Philuntlnis.'] staphylinidj:, 265 



P, polltus, F. Black, somewhat shining, with the head, thorax, 

 and elytra obscurely metallic, with a slightly greenish reflection ; head 

 ovate, rather small, antennce rather long, black, with tlie first joint testa- 

 ceous except on the upper surface (this character will at once distinguish the 

 species), penultimate joints longer than broad ; thorax sliglitly narrowed 

 in front ; elytra a little longer than thorax, finely, very thickly, and some- 

 what asperately punctured ; hind body finely and thickly punctured ; 

 legs black, anterior tarsi rather strongly dilated in male, scarcely dilated 

 in female. L. 10-11 mm. 



Male with the seventh ventral segment of hind body rather deeply and 

 angularly excised. 



In moss, &c. ; common and generally distributed tbrougliout the whole kingdom. 



P. lucens, Er. Rather broad and stout, black, shining, with the 

 head, thorax, and elytra more or less obscurely greenish ; head ovate, 

 rather small, antennae moderately long, Avith the penultimate joints 

 slightly transverse ; thorax narrowed in front, about as broad as long 

 near base ; elytra almost black, with very slight greenish reflection, finely, 

 very thickly, and somewhat asperately punctured ; hind body less closely 

 punctured than elytra ; legs pitch-black, with tarsi sometimes lighter, 

 anterior tarsi almost simple in male, simple in female. L. 9-10 mm. 



Male with the seventh ventral segment of hind body moderately and 

 angularly excised. 



This species is easily distinguished from the preceding by its shorter 

 and broader form, and by the entirely black first joint of the antennae. 



In moss, under stones, &c. ; very rare ; Exmouth, Devon ; Malvern Hills, one 

 specimen takiii by myself on the summit of the Worcestershire Beacon ; Strensall, 

 Yoik ; Northumberland district, banks of Irthing ; Scotland, very rare, Solway and 

 Clyde districts. 



P. varius, Gyll. Much smaller than any of the preceding species, 

 somewhat fusiform, shining black, with the elytra bronze with a more or 

 less distinct greenish reflection ; head small, ovate ; antennje rather long, 

 with penultimate joints not transverse ; thorax narrowed in front, about 

 as broad at base as elytra ; elytra as long as thorax, finely and rather 

 thickly punctured, but not as much so as in the preceding species ; hind 

 body narrowed behind, finely and rather thickly punctured, the base of 

 the segments being a little more closely punctured than apex ; legs black 

 with the anterior tarsi sometimes less dark ; these last are strongly dilated 

 in male, slightly in female. L. 6-7 mm. 



Male w^ith the seventh ventral segment of hind body rather strongly 

 emarginate, the emargination being furnished with a membranous border. 



In dung, moss, vegetable refuse, &c. ; common and generally distributed throughout 

 the kingdom ; perhaps the commonest specits of the genus. 



V. himaculatus, Grav. {nitidicollis, Boisd.). In this variety the elytra 

 are entirely red or dark only at base ; it is somewhat rare, but widely 



