297 



This species is remarkable by the curious appearance 

 (apparently constant) of the pubescence on the prothorax, which 

 to a casual glance seems to be wanting in such fashion as to 

 leave a large denuded triangle with its base on the base of the 

 elytra and its apex a little behind the middle of the disc ; but on 

 careful examination this seems to be due to the median sulcus in 

 combination with the posterior declivity causing the light to fall 

 unequally on the surface. The insect differs from II. carinatus, 

 Blackb., inter alia by its non-carinate head, and from albidus, 

 Macl., by the prothoracic character mentioned above, and by the 

 third joint of the antenna3 being considerably shorter than the 

 fourth. 



N. Queensland ; taken near Cairns by Mr. Co well. 



TENEBRIONIl)^. 



PLATYDEMA. 



P. victoriense, sp. nov. Ovale ; subtus piceo-ferrugineum, supra 



variegatum, capite prothorace (hoc ad latera plus minusve 



rufo) antennisque (articulis basalibus 3 vel 4 rufis) piceis, 



elytris Isete rufis macula magna conmiuni rotundata in medio 



disci posita ornatis, pedibus plus minusve rufescentibus ; 



antennis sat brevibus sat crassis (magis brevibus magis 



crassis quam P. tetraspilotcp, Hope) ; capite sat crebre sub- 



rugulose, prothorace mirnis crebre baud rugulose (quam 



P. tetraspilotce, Hope, manifeste minus crebre) punctulato ; 



hujus figura fere ut P. tetras^nlotcs : elytris fortiter punc- 



tulato-striatis, interstitiis sat convexis sat sparsim pune- 



tulatis. Long., 14-1.; lat., 1 1. 



Slightly longer and wider than P. tetraspilota, Hope, which it 



resembles much in colouring, but the blackish colour on the 



elytra (instead of forming a fascia reaching the lateral margin on 



either side) forms a large common roundish oval spot separated 



from the lateral margin on either side by three or four interstices. 



Compared with P. tetraspilota, the present sjDecies has shorter and 



thicker antennae, prothorax considerably less closely and evidently 



more strongly punctured, elytral interstices more convex and 



more strongly and less closely punctured. The head is devoid of 



a horn in all the examples before me, one of which T believe to 



be a male. 



Victoria. 



CURCULIONH).^. 



(OTIORHYXCHIXI.) 

 APIROCALUS. 



A. cornut^is, Pasc. Among some Curcuiionidce taken by Mr. 

 Froggatt, and sent to me for identification, I find two specmens 



