Meli'jethes.] clavicornia. 257 



tihife, and tlic fact that the male has the hist ahdominal segment fur- 

 nished "with a very strong transverse keel, which is divided by a broad 

 seniicircuhir excision into two divisions, each ending in a strong sharp 

 tooth. L. lf-2 mm. 



Very rare ; the species was introduced as British on two specimens in Mr, 

 Crotch's collection; these I have not seen, and cannot tell whetlier either of them 

 was a male; both the otiier two known specimens are females, one in Mr. Rye's 

 collection, and the other taken by Mr. Champion at Caterham, of which he says 

 himself that it is "apparently referable to this species;" as, except on the male 

 characters, the species is hardly distinct from M. erqthropun, it appears to require 

 further coutii-niation, although it probably occurs in Britain, and may be found 

 mixed with M. erythroims in collections. 



3>I. exilis, Sturm {nigrita, Luc). Ovate, rather convex, shining 

 black, closely punctured, with very slight traces of cross striation between 

 punctures ; pubescence very fine ; antennaj dark brown with black club ; 

 forehead emarginate with a very small tooth in the centre of emargina- 

 tion ; thorax rather long, only a quarter broader than long ; legs very 

 dark, black or almost black, with the anterior tibiui pitchy ; anterior 

 tibiaj with three short but distinct outstanding teeth, one above and one 

 below the middle, and a tliird at apex, separated by smaller teeth, 

 Male with a small curved keel on the apex of the last abdominal seg- 

 ment. L. 1^-1 I nun. 



Bare; Mr. Waterhouse once took a specimen in the court-yard of the British 

 Museum ; Whitsand Bay, near Plymouth (J. J. Walker) ; Braunton Burrows, near 

 Instow, N. Devon, on Echium rulgare (Mason) ; Tenby, S. Wales, where I found it 

 rather commonly at the end of August or beginning of September, 1885, at Lydstep, 

 Penally Burrows, &c., always on Hieraciuni ; Barmouth on Tkrincia hirta (Lesser 

 Hawkbit) (Wollaston) ; Isle of Man (R. P. Murray); Scotland, very rare, Solway 

 district, Galloway (Sharp) ; according to Brisout it is found on PapilionacecB. It is 

 cue of our smallest and most distinct species. 



SX. brevis, Sturm (Acanfhogethfs hrevis, Eeitter). Short, rather 

 broad, black, with a rather leaden reflection ; antennas red, club some- 

 times rather darker ; forehead strongly emarginate ; thorax about half as 

 broad again as long, strongly rounded in front, slightly broader at base 

 than base of elytra, with strong punctuation ; elytra unicolorous, not so 

 strongly punctured as thorax ; upper surface of both thorax and elytra 

 M'ithout cross reticulation between punctures ; legs red, sometimes quite 

 light, sometimes darker ; anterior tibiae armed with regular distinct teeth 

 for at least two-thirds from apex, the centre ones being usually the most 

 prominent. L, lf-2 mm. 



V. mutahilis, iio^Qwh. (M. pkti is, 'R-^e). Eather larger; elytra with 

 a red spot on each, variable in extent, L. 2-2 j mm. 



On Helianthemum vidgare ; has only occurred in Britain at Scarborough, where it 

 has been taken in some numbers by Messrs. L^iwson and Wilkinson, and at 

 Hartlepool, where it has recently been taken by Mr. Gardner ; the type form is 

 rare ; out of a series of forty examples that I have examined, only one or two show no 

 trace of a spot ; one of these, a small specimen in Dr. Power's collection, is a good 



VOL, III. S 



