NORTH AMERICAN COLEOPTERA. 22)) 



Occurs in Wa.shington Territory, Britisli Columbia, Colorado and 

 iVIichigan. One in Dr. LeConte's cabinet is labeled Kentucky. 



In addition to tbe foregoing series of species tbe following appear in 

 tlie Catalogue of Geniniinger and Harold : 



P. ater Zieg. vide Horn, Trans. Am. Ent. Soe. 1S78, p. IfiO. 



P. nanus Mels. Proc. Acad, ii, p. 36. The length given for this species (1 line) 

 is less than anything known to me. The dorsal punctures are said to be " three," 

 wliich. by the system adopted in the preceding pages, would be reduced to two, a 

 cliaracter entirely unknown in our f:iniia. It ha.s been phiced, I think erroneously, 

 as a synonym of hepaticuK. 



P. cinctutus Mels. loo. cit. p. 37. Evidently described from a specimen of he- 

 paticu.i with an accidental puncture on one side. 



ACTOBIUS Fauvel. 



Under this name Fauvel has separated from Philonthus a number of 

 small species which differ in having the terminal joint of the maxillary 

 palpi conical, but very acute and longer than the penultimate joint; the 

 posterior tarsi have the first joint not longer than the fifth. The first 

 four joints of the ptjsterior tarsi decrease gradually in size, while in 

 Philonthus the first joint is (juite long. The thoracic punctuation in 

 the Eurojiean species is quite dense as in many of those in our fauna. 

 Some of our species ( patella and the fV)ur following) have a more oval 

 thorax with the punctuation arranged in three irregular series on each 

 .side. 



A small number of our species depart from the usual sombre coloring 

 of the group and become parti-colored, recalling minature Paederi. 



From their small size the piceous species are rather troublesome to 

 sc^parate, the greater difiiculty being in the small group with oval thorax 

 above mentioned. If it is remembered that pusio and parous are very 

 small species with elytral punctuation disproportionately coarse, the ex- 

 ]ire.ssion regarding the punctuation of the other three species will be 

 biitter understood. 



In all the species examined the males have the anterior tarsi dilated, 

 usually moderately, rarely at all widely ( patella) dilated, the last segment 

 of the abdomen emarginate, although in many cases feebly so. 



The under side of the head is always moi'c or less punctured, sometimes 

 densely, a character of rare occurrence in Philonthus (proper), and then 

 only in the group with irregularly punctured thorax. The infra-orbital 

 ridge exists in nearly all of the species to a feeble extent. 



