STAPHYLINID.E 415 



striction, the tempora feebly converging behind them, basally rather 

 abruptly more so; surface smooth, the foveae somewhat as in the 

 preceding species; antennae extending about to the thoracic base, 

 rather stout though barely at all incrassate distally, the outer joints 

 fully as long as wide; prothorax rather small, of peculiar form, quad- 

 rate, with broadly rounded sides and base, the angles obliterated; 

 tripunctate series feeble; scutellum with very few fine punctures; 

 elytra much shorter than wide, at apex distinctly wider than the 

 prothorax; surface nearly flat, with rather small, moderately close-set 

 punctures; abdomen with fine, somewhat close punctures, gradually 

 becoming stronger and sparse posteriorly; sixth ventral (cf ) with a 

 small shallow rounded sinus, less than a third as wide as the apex 

 and four times as wide as deep, the adjacent surface not at all modi- 

 fied; hind tarsi slender, much shorter than the tibiae. Length (cf) 

 7.0 mm.; width 1.33 mm. California (Siskiyou Co.), Koebele. 



divergens n. sp. 



Body still more slender and smaller in size, similar in lustre and color- 

 ation, except that the elytra are relatively more pallid and flavescent, 

 nearly like the legs in color; head oval, rather longer than wide, the 

 eyes at a fourth more than their own length from the constriction, 

 the tempora converging and feebly, evenly arcuate behind them, 

 barely visibly more strongly at the constriction; foveae nearly as in 

 the preceding but conspicuously coarser, the minute punctulation of 

 the general surface very sparse and barely visible; antennae stout, 

 extending about to the thoracic base, distinctly incrassate distally, 

 the penultimate joints not quite as long as wide; prothorax slightly 

 wider than long, relatively much larger than in the preceding but 

 otherwise nearly similar; scutellum nearly smooth, having very few 

 minute punctules apically; elytra small, shorter than wide, every-, 

 where narrower than the prothorax and at base scarcely more than 

 three-fourths as wide as the latter; punctures moderate in size and 

 closeness but rather strongly asperate and conspicuous; abdomen 

 finely, not at all closely punctate almost throughout; sixth ventral 

 (c?) with a very much broader sinus than in divergens, broadly 

 rounded, five times as wide as deep and three-fourths as wide as the 

 segmental apex, the adjoining surface unmodified; hind tarsi slender, 

 the basal joint as long as the next two combined. Length (cf ) 6.2 

 mm.; width 1.15 mm. Utah (southwestern), Weidt. 



uteanus n. sp. 



Some species of this group are exceedingly extended in geographic 

 habitat, such as mesomelinus, which pervades the entire colder 

 part of the northern hemisphere and erythrogaster, which is holo- 

 nearctic, but many others are evidently local developments, among 

 these being the rather numerous species of the desertus section in our 

 Sonoran territories, distinguished by the extremely minute punc- 

 tures of the abdomen among other characters. There has been 

 some unaccountably erroneous synonymy suggested in the group, 



