TBE PSELAPHIDiE OF NORTH AMERICA. 



A MONOGRAPH BY 



BMIL BRENDEL, M. D., and H. F. WICKHAM. 



In preparing this monograph the authors hope to aid stu- 

 dents of this large and interesting family, by sufficiently minute 

 descriptions and synoptical tables, to recognize any species 

 known to the fauna of the United States and British America, 

 and to see the affinities of American species to members of 

 this famih' in other lands. 



Far from believing this to be a perfect work, the authors 

 submit it as a contribution liable to future revision. Even if 

 the ideas herein set forth are not accepted, the present com- 

 pilation of hitherto scattered descriptions will, it is hoped, be 

 of value. 



The descriptions of early authors were sufficiently minute 

 to differentiate the small number of species then known. At 

 present many of those descriptions are applicable to quite dif- 

 ferent forms, and synoptical tables based upon the old descrip- 

 tions have become an impossibility. Up to the time of Jno. 

 L. Leconte, the number of species was very limited. In 1817 

 Say described but three species — Tmesiphorus carinatiis^ 

 Bryaxis dentata and Batrisus ripan'us. Aube in 1834 added 

 three or four, some not now recognizable, and Motschulsky in 

 1845 two or three more — ill described. Leconte followed 

 with eighty-four species. 



Although the number of descriptions is now quite consider- 

 able, their insufficiency has been a great difficulty, and ocular 

 comparison of specimens is often necessary to determine a 

 species. By exactness of description and by carefully drawn 

 figures'we hope to relieve the student henceforth from the 

 necessity of such direct comparison. 



