- 
292 Mr. D. Sharp on the species 
The individuals of both of these species are frequently 
densely covered with an exudation which has much the 
appearance of pollen. According to Rojas (Ann. Soe. 
Ent. Fr. 1857, p. 333) this is, however, a natural 
secretion, and can be renewed by the insect during its 
lifetime, especially under the influence of heat. 
As regards the distribution of the species: B. gigantea 
occurs in Kastern South America, from Rio de Janeiro to 
British Guiana; while B. goliath is found in Central 
America and North-Western South America, from Hon- 
duras to Bogota. Ihave not seen any specimens from 
Venezuela, but according to Rojas (loc. sup. cit.) it is 
the B. goliath (Euchroma columbica, Mann.) that is found 
there. H. Deyrolle has sent me word that he possesses 
a B. gigantea from Bogota, but I think this is probably 
an error, the evidence at present available, with this 
exception, showing that each of the two species has its 
own area of distribution, and that they are not found in 
the same district. ach species varies a good deal, and 
the variations seem to be to a considerable extent 
geographical, and it is worthy of remark that that form 
of B. gigantea, which is most different from B. goliath, 
comes from British Guiana, the district which is nearest, 
geographically, to the area of distribution of B. goliath. 
The variations are of considerable importance, and, so 
far as they are known to me at present, may be briefly 
summarised as follows :— 
1. Buprestis gigantea.—This species is more variable 
than the other ; the form first known to the older authors 
comes from Cayenne, and may be considered as the 
typical condition of the species, and is the commonest in 
collections. ‘The elytra are of a brilliant copper-colour, 
with the outer margin green, and the sutural region 
usually more or less green, but this latter point is very 
variable. The margins of the pronotum are broadly 
greenish, and but little shining, and along the middle 
there extends a band of the same colour, so that there is 
thus left a large patch on each side of darker colour— 
black or copper-black—and more shining surface ; the 
green portions are densely punctate, the punctuation 
being of a double character, viz., an extremely fine dense 
punctuation, and a more sparing and coarser, but still 
fine, punctuation, and these parts of the thorax bear a 
fine whitish depressed pubescence, while the discoidal 
patches are bare and polished, and their punctuation 
