1907. j Catalogue of the Goleoptera of South Africa. 505 



intermediate coxae, separated by a suture from the extremely small 

 vertical metasternal process; prosternal vertical process also rudi- 

 mentary ; anterior tibiae bi-dentate outwardly ; intermediate and 

 posterior with a carina " en chevron " and dentate at each end, 

 Cetonid fashion ; tarsi short, somewhat robust, glabrous. 



The genus is represented in Guinea and Eastern India. 



The facies is more that of a Cetonid than of a Cremastochilid. 

 The South African species breeds in the nests of small birds like 

 finches, robins, &c, and the larvae, as well as the adult insects, have 

 been found there together feeding on the faeces. Their habits are 

 thus similar to those of Diplognatha g agates. 



Kraatz includes in the genus two Indian species, and for the re- 

 ception of the South African he founds the genus Pscudospilophorus. 

 The difference, being merely the shape of the prothorax, which in 

 Spilophorus proper is sub-hexagonal, instead of being transverse as 

 in Pseudosjnlojjhorus, does not seem to me sufficient to warrant the 

 change. 



Spilophokus lugubris, Fabric, 

 Syst. Ent., i., App., p. 819; 

 Oliv., Entom., i., 6, p. 44, pi. 7, fig. 60. 



plagosus, Boh., Ins. Caffr., ii., p. 49. 



Black, glabrous, very shiny, basal part of head with a transverse 

 white band ; sides of prothorax with a marginal very broad white band 

 which does not reach the basal part ; elytra with a very large, sinuate 

 sub-quadrate patch slightly past the median part, and extending 

 from the outer margin to a short distance from the suture, at the top 

 of the posterior declivity is a narrow, sinuate transverse band which 

 is often rudimentary and also often obliterated ; on each side of the 

 pygidium is a white patch or macule ; the under side is either quite 

 immaculate, or there is a lateral band on the abdomen and a broad 

 patch on the sides of the metasternum. Frontal part deeply bi- 

 impressed, the outer part of the impressions sub-carinate, and the 

 two impressions divided by a slightly raised keel, clypeus and frontal 

 part foveolate-punctate, the punctures not contiguous in the frontal 

 impression; prothorax one-third longer than broad, only moderately 

 attenuated laterally in the anterior part, nearly straight for two- 

 thirds of the length, impunctate in the central part of the disk, and 

 with only a few punctures on the sides ; scutellum with a few punc- 

 tures at apex ; elytra broader than the prothorax, very faintly costu- 

 late in the central part of the disk, with the suture keeled in the 

 apical part, they are very sparsely punctate, the punctures being 

 broad and shallow, the white patches are not punctate ; propygidium 



