be a very extensive one; the genus is allied to Campylus, but differs in having the eyes only moderately prominent, and the margin of the front not reflexed; the intermediate coxze are not approximate, and the prosternal sutures are occasionally, but very rarely, excavate in front; in some species the antenne in the male are strongly pectinate or even flabellate, and some are conspicuous by reason of their strong metallic colouring, in which they differ from the great majority of the Elateride. The larva of C. @neus is described and figured by Schiédte (Part v. p. 519, pl. vill. fig. 8); it is pale ferruginous with the mandibles and frontal margin pitchy, and the scuta marked with very fine longitudinal ferruginous lines; the thoracic segment is slightly narrowed in front, but the whole insect is linear and parallel, and does not call for any particular comment; the larva of C. castaneus is also figured by Schiédte on the same plate (fig. 10); in general shape it resembles that of C. eneus, but the abdominal segments have a large dark patch on each side, and the ninth segment is more square, with the upper surface more deeply sculptured, and more divergent cerci. There are forty-five species found in Europe, of which ten occur in Britain ; these may be distinguished as follows :— I. Antenna serrate from the third joint inclusive, often pectinate in the male. i. Thorax villose, with posterior angles not carinate ; antennw deeply pectinate in the male and serrate in thefemalerrs el ft eu tes ees on tious CO CASDANEUS aie ii. Thorax more or less distinctly pubescent, but not villose, with posterior angles carinate. 1, Antenne strongly pectinate in male and serrate in female; thorax strongly channelled longitu- dinally. A. Processes of the joints of the antennew in male twice as long as the joints ; punctuation of thorax less close; colour, as a rule, bronze-green . . C, PECTINICORNIS, L. B. Processes of the joints of the antenna in male not much longer than the joints ; punctuation of tho- rax very close; elytra with basal portion more or less broadly yellow, or upper surface entirely coppery reddish or violet, very seldom greenish . C. cuprrus, F. (v. eruginosus, Germ.) 2. Antenne obtusely serrate; thorax very obsoletely channelled, A. Form larger and less parallel-sided ; punctua- tion of thorax coarse and strong. . . . . B. Form smaller and more parallel-sided ; punc- tuation of thorax vury close and fine . . . . C. Quercus, @yll. C. TESSELLATUS, F. Corymbites. | SERRICORNIA. 111 II, Antenna obtusely serrate from the fourth joint in- clusive. . Thorax with the posterior angles carinate; size larger. 1. Antenne with the third joint one and a half times as long as second ; pubescence thick and silky and arranged in patches, giving the upper surface a strongly variegated appearance ; upper surface not metallic) s) 4 : C. HOLOSERICEUS, F. 2. Antenne with the third joint double as s long as second; upper surface more or less distinctly metallic. A. Upper surface strongly metallic (usually bright geneous or blue), without pubescence . . C. anevs, L. B. Upper surface not strongly metallic, with dis- tinct pubescence, whichis, however, not arranged in patches. a. Thorax with obsolete central furrow ; pubes- cence fine and close, sate e ; legs red; size smallerne i.) ign i . C. METALLICUS, Payk. b. Thorax with central furrow more or less dis. tinct, at all events at base; pubescence coarse and rather scanty, whitish ; ee, as a rule, black; sizelarger . . . C. IMPRESSUS, F’. . Thorax with the posterior angles not carint ate, upper gates very finely punctured; size small; elytra black with a yellowish spot at shoulder or entirely Tedgish-yelOW " mm. Male with the last ventral segment of abdomen slightly emarginate at apex, female with the same segment rounded at apex. In marshy places, by beating sallow, alder, &e.; local ; London district, not un- common, Barnes, Weybridge, Woking, Aylsham, Tonbridge, &e. ; Windsor; Wrox- ham (Norfolk); Pegwell Bay, Deal; Hastings ; New Forest; Gianvilles Wootton ; Devon; Swansea; Knowle; Sutton Park; Lichfield ; Droitwich ; Bromsgrove ; Repton ; Scarborough ; Withington and other localities in Cheshire ; Bowdon, near Manchester ; not recorded from the Northumberland and Durham district ; Scotland, very rare, Solway district only ; Ireland, near Dublin, S. orbicularis, Panz. (pailescens, Steph.). Closely allied to the preceding species, of which it has been by some authors considered a variety ; apart, however, from its colour, which is pale fuscous or fusco-testaceous, it may be known by the closer and finer punctuation of the elytra, and rather thicker pubescence ; the interstices between the punctures of the elytra, moreover, are slightly rugose. L. 23-35 mm. Marshy places, by beating sallows, sweeping herbage, &e, ; rare; Wimbledon, Esher, and Merton (Power); Battersea Fields (Stephens) ; Dagenham, Essex ; Sheerness (Walker); Gravesend; Deal; Sandown; Spitchwick Park, Devon (Stephens). EUBRIA, Germar. The genus Eubria, which by some authors has been regarded as forming a separate tribe Eubriina, or even family Eubriade, is easily distinguished by having the antenne serrate from the third joint inclu- sive, the second joint being minute, and by the strong engraved lines on the elytra; only one species is known, which occurs very rarely in Britain, and is uncommon on the Continent; £. marchantie, Duv., is now generally regarded as a variety of EL. palustris. E. palustris, Germ. Orbicular, convex, black or dark pitchy brown, rather shining, extremely closely and finely punctured; head rather small, deeply sunk in thorax, eyes moderately prominent, antennx rather long, pitchy with base lighter; thorax double as broad as long, narrowed in front, posterior margin very slightly sinuate ; scutellum large ; elytra broadest behind middle, very finely pubescent, with five deeply engraved lines on each, the first of which reaches from base along seutellum and 126 SERRICORNIA. [| Eubria. thence to about a third of the length of the elytra where it stops, the second is widely interrupted at base and apex, the third and fourth nearly unite at base and quite unite at some distance from apex, and the fifth almost encloses the fourth but ceases before base and apex; legs long and slender, obscurely testaceous with femora usually darker, tarsi elongate and slender, UL. 13-2 mm. In moist, damp places by small streams and watercourses; very rare; first dis- covered in Britain by the Rev. H. Matthews near Weston on the Green, Oxfordshire, who, in company with his brother the Rev. A. Matthews, took a number of specimens on small sticks submerged in a narrow rhein or watercourse ; Glanvilles Wootton (Dale and Wollaston) ; Scarborough (R. Lawson); Northumberland district “ upon Samolus valerandi in a ravine a little to the north of Castle Eden Dene” (Rev. W. Little). LYCIDZ., The genera belonging to this family are by many authors regarded as merely a tribe of the Lampyride, from which they differ by having the trochanters not applied to the femora, but in a line with them, and by the fact that the intermediate coxe are not contiguous but rather widely separated ; the antenne are always more or less serrate, often pectinate ; the claws are simple and the abdominal segments are simple in both sexes ; many of the species have the elytra much dilated, the insects in some cases being almost circular; the colours are often very bright, orange or scarlet, and the sculpture is very peculiaf, the elytra being often strongly ribbed, with transverse raised lines forming an areolate network ; the eyes are larger in the male than in the female, but never very large; the antenn are 11-jointed, with the second joint often very short, and the tarsi are 5-jointed ; the species are diurnal, and are found on the leaves of plants and on flowers; they are carnivorous in their habits. : The larva of Dictyoptera sanguinea (which was formerly reputed as British) is described by Erichson (Wiegm. Arch, vii. p. 93); it is flat and linear, narrowed in front and behind, deep black above, and whitish with black spots beneath; the last segment is corneous, reddish in colour, and terminates in two projecting bent horny processes ; it occurs under bark of oak. The greater number of the species which belong to the Lycide are found in the tropics; they are poorly represented in Europe by seven genera and about twenty species, of which three only occur in Britain ; in general appearance and colour these strongly resemble one another, but are now referred to three separate genera ; the syuthetic genus Homalisus ought perhaps to be removed from the family and regarded, as is done by some authors, as a separate family in itself. I. Antenne contiguous at base with forehead not or only slightly prolonged between them ; sculpture of interstices of elytra very distinct. i. Ihird joint of antenne plainly longer than second, not transverse; elytra with a double series of areolets in PACh/ INbABLicei 6 Gl EAs Sel he es sl tele fe Eros, Newm. Lycide.]} SERRICORNIA. 127 ii. Third joint of antenne very little longer than second, transverse ; elytra with a single series of areolets in eachgintershic®