246 ^h. T, V. WoUaston on the Coleapterous Fauna 



tlu'ir complete (llvorp;cnce from the politus of more northern 

 hititudes ; so that it wouUl consequently appear that the true 

 n'lclaiiocejjJiahis, although cited by myself for the Madciran, 

 Canarian, and Cape -Verde groups, has not yet been observed 

 in am/ of them, the examjiles from the first and second 

 archipelagos being referable to the poh'fus of Kiistcr, Avhilst 

 those from the third contain tiro additional forms, of Avliich 

 (although recently enunciated by Dr. Sharj)) it may perhaps 

 be useful here to give the characters afresh. The species 

 alluded to are as follows : — 



Philhydnis Wollastoni. 



P. subovalis, parum convexus, nitidus, niger (aut fusco-niger) sed in 

 limbo gradatim dilutior, ubiquo crebrc ct subtilitor punctatus 

 (piinctis in elytris vix rcmotioribus) ; capitc niaculis duabus 

 parvis laterabbiis ante oculos, auteniiis (cbiva oxcci)ta), palpis 

 tarsisque picoo-testaceis ; pcdibiis ]»iceis ; coleoptoris soriobus 

 tribus irrcgulanbiis punctoruni mnjoniin utrinquo longitudinaUtcr 

 notatis. 



Long. Corp. Hn. circa 2.V. 



Pin'lJit/dni!^ mclanocephahis, Well, [nee Oliv.], Col. Ib\«p. 44 (1807). 

 ^Wollastoni, Shai-p, Ann. Nat. Hist. ser. 4, vol. v. p. 10 (180t>). 



Hahitat ins. S. Antonio, S. Vicente, S. lago, ct Bi-ava, a Dom. J. 

 Gray et meipso captus. 



Ohs. Species P.^)o?/^('»!,Kvist. (in ins. CanaricnsibusMadcrensibnsque, 

 nccnon in Hispania regionibnsquc contiguis leetnm) prima facie 

 simidans, sod cor})ore niinore, svd)brcviore, vix minus iiitido et 

 vix minus convexo, intcrdimi in dytris subdistinctius pnnctnlato, 

 • prothoracc subbrevioro, palpis tarsisque gracilioribus, nccnon 

 unguiculis (in utroquc scxu vix divcrsis) minoribus dcnticuloque 

 minore subtus armatis dignoscitur. 



This is a])parently the common Pln'IJii/drus of the Cape- 

 Verde archipelago ; and wc may cx])cct that it will be found 

 to be universal wlierever there arc streams and ]iools of suffi- 

 cient imj)ortance not to be totally obliterated during the drier 

 seasons. Having neglected, however, when compiling my 

 ' Coleoptera Hes])eridum,' to examine it with any great amount 

 of care, I fell into the error of regarding it as a ratlier small 

 state of the species which is so general throughout the Ma- 

 dciran and Canarian groups ; and since that species was iden- 

 tified by Aulx', many years ago, with the ICuropcan mrlauo- 

 cephahis, I have invariably cited it as such, and consequently 

 looked upon this representative from the Cape Verdcs as a 

 mere depauperated phasis of the same. Yet the recent labours 

 of Dr. Shaiq) have shown, as above mentioned, not only that 

 1 was mistaken in accepting too readily the detennination of 

 Aube as regards the j\Iadeiran and Canarian rhilhyJruSj but 



