92 GEO. H. HORN, M. D. 



P. veiitralis n. sp. — Elongate, parallel, seuiicyliiidrical piceous, shining; 

 legs reddish brown. Antenna? pale. Head convex, spar.sely finely punctate, 

 clypeus broadly truncate, angles obtuse, sides arcuate, gense very obtuse, feebly 

 prominent. Thorax one-fourth wider than long, very little wider in front, ante- 

 rior angles obtuse, sides feebly arcuate, the margin very narrowly explanate, 

 hind angles obtuse, base arcuate, with di.stinct marginal line, disc moderately 

 convex, punctures moderate in size ; spar.sely, but very regularly placed, becom- 

 ing gradually finer toward the front and .sides, and with very few close to the 

 base. Elytra a little narrower at base than the thorax, humeri slightly dentate, 

 the strise very deep and broad, the punctures large, indi.stinct and distant; in- 

 tervals very convex, smooth. Mesosternum opaque, coarsely punctured with a 

 tine median groove, acutely carinate between the coxse. Metasternum with a 

 small group of coarse crowded punctures. Abdomen .smooth, the tirst three seg- 

 ments acutely cai-inate at middle, the fourth and fifth segments arcuately emar- 

 ginate at middle of front margin, the notch with membrane. Anterior femur 

 with lower edge entire. Posterior femur smooth, without marginal line, the tibia 

 slender, with slender spurs ; the tarsi nearly as long as the tibia, the first joint 

 nearly as long as the next two. Length .16 inch ; 4 mm. 



This species has the same general form as the preceding, bnt is 

 more convex. The ventral characters are very singular and have 

 no parallel in our entire series. The carination of the first three seg- 

 ments is very plainly marked. The next two segments have a nearly 

 semicircular emargination of the anterior margin occupying two- 

 thirds the length of the segment and nearly the middle third of the 

 width. The emargination is membranous. It is pos.sible that the 

 emargination may be a sexual peculiarity, although perfectly iden- 

 tical in the two specimens examined. 



In this species the first five stride of the elytra reach the apical 

 margin, a character not observed in any other Aphodiide in our 

 fauna. 



In the sculpture of the thorax the species more nearly resembles 

 Attenius, especially as there are no grooves or fovcie. 



Occurs in Canada, Ontario, and at Washington (Ulke). 



FSAWMODirS Serv. 



In this genus the outer lobe of the maxilla is corneous and termi- 

 nated by stout curved spines or hooks, the internal lobe coriaceous. 

 The mandildes are entirely concealed beneath the clypeus and are 

 semimembranous, except that the base and the tooth are corneous. 

 In repose the head is deflexed and the eyes concealed, the front is 

 verrucose. The thorax is usually transversely grooved and coarsely 

 })unctate, but several species show no traces of this. The legs are 

 never very stout, the hind tibite are generally triseriately denticulate. 



