BKACHYSPHENUS.— EEOTYLTJS. 101 



the apex much depressed, without striation, but rendered uneven by obsolete irregular 

 and feebly impressed punctuation ; close to the margin is an impressed line in which are 

 rather deeper punctures. The fourteen spots are of various sizes, and sometimes one or 

 two pairs are confluent ; there are three basal (the one on the callus the largest), three 

 subapical, five forming a sort of fascia before the middle (the two inner ones oblong and 

 adjacent and larger), and three placed transversely between these and the three subapical 

 ones. Underside and legs testaceous, the knees, tibia?, and tarsi pitchy-black. Allied 

 to B.festivus; the spots more defined and not broken up, also differently disposed. 

 Five specimens from Senahu, and one from Teapa, the latter, however, not altogether 

 agreeing with the others. 



24. Brachysphenus ? 



Hah. Costa Eica, Cache (Bogers). 



A single specimen of a small Brachysphenus of the Megaprotus section, allied to 

 B. catillifer, but not in a sufficiently perfect condition for description. 



The following species is unknown to me. 



25. Brachysphenus oblitus. 



Brachysphcenus oblitus, Lac. Monogr. Erotyl. p. 325 \ 



*' Ovatus, lsete luteo-flavus, antennis, scutello, pectore pedibusque piceis ; elytris convexis, punctato-striatis, 

 singulo punctis tribus baseos in triangulum digestis. Long. 3|, lat. 2\ lin." 



Hob. Mexico 



EROTYLUS. 



Erotylus, Fabricius, Syst. Ent. p. 123 (1775) ; Lacordaire, Monogr. Erotyl. p. 416 (pars) ; Crotch, 

 Rev. Erotyl., Cist. Ent. i. p. 525; Chapuis, Gen. Col. xii. p. 62 (pars). 



Erotylus as restricted by Crotch contains only the species of Lacordaire's first 

 division ; his remarks, however, apply to the whole genus as constituted by Lacordaire. 

 As adopted by me it includes only such species as have the front of the head not 

 constricted at the point of insertion of the antennae, and the elytra more or less 

 variegated or entirely black. About sixty-five species have been described, all from 

 Tropical America, and the genus is in great part confined to the Southern continent. 



Some of the members of this and the following genus bear a very close resemblance 

 to certain Tenebrionidse, e.g. Cuphotes ( = Spheniscus) ; and (according to Mr. Cham* 

 pion) they are frequently to be found together about the fungoid growth on decaying 

 trees in the forest. 



