SAXINIS.— ISCHIOPACHYS. 37 



5. Saxinis punctatissima. 



Elongate, parallel ; bluish-black, closely pubescent below ; thorax and elytra opaque, densely punctured ; 

 elytra with a subquadrate fulvous spot at the shoulder. 



Length 3 lines. 



Head densely punctate-rugose ; antennae extending to two-thirds the length of the thorax, black, the second 

 and third joints rufous below ; thorax twice as broad as long, the entire surface densely covered with rather 

 elongate punctures of a dark opaque blue ; scutellum deeply punctured ; elytra slightly narrowed behind 

 in the male, parallel in the female, deeply and closely punctate and partly transversely wrinkled, the 

 interstices here and there obsoletely longitudinally costate; they are of the same colour as the thorax, 

 and have the usual quadrate fulvous spot at the shoulder. 



Hab. Mexico, La Parada, Oaxaca (Salle). 



• 



The differences between this species and S. saginata, which it resembles closely, lie 

 in the opaque colour of the upper surface, caused by the dense punctuation of this 

 part. In comparing the two insects the difference in this respect is very obvious, there 

 being a distinct gloss of greenish, especially on the thorax, in S. saginata, where the 

 punctuation is much less deep and close ; the same may be said of the elytra, which are 

 much more closely and more irregularly punctate in the species before us. There are 

 three specimens contained in M. Salle's collection, which agree perfectly with each 

 other ; I believe, therefore, that the species is a good one. 



ISCHIOPACHYS. 



Ischiopachys, Lacordaire, Mem. Soc. Liege, v. p. 468 (1848). 



Ten species belonging to this genus have been made known, one of them (the most 

 variable in coloration) inhabiting North and Central America as well as Colombia. The 

 rest belong to other parts of South America. 



1. Ischiopachys proteus. 



Ischiopachys*proteus, Lacord. Mon. p. 470 \ 



Hab. North America, California 1 . — Mexico, Almolonga (j^o^).— Colombia- 1 . 



No less than eight varieties of this species have been described by Lacordaire. The 

 insects sent by Mr. Hoge all belong to the dark fulvous variety, which has the apex of the 

 elytra dark blue. From I. bicolor and from some of its varieties it differs in the shape 

 of the thorax, which is less convex than in that species. I may add that the base of 

 the elytra in the present insect is not nearly so raised as in /. bicolor, where a rather 

 deep transverse depression limits its basal elevation. 



