375 



number of punctures is mentioned as occupying a given 

 distance, the meaning is that that number of punctures 

 averagely spaced ivould occupy that distance if they ran 

 regularly in line. Thus the statement that about ten 

 punctures from the apex reach to the middle of pronotum 

 means that the punctures are so spaced that if ten of them 

 averagely spaced were placed on a straight line down the 

 middle of the pronotum they would reach to about the 

 middle of the segment; as a fact, the punctures very seldom 

 do run in straight lines, and where the puncturation is sparse 

 a right line down the middle of the pronotum might actually 

 touch very few of the punctures, passing between most of 

 them. 



This expedient of indicating specific characters by 

 counting the punctures is, of course, available only in the 

 case of the difference of puncturation being considerable, 

 and, moreover, does not serve for notifying the relative fine- 

 7iess or otherwise of the punctures. It is, however, essential, 

 if the distinctive characters of a great number of species such 

 as compose Heteronyx are to be intelligently cast into a 

 tabular form, that no character be passed over which can by 

 any means be indicated with definite clearness, and therefore 

 I have adopted the expedient of selecting certain species as 

 standard species with which others may be compared, choos- 

 ing those which are the most widely distributed and the 

 most easily identified. There are three Heteronyces which 

 from their distribution might be confidently expected to be 

 present in any collection including a fair number of species 

 from New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and 

 Western Australia, all of which can be named without much 

 difficulty — at any rate, can be identified with the insects to 

 which I in this revision apply the names. H . obesus, Burm., is 

 found in all the places named above, and has no very close 

 ally known to me. H. jubatus, Blackb., is a common species 

 in New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia, and is 

 easily identified by the characters given in my former revi- 

 sion (Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.W., 1889, p. 662) or in the tabu- 

 lation to follow in this present revision, and, moreover, its 

 only near allies fH. fallax, Blackb., and H. sfriatipennis, 

 Blanch.) have elytra similarly punctured. H. eJongatus^ 

 Blanch., is common in New South Wales, and is at once 

 identified among its nearer allies by the conspicuous pencil 

 of long fine setae at the inner apex of each elytron. I shall 

 not hesitate, therefore, to indicate distinctions of punctura- 

 tion by comparison with those species. For the sake of 

 brevity I shall not hold it necessary to quote the authors' 

 names when I have occasion to refer to those species. 



