H. F. WICKHAM 257 



TWENTY NEW COLEOPTERA FROM THE FLORISSANT 



SHALES 



BY H. F. WICKHAM 



Recent studies on the fossil Coleoptera of Florissant show 

 that the subject is by no means exhausted. The writer has 

 described, and for the most part figured, some two hundred and 

 seventy-eight species additional to those made known by Scud- 

 der, Cockerell and Beutenmueller, the entire beetle fauna specif- 

 ically characterized to date reaching four hundred and ninety- 

 four. No other deposit is nearly as rich, as far as records show. 

 About all of the larger families are represented, as well as many 

 of the smaller ones, though the relative specific development in 

 some groups seems to have been difl'erent at Florissant from what 

 we see to-day. In the original discussions of this fauna, it was 

 referred to the Oligocene, but it is now generally admitted to 

 belong to the Miocene, chiefly on the testimony of the plant re- 

 mains since no data as to the mammalian life are available. 



The species described in the present paper are, in part, of 

 particular interest. The occurrence of a beautifully preserved 

 Pactopus, showing the generic characters in remarkable detail, 

 is worthy of special note. Three new Cerambycidae are added 

 to the already fairly good-sized representation of this family 

 and two Tenebrionidae of types not hitherto known from these 

 shales have been detected. 



Arranged by families, the new species are: 



CUCUJIDAE ClERIDAE 



Lithocoryne coloradensis Necrobia sibylla 



Lathridiidae 

 Corticaria aeterna Ptinidae 



_ Gastrallonohium subconfusiirn 



Throscidae 



Pactopus americanus Scarabaeidae 



Buprestidae Aphodius inundcttm 



Melanophila heeri Serica cockerelli 



TRANS. AM. ENT. SOC, XL. (19) 



