British Species of Homalota. 207 



tennis articulis 7-10 minus evidenter transversis ; thorace 

 transverse ; abdomine segmentis 2-4 sat crebre punctatis, 

 5° parce punctate^ 6° fere lasvigato. Long. I5 lin. 



Mas; abdomine segmento 7° dorsali apice 4-dentato, 

 dentibus intermediis obtusis. 



H. gagatina, Baudi, Stud. Ent. 119 (1848). H. com- 

 2jressicoll{s, Th. Sk. Col. iii. 80. H. variabilis, Kr. Ins. 

 Deutsch. ii. 284 ; Wat. Cat. 



Somewhat resembling the species of the H. fungi group, 

 the head being narrow in proportion to the thorax, and 

 the abdomen somewhat narrowed behind. It is rather 

 convex, and but little shining, owing to a tolerably evi- 

 dent pubescence. The antennae are moderately slender, 

 a little thickened towards the apex, pitchy-black, with 

 the two or three basal joints more or less distinctly yel- 

 low; joints two and three of nearly equal length, only 

 moderately long, from the fourth onwards each joint is 

 slightly stouter, four to six each about as long as broad, 

 seven to ten slightly transverse; eleventh joint about as 

 long as the two preceding together. The head is mode- 

 rately broad, much narrower than the thorax, scarcely 

 shining, finely and indistinctly punctured. The thorax is 

 a little narrower than the elytra, about half as broad again 

 as long, the sides gently rounded, narrower at the an- 

 terior than at the posterior angles, finely and pretty close- 

 ly punctured, and with a very indistinct impression in 

 front of the scutellum. The elytra are nearly a third 

 longer than the thorax; of a brownish or pitchy-brown 

 colour, finely and closely punctured. The abdomen is 

 black, shining towards the extremity, which is sometimes 

 paler; segments two to four distinctly and moderately 

 closely punctured, fifth segment finely and sparingly 

 punctured, sixth nearly impunctate. Legs yellow, some- 

 times infuscate. 



In the male, the hind margin of the dorsal plate of the 

 seventh abdominal segment is furnished with four teeth, 

 the two central ones are only separated by a shallow 

 notch, and are broad and blunt, the outer ones do not 

 reach quite so far back as the middle ones, and are nar- 

 rower and sharper. 



Generally distributed and not rare. In fungi or dead 

 leaves. London, Inverness-shire, &c. 



Ohs. — This species is a troublesome one to recognize ; 

 the male characters distinguish that sex readily enough, 



