Longicornia of Australia and Tasmania. 175 
basal joints subnitid, distinctly enough punctured; third joint 
with a moderately long and distinct, though slender, spine at its 
outer apex. 
One male example was taken by Mr. Walker; a female 
example from South-east Tasmania, collected by Mr. E. 
D. Atkinson, was already in the Brit. Mus. collection. 
The tomentose depressions—a pair to each of the first 
four abdominal segments—are a distinctly sexual cha- 
racter, and are, as in almost every similar case known 
to me, peculiar to the male sex. 
Sisyrium, Pasc. 
In the ‘Transactions’ of the Royal Society of South 
Australia, vol. xv. (1892), pp. 57 et seq., Mr. Blackburn 
has made some remarks upon this genus and allied 
forms, in which he questions the desirability of main- 
taining so many separate genera for what seem to be 
closely related species. Upon the latter point I am not 
at present prepared to express an opinion, as I have had 
no opportunity of examining more than a few of the 
species belonging to this group of Australian Longicorns. 
But I may state what I believe to be a false assumption 
against which workers on this group would do well to 
cuard themselves. It is that the presence of tomentose 
depressions on the abdominal segments of certain species 
is a non-sexual character. I have just shown that in 
one species of the group (Acyrusa tasmanica) it certainly 
is a sexual character, and from my acquaintance with 
the Longicornia in general, I am convinced that it always 
is a sexual character, and, with very rare exceptions, is 
peculiar to the male sex. Lacordaire, suffering under 
the disadvantage of examining small series, failed to 
grasp this fact, and was consequently led into many 
errors which are likely to mislead those who trust too 
implicitly to his descriptions. 
Mr. Blackburn has given a table of the species of 
Sisyrium, which is partly based upon the assumption 
that this character is common to both sexes, and cannot 
therefore be considered reliable. 
