STAPHYLINID.E 207 



acutely subangular metasternal projection being very short and 

 wholly undepresssed, the mesosternal point being scarcely at all 

 free. In addition to this, the prothorax assumes a special form, the 

 anterior margin being arcuate and medially subprominent, and the 

 fifth abdominal segment is more developed though, similarly, only 

 the first three are basally impressed. The only species is very 

 minute and occurred in some numbers on the banks of the southern 

 Mississippi; it may be described as follows: 



Crimalia quadriceps n. sp. Oblong, subparallel, moderately convex, 

 rather shining, pale testaceous, the elytra somewhat more obscure, the 

 abdomen blackish, gradually somewhat pale basally but not at apex, 

 the legs pale; punctures of the head and pronotum rather large and widely 

 spaced, shallow on the former, rather deep but not asperate on the 

 latter, much finer, rather sparse and scarcely at all asperate on the elytra, 

 inconspicuous on the abdomen though slightly more asperate and with 

 the reticulation stronger apically; pubescence rather coarse, pale, not 

 erect; head rather small, slightly transverse, three-fourths as wide as 

 the prothorax, the eyes well developed, prominent and very finely 

 faceted, the tempora much less prominent, parallel and nearly straight 

 to the basal angles, which are right and but very narrowly rounded, 

 the base rectilinearly truncate; antennae short and rather slender, gradu- 

 ally and moderately incrassate distally in about apical half, pale in 

 color, very slightly infumate at tip, the two basal joints thick, the second 

 slightly the shorter, the third scarcely half as thick, slightly shorter than 

 the second, fourth about as long as wide, the joints thence gradually 

 larger, very slowly at first, more rapidly near the tip, the tenth twice 

 as wide as long, the last ogival, as long as the two preceding; prothorax 

 three-fourths wider than long, parallel and feebly, evenly arcuate at 

 the sides, the base broadly rounded, with obtuse but distinct angles, 

 the apex even iribre rounded medially, the lateral angles, from above, 

 broadly rounded, the surface unimpressed; elytra slightly shorter than 

 wide, with just visibly diverging sides, at base very slightly wider, the 

 suture one-half longer, than the prothorax, the apical sinuses small and 

 moderate in depth; abdomen rather wide though evidently narrower 

 than the elytra, the sides parallel, just visibly arcuate, the fifth tergite 

 fully one-half longer than the fourth. Length 1.25 mm.; width 0.28 

 mm. Mississippi (Vicksburg). 



To be known very readily by its minute size, coloration and the 

 peculiar form of the head and prothorax. The male differs from the 

 female only in having the fine feeble asperities scattered over the 

 fifth and sixth tergites, much larger, strongly elevated and some- 

 what elongate, with the sixth longer, relatively narrower and more 

 strongly rounded at tip. The size in the seven specimens at hand 

 is very uniform. 



