92 MONOGBAPHICAL ESSA.Y ON THE 



Head rugosely punctured, slightly excavated between the eyes, 

 with a sharp ridge in front. Prothorax very short and convex, 

 the sides rounded and strongly narrowed towards the top, the 

 posterior angles much projecting, narrowly margined along the 

 front and the sides ; deeply punctured , more coarsely at the sides , 

 with a glabrous line in the middle and a small impression on the 

 median lobe. Elytra strongly narrowed below the middle, apices 

 strongly diverging, ending in very long and acute spines, the 

 lateral spines also large and acute, the humeral fold acutely pro- 

 duced; subcostate, the coslae only distinct near the apex, where 

 the interstices are plain, whilst they become the more and more 

 convex towards the base, each of the interstices with a row of 

 large deeply impressed punctures. Beneath densely punctate, very 

 finely and closely on the abdomen, clothed with extremely minute 

 hairs; prosternum slightly convex. 



Variability. In one specimen in rather bad condition and 

 of an obscure aeneous color (perhaps the color is spoiled in bad 

 alcohol), the yellow band before the middle turns its convexity 

 instead of its concavity towards the base. 



Number of specimens examined: three, in coll. Oberthür. 



6. Astraeus fraterculus v. d. Poll. — nov. spec. 



Latus, nitvlissimus ; supra atro-coeruleus , eli/trls ante medium. 

 et post medium fascia flava suturam hand attingente, ornatis; 

 suhtus viridi-aeneus , pedibus violaceis. Caput sat dense pimctatum , 

 in medio linea glabra. Protlwrax brevissimus , convextis , lateribus 

 rotundatis, apicem versus valde angnstatis, angnlis posticis multo 

 prominentibus ; aequaliter punctatus. Elytra costata , inter stitiis planis, 

 indistincte punctatis et rug o sis j apicibus valde divergentibus , spinis 

 suturalibus marginalibusque validis , acutis. Tars infera confertim. 

 pimctata , subtilius sed densissime in abdomine , prosterno suhnigoso; 

 pubescentia mimttissiina sericea induta. 



Long. 10 — 11 mm., lat. 4| — 5 mm. 



Habitat: Victoria, King George's Sound. 



Uppersurface bluish-black with violaceous or greenish reflections , 



