Casey — Observations on the Staphylinidae. 289 



as in fasciata and other species; elytra well developed, nearly a fourth 

 wider and one-half longer than the prothorax, the humeri well exposed, 

 the punctures fine and very sparse; abdomen at base nearly as wide as 

 the elytra, rapidly tapering thence to the tip, subimpunctate as usual. 

 Male with the elytra narrowly and feebly elevated for a short distance 

 in front of the exterior apical angles, the sixth tergite concealed in 

 specimens at hand ; female with the sixth tergite emarginate nearly as 

 in fasciata, the apices bounding the sinus obtusely rounded. Length 

 1.4-1.9 mm.; width 0.750. 88 mm. Lower California (San Jose del 

 Cabo and Sierra El Taste), — Chas. Fuchs peninsolaris n. sp. 



That form of dissimilis which is alluded to by Erichson 

 as having densely and finely granulated elytra, is probably a 

 wholly different species, and the large puncture at each side 

 of the front, near the eyes, is not visible in any of my speci- 

 mens and may be a deformity in the types described ; other- 

 wise the species which I have assumed to be dissimilis agrees 

 well with the orginal description. In South America, Plian- 

 erota is represented at present b}^ Gyrophaena hoops and 

 dehilis, of Sharp. 



Gyrophaeua Mann. 



This genus is composed of very numerous species, having 

 considerable variety in facies and in the form and structure 

 of the antennae and prothorax, but agreeing throughout in 

 the conformation of the intermesocoxal parts, the mesosternal 

 process being very broad and extending virtually throughout 

 the length of the acetabula, where it meets the rounded and 

 very short metasternal projection. The secondary sexual 

 characters of the male are also very distinct as a rule and 

 considerably diversified, and, as the males are usually as 

 abundant as the females, we fortunately have here a very ready 

 means for the estimation of specific values. The sixth ter- 

 gite in the female is usually rounded and without special 

 modification, but in a few species, such as sculptipennis , there 

 is a broad shallow sinus at the apex of this plate, analogous 

 to the sinus of the sixth tergite of the female so constant 

 throughout the genus Phanerota. The punctuation of the 

 elytra is generally, and perhaps to some degree universally, 

 dual in nature, there being some scattered asperulate punc- 

 tures, especially visible toward the external apical angles, 



