[Proc. Roy. Soc. Victoria, 28 (N.S.), Pt. I., 1915]. 



Art. 11. — Revision of tlie Australian Gistelidae 

 Order Coleoptera. 



By H. T. CARTER, B.A, F.E.S. 



(With Plate VI.). 



[Kead May 13th, 1915]. 



There is considerable difficulty in determining the species and 

 sometimes the genera of insects of this family. The ill-defined 

 genera and the uncoordinated work of individual authors have alike 

 contributed to this. The following attempt to clear the atmosphere 

 may be some assistance towards the coherent classification of the 

 whole group. A great quantity of material has been placed at 

 the author's disposal, for which special thanks are due to the follow- 

 ing museum authorities and private collectors : — The British 

 Museum of Natural History (specimens sent from which have been 

 compared with the types' of Pascoe, Bates and Blackburn), National 

 Museum, Melbourne, South Australian Museum, Queensland 

 Museum, Mr. A. M. Lea (who owns the best private collection in 

 Australia), Dr. E. W. Ferguson. The author's own collection con- 

 tains material largely taken by himself in various parts, -of 

 Australia, while an examination of Maeleay's types has been made 

 in the Australian and Macleay Museums in Sydney, the latter 

 also containing the valuable collection made by the late Mr. G. 

 Masters. In the new catalogue of Junk (Berlin), this family has 

 been edited by Herr Borchmann, under the name Atteculidae, the 

 genus Cistela, F. (Sys. Ent., 1775), being placed as a synonym of 

 Gonodera, Muls. (Col. Fr. Pect., 1856). Not having been able to' 

 procure the papers by Seidlitz, which apparently discusses this 

 point, I have kept to the historically earlier name Gistelidae, as 

 employed by Lacordaire. The earliest reference to Allecula, F., is 

 Sys. El. ii., 1801, p. 21. 



According to Leconte and Home the only two characters that 

 isolate this family are — (1) The pectinate claws; (2) Anterior coxal 

 cavities closed behind. 



The family is also clearly separated from the Tenebrionidae by 

 flie presence of lamellae on the tarsi ; in the Australian species there 

 an- in general two on each of the four anterior tarsi, and a single- 



