Species of GiiYCVi\iomdse from Africa. 393 



Subfamily Xipmaspibinm^ nov. 

 Genus XiPHASPis, nov. 



Head exserted, strongly constricted behind the eyes, 



wiiich are large, transverse, and with their upper edge raised 



above the level of tlie vertex. Rostrum normally deflected 



at a right angle to the long axis ol' the body, nearly as long 



as the pronotum ; the scrobes extending narrowly a short 



distance in front of the antennte, but behind them broad 



and passing almost immediately beneath the rostrum ; 



mandibles somewhat exserted, bidentate, bare; |)eduncle of 



the submentum forming an almost equilateral triangle, the 



mentura small and extremely narrow, bare and smooth. 



Antenna inserted at the middle of the rostrum in both sexes ; 



the scape as long as the funicle and not nearly leacliing the 



eye; the club very large, longer than the funicle, solid and 



subeylindi'ical. Prothorax transverse, strongly narrowed in 



fi'ont and sloping steeply forwards, bisinuate at the base 



and fitting closely to the elytra, without postocuiar lobes. 



Scutel/um very long and dagger-like, extending for more 



than (jne-third the length of the elytra, and gradually 



tapering to a sharp point ; the base broadly raised and 



produced narrowly on each side along the base of the elytra 



as far as interval 2. Elytra subquadrate, broader at the 



shoulders than the base of the prothorax, very deeply and 



jointly trisinuate at the base, separately rounded at the apex, 



(le(i)ly sinuate on the lateral margins, and with only nine 



striie, the 2nd and 9th alone uniting at the apex. Winys 



functional. Leys with the front coxae contiguous, the mid 



pair very widely s'eparated, slightly more so than the hind 



pau', which are separated from the elytral margin by a 



distance much greater than their own width ; the femora 



gradually clavate, each with a sharp tooth, the hind pair not 



reaching the apex of the elytra ; the tibite rather compressed 



and mucronate ; the tarsi normal, moderately slender, joint 2 



as long us or longer than broad, 3 rather wider, 4 nearly as 



long as the rest together, the claws strongly appendiculate. 



Sternum : the front coxae very close to the iiind margin of 



the prosternuin, with no centro-sternal tubercle ; central 



mesosternal piece almost vertical ami very broadly truncate 



behind, the side-pieces fused together, the mesepimeron 



slightly ascending; the metasteriium between the coxae 



nearly twice as long as the mid-coxae, very deep dorso- 



veutrally, the episternum consequently very broatl and 



