130 ORTHOPTERA. 



Frons planata, supra ocellos sulco transverso arcuato exarata. — Thes- 



PROTIA, St. 



6, 6. Tibiae anticae quam unguis longiores, spinis utrinque 2, superius 1 armatae. 

 Femora formae consuetae, in tertia parte apicali attenuata. 

 7. Caput transversum ; frons humilis, gibberosa. Vertex transversus, quam 

 oculi haud altior, utrinque lobo juxtaoculari. 

 8. Spinae laterales tibiarum anticarum normales, rectae, a marginibus 

 divergentes, saltern a margine interno. — Oligonyx, Sss. 

 8, 8. Spinae utrinque a basi curvatae, in margine incumbentes. — Harpa- 

 gonyx, Sss. 

 7, 7. Caput aequaliter altum ac latum, superius valde compressum ; fronte 

 elata, plana, cannula semicirculari notata. Vertex transversus, quam 

 oculi altior, utrinque in dentem trigonalem juxtaocularem productus. 

 — Spanionyx, Sss. 

 5, 5. Tibiae anticse graciles, dimidium femur fere aequantes, subdecurvae (margine 

 supero subsinuato), supra rotundatae ac punctatae ; spinis intus 2, superius 2 

 apicalibus armatae. Frons supra ocellum inferum mucronata. Femora 

 anteriora gracilia, dimidia parte apicali valde attenuata. — Caput transversum, 

 rotundatum, fronte parum alta, subtrigibbosa ; ocellis ad tuberculos exsertis. 

 — Pronotum breve, gracile. Elytra et alae ampla, obtusa. — Thrinaconyx*, 

 Sss. 

 2, 2. Corpus crassiusculum. Abdomen ? graciliter subfusiforme, supra carinatum, segmentis 

 apice acute compressis. Femora postica basi incrassata. — Pronotum breve, rhomboi- 

 dale. Pedes antici crassi, femoribus trigonalibus ; tibiis normalibus, subtus latiusculis. 

 — Feminae apterae. Marium elytra et alae ampla, abdomenque superantia; elytrorum 

 vena ulnari furcata. — Bantia, St. 



ACONTISTAf, Burm. 



Acontistes, Burmeister (ex parte), Handb. ii. p. 542 (1839); Stal, Syst. Mant. p. 85 ; Brunner de 



W. Rev. Syst. Orthopt. p. 61. 

 Acontista, Saussure, Melang. Orthopt. i. 3 e fasc. p. 175 (1870), ii. 4 e fasc. p. 21; Mem. Mex., Mantid. 



p. 31 ; Miss. Scient. Mex., Orthopt. p. 236 ; Westwood, Revis. Mantid. p. 22. 



Acontista is peculiar to the hot regions of America. It is a compact genus, composed 

 of small species, all of which have the same form and are very similarly coloured. 

 The males and females differ very much — the males having the elytra and wings 



* The genus Astape, Stal, might be placed next to this. It possesses special characters in the proportions 

 of its legs. (Patrice ignota.) 



t The name Acontistes being preoccupied in Aves (Sundevall, 1835), we adopt Acontista, Saussure. 



