PlinidcB of the Canary Islands. 207 



ut in Nitpo ; sed ocid'is Interdiim minus rotundatis, protJwrace 

 minus subcylindrico (ad latera paulo magis sequaliter rotun- 

 (\a.to), aniennis vix gracilioribus et 11- (nee 9-) articulatis, 

 necnon tarsis omnibus (in utroque sexu) pentameris. 



The seven species whicii I cliaracterized in the " Insecta Ma- 

 derensia" as aberrant Ptitii, under the Sectional name o{ Sphce- 

 ricus, are evidently members of M. De Boieldieu's Division of 

 Tr'igono genius for which he retained Gene's title of Tipnus : 

 indeed the albopictus (so universal throughout the Madeiran 

 archipelago, and which is intimately related to the rest) was 

 actually examined by M. De Boieldieu, whilst compiling his 

 Monograph of the Piinidce, and referred by him without doubt to 

 that particular group. Hence, in my recent dissections,* I have 

 not hesitated to regard both the albopicius and simplex as normal 

 representatives of Tipnus (as registered by M. De Boieldieu, and 

 subsequently characterized by M. Duval), Nevertheless with 

 respect to the mere name of the genus, there can be no question 

 \yide the foot-note, p. 206] that " Sphcericus" has the priority. 



10. Sphcericus simplex, n. sp. (PI. VIII. fig. 6.) 



S, capite prothoraceque nigro-piceis et squamis cinereis parce 

 tectis, hoc ad latera paulo rotundato, subaequali ; elytris plus 

 minus clarioribus, ovalibus, vix profunde punctatis, fascia 



for these insects in 1854, substituting instead one of his own published in 1860, it 

 is difficult to conjecture. In ray short sectional diagnosis I gave at all events 

 sufficient particulars for recognizing these species from the true Ptiiii [for, in ad- 

 dition lojigures of three of them, I called attention to their globose form, apterous 

 bodies, scaly (instead of pilose) surface, convex (instead of posteriorly constricted) 

 prothorax, and (besides two other characters of less importance) their obsolete 

 scutella], so that it is a simple act of injustice when M. Duval disposes of all this 

 in the few following words: " Du reste, M. WoUaston basait son groupe sur des 

 caracteres sans valeur," Surely M. Duval must have been aware thai, after all, 

 those few points to which I alluded embody the main differential features of the 

 group; at any rate in glancing at his own diagnosis I find very little else, of a 

 distinctive kind, referred to : and even if they did not embody them, it would 

 still be no argument for the rejection of the title which I imposed on it. As for 

 his observation that, in my Catalogue of 1857, I suppressed the name o( Sjjhieri- 

 cus in favour of Trignnogenius, of Gay and Solier, it is mere " special pleading." 

 The reason luhy I substituted Trigonogenius in that Catalogue, was, because it 

 was an older term than my own (so that the law of priority required the change) : 

 but now that the name of Trignnogenius is limited to the South American species, 

 it is quite evident that the title which I proposed for the European and Atlantic 

 ones (three of which were absolutely figured) should be adopted. 



* My dissections of Sphariciis, given in the Plate, are taken from the Madeiran 

 alliopiclus (which is almost identical, specifically, with the simplei). 



