BEETLE GENUS ONTHOPHAGUS — HOWDEN, CARTWRIGHT 33 



pygidiuin shining, dark green; ventral sui'faces, excluding tibiae, black 

 with a more or less shining, greenish luster; tibiae dark bro^^ni with 

 only a faint greenish cast. Clypeus widely reflexed anteriorly, less 

 so laterally; margin broadly arcuate anteriorly (not even vaguely 

 emarginate as is often the case in unabraded brevifrons), becoming 

 sharply rounded laterally near the genae; disc concave near the cen- 

 ter, with coarse punctures shallow and usually separated by approxi- 

 mately their own diameters. Cl3^peal carina obsolete, the base of 

 the clypeus and the anterior portion of the frons medially forming 

 a low rounded hump; frons more finely, closely punctate than clypeus. 

 Gena with arcuate margin slightly flared, surface coarsely punctate. 

 Carina of vertex raised medially to a point, low and bowed on each 

 side, terminating near the base of the eyes, similar to that described 

 for hremjrons; scattered coarse punctures behind the carina, with 

 smooth sm'faces finely alutaceous. 



Shape of pronotum nearly identical w^th that of the male major 

 of brevifrons, the only differences in the pronotum of caver tiicollis 

 being in the posterior, vaguely indented median line and in the punc- 

 tures (also a mixtm'e of large and small ones) which are not as sharply 

 delimited and appear slightly smaller and shallower. Most of the 

 large punctures bearing short, inconspicuous, reddish setae. The con- 

 vexity of the pronotum seemingly more pronounced than normal 

 in brevifrons, but this apparent variation is perhaps an illusion caused 

 by the overall larger size of cavernicollis. The elytra likewise very 

 similar to those of brevifrons, differing only slightly by having smaller 

 tubercles on the intervals. Pygidium with scattered irregular punc- 

 tures bearing short, fine setae; the sm'face basally alutaceous, becom- 

 ing somewhat shiny and rugose near the apex, the smooth areas dull 

 green. Ventral sm'faces and legs lacldng any characteristics, other 

 than color, that would readily separate cavernicollis from brevifrons. 



Male minors. — No specimen seen. 



Allotype. — Female, length 11.2 mm., width 6 mm. Differing 

 from the holotype male major in the following respects: Clypeus 

 arcuate but feebly emarginate anteriorly, cl3^peal margin scarcely 

 reflexed; disc transversely rugose, more closely so than in females of 

 brevifrons; clypeal carina pronounced, highest medially, becoming 

 obsolete by the genae. Frons coarsely punctate behind the carina, 

 punctures not so sharply delimited as in brevifrons; genae with margin 

 arcuately curving inward by the eyes, anteriorly not delimited from 

 the clypeal margin. Carina of vertex very similar in shape to that 

 described for the female of brevifrons but raised terminally to form 

 small horns, the carina extending at least two-thirds the distance from 

 the midline to the eye but still terminating nearly twice as far from 



633411—62 3 



