52 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM vol. 121 



31. Melanotus parallelus Blatchley 



Figures 6h, llg; Plate In 



Melanotus parallelus Blatchley, 1920, p. 45; 1930, p. 44. — Deen and Cuthbert, 

 1945, p. 193.— Fattig, 1951, p. 22. 



Male. — Body color reddish brown, covered with white or yellowish 

 vestitiire, evenly distributed over body. 



Head: Front with marked anterior depression, margin dark reddish 

 brown, strongly protruding in front of nasale by several times own 

 width, evenly rounded or angulate and flattened in center when viewed 

 from above; parantennal fovea small, shallow, arc shaped or some- 

 times obsolescent; nasale flat, width equal to slightly more than height. 

 Mandible with shallow, slit-shaped pit (easily obscured if specimen is 

 dirty; thus, also keyed out in Jissilis group). Antenna exceeds tip of 

 hind angle by 1 to IK segments; reddish brown, segment 3 intermediate 

 in size between 2 and 4, 4 about 1% times as long as maximum width; 

 erect male hairs short and moderately thick. 



Pronotum slender, longer than wide; punctures at center usually 

 separated by distance equal to own diameter or more, equal or 

 subequal to those on front, sides of pronotum nearly straight 

 behind anterior curvature and parallel or slightly convergent 

 posteriorly, hind angles divergent, carina usually extending just to 

 base of hind angle, close to and paralleling sides. Genitalia as 

 figured; paramere with apical blade. 



Elytron: 5.9 mm (5.7-6.3). 4 spec. 



Female. — ^Antenna ends short of tip of hind angle by about 1 seg- 

 ment; internal genitalia as figured. 



Elytron: 5.9 mm. 



Type. — Holotype of parallelus: Male, Dunedin, Fla., April 5, 

 1915, W.S.B. (PU). 



Distribution. — Southern U.S. 



Arkansas: No data. Florida: Highlands, Marion, Pinellas; February, April. 

 North Carolina: Montgomery, Moore; April, May. 



The relatively slender pronotum which is as long as or longer than 

 wide, and the thin, jutting frontal margin are the main features 

 separating parallelus from other species of the americanus group. 

 The outline of parallelus pronotum accentuates its narrowness and 

 makes it appear longer in relation to the width than it really is. 

 This is another species rarely seen in collections. 



32. Melanotus americanus (Herbst) 



Figures 6j, lie,/ 



Elater americanus Herbst, 1806, p. 74. 



Cr atony chus americanus. — Erichson, 1842, p. 114. — LeConte, 1853, p. 479. 



