NOTES ON THE AMAIUE. 245 



Sp. Amara infima, Stephens. 

 Syn. — A. infima, Steph. Mand. i. 135; Cai-abus infimus, Dufts. 



Sp. Char. — Above glossy black ; hd. smooth ; thx. with its lateral margins 

 rounded, the disk tranversely convex ; on each side at the base are two 

 punctate foveee, the inner oblong, and deepest ; the lateral margin, and 

 sometimes the hinder, tinged with ferruginous ; elyt. as in A. tibialis ; 

 body beneath glossy black ; the legs stout, rusty red, the thighs occasionally 

 dusky ; ant. dull ferruginous, with the three basal joints pale testaceous. 

 Length 2 — 2^ lines. 



" Apparently scarce ; taken near London, and in Norfolk." — Stephens. 



As circumstances have prevented my attending to an arrangement of the 

 species of Amara, whilst writing this and my preceding paper, I beg to lay before 

 the reader a classification of them. No doubt it will be branded by many as 

 artificial. In some measure it is so ; in most cases, however, the species are 

 arranged according to their natural affinities ; and if it answers no other good 

 end, I think it not improbable that it will assist the student in his investigation 

 of the species belonging to this difficult group — thus answering one of the 

 primary objects of systematic Entomology. 



Order, Coleoptera, Linn. 



Tribe, Carabacea, Ryl.* ( Adephaga, Clairv.) 



Family, Harpalidce, Macleay. 



Genus, Amara, Bonel. 



* Destitute of fovea on the thorax. 



1. atroccerulea, Stu. ; 2. laticollis, Steph. 



* * With an obsolete fovea, on each side, at the base of the thorax. 



3. rustica, Ryl.; 4. familiar is, Creut. 



* * * With a linear impression, on each side, at the base of the thorax. 



5. ovata, Steph. ; 6. trivialis, Siu. ; 7. nitida, Stu. ; 8. cursor, Stu. 



* Swainson proposes es as a termination to distinguish tribes, as families are known by idee, 

 and sub-families by ince. Es, as a distinctive termination, is obviously objectionable: thus we 

 have, Insessores, Dentirostres, Anabates, Ectopistes, and Scarabaeoidtfj — all ending in es, and yet 

 each of a different rank : the first being an order, the second a tribe, the third a genus, the fourth 

 a sub-genus, and the fifth a specific (or trivial) appellation. Of what use can such a mock-distinc- 

 tion as this be, either to the student or professed naturalist ? This Nomenclature may, however, 

 be tolerated in a classification of birds, in which there are comparatively but few tribes — but in 

 Entomology the case is quite the reverse, and therefore some more fit and useful termination 

 ought to be substituted. 1 would propose acea> and that the tribes take their appellations from 

 the typical families, as the latter do from genera ; thus we should have, Carabacea, Papilionaceo, 

 Phalaenacea, &c. [We consider the plan worthy of general adoption. — En.] 



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