(he Seychelles Islands and Aldahra. 181 



Cochons district at about 1500 feet, and in the forest above 

 Cascade Estate. 



The eleven specimens vary in the development of the 

 obliqne testaceous elytral fasciae, the posterior one being 

 sometimes obsolete and in one example (?) united to the 

 anterior one. The dissimilarly coloured sexes were obtained 

 in each island. M. biformis, from Central America, and the 

 European Mordelliste'na abdominalis are parallel cases of 

 sexual dimorphism. M. disparilis ( ? ) seems to be related 

 to M. Jiomochroa, Fairm., from Diego Suarez, but without 

 comparison of types it would be unsafe to identify it with 

 that insect. The variety with confluent fasciae was found in 

 a burrow in a stick in the jungle at Silhouette. 



MoRDELLlSTENA. 

 Mordelliste7ia, Costa, Faun. Eegn. Napol., Mordellid. pp. 16, 31 (1854). 



A genus of world-wide distribution and abundantly repre- 

 sented within the tropics. One species from the Seychelles 

 has been described by Kolbe and three from jNIadiigascar by 

 Fairmaire. Mordella castanea, Boh., from Guam, and various 

 others from the adjacent regions referred to Mordella by the 

 older authors may belong here. Mr. Scott^s collections 

 include about two hundred specimens, belonging to seven 

 species. One of these insects was bred from larvae found 

 in the wood of Coleu peduncidata. The ajjpended table will 

 lielp in the identification of these closely allied forn)s. The 

 sexes have been identified in nearly every case by an exami- 

 nation of the genitalia of one or more examples of each 

 species. The antennal structure is completely ignored by 

 nearly all authors^ presumably owing to difficulties of 

 manipulation : — 



Tibial and tarsal forniula— 4 or 6, 3 or 4, 2, 2 ; 

 body uniibrmly coloured. 



Foiu'th antennal joint as lorg as fifth mahena, Kolbe. 



Fourth antennal joint much shorter than tilth, degressa, sp. n. 

 Tibi.al and tarsal formula — 4, 3, 2, 1 ; head in 

 J 2 , and prothorax also in (^ , testaceous or 

 rufo-testaceous ; elytra cinereo-bit'asciate . . partilis, sp. n. 

 Tibial and tarsal forniuia— 3, 3, 2, ; fourth an- 

 tennal joint short ; body uniformly coloured, 



fusco-castaneous, robust colece, sp. n. 



Tibial and tarsal formula — 3, 2, 2, ; fourth an- 

 tennal joint short. 

 Bodj" uniformly coloured, fusco-castaneous, 

 ferruginous, or testaceous above. 

 Antennal joints 5-11 elongate septemcarinata , sp. n. 



