Adragius.] SERRICORNIA. 105 



known by its shorter and more globose thorax, and the fact that the 

 second joint of the antenna; is not longer than the third joint; a second 

 species has lately been added to our lists by Mr. E. A. 



I. Antennro entirely clear reddish-yellow; size larger; colour 



lighter ................... A. LIMBATU8, F. 



II. Antenna) fuscous or brownish with base light; size smaller; 



colour darker ................ A. PusiLLUS, F. 



A. limbatus, F. A small elongate and narrow species with the head 

 and thorax deep black, shining, and the elytra brownish -testaceous with 

 the suture and sometimes the sides dark; pubescence greyish, rather 

 coarse, and not thick; head rather strongly punctured, antenrse rather 

 long, longer in male than in female, reddish-yellow, or brownish-yellow 

 with lighter base, serrate from third joint inclusive; third joint longer than 

 second; thorax as long as broad, convex, finely punctured, with sides 

 almost parallel, slightly rounded in front, posterior angles projecting; 

 elytra gradually narrowed to apex with rather strongly punctured striae, 

 interstices finely punctured; legs reddish yellow, femora often darker. 

 L. 4-4i mm. 



Grassy places in woods; by sweeping; rather local, but not uncommon and gene- 

 rally distributed in the London, Southern, and Midland districts ; rarer further 

 north ; Northumberland and Durham district, not common ; Scotland, rare, Sol way 

 district ; Ireland, Armagh and Dublin, and probably widely distributed. 



A. pnsillua, F. Much smaller and darker than the preceding, and 

 with the elytra more strongly acuminate; the antennae are fuscous or 

 brownish with the base clear reddish-testaceous; the pubescence also 

 appears to be thicker; the size and colour will at once distinguish it; 

 some specimens are entirely pitchy black with the shoulders alone pale; 

 the species has been mixed with the preceding in some collections as a 

 small and dark variety. L. 2^-3 mm. 



Taken by Mr. E. A. Waterbouse in July by sweeping long coarse grass in open 

 ground three or four miles from Sandwich, and also recorded by Mr. C. G. Hall from 

 Deal and Dover ; the species is apparently common all over Europe. 



AGRIOTES, Eschscholtz. 



This genus contains upwards of a hundred species, of which about 

 forty occur in Europe ; of the remainder a considerable proportion are 

 found in Central America, but very few occur south of that country, 

 and they range as far north as Siberia ; they are distinguished by having 

 the claws simple, and the sides of thorax obtuse, the margin being 

 deflexed in front ; the second joint of the antennae is usually longer than 

 the third. 



The larrce of several of the species of this genus are exceedingly destructive to 

 garden and farm crops, and, together with one or two other larva-, belonging to 

 other allied genera, constitute the well-known " wire-worms " which are so much 

 dreaded by all who have to do with the cultivation of the soil ; they have been 

 described und figured by many authors, and u long account of them, with beautiful 



