6 



ARKIV FÖR ZOOLOGI. BAND 7. N:0 12, 



Since, even in genera wbere they are entirely fused, 

 botli with tbe sternal and ventral or ventri-anal shields, the 

 number of hairs found in the area between the coxse always 

 indicates the metasternal shields being constituents in the 

 whole shield, and, even when the metasternal shields are 

 rediiced in size and for the greater part concealed. as in 

 Trachytes MiCH. [7. p. 447 fig. 141], their hairs still persist, 

 we may safely conclude, that in the present form they have 

 not disappeared, but are fused with the ven trål shield. 



Which of the two pairs of hairs to be found at the an- 

 terior end of the ventral shield is the metasternal one is, 



Fig. 4. ef Sternal, genital and anterior part of 

 ventral shield. X 270. 



however, difficult to say; the decidedly more lateral position 

 of one pair, combined with the position of the other close to 

 the genital shield, seems to point to the former being the 

 metasternal pair, in spite of its more backward position. 



The genital shield is broad oval, 1 V-' ti mes as broad as 

 it is long and hinged to the anterior edge of the ventral, 

 shield with a base as long as the shield; its anterior half over- 

 laps the separating line between the sternal and ventral shield 

 and projects forward to a level between coxse II and III. 



The ventri-metasternal shield perfectly resembles that of 

 the female; it covers the anterior half of the belly and nar- 



