tht Systematics of Scorpions. 365 



laljclled ccitain specimens in the Berlin ]\[nseum with the 

 name Ceritrurus; but tliis action does not establish its right 

 to recognition. The first autlior to introduce the name in 

 the orthodox and accepted fashion into systematic zo(;logy 

 was C. Koch, who, in 1838 (Die Arachn. iv. p. 110), assigned 

 it to a scorpion described as Centrums yalbineus, which was 

 alleged by Karsch to be based upon the young of a species 

 belonging to a genus inhabiting the Oriental Region 

 and afterwards named Palumnceus by Thorell. Gervais 

 rightly accepted Koch^s application of the name Centrurus. 

 Peters, on the contrary, finding Ehrenberg^s labelled speci- 

 mens, used Centrurus for the species exemplified by them, 

 discarding Isometrtis as a synonym, in spite of its far greater 

 claims for admittance. If C. Koch had not previously taken 

 up the name Centrurus, Peters's application of it might have 

 been accepted, and strong reasons could have been advanced 

 for following Thorell when, in 1876, he used Centrurus in a 

 restricted sense for the genus diagnosed by himself and 

 typified by Scorpio gracilis of Latr. ( = biaculeatus, Luc). 

 But since the name had no recognized status until Koch 

 introduced it, I see no escape from the conclusion that it 

 must date from 1838 and be regarded as assignable to the 

 genus typified by the species described by Koch as Centrurus 

 yalbineus. 



For the genus Centrurus, as diagnosed by Thorell, I adopt 

 the name Centrur aides, which, although without a diagnosis, 

 was given by Marx to one of the species, namely C. exilicaucla, 

 Wood. This species, therefore, is the type of tlie genus in 

 question, it has not been described since 1863, and its 

 generic position was unknown to Kraepelin when preparing 

 his monograph of the scoi'pions in the ' Tierreich,^ in spite 

 of Marx's publication on the subject. 



Its characters and synonymy are given below (see p. 376). 



II. — Notes on some Species of Pababvtrus contained in 

 THE British Museum. 



1. Purabuthus planicuuda, Poc, (Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist. (6) 

 iii. p. 344, pi. XV. fig. 5, 1889), — The type of P. planicuuda, 

 Poc. {i. €. the female specimen measured and described in the 

 original description), is specifically identical with the South- 

 African form to which Purcell has recently restricted the 

 name capensis of Hem or. & Ehrenb. The evidence that 

 these two names are synonyms, however, is very far from 

 conclusive. In fact, all the data u]K)n which I can lay hands 

 point rather to the opinion that Purcell has redescribed 



