NO. 3568 MELANOTUS — QUATE AND THOMPSON 45 



The male genitalia of piceatus are somewhat similar to cribulosus. 

 However, it is readily distinguished from that and other species by 

 the short antennae and other characters. It apparently has no close 

 relatives in North America and may be of Neotropical origin as 

 suggested by its distribution. 



24. Melanotus difficilis Blatchley 



Figure 6fir 



Melanotus difficilis Blatchley, 1910, p. 751; 1930, p. 35.— McClure, 1933, p. 145.— 

 Dietrich, 1945, p. 59. 



Male. — Body color reddish broA\Ti, covered with whitish vestiture, 

 evenly distributed over body and longer than usual. 



Head: Front without marked, transverse depressions but sometimes 

 vAih. pair of shallow anterolateral ones, margin extending as thick 

 shelf in front of clypeus usually twice \vidth of rim, anteriorly rounded 

 when viewed from above; parantennal fovea lacking or obsolescent; 

 nasale not developed. Mandible with small teardrop-shaped pit. 

 Antenna reddish bro^^^l, exceeds tip of hind angle by 3 to 3K segments, 

 segment 3 intermediate to 2 and 4, flagellar segments long and slender, 

 segment 4 twice as long as maximum \vidth, following more slender; 

 erect male hairs very short but dense. 



Pronotum flattened dorsally, \^'ider than long; punctures at center 

 usually separated by distance equal to about own diameter, subequal 

 to those on front; sides of pronotum divergent posteriorly on anterior 

 half and parallel or a little convergent over remainder, hind angles 

 divergent, with carina usually extending about to base of hind angle. 



Abdomen mth last visible sternite usually inflated to give tip 

 enlarged appearance. Genitalia as figured; paramere with apical 

 blade. 



Elytron: 7.5-9.7 mm. 



Female. — Unknown to us. 



Type. — Holotype of difficilis: Male, Posey Co., Ind., July 8, 1903, 

 W.S.B. (PU). 



Distribution. — Central U.S. 



Kansas: Douglas; June. Illinois: Alexander; June. Mississippi: George; 

 May. Oklahoma: Delaware; June. Texas: Austin, Dallas, Navarro; May. 



25. Melanotus macer (LeConte) 



Figures 6e,f, 101 



Cralonychus macer LeConte, 1853, p. 473. 



Melanotus macer. — Candfeze, 1860, p. 339. — Blatchley, 1910, p. 752. — Dietrich, 

 1945, p. 54.— Fattig, 1951, p. 20. 



Male. — Body color reddish brown, covered with whitish hairs, 

 evenly distributed over body and longer than usual. 



