Mr. T. V. Wollaston on the Cohoptera of St. Helena. 409 



folloAving species, the outer edge of its hinder femora is armed 

 near to the base with an acute upwardly directed spine. Two 

 examples of it were taken at St. Helena, in 1860, by the late 

 Mr. Bewicke ; and a third (of a slightly obscurer tinge) is now 

 before me, from the collection of Mr. Melliss. Perhaps, there- 

 fore, it is one of the rarer species. 



43. MicroxyJohius conicollts. 



M. brc^-itor elliptico-ovatus, oeneus, nitidissimus, calvus, supra con- 

 vexo-arcuatus ; capite parcc et leviter piinctulato, rostro brevuis- 

 ctilo subtereti valde dcflexo sat profundius dcnsiusque punctato ; 

 prothorace conico (i. o. postico lato iiecnon ad latera oblique recto), 

 parce et levissime punctato (punctis sat magiiis sed leviter im- 

 pressis, interdum quasi subobsoletis) ; elytris sat profunde sub- 

 punctato-striatis, iuterstitiis latis et leviter suboblitcrato pune- 

 tatis ; antennis rufo-piceis, longiusculis, subgracilibus, funiculi 

 art'* subconicis, tameu inter se magis compactis, caijitulo minus 

 abrupto ; pedibus piceis, spina femorali maxima. 



Long. corp. liu. 1|-1|. 



Microxi/Iobius conicolUs, Well., Trans. Ent. See. Loud. v. 384, pi. 18. 

 f. 9 (1861). 



The shortly ovate thickened body and convex arcuate upper 

 sui-face of this highly polished, lightly punctured insect (its 

 prothorax being not only conical, i. e. broadest at the extreme 

 base and with the sides obliquely straight, but also in a con- 

 tinuous curve with the el}i:ra), give it an appearance so totally 

 distinct from the other species, that one might almost imagine 

 it to constitute the type of some cognate but separate group ; 

 and indeed its rather differently constructed funiculus, the 

 joints of which are more conical and more closely applied to- 

 gether than is the case in the generality of the Microxylohii, 

 in conjunction with its more deflexed rostrimi, might still 

 further tend to the same conclusion. An accurate inspection, 

 however, convinces me that it cannot be removed generically 

 from the remainder of the brassy species, its singularity of 

 contour being rather suggestive, to my mind, of specific links 

 (more or less intermediate between the extremes of form) yet 

 to he discovered than of any absolute hiatus such as its sup- 

 posed generic isolation from the true Microxyhhii would seem 

 to imply : and I may add that the detection by almost every 

 observer, at St. Helena, of undescribcd si)ecies in a group thus 

 exti'aordinary is quite in accordance with that iiypothesis. In 

 its most essential generic characters it is strictly a Microxylo- 

 bius, its femoral spine (so enormously developed) and bras-sy 

 hue removing it into that section of the genus to which (in 

 case that it should be desirable to detach it hereafter from the 

 other) I have given the provisional name of Thau7nasU>nierus. 



