410 STUDIES IN AUSTRALIAN ENTOMOLOGY, 



comprehensive essay on the Feronides of AustraHa and 

 New Zealand.* It is to be regretted that M. Tschitscherine 

 overlooked, or at least ignored, all the work done by de Chaudoir 

 and Macleaj' among the Australian Feronides subsequently to de 

 Chaudoir's original Essay on the subject in 1865, and thereby 

 rendered his paper of almost no practical value. His classification 

 of the genera, or more properly the sub-genera, is very crude, and 

 his want of knowledge of de Chaudoir's later work makes it 

 worthless. As the paper is published in a foreign periodical, 

 hardly to be met with in Australia, I take the present oppor- 

 tunity of noting all that is of interest in it. 



(1). Four species are described as new, viz : — 



Holcaj)sis convexidorsis, from New Zealand (unknown to me) ; 

 Rhahdotus chaudoiri, from Tasmania (= B. Jloridus, Bates) ; 

 Rhytisternus hfvidorsis, from Brisbane (1) ( = rcecilvs l<Bvis, 

 Macl.) ; ChUenioidius irideomicans, from Moreton Bay (which 

 from comparison of descriptions, seems to me Ch. pfcci7ot(/e.s', 

 Chaud.) 



(2). Three new subgenera are proposed, viz: — Castelnazulia, 

 Pseud oceneus, and Pceciloidia ; the first is proposed for 

 Homalosoma nitidicolle, Casteln., and seems an entirel)'- needless 

 division ; Pseudoceneus is founded on Pterostichiis holomelanus, 

 Germ., a species that I place in Siinodontus ; Pceciloidia is 

 intended to receive Pcecilus iridescens, Casteln., which Chaudoir 

 lias placed in the American genus Loxandrus ; should it ultimately 

 prove that the Australian species thus i-eferred to the latter do 

 not actually belong to that genus, then Pceciloidia may come in. 



(3). Our knowledge of the synonymy of the described 

 Australian fauna is further increased by Catadroiaus cordicollis, 

 Motsch., being placed as a synoym of C. lacordairii, Boisd.; and 

 Orlhoimts antipodus, Motsch., as a synonym of Simodontus 

 aiistralis, Dej. In these conclusions M. Tschitscherine may be 

 followed with confidence, as he is situated so as to be able to 

 speak with more certainty than would be possible for any Aus- 

 tralian worker. 



*Hor. t^oc. Ent. Ross. 1891, T. xxv. 



