DE. F. LEUTHNER ON THE ODONTOLABINI. 393 



and illustrate an entire series in order to elucidate it sufficiently. But we shall often 

 find that our language is too poor to express our observations correctly. 

 In many Lucanidse we find, as in domestic animals : — 



(1) Individual forms. 



(2) Varieties in form. 



(3) Colour varieties. 



(4) Geographical races or subspecies. 



(5) Apparent monstrosities. 



The extent which an author allows to a species will depend on his point of view, and 

 on his conscientiousness. 



It is difficult to ascertain the exact limits of species, race, and variety in many of our 

 European Lucanidae, notwithstanding the careful study which Dr. Kraatz and others 

 have given to the subject ; and the same difficulty reappears, but greatly aucrmented, 

 when we come to study the multitudinous forms of the Odontolabini. 



It will always remain a moot point whether 0. sinensis, 0. cuvera, 0. delessertt, and 

 0. hurmeisteri should be regarded simply as local varieties or as independent species, 



(1) Among the immense amount of material at my disposal I find specimens which 

 appear to be more or less intermediate between 0. sinensis and 0. mouhoti or 

 0. cuvera. 



(2) Small males and females occur which cannot be assigned with certainty to either 

 0. cuvera or 0. delesserti. 



(3) Intermediate forms occur between 0. delesserti and 0. hurmeisteri, which establish 

 their close relationship, and which might induce many authors to regard them as 

 idenlical. But the extreme forms of apparently well-developed males and females 

 furnish equally strong grounds for regarding them as distinct species. 



Where the coloration is confined to the upper surface of the elytra, as in 0. wol- 

 lastoni and its allies, and the lower edge remains black in both sexes, it is still more 

 difficult to separate the species, as we may logically look for " artificial selection," and 

 attempt to draw a line which may not have any real existence in nature, as our sup- 

 posed species may probably interbreed, and produce fertile offspring, notwithstanding 

 their differences of colour. 



I have taken much trouble in seeking for anatomical characters to decide this delicate 

 question, but hitherto without result. 



Whereas the chitinous portions of the male sexual organs of the Cetoniida; and 

 Carabidae have been found by Kraatz and Thomson to furnish important characters 

 to separate otherwise scarcely distinguishable species, I found these characters quite 

 valueless in most of the species of the Lucanidae, and the form and armature of the 

 lateral valves of the penis are alike in all the Odontolabini, although I found them 

 very differently formed in various species of Dorcini. 



I nevertheless examined the m-ile sexual organs in a large number of Lucanidee, and 

 VOL. XI. — PAET XI. No. 2. — November, 1885. 3 n 



