358 STAPHYLINID^. [Stenus. 



much closer than that of elytra ; legs yellow, the extreme apex of the 

 femora, base of the tibia?, and apex of the three first joints of the tarsi 

 on the upper side, pitchy black ; the black colour extends for a greater 

 extent at the knees on the posterior legs, but in these barely extends to a 

 quarter of the length of either the femora or tibiae ; the coxee are black. 

 L. 5-5 1 mm. 



Male with the seventh ventral segment of hind body deeply emar- 

 ginate, fifth slightly depressed, sinuate in the middle of hinder margin, 

 the sinuation furnished with a very minute blunt tooth on either side. 



lu haystack refuse, moss, and vegetable rubbish generally ; usually in comparatively 

 dry places; often by sweeping, as indeed is the case with the majority of the Steni 

 with bilobed penultimate joint of the tarsi ; common and generally distributed 

 throughout the kingdom. 



S. solutus, Er. Very closely allied to the preceding in size and 

 general appearance, but rather darker and more shining, with the basal 

 joint of the antennae testaceous (and not deep black as in S. similis) and 

 the black colour on the intermediate and posterior femora and tibiae 

 extending for about half the length of the former and for more than half 

 the length of the latter ; the coxae are pitchy red ; the elytra are nar- 

 rower in proportion, and the thorax and elytra are not so strongly or 

 closely punctured ; the hind body is very finely punctured, and is rather 

 smooth and shining on the centre of its upper surface ; this character 

 alone will serve to separate it from S. similis. L. 5-5| mm. 



Male with the seventh ventral segment deeply and angularly emar- 

 ginate, fifth slightly depressed in middle and feebly emarginate at apex, 

 third and fourth a little depressed. 



Marshy places ; in the stems of reeds, &c., often almost in the water; rare; Lee, 

 Blackheath, Mickleham, Cowley, West Drayton, Dagenham, Horning Fen ; Eirch- 

 iugton, near Margate ; Sutton Park and Knowle, near Birmingham. 



S* tarsalis, Ljungh (roscidus, Snellen.). Greyish black, very 

 slightly shiningj clothed with fine, short, rather close, whitish pubescence ; 

 head as broad as elytra with a wide and not very distinct central eleva- 

 tion and feeble frontal furrows ; antennsB rather short, rufo-testaceous, 

 with the* basal joint black, and the club brownish, palpi testaceous, 

 sometimes a little pitchy ; thorax a little longer than broad, moderately- 

 rounded at sides, closely and rather strongly punctured ; elytra depressed, 

 longer and more strongly punctured than thorax, the punctuation, how- 

 ever, not being so close ; hind body strongly punctured, cylindrical, 

 more shining than the front parts ; legs black or blackish, tarsi more or 

 less obscurely testaceous, sometimes almost dark, claws always black. 

 L. 4-4^ mm. 



Male with the seventh ventral segment of hind body broadly and 

 slightly emarginate at apex, fifth with a small semicircular impression in 

 middle of its hinder half bordered with long hairs, fourth thickly 

 pubescent in middle. 



