1921.] nyi 



angularly arched forwards We have found, with M. le docteur Mar- 



niottnn and M. Lenioro, at Relle-Ile-en Mer, a score of specimens of this insect, 

 under low plants, around the nests of Atta barbnrn, in company with more 

 than 150 C'atJiormiocerus curoipes. 



Males of the genus appear to be difficult to obtain ; tlie females of 

 the British species, however, may be distinguished by the formation of 

 their antennae. Our three British species may be tabulated thus : — 



I. Scape club-shaped, slender at base and thence gradually thickened to apex ; 



funiculus stout with joints 3 to 7 transverse attaphilus Bris. 



II. Scape suddenly thickened from very near point of articulation with scrobes, 

 and thence almost equally thick to apex. 

 a. Antennae more slender, first two joints of fMniculus longer, the second 

 joint half as long again as broad, distinctly narrowed from its 



middle to base socius Boh. 



aa. Antennae thicker, firtjt two joints of funiculus shorter, the second joint 

 about one-fifth longer than broad and proportionately thicker at 

 base maritinms Rye. 



The build of the funiculus of man'finuis rather closely approaches 

 that of attaphilus, but is much less robust, with the apex of first joint 

 less wide and second and third joints longer. The thick scape of mari- 

 tinms is, however, quite distinctive. 



Compared with socius and maritimus the eh'tral interstices of atta- 

 2)hih{s are flatter, with the striae rather more sharply cut. View^ed with 

 a half -inch objective the elytral scales will be seen to be more strongly 

 striated and the outlines of the scales considerably more distinct than in 

 the other two species. 



The first British specimen of attaplriltis w^as found at the Lizard, in 

 July 1917, by m}' friend Mr. N. Micklewood. In June 1919, a single 

 example was captured by myself by sweeping on the slopes above the 

 cliffs, and in June 1920 another was obtained by searching at roots of 

 low plants in the same district. On the two latter occasions, in con- 

 junction with Mr. Micklewood, considerable attention was devoted to the 

 quest for this insect, but no more could be seen. All three specimens 

 are females. On the last-named date we also caught 17 C. maritimus, 

 of which 15 proved to be females — the two others were given away 

 unexamined — and 66 Trachyphloexs mi^rmecnphilus Seidl., all of wdiich 

 are females. 



I have also examined 11 examples of C. socius from the Isle of 

 Wight in my collection with similar result. In view of Dr. Sharp's 

 notes on " Gynarchy in Coleoptera'''' in this Magazine (1918, pp. 154, 

 etc.) these facts seem worth noting. 



