214 Memoirs on the Coleoptera 



albido-squamose, the under surface with very small white squamules in the rather 

 strong but loose punctures, these a little denser and more conspicuous on the 

 presternum; beak in the type thick, about as long as the head and prothorax, 

 almost straight, bending slightly at base, evenly and feebly tapering; antennae 

 piceo-rufous; prothorax only a fourth or fifth wider than long, the strongly 

 arcuate sides gradually becoming parallel basally, the basal lobe extremely short 

 and broad, very broadly, evenly rounded; punctures fine but deep, very sparse 

 throughout; scutellum large, free; elytra evenly but obtusely parabolic, fully a 

 third wider than the prothorax and much more than twice as long, the humeri 

 evenly rounding to the base; grooves deep, nearly smooth, about a fourth as wide 

 as the flat and almost smooth intervals; abdomen convex, with moderate and 

 rather sparse but conspicuous punctures. Length 6.0 mm.; width 3.3 mm. 

 Brazil (Rio de Janeiro). November. One specimen. 



The glabrous upper surface, with large, abruptly and densely 

 squamose scutellum, stout beak and very short hind tibiae, are 

 among the most peculiar features of this remarkable species, which 

 it hardly seems to me can be hitherto undescribed. 



Zalestes n. gen. 



In this genus the oval convex body is polished and wholly glabrous 

 above and beneath. It has no close affinity with the preceding, the 

 beak being slender and cylindric, only feebly tapering and separated 

 from the head by the feeblest vague impression; the antennae are 

 subbasal, with extremely short scape, long funicle, with the basal 

 joint as long as the next two, the second also distinctly elongate 

 and the club rather large, oval, rendered less abrupt because of 

 the notably large seventh funicular joint, which is densely pubes- 

 cent, unlike the preceding joints but like the club. The mandibles 

 are straight and even within. The prosternum is narrowly and 

 deeply canaliculate, and the coxae separated by almost their own 

 width. The hind tibiae are rather short but normal and almost 

 straight, loosely punctate, the narrow femora minutely and sparsely 

 so. The prothorax is large, briefly but abruptly and somewhat 

 narrowly tubulate, and the scutellum is small, flat, quadrate with 

 arcuate sides, glabrous and in close contact with the elytra, the 

 latter abruptly and deeply grooved. The type may be described 

 as follows: 



Zalestes perpolitus n. sp. — Oblong-oval, convex, deep black throughout and 

 highly polished; beak (9) about as long as the head and prothorax, not at all 

 compressed and very finely, sparsely punctate throughout, slender, the basal part 

 very slightly thickened, almost evenly and moderately arcuate; antennae at basal 

 fourth, pale piceo-rufous, with black scape; prothorax a third wider than long, 

 the sides distinctly converging but only very feebly arcuate, rounding gradually 

 toward apex, the tubulation scarcely over two-fifths as wide as the base; surface 

 smooth, not evidently punctate, the basal lobe gradually formed, with its apex 

 rather narrowly and evenly rounded; at each side there is a feeble basal impres- 

 sion; elytra scarcely a fourth longer than wide, triangular, with strongly and 



