1916.] 141 



they run to that species in Fowler's table (Coleopt. Brit. Isl., IV, p. 260), 

 it is nevertheless evident that they do not belong- to the Brnchus lenfis 

 of current literature. The latter has the antennae black with the first 

 five joints yellow-red ; the thorax twice as broad as long, with a tooth 

 near the middle of the sides, which are strongly rounded before the 

 tooth and straight and nearly parallel beliind it ; the upper-side 

 brownish-grey with whitish spots, a pair of oval brown spots on the 

 pygidiuni ; the fore and middle legs, except the femora of the latter, 

 red, the hind legs entirely and the middle femora black. 



My specimens, by reason of their conical thorax without lateral 

 tooth, the absence of any tubercles at the base of the elytra, and their 

 yellow-red pygidiuni, I regard as B. obtectus Say. The latter appears 

 in Cat. Col. Eur., 1906, as Acanihosc elides ohtectus Say, and is sometimes 

 referred to as B. irresectus Fahr. B. obtectus has long been known as 

 a pest of the seeds of PJiaseoIus. 



According to specimens kindly sent to me by Mr. Day, the insect 

 here dealt with is the same as that which he introducedunder the name 

 Brnchus inisillus G-erm. var. seminarius Baudi, antea p. 120. 



It is not easy to determine what Bruchus lentis Power really was ; 

 no characters wM-e given for it by the latter, but to E. C. Eye, who may 

 have seen Power's specimens, it seemed " nearest to B. loti, and to be 

 somewhat depressed, with no tooth on the sides of the thorax, and 

 with brownish-grey and white spots, the first four or five joints of the 

 short antennae reddish, the anterior legs entirely and the tibiae and 

 tarsi of the middle legs reddish-yellow." The BrucJws lentis of 

 Fowler's table (I.e.) and description (t.c, p. 264) has no tooth at the 

 sides of the thorax ; but the insect figured under that name (PI. 125, 

 f . 12) has a more pronounced angle at the sides of the thorax than 

 B. mfipes Herbst (f. 10), which is put in the section having a tooth 

 at the sides of the thorax, and there are no spots on the upper-side. 

 B. lentis Boh. will doubtless be found in Britain by anyone having the 

 opportunity to search for it where lentil seeds are stored ; but in the 

 meantime the question whether Power's specimens really belonged to 

 that species remains doubtful. 



Colesborne, Cheltenham : 



March ^^th, 1915. 



[Mr. Edwards has sent me tlie specimens he assigns to B. obtectus 

 for examination, together with some received by him from Mr. Day. 

 They all seem to me to be inseparable from the common North and 



