DORCUS. 1G9 



Tlic clvtra very {rl*)f<sy ill hotli sexes, witli the sides dull and the 

 shdulders i<)iiii(U'd. The ])rostenuiin elevateil behind and 

 almost vertical l)ut not pointed. The nietasteruiun also a 

 little elevated between the eoxa* and vertical in front. The 

 front tibia forked at the end and tincly serrate laterally, with 

 a few small lateral teeth, and the hind tibia jiroduccd at the end 

 into three sharj) terminal processes. 



$. The head is shininii, rather strongly punctured, very 

 uneven, with a large deej) dei)ression on each side in front, the 

 sides oblitjue before the eyc-s, without jjrominences. The 

 mandil)les are strongly rounded, laterally compressed, very 

 sharp-pointed, the light mandible strongly and tlie left feebly 

 bifurcat(Hl, and each witli a laige and very blunt internal tot)th. 

 The pronotuni is very smooth and shining, very convex and 

 hnely and sparsely })mu'tured, the sides strongly but not 

 sharply angular behind the middle, rounded in front and con- 

 cave behind. The eiyfra are very shining, except at the sides, 

 and bear fine scattered piuictures, which are rather more 

 numerous near the sutuie. The middle fihia has a lateral s])ine 

 t)ut tliat of tile hind tibia is almost obsolete. 



(5*. The head is iinely coriaceous and dull, the front angles 

 sharp but scarcely jiroduced and the sides louiuled behind the 

 eyes. The clypeal process is short and bilolx-d. Tlie jyronotuvi 

 is finely coriaceous and very opacpie at the sides, more or less 

 shining, with tine scattered punctures, in the middle. The 

 front angles are l)luntly produced, the sides sharply angulate 

 behind the middle and rather sharply at the base, scarcely 

 rounded in front, strongly concave behind. The elytra are 

 extremely glossy, except at the sides, where tlu-y are dull. The 

 middle and hind tUnn' are without lateral spines. 



Variation of the male. In small speciniens the mandibles 

 are shoit and rather ti'iangular in shape, the inner edges serrate 

 almost throughout, meeting in a straight line, the tips crossing 

 one another. In the larger typical phase the mandibles are 

 similar, but rather longer, and each shows a strong longitudinal 

 ridge on the upper side, the ridge ending in a strong erect process 

 a little before the tip. Two still larger specimens in the Ober- 

 thiir collection, which may represent another and distinct 

 ])hase of the male of this species, have mandibles of quite a 

 diflerent form, neaiiy twice the length of the head, far apart at 

 the ba-se, strongly curved, of almost even Midth in the basal 

 half, without longitudinal ridge or erect process above, finely 

 and evenly sei-rate at the inner edge, with two longer teeth, one 

 at the middle and the other a little before the tij). In corre- 

 s})ondence with the separated mandibles the cly])eal j)rocess is 

 broad, its front edge nearly straight and the angles acute. 



(J. Length (with mandibles), 15-21 mm. ; (without nuvn- 

 dibles) K^-17 nnu. : href tdth, 5-5-1 mm. 



