150 Mr. D. Sharp's Contributions to the 



LEISTOTROniUS. 



1'liis genus consists of a few species, Ijut is of vcr}^ wide 

 distribution. South America possesses but a single species, 

 which, liowevcr, is the most developed and remarkable of 

 the genus. The two species described by INIotschoulsky 

 under the generic name of Triclioderma, which, in the 

 INIunich Catalogue, arc recorded as South American 

 species of Leistotroplius, belong clearly, fron\ jNlotschoul- 

 sky's description, to the genus Stapltijlinus. 



1. Staplnjlinus versicolor, Grav. 



Para, Ega, Tapajos. 



One of the individuals is labelled as found in coAv-dung ; 

 the species, like its European congeners, frequents, no 

 doubt, putrescent substances for predaccous purposes. 



Stapiiyltnus. 



I have used this name with the same extension as that 

 given to it in the Munich Catalogue of Coleoptera, where 

 it includes about 100 species, found in all parts of the 

 woi-ld. It is a genus of which the species are extremely 

 closely allied, but yet, studied on the European ones, have 

 proved to be incontestably distinct. The exotic species 

 are jirobably extremely numerous, and their discrimination 

 will be no easy task. I here emmicrate nine species from 

 the Amazon Valley, seven of which I have described as 

 new; of these the first two, viz., *S'. snhrijantnis and S. ])nr- 

 viceps, are quite distinct, by their combinations of colour 

 and sculpture, from any others 1 am acquainted with. 

 Th(! same remark applies to *S'. f/ ratios us and *S'. (/rat us, 

 but aS'. ])riscus and !S. vctustus are very closely allied to 

 the S. antiquus and some other imdescribed South Ameri- 

 can forms, and thus appertain to what is undoubtedly a 

 most dilHeult grou]) ; Avhile the ^S*. (niiazotiicus perhajis 

 iinds its nearest allv in the Xorth American »S'. ioi/ie/iiosus. 

 It is worthy of notice that i\Ir. Hates brought back nothing 

 to represent the very remarkable »S'. Buqnetii group, of 

 which species are fjund in iNIexico, l*eru and Ibazil; it 

 will be reni:u-kable if no allied species is found in the 

 Amazon N'ahey, and yet so large and striking are they, 

 that if ])resent one would think th('\- would scarcely have 

 Im'cu lu^irlcctcd bv ^li-. Bates durino- the whole of his lonj; 

 residence there. 



