204 



BB. Upper surface evenly pubescent. loiticulus, Blackb. 



AAA. Form ovate ; under surface black, except ventral seg- 

 ments, which are bright red. ventralis, Er. 



AA. Prosternum antice jequaliter convexum, longitu- 

 dinaliter neccarinatum nee sulcatum. 

 B. Species majores. 

 In this group the intercoxal portion of the prosternum is more 

 •or less carinate laterally but the part in front of the cox?e is 

 simply convex with more or less tendency to be compressed, 

 especially in the extreme front, owing to which the middle of the 

 front margin is more or less angularly prominent. The eyes are 

 extremely coarsely granulated and placed very obliquely. 

 R. austraJis, sp. nov. Oblongo-ovalis ; subparallelus ; minus 

 convexus ; sat nitidus ; pubescens ; rufus, elytris (margine 

 laterali sat anguste rufo excepto) piceo-nigris ; capite 

 prothoraceque subtiliter sat crebre, elytris fortius subrugulose, 

 punctulatis. Long., 2f 1. ; lat.. If 1. 

 The red lateral margin of the elytra is not very sharply defined 

 or conspicuous ; it is continued round the apex where it is a little 

 dilated. The pubescence of the upper surface is uniform {i.e., not 

 containing hairs conspicuously longer and more erect than the 

 rest). The third joint of the antennae is as long as the following 

 two together ; the ninth and tenth joints are transverse and have 

 their inner apex produced in a kind of lobe which is curved for- 

 ward against the basal part of the next joint. The pro thorax is 

 quite twice as wide as long, widest at the base Avhich is more 

 than half again as vv^ide as the front margin, the latter moderately 

 emarginate with angles quite rounded off; the sides converge 

 slightly from the base to about the middle, thence roundly and 

 more strongly. On the underside the puncturation is fine and 

 -close on the sides (and almost effaced in the middle) of the meso 

 and meta-sterna, fine and close on the sides (and very sparing in 

 the middle) of the ventral segments ; the abdominal plates are 

 about five-sixths the length of the basal segment and are 

 punctured more sparsely than the adjacent surface ; the meso- 

 sternum is quite a third as long as the metasternum, and is not 

 emarginate in front ; the prosternum is rather wide and flat 

 ■between the cox^ with its sides parallel and finely keeled, its 

 anterior (and longer) portion being evenly and rather strongly 

 convex ; the angular prominence of the anterior mai^in of the 

 prosternum is extremely feeble. The widest part of the pro- 

 thorax is five-sevenths of the width of the widest part of the 

 elytra. The claws are appendiculate, but the inner apex of the 

 basal piece is sharp and tooth-like. The middle of the hind mar- 

 gin of the basal ventral segment is roundly and widely (but 



