Lea — Australian Dung Beetles 383 



ONTHOPHAGUS SEMIMETALLICUS sp. nov. 



Plate ix, figs. 79, 80. 



6 Black, shining, head and prothorax Avith a more or less distinct bronzy 

 gloss, antennae, palpi, and tarsi more or less reddish, club paler. Ulider-siirface 

 and legs rather sparsely clothed. 



Head with interocular ridge depressed in middle, near each eye elevated as 

 an ol)tnsely triangular tubercle, punctures not very dense and rather small, more 

 sharply defined on sides than elsewhere. Clypeus with sides oblique and scarcely 

 elevated, but apex distinctly elevated and almost truncated ; suture carinated and 

 almost straight in middle, obliquely impressed on sides. Eyes narrow, with 

 distinct facets. Prothorax with front angles subacutely produced, sides with 

 narrow margins and gutters, apex and base very finely margined; apical fourth 

 sloping and with a shallow depression behind each cephalic tubercle ; with 

 numerous but not crowded, and rather small, but sharply defined punctures, 

 smaller on medio-apical prominence than elsewhere. Elytra with very narrow 

 striae, interstices separately convex and with minute punctures, but with a row 

 of large punctures on each side. Metasternum with large, irregularly distributed 

 punctures, becoming very small in middle, except at base. Apical segment of 

 abdomen strongly narrowed in middle ; pygidium with rather dense, asperate 

 punctures. Length, 4-5-6 mm. 



? Differs in having the interocular elevations smaller, punctures before 

 clypeus denser and more sharply defined, clypeus with sides more rounded, apex 

 distinctly notched and less elevated, surface closely transversely vermiculate, and 

 sutiu-e carinated on sides; 'prothorax with slightly- larger punctures, frontal 

 impressions more feeble or altogether absent ; apical segment of abdomen 2iot 

 narr(;wed in middle, and front tibiae slightly stouter. 



Tlal). Queensland: Bo wen. Bogie River, Leichhardt Downs (Aug. Simson). 

 Type, I. L'')411. 



In general appearance extremely close to 0. zietzi, but clypeus of male not 

 conspicuously notched; the male in many respects resembles some females of 

 0. mutatus, but may be at once distinguished by the front half of the head; some 

 of the small specimens resemble 0. koehelei, but that species has much larger eyes, 

 with inconspicuous facets; large specimens somewhat resemble 0. fletcJieri, but 

 are readily distinguished by the clypeus ; thej^ also resemble 0. microtrichins and 

 0. fre.nchi, but have much smaller punctures, and the head differently sculptured. 

 On several specimens the legs are almost entirely reddish. The seriate punctures 

 on the elytra are rather large, but are so placed that each appears to be cut into 

 two by the elytral striae. Apparently the only certain external indication of sex 

 is in the apical segment of abdomen, as one small male has the clj^peus scarcely 



