FAMILY ELATERIDAE 



225 



Fig. 146. 



Lacon sp. piox, 



davidi, Fairm. 



N.W. Himalaya. 



Lacon. 

 Lacon sp. prox. davidi, Fairmaire. 



Reference. — Provisionally identified as close to L. davidi. 



Habitat.— Tehri Garhwal, North-West Himalaya. 



Tree Attacked.— Spruce (P/ct;a morinda). Deota, Tehri Garhwal, North- 

 West Himalaya. 



Beetle.— Elongate, narrow. Red-brown, covered with a very short, 



bright golden, fairly close pubescence. Head strongly punctate and 



densely clothed with a reddish golden pubes- 



Description. scence. Frothorax longer than wide, anterior 



margin emarginate, sides rounded, posterior 



angles shortly produced, disk moderately convex, depressed at base, 



strongly and' uniformly punctate. Scutellum large, longer than wide, 



punctate. Elytra depressed at base, elongate, sides straight to posterior 



coxae, thence rather sharply constricted to apex, latter conjointly 



rounded ; finely and uniformly punctate, the punctures arranged in 



narrow longitudinal rows. Legs dark brown covered with a yellow 



pubescence. Length, 13 mm. 



I have taken this insect in both larval and beetle stages in dying and 

 dead spruce-trees in the North-West Himalaya. 



Alaus. 

 Alaus sculptus, Westw. 



Reference. — Westwood, Cab. Orient. Ent. p. 72 (1848). 



Habitat.— Balaghat, Central Provinces. Also reported 

 from Bengal and Assam. 



Tree Attacked.— Sal {Shovea robiista). Balaghat, Cen- 

 tral Provinces. 



Beetle.— Large, broad, rather flat. Black mottled with white 

 patches, the white sometimes predominating ; the white patches 

 consist of a thick, close, short pubescence. 

 Description. Head with front black, depressed and punc- 



tate medianly, white on either side. Antennae 

 black. Frothorax with usually a black area on disk of greater or 

 less size ; disk very convex, shining, with depressions and rugosities, 

 1)ordered laterally by white patches spotted with black ; anterior margin 

 deeply emarginate, the basal angles produced, the lateral margins canaliculate. Scutellum 

 small', black, punctate. Elytra depressed basally, rather flat on disk, sides constricted to 

 apex, latter truncate ; striate and finely punctate, the areas of white pul^escence forming 

 patches and spots of variable size and position. Under-surface black medianly, shining 

 white and spotted laterally. Length, 24 mm. to 36 mm. 



A specimen of this beetle was taken from a pupating-chamber in a 



large sal-log sent to Dehra Dun from Balaghat, Central 



Life History, Provinces, as infested with the longicorn Hoploccramhyx 



spinicornis. The beetle was found dead in the chamber 



on 15 July 1905, the logs having been sent to Dehra from Balaghat shortly- 



before. I know nothing further about this insect. 



Fig. 147. 

 Alaits sculptus, 

 Westw. Central 



Provinces. 



9003 



