358 M. H. Jekel on new Curculionidous Beetles. 



One 2 from the Collection of the ' Herald f but I have seen 

 two d in the Collection of the British Museum, labelled " S. 

 America." There is another c? in Mr. Saunders's, without indi- 

 cation of locality, probably from the same source. 



I have named this insect after my friend M. Henri Jekel, the 

 very scientific and accomplished entomologist, who has studied 

 and collected the species of the great division Rhynchophora 

 so long and so indefatigably, and the author of that unique 

 work, ' Fabricia Entomologica/ the descriptions, printing, &c, 

 of which are all by M. Jekel. His part of the l Insecta Saun- 

 dersiana/ and his other memoirs on Curculionidse, are all highly 

 appreciated. This species may be known from all its congeners by 

 its bluish-purple legs, the femora, especially of the fore-legs, being 

 ornamented in front and at the base with metallic green scales. 

 The squamulation of the head, thorax, and elytra is most deli- 

 cate and varied, green being the predominating hue, blue on the 

 sides of body and elytra, while the orange or golden -coloured 

 scales mingled with them set-off these green scales in a very 

 striking manner. A jeweller lately took a design for a pair of 

 ear-drops for a lady, from a specimen of the species called Prcepodes 

 vittatus, a beautiful dark-coloured species with bright longitu- 

 dinal bands of white and rich red on its elytra : the insect was 

 represented hanging from an orange-blossom, while rubies and 

 other jewels formed its body. — A. W. 



Genus Synosomus*, Jekel. 



Antennae fractae, subtenues, thoracis medium parum superantes ; 

 scapo recto versus apicem subclavatum sensim incrassato, ocu- 

 lum attingente; funiculo scapo longiore, articulis subconicis, 

 apice truncatis, l°latitudine apicali subtriplo, externis subduplo 

 longiore, 2° primo paulo breviore, 3° secundo breviore, sequen- 

 tibus subdimidio longiore, 4°-7° subeequalibus, magis conicis, 

 latioribus, latitudine apicali parum longioribus ; clava breviter 

 ovato-acuta, 4-articulata. 



Rostrum capite dimidio angustius et longius, apice modice ampliatum 

 et incrassatum, basi utrinque subcompressum supraque trans- 

 versim leviter impressum ; scrobe laterali, obliqua, primum 

 lineari, profunda, dein mox ante partem inferam oculi evanes- 

 centim ampliata et terminata. 



Caput breve, valde transversum, subconicum ; oculis breviter ovatis, 

 subperpendicularibus, deplanatis ; fronte latitudine rostri. 



Thorax amplus, antice subrectim, postice oblique truncatus, infra 

 oculos obsolete lobatus, prope apicem parum constrictus. 



Scutellum nullum. 



Elytra subovata, basi conjunctim emarginato-truncata, thorace arete 

 applicata, exhumerata, h. e. extra thoracem non extensa, ibique 



* Tui/, pariter ; <ra>/xa, corpus. 



