THE GROUND OR BURROWER BUGS. 79 



dish-brown. Head a little wider across the eyes than long, its apex 

 evenly broadly rounded ; cheeks finely and closely punctate with mi- 

 nute oblique wrinkles between the punctures, their margins scarcely at 

 all reflexed; antennae relatively short and stout, joints 2 — 4 subequal, 

 5 a little longer. Pronotum slightly wider than long, sides straight 

 from base to apical third, then broadly curved, their margins very nar- 

 rowly reflexed, front angles obtusely rounded; disk with an evident but 

 shallow transverse groove behind the middle, the median area in front 

 of this minutely and sparsely punctate, the sides finely and very closely 

 so. Scutellum finely, shallowly, unevenly and very sparsely punctate. 

 Elytra distinctly and rather closely punctate, the apical half of corium 

 more sparsely so. Sides of abdomen finely densely strigose, under sur- 

 face elsewhere, smooth or nearly so. Length, 3.2 mm.; width, 1.7 mm. 



Dunedin, Fla., April 22 ; one specimen swept from herbage 

 in low moist ground. Described by Signoret from "North 

 America," without definite locality. Except in size it is almost 

 a replica of robustus. The head is less densely punctate, the 

 pronotum with sides of front half less rounded, the disk more 

 sparsely punctate behind the transverse groove, the latter 

 relatively deeper on sides. 



41 (62). Geotomus pennsylvanicus Signoret, 1883, 207. 



Oblong-oval, subconvex. Black or piceous-black, shining; apical 

 half of corium and legs piceous; antennae and legs reddish-brown. Head 

 shorter and more declivent than in preceding species, its apex bluntly 

 rounded ; cheeks subconvex, impunctate or nearly so, each with a few 

 fine wrinkles, the margins very narrowly recurved ; antennae with 

 joints 2 — 4 subequal, fifth longest, fusiform, acutely pointed. Pronotum 

 subconvex, but slightly broader than long; sides feebly curved in front 

 of middle, their margin very narrowly recurved ; disk without trans- 

 verse impression but with a vague shallow longitudinal one each side, 

 closely and finely punctate on sides and behind, almost smooth in front 

 of middle. Scutellum strongly tapering to the narrowly rounded apex, 

 its disk faintly transversely rugose, rather coarsely and very sparsely 

 punctate, more finely so on apical third. Elytra finely sparsely and 

 distinctly punctate on basal half, obsoletely so on apical half of corium. 

 Under surface almost smooth; sides of abdomen minutely strigose. Geni- 

 tal segment finely and closely punctate. Length, 3.2 — 3.7 mm.; width, 

 1.8—2 mm. 



Blantyre, N. Car., May (Brimley) . Mobile, Ala., April 20 

 (Gerhard). This is the Melaficethus picinus of Uhler (1877, 

 391), his specific name being preoccupied. His types were 

 from York Co., Pennsylvania, and it has been heretofore re- 

 corded only from that State, Georgia and Illinois; Hart (1919, 

 204) listing "one specimen from Urbana, 111., Oct. 21." From 



