220 [October 



Liozoum consimile Muls. (Col. Fr., Terediles, p. 167) ; Sharp, 

 ante, p. 178. 



In my previous communication, I adopted Miilsant's name of 

 consimile for tliis species, being under tlie impression that it and 

 Mulsant's moJlis woukl he found to be mixed in some collections, and 

 that Mulsant was authorised to apply the name of mollis to either of 

 the two forms. I have, however, found no examples of his mollis in 

 any collection I have examined ; the specimens found by Mr. A. Ford, 

 my daughter and myself in the New Forest being the only exponents 

 of the species I have seen. On the other hand, Mulsant's consimile is 

 very widely distributed and common in Europe. 



Mulsant says (translated) " it is difficult to decide exactly what 

 the true Anobiimi moUe of authors is. Linne, Fabricius, Olivier and 

 Gylleuhal having only described, amongst the four of them, three 

 species belonging to my genus Liozoum, must necessarily have con- 

 founded several together. Stvirm and Redtenbacher distinguished 

 four others . . , . . Paying no attention to the brief and vague 

 descriptions of the earlier authors, I apply the name molle to the 

 species that appears to me to agree best with the descriptions of Sturm 

 and Redtenbacher." 



On turning to the description of Sturm I find it -to be entirely 

 vague and unaccompanied by any figure, but he says it is found in 

 wood, sometimes in houses, and this of course points to a common 

 species. Redtenbacher is almost as vague, though I am inclined to 

 disagree with Mulsant, and consider that his description applies rather 

 better to consiinile Muls. than to molle Muls. 



In short, Miilsant's decision appears to have been entirely 

 arbitrary. He should have used the name for the common species, 

 not for one that is so rare that it exists in but very few collections. 



E. mollis is an extremely variable species in size (3j-6^ mm. 

 long), and to a slighter extent in colour and in the development of the 

 antennae, but the 7th joint of these is always definitely longer than 

 either the 6th or the 8th ; and the front tibiae are not curved (except 

 at the point of junction with the femur). The male aedeagus has 

 been figured by Muir (I.e.) ; the variability of the species affects even 

 this organ, but only to a slight extent, so that the species may be 

 determined with certainty by a refei-ence to this structure. I have seen 

 about 200 examples of E. mollis and have examined the aedeagus in 

 about 30 of them. 



In Britain the species extends from the North of Scotland to the 



