NO. 8568 MELANOTUS — QUATE AND THOMPSON 21 



Lectotype of cuneatus: Male, labelled with orange circle (Southern 

 States). (MCZ). Fu-st specimen of type series selected as lectotype 

 by authors in 1962. 



hectotype of incertus: Male, labelled mth green circle "Middle 

 States." (MCZ). First specimen to type series selected as lectotype 

 by authors in 1962. 



Holotype oi canadensis: Male, "Canada" (BMNH). 



Distribution. — ^Eastern U.S. and Canada west to South Dakota, 

 Colorado, and New Mexico. 



Alabama: Mobile; May. Connecticut: Fairfield, Hartford, New Haven; 

 March, August. Georgia: Bibb, Clarke, Crawford, DeKalb, Fayette, Fulton, 

 Richmond, Walton; April, June. Indiana: Greene, Vigo; June, October. Illi- 

 nois: Champaign, Marshall; May, June. Iowa: Dickinson, Woodbury; July. 

 Kansas: Douglas, Greenwood, Leavenworth, McPherson, Reno; May, June. 

 Kentucky: no data. Maryland: Montgomery; June. Massachusetts: 

 Hampshire, Middlesex; June. Michigan: Cheboygan; July. Nebraska: 

 Cuming, Dakota, Lancaster, Lincoln, Otoe, Thomas; May, June. New Hamp- 

 shire: Straflford; June. New Jersey: Atlantic, Bergen, Essex, Monmouth, 

 Montclair, Morris, Ocean, Passaic; June, July. New Mexico: Bernalillo, 

 Sandoval; May, June. New York: Cattaraugus, Greene, Kings, Nassau, 

 Tompkins, Westchester; June, July. North Carolina: Beaufort, Brunswick, 

 Buncombe, Columbus, Duplin, Hyde, Jackson, Johnston, Montgomery, Wake; 

 May, June. Ohio: Clark, Erie, Hamilton; May, July. Pennsylvania: Dela- 

 ware, Northampton, Philadelphia; June, September. Rhode Island: Wash- 

 ington; June, July. South Carolina: Aiken, Dorchester, Edgefield, Florence, 

 Oconee; May, June. South Dakota: Brookings, Union; June. Tennessee: 

 Smith. Virginia: Alexandria, Dinwiddie, Essex, Faquier, Nelson, Nottaway, 

 Prince Edward; May, June. Nova Scotia: Annapolis; June. 



The large, jutting frons of M. decumanus is usually sufficient to dis- 

 tinguish this species from M. similis, spadix, and castanipes; it is vari- 

 able, however, and there are specimens that have a reduced frontal 

 margin which might cause them to be confused with the other species. 

 The females often have a smaller margin than males. The male geni- 

 talia differ from similis in the gradual expansion of the paramere basad 

 of the apical blade but can be confused with some similis in which the 

 enlargement is not abrupt. The female bursa is strikingly different 

 from that of the allied species with the complete lack of spines. 



4. Melanotus castanipes (Paykiill) 



Figures 4i, 8/; Plate Ic 



Elater castanipes Paykull, 1800, p. 23. 



Cratonychus castanipes. — Erichson, 1842, p. 95. 



Melanotus castanipes. — Redtenbacher, 1849, p. 249. — Schwartz, 1892, p. 152 

 [as a synonym of rufipes]. — Putzeys, 1908, p. 294 (larva). — Blatchley, 1910, 

 p. 746.— Binaghi, 1939, p. 224.— Thomas, 1941, p. 257.— Dietrich, 1945, p. 

 54.— Severin, 1949, p. 15.— Fattig, 1951, p. 19.— Jeuniaux, 1955, p. 234. 



