70 COLEOPTERA. 



black, shininf^, with brown (sometimes brownish-testaceous) 

 legs ; pitchy-black antennee, of which the basal joint is 

 testaceous, and the second sometimes slightly so, especially 

 at the base ; coriaceous opaque thorax, which is obsoletely 

 and not closely punctured, with a delicate but distinct and 

 shining middle line, and slightly prominent hinder angles, 

 which are rather obtuse ; elytra only half as long again as 

 the thorax, very closely and rather strongly punctured. 



The chief character of the species appears to be in its 

 antennae ; which are rather short, and distinctly and some- 

 what abruptly incrassate towards the apex. 



The only British species with which it could be con- 

 founded is B. suhterraneus, from which its much shorter 

 elytra, more strongly clubbed antennte, and the less promi- 

 nent hinder angles of its thorax, will serve to distinguish it. 



A considerable number of specimens were taken by Mr. 

 D. Sharp and myself in a damp sandy ^lace on the shores 

 of the Frith of Forth, at Aberlady, in June last. It was 

 accompanied by B. arenarius, and was most readily obtained 

 by raking up the sand, as it seemed to be burrowing beneath 

 the surface. 



14. Olophrum fuscum, Grav. Mon. 211, 16 {Onialiam) ; 



Er. Gen. et Spec. Staph. 865, 3 ; Kraatz, Ins. 



Deutschl. ii. 940, 2; D. Sharp, Ent. Monthly Mag. 



vol. ii. p. 13. 



Several specimens of this insect were found by Mr. Sharp 



on the borders of a pond close to Edinburgh. 



Compared with O. piceum, they are smaller, and con- 

 siderably narrower, darker in colour, and much flatter; the 

 basal joint of the antennae is lighter in colour than the 

 others ; the thorax is not so transverse, and is less rounded 

 at the sides, especially behind, with the punctures smaller 



