292 THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



antenna* nearly twice as long as the funicle, the latter slightly but 

 distinctly shorter than the club ; funicular joints, except the first, 

 transverse, the outer ones gradually slightly wider • club three-jointed, 

 distinctly wider in the male than in the female, its basal joint more than 

 twice as wfde as the preceding one. Prothorax large, one-half to four-fifths 

 wider than long, widest but little behind the middle, sides strongly rounded 

 but not angulate, deeply sinuate posteriorly, the hind angles right or 

 somewhat acute; side margins moderately reflexed ; disc closely and 

 strongly punctate, the punctures less close toward the middle, where they 

 are separated by from one-half to quite their own diameters. Elytra from 

 one-third to two-fifths longer than wide, distinctly more than twice as long 

 as the prothorax, width at base a trifle less than the latter at its widest 

 part ; disc not distinctly striate, the punctures strong, close and subserial 

 in arrangement. Tarsi about three-fourths as long as the tibiae in the 

 male, scarcely more than half the tibial length in the female. 



Length, 9-1 1 mm. 



Described from 3 <$ 's and 6 $ 's taken in Placer Co., California, and 

 1 9 > apparently not different, from Alameda Co.; all collected by Dr. 

 E. C. Van Dyke. 



Lotus is evidently similar in its robust convex form to thoracicus, 

 Casey, but of this species Casey says : "Scape of antennae slightly longer 

 than the funicle, the latter a little longer than the club," while in latus the 

 scape is sensibly twice as long as the funicle, and the latter is shorter than 

 the club. In thoracicus the thorax is said to be widest at the basal third, 

 which is not the case in any of the ten examples of latus. 



The following notes, contained in a letter from Dr. Van Dyke, are of 

 especial interest. He says, speaking of the species above described : 

 " My Placer Co. specimens were from Forest Hill, altitude about 2,700 

 ft. Inasmuch as I found several about old Libocedrus stumps, and one 

 quite well into the heart of one, I surmise that it feeds on this. I would 

 wish to find the larvae before being certain, though. It flies only at dusk 

 and at night. My P. Agassizii were all found in broad daylight resting on 

 leaves or wandering over tanbark oak stumps. P. Oregonensis and 

 depressus I have caught flying in the hottest part of the day. Our two 

 species of Ceruchus are both night fliers like the new Platyccrus. 

 Another resemblance in habit, if it should prove true that this feeds on 

 the Libocedrus, is the fact that both species of Ceruchus feed on conifers. 

 All the other species of Platycerus that I have observed feed on non- 



