MIMICRY AMONGST THE BLATT1D.E. "75 



typically Plectopterine in structure, and this character, in con- 

 junction with the fan-like folding of the posterior part of the 

 wing, is overwhelming evidence in favour of the inclusion of the 

 genus in the Oxyhaloina? [=Plectopterina?J. 



Melyroidea mimetica, sp. n. (PI. XLVIII. fig. 17.) 

 $ . Head bright rufous, last joint of maxillary palpi fuscous, 

 antennae fuscous, except the basal and last apical joints, which 

 are rufo-testaceous. Pronotum bright rufous, quadrate, anterior 

 and lateral margins slightly reflexed, sides only slightly deflexed ; 

 disc with slightly rounded elevations, two anterior, two antero- 

 lateral, and one, the largest, central. Tegmina dark casta- 

 neous, densely reticulated, mediastinal vein short, an oblique 

 sulcus on the light tegmen marking the outer limit of the area 

 overlapped by the left tegmen. Wings infuscated, radial vein 

 bifurcated from the base, twelve costal veins, apices not incras- 

 sated, median vein simple, medio-discal area, crossed by fourteen 

 irregular venulse, thrice as broad as the medio-ulnar area, which is 

 crossed by eleven venulae, ulnar vein bifurcate, transverse venula? 

 connecting it with the dividing vein, first axillary vein tri- 

 ramose ; apical area about one third of total wing-length, its base 

 obtusely angled, nearly equally divided longitudinally, some 

 obscure venulations in the lower half. Abdomen piceous above 

 and beneath, supra-anal lamina triangularly produced, sub-genital 

 lamina cleft by a sulcus ; cerci short, acuminate, rufous. Coxa?, 

 femora, and bases of tibiae testaceous, rest of tibia? and the tarsi 

 fuscous ; formula of apical spines *, 5 , - , genicular spines on mid 

 and hind femora ; front tibia 3 unarmed except for three apical 

 spines, mid and hind tibia? with one pair of basal and two apical 

 spines above, with ten spines in a double row and two apical 

 spines below. 



Total length 13'5 mm.; length of body 11 mm.; length of 

 tegmina 9-5 mm. ; pronotum 4 mm. x 4 mm. ; hind femora 

 4 mm. ; hind tibia? 4 mm. ; hind tarsi 3 mm. 



Hah. Uncertain, but probably near Rio de Janeiro. 



One example (Miers collection. Oxford Museum). 



The species is very like a Telephorid beetle. 



Melyroidea magnifica, sp. n. (PI. XLVIII. fig. 18.) 

 $ . Head bright rufous, maxillary palpi piceous, antenna? 

 piceous, except for three joints beyond the middle, which are 

 testaceous, slightly incrassated in the middle. Pronotum bright 

 rufous, quadrate, very slightly broader anteriorly than post- 

 eriorly, all the borders somewhat reflexerl, disc with two antero- 

 lateral crescentic depressions. Tegmina green, the humeral 

 angle and the part of the right tegmen overlapped by the left 

 dark shining blue, densely reticulated but the veins elevated, 

 mediastinal vein short, radial vein bifurcated from near the base 

 six highly irregular and branched costal veins, ulnar vein with 

 three ramose branches, apex of anal vein attaining a point at 



[19] 



