50 BULLETIN 1S2, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



Central America: Panama (Sharp, 1887; British Museum; U.S.N.M.), Nica- 

 ragua (Sharp, 1887; British Museum), GUzVtemala (Fauvel, 1865; Sharp, 

 1887; Britisli Museum; U.S.N.M.), Bbitish Honduras (Sliarp, 1887; Brit- 

 ish Museum; U.S.N.M.), Mexico (Fauvel, 1865; Sharp, 1887; British 

 Museum; U.S.N.M.). 



Specimens examined. — I have examined 151 examples in the British 

 Museum, 1 borrowed from the Museum of Comparative Zoology, 2 

 in the American Museum of Natural History, 30 in the United States 

 National Museum, and 108 collected by me in 1935-37. 



Remarks. — This widespread species apparently inhabits the West 

 Indies as far north as cocoa is grown in abundance. The northern 

 islands grow cocoa in small quantities, but I was not able to collect 

 there at the proper season to determine the complete range of this 

 insect. Besides the cocoa pods from which I took it frequently. I 

 found it under chips on fresh stumps of the breadfruit tree. 



The record of this species from Haiti by Leng and Mutchler is 

 at least possibly a misidentification. 



5. PIESTUS CAPRICORNIS Laporte 



Piesftis capricornis Laporte, 1834, pp. 127, 129. — Erichson, 1840, p. 833. — La- 

 coiJDAiRE, 1854, p. 128.— FAxn-EL, 1865, pp. 22, 26, 27.— Sharp, 1876, p. 406; 

 1887, p. 711. — Fletjtiaux and Saixe, 1889, p. 382. — Bebnhauer and Schu- 

 bert, 1910, p. 6. — Leng and Mutchler, 1914, p. 403. 



Zirophorus capricornis (Laporte) Sharp, 1887, p. 711. — Bernhauer and Schu- 

 bert, 1910, p. 6. 



Piestus muticus Fauvel, 1902, p. 22 (as variety). — Bernhauer and Schubert, 

 1910, p. 6 (as variety). 



Description. — Rufopiceous. Head with two feeble horns, short, 

 thick, and directed forward; deeply foveate between the eyes, trian- 

 gular area between depression elevated and smooth; very sparsely 

 and rather finely punctate. Pronotum nearly twice as wide as long, 

 sides straight; smooth, scarcely punctate at sides but with a few 

 moderately large and shallow punctures at center of disk; minutely 

 strigulose at sides; midline finely impressed. Elytra with strong 

 punctate striae, sixth abbreviated at middle, sometimes impressed 

 at apex. Length, l^^ mm. 



T-i/pe locality. — Gu.adeloupe, Pointe-a-Pitre. (Castelnau cited this 

 species from "Cayenne," but the type is labeled ^'■Piestus capricornis 

 Lap. Type ex coll. Chevrolat. Guadeloupe. L'Herminier" and 

 "Pointe-a-Pitre.") 



Types. — One example from the Chevrolat collection labeled type in 

 the British Museum. 



Records. — The following are the records known to me : 



Guadeloupe: (Laporte, 1834; Erichson, 1840; Fauvel, 1865; Fleutiaux and 



Salld, 1889; Leng and Mutchler, 1914). 

 South America: Cayenne (Laporte, 1834; Fauvel, 1865), Brazh. (Fauvel, 1902, 



as muticus; Bernhauer and Schubert, 1910, as muticus). 



