HARPALIISLE 69 



nounced peculiarities of habitus than any single structural character, 

 although in Pharalus testaceus the ligula is abruptly and strongly 

 dilated and very acutely angulate at each side of the apex and the 

 paraglossae are produced externally at apex, leaving an internal 

 sinus adjoining the ligula, somewhat as in most of the Selenophorid 

 genera. 



Harpalus Latr. 



This is the largest genus of the subfamily and one of the most 

 important of the entire Carabidae from the standpoint of extent, 

 and perhaps the most difficult in regard to the taxonomy of its 

 diversified elements. Here the mentum tooth, because of its 

 inconstancy, has but little value in classification. The body is 

 notably varied in habitus, due principally to the presence or absence 

 of punctuation at various parts of the surface, to the female sexual 

 characters on and at the apices of the elytra, in size and form of the 

 body and in other ways, so that Lacordaire was very undecided 

 as to its boundaries, including some named genera that have since 

 been separated on more or less evident structural peculiarities. 

 The mentum is of the usual short transverse form but the apical 

 projections, limiting the large median sinus, are unusually acute 

 and dentiform. The third joint of the labial palpi is generally but 

 little shorter than the second. 



Harpalus is the only genus of the subfamily that is distributed in 

 about equal numbers through the palsearctic and nearctic regions. 

 In the southern hemisphere it is rather abundant in South Africa, 

 from which region I personally collected four or five species in the 

 vicinity of Cape Town. It is however suspected by Bates that 

 the genus does not occur in either South America or Australia. 



In the following table of the groups into which our very numerous 

 species may be apportioned, I have not attempted to assign sub- 

 generic names except in a few cases, not knowing the named groups 

 of the European fauna, with which a number of our own are doubt- 

 less identical, and I have furthermore limited the groups here 

 defined to our own fauna alone, not attempting to incorporate even 

 such as Artabas or Pangus of the European fauna. Our very iso- 

 lated viridi&neus makes the closest approach to Harpalophonus and 

 will probably have to be included therein. 



