Mr. P. H. Gosse on the Insects of Jamaica. 349 



"Shell rather tumid, ovate, elli})tic, very inequilateral, with the 

 beaks nearly terminal at the truncated anteal extremity. The 

 posteal extremity rounded. An arched furrow runs from the 

 beak to the margin at the anteal extremity. This furrow is 

 smooth ; the space in front of it is terminated by about a dozen 

 nearly perpendicular curved grooves, bounding a somewhat im- 

 pressed, nearly smooth indistinct area. Between the arched 

 groove and in front of the border of the lunule, all over the shell 

 are fine curving divaricating furrows, forming a series of elegant 

 angular markings. Towards the cardinal margin these furrows 

 curve inwards, widen, and have thicker interspaces, so as to den- 

 ticulate the borders of the lanceolate and nearly smooth lunule. 

 The ventral margin appears to have had smooth lips. The cast 

 is smooth. Dimensions of the most perfect specimen, from beak 

 to posterior angle, y^^ : central breadth j^^ : thickness -^q. 



" This remarkable shell belongs to a gi'oup of Nuculce^ of which 

 there are few known species, either living or fossil. The oldest 

 known members of the section occur in cretaceous strata : iVw- 

 cula bivirgata, Sowerby, and Nucula ornatissima, D'Orbigny, both 

 gault species, are examples. Still nearer the West Indian species 

 is the Nucula Cobboldice of the crag, a species which lived on in 

 the Celtic region of Europe till the elevation of the sea-bed of 

 the glacial epoch caused its extinction. Two living Nucula re- 

 present this group, viz. Nucula divaricata and Nucula castrensis, 

 both described by Mr. Hinds in the ' Zoology of the Voyage of 

 the Sulphur ' ; the former was taken in twenty-four fathoms in 

 the Chinese seas, and the latter dredged in seven fathoms, sand^ 

 at Sitka in North- West America.^^ 



XXXIX. — On the Insects of Jamaica. By Philip Henry Gosse. 



[Continued from p. 270.] 



63. Brentus (sp.). Taken on Bluefields Mountain early in 

 June. 



64. Brentus (sp.). Small. Taken in the same locality a day 

 or two after the former. 



65. Brentus (sp.). Intermediate in size between the preceding 

 two. Taken at the Hampstead Road near the end of June. 



66. Pachnceus (sp. near opalus). Numerous on the Hampstead 

 Road in June, on low shrubs and herbaceous plants. 



67. Diaprepes Spengleri. I found this weevil in some abun- 

 dance on the stunted prickly trees growing in the Pedro Plains, 

 about the middle of June. I also found it plentiful in the island 

 of St. Thomas, about a month later. 



