BY REV. T. BLACKBURN. 253 



P. STiCTiCA, Marsh. 



Of this species I have an example that has been compared with 

 the reputed original type in the Macleay Collection and another 

 (evidently conspecitic) so named by Dr. Chapuis. The insect is 

 very close to P. inspersa, ISTewm., but I believe it to be distinct. 

 It is uniformly smaller, with the black base (invisible when the 

 head is not exceptionally extruded) of the head produced forward 

 into two blotches which are visible in all the specimens I have 

 seen and are constantly wanting in inspersa, the scutellum black 

 {testaceous in inspersa, sometimes with a dark margin), and the 

 black of the seriate punctures on the elytra extending outside the 

 punctures (limited to the punctures in inspersa), moreover the 

 seriate punctures in inspersa are more regularly spaced than in 

 stictica in which they run two or three comparatively close and 

 then a long gap before the next. P. stictica is also near nupta, 

 Blackb., which resembles it in the characters just mentioned but 

 differs in the elytral series of punctures being strongly geminate. 

 The legs in inspersa vary from entirely (except the base of the 

 tibiae) black to entirely (except the knees and tarsi) testaceous. 

 In all the examples I have seen of stictica and nupta the legs 

 have the last-described colouring. 



P. PLUVIALIS, Chp. 



This species evidently belongs to the present subgroup, and 

 ^'Sydney" is cited as its habitat. If it was really taken near 

 Sydney I suspect it of being a lightly coloured variety of stictica, 

 Marsh., as I have collected many Paropses near Sydney and have 

 examined large collections made by others in the same locality, 

 but have seen no Paropsis distinct from stictica presenting the 

 one or two very slight differences that are atti'ibuted to pluvialis. 

 I find no character in the description inconsistent with its being 

 a variety except that it is called " ovalis " which is certainly a 

 term that strikes me as unsuitable even for the narrowest 9 

 of stictica that I have before me. The only other features in 

 the description suggesting difference from a typical stictica are 



