234 PASSALID.E. 



Submentum witli a strong lateral process on each side, forming 

 a recess beneath to receive the scape of the antenna. Pro- 

 sternum sharply carinate in front, narrow between the front 

 coxa?, broad and rather flat behind them. Metasternum 

 dilated in front of the middle coxae and sharply carinate on each 

 side, obliquely carinate on each side behind, and hollowed to 

 form a recess for the hind coxa. Front tibia bifid at the 

 extremity, middle and hind tibiae acutely produced. 



No sexual differences have been found in the few s])ecimens. 

 which have been examined, and it is probable that the two 

 sexes are alike externally. 



138. Penichrolucanus nicobaricus. 



PenichrohicaiiKu nicobaricus Arrow,* Trans. K. Ent. Soc. Lond. 

 Ixxxiii, 1935, p. 123, fig. 4. 



Reddish -chestnut colour, very smooth and shming above and 

 beneath, without hairy clothing. 



Elongate, oval or oblong in shape, rather parallel-sided, 

 depressed. Head very short and broad, very lightly striolate, 

 with two minute tubercles between the eyes, about equally 

 distant from the latter and from each other. Head deeply 

 and rather narrowly emargmate in front, the anterior part 

 nearlj' vertical, with a sharj), nearly semi-circular carina at the 

 upper edge. Lateral margins curved, without front angles, 

 the hmd angles rather sharji. Proiwiurn short, muiutely, 

 sparsely and unevenlj^ punctured, with the sides gently curved 

 in front, almost straight behind, the front angles rather obtuse, 

 and the hind angles sharp, almost right angles. Scutellum 

 minute, narrow. Elytra parallel-sided, semi-circularly rounded 

 behind, deeply striate, the striae contaming rather large close 

 punctures . Body beneath smooth , lightly striolate at the sides, 

 the last sternite sparsely punctured. The legs are very short 

 and broad, the front tibiae strongly bifid at the end, with three 

 very minute, irregularly s])aced lateral teeth, and the middle 

 and hind tibiae acutely produced at the end, but without 

 lateral spine. The claws are entirely hidden between the 

 lateral plates of the onychium. 



Length, T-o mm. ; breadth, 3-5 mm. 



NiCOBAR Is. 



Type in M. Rene Oberthiir's collection. 

 The tyj^e is unique. 



PASSALID.^. 



Introduction. 



This is one of the most shaqily defined and peculiar of all 

 the families of beetles. About 500 s})ecies are known to occur 

 in the world, none of them found in Europe and most of them 



