440 Annals of the South African Museum. 



SUB-FAMILY DBCTICINAE. 



GEN. ARYTKOPTERIS, Herm. 

 Verb. Zool. Bot. Ges. Wieii. xxiv, 1874, p. 198. 



The species included in this genus seem restricted to the South 

 African region. One was described by Serville as a Thyreonotus ; 

 two by Walker, also under Thyreonotus ; a third, which has become 

 the type of the genus, but which Kirby places in synonymy with one 

 of Walker's species, was described and figured by Herman ; and Pictet 

 founded the genus Thoracistus for a fourth species. This genus, 

 preserved by Kirby in his ' Synonymic Catalogue of Orthoptera,' is, 

 however, pronounced by Bruuuer von Wattenwyl to be identical with 

 Arytropteris. It may be mentioned, in passing, that there is a mistake 

 in the enumeration of the figures in Pictet's Memoir, and that fig. 21 

 has nothing to do with the representation of Thoracistus peringueyi $ ; 

 only the figures 21 and 21fc are referable to this species. If it is 

 assumed, as I do, that A. basalts, Walk. (Catal. Derm. Salt. Br. Mus. 2, 

 1869, p. 247) is the same species as A. semiaeneus, Serv. (Ins. Orthopt., 

 1839, p. 496), the genus would be restricted to three species, but there 

 are no less than seven undescribed in the Museum Collection, raising 

 thus the number to ten. 



The livery of these insects is of a more or less deep straw-colour 

 with a metallic tinge, turning sometimes to bronze ; the sides of the 

 pronotum are usually darker than the discoidal part, and edged 

 sometimes with green ; the $ is very much smaller than the $ . 

 The genus can be divided into two groups : one in which the 

 pronotum, although with vertical sides, is somewhat ampliated in 

 the anterior part, and the second in which, the anterior part of the 

 sides being less ampliate, the pronotum has more vertical sides. In 

 the first group the two cariuae of the underside of the femora have 

 each a row of spines, in the second the inner cariua alone bears spines 

 the number of which varies, and thus permits of separation among 

 species which in general facies resemble otherwise each other greatly. 



Table of Species. 



A 2 . Hind femora with two rows of spines undei-neath. 

 c' 2 . Pronotiun ampliated laterally in the anterior part. 

 c ! . Sides of pronotum smooth. 



Aeneo-flavous, pronotum concolorous ; pronotum of $ sharp 



at apex ....... Sfinivenea. 



Aeneo-flavous, pronotum green laterally; pronotum of $ 



bhmter and rounded at apex .... viridifer. 



Pronotum and abdomen conspicuously variegated . . irrorata. 



