22 COLEOPTERA OF NORTH AMERICA. 



Tribe XI.— PAIVAG^IIVI. 



Antennae slender, arising under a distinct frontal ridge, three 

 basal joints glabrous, without fine punctuation and pubescence, 

 but ciliate. Head usually constricted behind the eyes and dilated 

 to a semiglobular neck, front with two supra-orl)ital setae. Eyes 

 round, rather prominent, distant beneath from the buccal open- 

 ing. Labrum with four setae only. Ma.xillae small, the inner lobe 

 slender, hooked at tip, ciliate or spinous within, outer lobe stout, 

 biarticulate ; palpi elongate, the last joint triangularly dilated and 

 inserted obliquely on the preceding, these two hairy. Meiitum 

 emarginate, toothed at bottom, the basal suture distinct. Ligula 

 moderately prominent, bisetose at tip ; the paraglossae adherent 

 and rarely longer than it, palpi moderate in length, the terminal 

 joint triangular. Thorax variable in form. Body not peduncu- 

 late, scutellum distinct. Elytra not margined at base, sides 

 narrowly inflexed, margin interrupted posteriorly and with an 

 internal plica. Prosternum not prolonged. Mcsosternum oblique, 

 the epimera very narrow. Metasternal epimera distinct, poste- 

 rior coxae contiguous. TibiaB ciliate externally, the anterior 

 emarginate within, the spurs distant. Tarsi slender in our 

 genera, the fourth joint bilobed in certain exotic genera. 



The males rarely have the anterior tarsi dilated. In our 

 genera the first two joints of the anterior tarsi are dilated and 

 hairy beneath. 



The affinities of the tribe are not well marked in ^ny direction, 

 it appears in fact to stand more nearly alone than any tribe of 

 the present sub-family. 



Two genera occur in our fauna which differ in the following 

 manner : — 



Clypeus prolonged beyond the base of the mandibles, the latter decussat- 

 ing, scissor-like. Panagaeus. 

 Clypeus emarginate ; mandibles stout, pincer-like. Micrixys. 



The latter genus has the head not distinctly constricted but the 

 neck is of the same semiglobular form as in the former. 



In these genera the ocellate punctures, which are usually 

 observed near the margin of the elytra in Carabidae, are absent, 

 but are present in other foreign genera of the tribe. They are 

 also absent in Apotomus, a genus not related to the present tribe. 



