280 



in medio sat forti) ; elytris leviter crenulato-striatis, crenulis 

 quam stride baud latioribus, interstitiis sat convexis coriaceis 

 suturam versus obsolete (latera versus magis perspicu'j) 

 punctulatis ; pygidio coriaceo leviter minus crebre puiic- 

 tulato. 

 Maris clypeo antice sat producto-acuminato et reflexo, lamina 

 frontali pervariabili (vel paullo supra oculos truncata, vel 

 plus minusve sursum producta et acuminata), 

 Feminoe clypeo antice sat late rotundato parum reflexo ; lamina 

 frontali minus elevata utrinque plus minusve sursum 

 acuminata. Long., Q^ — 7J 1.; lat., 3| — 4^ 1. 

 It has seemed to me desirable to redescribe this species, as the 

 original diagnosis is very brief and applies only to one sex. The 

 development of the male characters varies to an extraordinary 

 extent (from the form described by Kirby, down to a form in 

 which the frontal elevation is merely a widely truncate feeble 

 carina not much different from that of the female of 0. capella). 

 I have not, however, seen a male in which there is any upward 

 projection of the ends of the frontal lamina, — this form being 

 apparently distinctive of the female (though in some females 

 exceedingly slight). The subacuminately produced, and some- 

 what strongly reflexed, clypeus of the male seems to be the most 

 satisfactory distinction of that sex. I cannot satisfy myself that 

 there is any workable distinction between the front tibiaj of the 

 sexes. The tubercles at the summit of the middle of the retuse 

 front of the pronotum vary in size inversely with the size of the 

 frontal lamina, — so that those tubercles are at their maximum in 

 the female and at their minimum in a highly developed male. 

 As a species this Ontliophagus is very distinct, its only near ally 

 known to me being 0. capella, Kirby, which has a strongly 

 punctulate pronotum, elytral interstices almost absolutely flat, tfec. 

 N.S. Wales. 



0. capella, Kirby. I have found a specimen which evidently 

 appertains to this species (it is not even a variety) among some 

 Coleoptera sent to me from Cape York by the late Mr. Cowley. 



0. capitosus, Har. A single (female) example from Cape York 

 in my collection seems to be this species, although if so it is a 

 colour variety, the head and prothorax being piceous, the elytra 

 and pygidium clear ferruginous. It has the short clypeal carina 

 attributed to capitosus, and the front of the clypeus emarginate 

 as described. The front of the pronotum is only very slightly 

 retuse. This is a very isolated species; the base of its pronotum 

 is as in 0. capella, Kirby, but it differs from capella and the rest 

 of its group by, inter alia, its eyes not distinctly granulate (as in 

 declivis, Har.). 



0. picipennis, Hope. I am fairly confident that I know this 



