2 Transactions South African Philosophical Society. ‘vou. Xt. 
general appearance of Melolonthidous insects, and their vestiture 
is that of many of the Pachypodini or true Schizonychides. Doubt- 
less allied to the Hopnimn on one side, and to the MELOLONTHINE 
on the other, the distinctive character of this Sub-Family is 
to be found in the mode of insertion of the two spurs of the hind 
tarsi, which are situated one on each side of the basal tarsal joint, 
sometimes near the outer angle of the dilated apical part, sometimes 
close to the tarsal joint, but never are the two found on one side of 
the tarsal joint as in the MrnonontaHin®; we have seen that in 
the Srmricin/ there is only one spur, and as often none at all. 
Certain genera of the Ablaberini are so closely allied to the Pachy- 
podimt, which I retain in the MrnonontHina, that but for that 
character they would have to be included among them, in spite of 
their having strongly dentate maxille. Another character of im- 
portance is the complete obliteration of the labrum, which part is. 
always strongly developed in the MELOLONTHIN”. 
Tre SERICINI. 
Body elongate or very strongly ovate and convex; lateral margin 
of clypeus either nearly straight or very strongly constricted, anterior 
one always reflexed and either simple or tri-dentate; eyes divided in 
front by the genal canthus, and having or not a posterior keel either 
connected with or disconnected from the genal canthus ; prothorax 
always sloping forward ; elytra elongated and then moderately con- 
vex, or strongly ampliato-ovate and very convex, covering the propy- 
gidium ; pygidium wide, vertical in most cases, but sub-horizontal 
in Pleophylla ; anterior cox almost sub-vertical, intermediate ones 
narrow and somewhat broadly separated, posterior always very 
broad, and wider along the sides than the metasternum ; femora and 
tibia very compressed, the hind tibiz often broadly ampliated 
inwardly, and with two more or less obliterated, slanting, spinose, 
seldom entire ridges outwardly; hind spurs of the female not 
ampliated. 
Herr Brenske has divided this Tribe into Sericine and Trochaline, 
and has endeavoured to find for them characters which are not 
common to both. I regret to say that as far as the South African 
genera and species are concerned, I have been unable to find lines 
of demarcation between them. Brenske’s Sericine are doubtless, as 
a whole, of a more elongated form than his Trochaline,* which are 
as a rule, but not always, more spherical and shorter; but if we take 
* Cf. some species of Ablaberoides. 
