446 SEERICOENIA. 



closely, finely punctate; antennae slender, elongate, about two-thirds the length of the body in the male, 

 a little shorter in the female. Prothorax broader than long, moderately convex, not or very little wider 

 at the base than at the apex, the sides rounded from the middle forwards and sinuate behind ; the hind 

 angles moderately produced ; the surface very finely and somewhat thickly punctate ; the base sinuate 

 and feebly bi-incised on either side ; the marginal carina abbreviated in front. Elytra about three times 

 the length of the prothorax, and considerably wider than it, moderately rounded at the sides, and 

 narrowing from a little before the middle to the apex, the humeri rounded ; deeply punctate-striate, the 

 interstices feebly convex and minutely punctate. Beneath closely, finely punctate. Fourth tarsal joint 

 feebly widened, and excavate above for the reception of the fifth joint. Claws rectangularly dilated from 

 the middle to the base. 



Var. The humeral patch on the elytra obliterated. 



Length 4-f-5f , breadth lf-lf millim. ( tf ? .) 



Hal. Guatemala, El Tumbador, Cerro Zunil, and Panajachel (Champion). 



Nine examples, all from the Pacific slope, from elevations between 2500 and 5000 

 feet. This insect closely resembles some of the varieties of Horistonotus bicinctus, but 

 may be known from them by the excavate and feebly widened fourth tarsal joint and 

 the relatively narrower thorax. E. scapularis is allied to the South-American 

 E. delinitor and E. phisalus, Cand., and E. placidus, Er., but differs from all these in 

 its more oval elytra and narrower thorax. The dilatation of the fourth tarsal joint is 

 so slight that the insect would be almost equally well placed in Horistonotus. A male 

 from Cerro Zunil is figured. 



Group MELANOTINI. 



DODECACTENUS. 



Dodecactenus, Candeze, Ann. Soc. Ent. Belg. xxxiii. p. 102 (1889) (Elat. Nouv. iv. p. 36) ; Cat. 

 Method. Elat. p. 103 (1891). 



This genus is referred by Dr. Candeze to the group Elaterini. Its affinities, however, 

 are obviously with Spheniscosomus, from which it chiefly differs in having the meso- 

 sternum connate with the metasternum ; this last-mentioned character is mainly 

 peculiar to the group Chalcolepidiini. Dodecactenus contains two species, both 

 peculiar to Central America ; they are found in forest-clearings and at a considerable 

 elevation. 



1. Dodecactenus staudingeri. (Tab. XX. fig. l, s .) 



Dodecactenus staudingeri, Cand. Ann. Soc. Eut. Belg. xxxiii. p. 103 (Elat. Nouv. iv. p. 37) '. 



Hah. Costa Rica, Volcan de Irazu, Rio Sucio (Rogers) ; Panama, Volcan de Chiriqui 

 4000 feet (Champion), Chiriqui 1 (Trotsch). 



I have seen nine specimens of this species, four of which are from Chiriqui. The 

 antenna? are short, extending only as far as the hind angles of the thorax in the female, 

 slightly longer in the male ; the third joint is about twice as long as the second, and 

 nearly as long as the fourth. The apex of the fifth ventral segment is broadly rounded 



