266 MEMOIRS ON THE COLEOPTERA 



as not more than a subspecies of lubricus; vitiosus is rather more 

 distinct in its somewhat elongate-rhomboid form and in coloration, 

 besides the interrupted third stria; it should be held specifically 

 valid. The true fimbriatus of LeConte, is limited to the Pacific 

 coast fauna and occurs not very abundantly at and below San 

 Francisco; it is more briefly and broadly oblong than the widely 

 diffused and very abundant desertorum Mars., and is without the 

 more pallid coloration and strong aeneous lustre of the latter; 

 orbiculatus Mars., of which I have a small series taken at Austin, 

 Texas, is more abbreviated than desertorum, darker in color and 

 has little or no aeneous lustre; the last two are subspecies of fimbri- 

 atus and the following is another: 



Saprinus fimbriatus ssp. dakotanus nov. Similar to desertorum in its 

 general characters relating to form and sculpture but blacker, less 

 metallic and with the entire basal half of the elytra completely devoid 

 of punctuation, excepting some very fine punctures at the humeri and 

 a few extremely minute and sparsely scattered over the external stria! 

 interspace; oblique humeral and parallel basal part of the first discal 

 very coarsely excavated. Length 3.8 mm.; width 2.7 mm. Dakota. 



There is probably some variability in the extent of punctuation 

 here, as well as in desertorum, lubricus and the others of this section, 

 but the coarse striae mentioned, and a certain habitus, lead me to 

 think that the form is subspecifically valid, though represented at 

 present only by a single example. 



The two following are, I think, valid species of this fimbriatus 

 section : 



Saprinus effusus n. sp. Still larger and more broadly oblong-oval 

 than fimbriatus, black throughout, with the legs piceo-rufous, the upper 

 surface with feeble bronzy lustre; head evenly convex, closely punctured, 

 not at all striate; prothorax short, more than twice as wide as the median 

 length, the apical sinus deep; sides strongly converging and nearly 

 straight, broadly inwardly rounded at apex; surface finely but distinctly, 

 sparsely punctured, becoming rather gradually coarsely and closely so 

 broadly toward the sides, the base with confused coarse punctures, 

 becoming gradually finer anteriorly on the disk; lateral erect hairs 

 long, pale as usual; elytra one-half longer than the prothorax, through- 

 out nearly as in fimbriatus; outer subhumeral coarse, very distinct and 

 distant from the lateral stria, the inner as in fimbriatus; pygidia more 

 coarsely though scarcely so densely punctured as in that species; meso- 

 sternum coarsely and closely punctate. Length 3.7 mm.; width 2.9 mm. 

 California (San Francisco). 



Differs strikingly from fimbriatus in the punctuation of the 



