76 COLLEMBOLA OF MINNESOTA 



Entomobrya purpurascens Pack. 



1873. Degeeria purpurascens. Packard, Thys. from Essex Co., Mass. p. 



39- 



1883. Entomobrya purpurascens. Brook, Revis. of Genus Entomobrya. 

 p. 282. 



Packard's description is, as usual more generic than spec- 

 cific, yet I think there is little doubt as to the species. He 

 says : "Eyes black with no connecting line. This is rather a 

 large species with unusually long, slender antennae, with the 

 body, legs, and antennae of a purplish lead color, the purplish 

 tint especially noticeable on the two basal joints of the antennas. 

 Not very hairy ; the hairs on the prothorax and head of quite 

 uniform length, club-shaped, those on the posterior part of 

 the body very slender, no bowed ones among them( though my 

 specimens are somewhat rubbed). Legs slender, claws long and 

 slender, larger claw with two acute prominent teeth along the 

 inner edge. Elater with long dense hairs along upper side of 

 second joint; serrulate, the teeth suddenly ending, leaving the 

 end narrow, slender, naked, slightly bent, with a long hair pro- 

 jecting beyond the tip of third joint. This joint rather short, 

 much curved on the outer side, ending in a rather slender hook, 

 with an inner one of nearly the same 'size. 'Catch' large ; basal 

 joint longer than broad, with a stout bristle arising from middle 

 of anterior edge and reaching nearly to tip of second joint, both 

 front and hind, edges with three of four notches, second joint 

 very slender on the toothed portion, four-toothed ; whole joint 

 over half as long as first joint. Length, .08 to .09 inch." 



The species has been taken by Packard in the N'ew England 

 states, and in ^ennessee by Dr. J. Curtis. The difference in 

 darkness of color between the two first antennal segments and 

 the rest of the body is not very marked in our specimens ; nor 

 are the antennae unusually long if we compare them with those 

 of such forms as E. bicolor or E. dorsalis Uz. 



Packard has regarded the narrow proximal part of the mu- 

 croncs as a part of the dentes, but in this he is evidently in 

 error. The prinicpal characters, then, which distinguish the 

 species, are the uniform purple color and the absence of seg- 

 mental cross-bands. The slender basal tooth is present, as 



