1/ 



SEMIOTUS. 289 



This fine species inhabits Guatemala and Southern Mexico ; Candeze 2 3 also quotes 

 Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, but these localities probably refer to the following, 

 8. splendidus. In Guatemala the insect inhabits both the Atlantic and Pacific slopes, 

 and reaches an altitude of about 4000 feet in the mountains. The males, like those of 

 many species of Chalcolepidius, are extremely rare ; the females have a deep, cordate, 

 piliferous impression close to the apex of the fifth ventral segment, and the apex of 

 this segment feebly emarginate. The anterior black spot on the head is often obsolete. 

 I have seen forty-two specimens of S. cuspidatus, of which one only is of the male sex. 

 A female from Cerro Zunil is figured. 



1/ 2. SemiotUS Splendidus. (Tab. XII. figg. 23 ; 23 a, fifth ventral segment, $ .) 



Semiotus splendidus, Cand. Elat. Nouv. iii. p. 23 * ; Cat. Method. Elat. p. 40 (1891) 2 . 



Hob. Costa Rica (Salle, Van Patten) ; Panama (coll. Janson), Chiriqui (coll. Janson, 

 Bible), Volcan de Chiriqui 2000 to 3000 feet (Champion), Veragua 2 . — Ecuador 1 . 



Found in plenty by Van Patten and myself. 8. splendidus is a close ally of 8. cus- 

 pidatus, but differs from it in having the elytra rather deeply punctate-striate through- 

 out, with the interstices moderately convex, and the broad black median vitta on the 

 thorax divided down the middle by a rufous stripe, this colour usually extending to the 

 scutellum. The elytra in the Chiriqui specimens have a common subtriangular black 

 patch at the base ; but in the Costa Bican examples this is almost obsolete. In one 

 specimen from the Volcan de Chiriqui the median rufous stripe on the thorax is very 

 narrow, the scutellum is entirely black, and the common triangular black patch on the 

 elytra is as elongate as it is in 8. cuspidatus. The anterior black spot on the head is 

 often obsolete. I have seen thirty-seven specimens of 8. splendidus, four only of which 

 are males. The female characters are similar to those of 8. cuspidatus. A specimen 

 from the Volcan de Chiriqui is figured. 



3. SemiotUS insignis. (Tab. XII. fig. 25, $ , var. longus.) 

 Semiotus insignis, Cand. Monogr. Elat. i. p. 311, t. 6. fig. 9 * ; Revis. Elat. p. 176 2 . 

 Var. Semiotus longus, Cand. Monogr. Elat. i. p. 315 3 ; Eevis. Elat. p. 178 4 . 



Hab. Mexico 1 3 4 , Cordova, Tuxtla (Salle) ; Guatemala, Teleman and Senahu in 

 Vera Paz (Champion) ; Nicaeagua, Chontales 2 (Belt, E, M. Janson) ; Costa Kica (coll. 

 Janson) ; Panama, Bugaba, Volcan de Chiriqui (Champion). 



Not uncommon in Nicaragua and the State of Panama. The variety longus, Cand., 



has the two black spots on each side of the disc of the thorax confluent, so as to form 



two longitudinal vittse. The fifth ventral segment is unimpressed, and feebly truncate 



at the apex, in the female. Amongst the forty-nine specimens before me, one only is 



of the male sex. A female example of the var. longus, from Tuxtla, is shown on our 



Plate. 



biol. cente.-amek., Coleopt., Vol. III. Pt. 1, November 1894. 2 P 



