Cattittlimi Intoi«ul(j0bt 



VOL. XXIV. LONDON, JULY, 1892. No. 



NOTES ON COLEOPTERA— NO. 10 



BY JOHN HAMILTON, M. D., ALLEGHENY, PA. 



Platynus reflexiis, Lee, and variety a. — This species may be found 

 in some abundance when sought for in its natural habitat : under stones 

 in the bed of nearly dry hill-side streams and the debris along their banks, 

 June being the time of its greatest abundance. In Dr. Leconte's synopsis 

 oi Platynus (Bull. Brook. Ent. Soc, IL,) a variety is noted as a, with 

 four elytral punctures, while reflexus has but three — nothing further being 

 stated. This form occurs here, not as an individual variation, but at 

 least as a race, perhaps a species. It is more elongate, narrower and 

 smaller than reflexus, the latter being from .44 to .48 inch, in length, 

 while the variety a is from .35 to .38 inch.; the head is narrower and 

 longer behind the eyes, and a little longer than the thorax ; the thorax 

 is narrower, less rounded on the sides, more gradually narrowed to base 

 and about as long as wide ; the base of the elytra is less emarginate, and 

 the humeral angles more obtuse ; the general colour is much less piceous. 

 These comparative differences, it will be seen, enable these forms to be 

 separated at sight. The anterior three elytral punctures are usually 

 placed at uniform distances, either in the third stria or on the external 

 side of the third interval, though the third is occasionally placed on the 

 internal side of this interval ; the fourth puncture is situated in the second 

 stria about one-fifth from apex — sometimes on inner side of the third 

 stria. There are now before me twelve examples of reflexus and twenty 

 of var. a. While reflexus is liable to turn up in any spring run during 

 the summer, I know of only one locality for var. a — that from which the 

 above examples were taken May 4th. This is in the bed of a spring run 

 which is dry all summer except during a rain. Whether this form occurs 

 elsewhere is unknown, and it is probable the examples seen by Dr. 

 Leconte came from here. 



Liparocephalus brevipemm, Meek., Bull. Mosc, 1853, 193. — The 

 examples on which this species as well as genus were found^^^fe, * 



