Choleva.'] clavicornia. 65 



C colonoides, Kraatz. OLloiig ovate, head and thorax Llackish- 

 brown, elytra dark-brown, lighter towards apex, clothed with distinct 

 silky pubescence ; antenna? about as long as head and thorax, gradually 

 and very slightly thickened towards apex (a point that will at once dis- 

 tinguish it from any species of Colon, some of which it much resembles); 

 thorax about a fourth broader than long, with sides moderately rounded, 

 extremely thickly and finely granulated, posterior angles sharp, projecting 

 liackwaixls ; elytra gradually narrowed to apex, finely strigose trans- 

 versely, not truncate ; legs ferruginous-brown ; under-side blackish-brown, 

 with the margins of each segment lighter. L. 1|-1|- mm. 



Very rare ; first taken by Dr. Power, at tlie cud of Marcli, 18(11, at the Holt Forest, 

 Hampshire, from the debris of fern, in an old hovel ; it has also been takeu by Mr. 

 Champiou at Ashtead, vSurrey, iu "rotten wood mould of decaying oaks," and by 

 Mr. Waterhouso, near Ripon ; it has occurred, too, in the New Forest ; according to 

 Kraatz it is taken near Berlin, in loose sand at the foot of old oak-trees, and is 

 frequent on moors : Reitter says that it occurs in north and Mid-Europe in nests of 

 Formica cunicularia. 



CATOFS, Paykull. 



This genus contains six European species, of which two are found in 

 Britain ; one of these is common, the other is extremely rare ; they are 

 distinguished from the members of the genus Chohva by their truncate 

 elytra and the very short and subulate last joint of the maxillary palpi ; 

 as mentioned above, Paykull's type on which he described the genus 

 Catops appears to have been C scriceus, and it is perhaps better therefore 

 to adopt this name, although many authors have included the species 

 under the genus Ptomapliarius, 



I. Antennas less thickened, club entirely black ; first joint 



of posterior tarsi as long as the next two together . . C. seeiceus, F. 



II. Antennse shorter and thicker, club reddish-yellow at 

 apex ; first joint of posterior tarsi as long as the next 



three together C. varicoekis, Rosenh. 



C. sericens, F. {truncaius, GylL). Oblong-oval, of a dark pitchy- 

 black or blackish-brown colour, clothed Avith very distinct silky pubescence ; 

 head large, antennae short and stout, dark with reddish base, plainly 

 thickened ; thorax a little broader than long, fully as broad at base as 

 elytra, and often more darkly coloured, finely wrinkled transversely, 

 posterior angles pointed, projecting backwards ; elytra gradually becoming 

 narrower from base to apex, with apex l)roadly truncate, more or less 

 distinctly strigose transversely ; legs dark ferruginous-lDrown, femora 

 often darker ; size very variable. L. 2-3 mm. 



In moss, decaying seaweed, haystack and vegetable refuse, small carcases, &c. ; 

 common, and generally distributed throughout the kingdom. 



C. varicornis, Rosenh. Closely aUied to the preceding, but easily 

 distinguished by the antennae, which are shorter and thicker, and are 

 ferruginous at apex as well as base, and by the long first joint of the 



VOL. III. F 



