132 Zoological Society, 



they were collected in the neighbourhood of Petorca. The species 

 described belong to the genera Nyctelia and Listroderes, or are nearly- 

 allied to those two groups. 



Section HETEROMERA. 



Family NycteliiDjE. 

 Genus Nyctelia. 

 Species from the collection of Thomas Bridges, Esq. 

 Nyctelia l^evis. Nyct. atra, nitida ; capite antice punctis sparsis 

 notato ; thorace mediocriter convexo, latiore plusquam longo, parte 

 anticd angustiore, ad latera modice rotundato, margine anteriore, 

 pilis brevibus flavescentibus fimbriato, angulis et anticis et posticis 

 productis et subacutis, dorso punctis parvulis dispersis : elytris 

 lavibus convexis, brevibus, ovatis, apice producto et subacuto ; ca- 

 rind laterali crenulatd ; segmentis abdominalibus rugis irregula- 

 ribus longitudinaliter impressis. 

 Long. corp. 11| lin. ; lat. 6| ; lat. thoracis, 4| ; long. ib. 2j. 

 Black and glossy ; general form ovate ; thorax and elytra convex 

 above, and presenting no distinct sculpturing. Head with scattered 

 punctures in front, smooth behind. Thorax with very fine scattered 

 punctures, and these most numerous on the fore part : parallel with, 

 and at a short distance from the lateral margins of the thorax is an 

 indistinct line on each side, formed by the somewhat abrupt termi- 

 nation of the convex discoidal portion at this part ; the space between 

 this line and the outer margin is nearly plane, and presents a few 

 indistinct irregular rugae, having a tendency to a transverse dispo- 

 sition. The thorax is broader than long, the width to the length 

 bearing very nearly the proportion of 8 to 5 ; the middle of the thorax 

 and hindermost part are about equal in width, but from the middle 

 to the front the width gradually decreases ; in front it is emarginated, 

 and the anterior margin is furnished with a fringe of short, dense, 

 yellowish hairs; the posterior margin presents an undulating line, 

 encroaching on the body of the thorax on each side about midway 

 between the mesial line and the posterior angle, which is produced. 

 The elytra are very convex, and nearly of an ovate form ; they are 

 widest in the middle, and the apical portion is produced ; the lateral 

 keel (which forms the outer boundary of each elytron, viewing the 

 insect from above) is not very prominent, and is indistinctly crenu- 

 lated : this ridge does not extend to the apex of the elytron, but ter- • 

 minates about two and a half lines from that point : between the 

 apex and the terminal point of the keel is an oblique ridge : the su- 

 tural portion of the elytra is distinctly indented near the scutellum, 

 and less distinctly so at other parts. The mentum is coarsely punc- 

 tured : the prosternum and mesosternum are coarsely punctured in 

 the middle, and the punctures are confluent : the metasternum has 

 small and somewhat irregular longitudinal rugae in the middle, and 

 similar rugae are observable on the first, second, and anterior half of 

 the third abdominal segments. The legs are black, but the tip of 

 the femora and base of the tibiae are pitchy. 

 Very many specimens of tins species were sent to this country by 



