OMALID.E. 



327 



the base : elytra deep pitchy -h\ac\i, obscurely punctured : abdomen linear, 

 with the apex acute: legs dull pitchy, with the tarsi brighter: anieniKE 

 pitchy. 



Not common ; taken in Yorkshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, and Devon- 

 shire. 



Sp. 9. atratus. Niger, nitidiusculus, thorace distinctebi'inipresso, antennis pedi- 

 busque atro-piceis. (Long. corp. :|lin.) 



Ca. atratus. Sieph. Catal. 294-. iVo, 3215. 



Slender, black, slightly shining, nearly glabrous : head nearly as wide as the 

 thorax, the front with two deep impressions : thorax with a deep slightly 

 curved impression on each side of the disc towards the base : elytra very 

 delicately punctured and finely sericeous, with a faint depression towards the 

 base of the suture : abdomen rather widest towards the apex, the latter 

 acute-angular; legs deep -pitchy-black : antennce the same. 



Taken near London and in Wiltshire, apparently not common. 



Family LXX.-OMALIDJE, Mac Leay. 



Head exserted, united by a distinct neck to the thorax, the latter in general 

 very much widened behind, but occasionally narrower than in front and 

 obcordate, the surface mostly convex, and rarely with deep longitudinal 

 sculptures. Antennce very short, or of moderate length, inserted before the 

 eyes, on an elevation beneath the margin of the head, generally thickened at 

 the apex, but sometimes filiform : palpi various ; maxillary shorter than the 

 head: labrum transverse, entire, very rarely notched: mandibles acute, fre- 

 quently ciliated within: eyes moderately prominent: body in general flat, 

 rarely convex : elytra rather long : legs slender ; femora sometimes a little 

 incrassated ; tibix simple, or in rare instances with short spinose processes on 

 the outer margin ; tarsi pentamerous. 



The insects of this family depart considerably in appearance from 

 the typical group of Brachelytra ; and the last genus at first sight 

 closely resembles Dromius, a Geodephagous genus (vol. i. p. 16), 

 the type of which was called Staphylinus Caraboides by Linne and 

 his followers : the present family may be generally known by having 

 the head exserted, with a distinct neck, the labrum in general entire, 

 the maxillary palpi shorter than the head, with their terminal joint 

 minute and acicular, or conic-acute ; elytra ample ; body mostly de- 

 pressed ; tibiae simple and tarsi pentamerous : the species reside in 

 dung, fungi, Sec. or delight to revel in flowers during the summer 

 months, and in the winter are found beneath moss, dead leaves, &c. 



