Vol. XXviii | ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. 53 



the recently described species are nothing more or less than 

 the extremes, sports or aberrations belonging to well-known 

 specific aggregates. When the last word shall have been spo- 

 ken if that occurs before evolution has had time to act- 

 probably two-thirds of the fifty-two described species and vari- 

 eties will fall into synonymy as forms (intraspecific variations) ; 

 the remaining one-third will be species with their subspecies 

 or races. 



Before drawing this paper to an end it will be worth while 

 and helpful to the susceptible to study some of the intra- 

 specific variations or forms. 



MEASUREMENTS OF THE EXTREMES OF CUPREONITENS. 



Smallest Male. Total length, 14.0 mm. ; of elytra, 8.0 mm. ; width, 4.3 

 mm. Length of pronotum, 3.0 mm.; width, 3.2 mm. 



Largest Male. See type. 



Smallest Female. Total length, 14.0 mm. ; of elytra, 7.0 mm. ; width, 

 4.3 mm. Length of pronotum, 3.0 mm. ; width, 3.3 mm. 



Largest Female. Total length, 17.0 mm. ; of elytra, 10.0 mm. ; width, 

 5.5 mm. Length of pronotum, 3.75 mm. ; width, 4.2 mm. 



SPECIMEN SHOWING THE GREATEST AMOUNT OF VARIATION 

 AS REGARDS ELYTRAL SCULPTURING. 



Female. Total length, 14.5 mm.; of elytra, 8.1 mm.; width, 

 5.0 mm. Length of pronotum, 3.0 mm.; width, 3.2 mm. The 

 setigerous punctures of the elytra are more noticeably im- 

 pressed and subfoveate, eleven in number on each elytron 

 and arranged in two rows. This specimen would without doubt 

 be described as a new species if separated from the aggregate. 

 As a control an abundance of intermediates are at hand. 



In numerous specimens the setigerous punctures are not im- 

 pressed and therefore not visible without a hand lens. The 

 visible subfoveate punctures by no means represent all of the 

 setigerous punctures, especially those of the humeral and apical 

 regions. 



In cupreonitens the mental tooth is recurved, narrow and 

 deeply grooved, and variable as regards those characters. The 

 largest female has the lateral bead of the pronotum meeting 

 the basal bead and interrupting the basal sub-marginal gromr 

 so that it does not pass on to the basal border of the propleura. 



