478 ON AUSTRALIAN ANTHICIDAE, 



in 1894, as A. exiguus (These Proc, 1894, p. 616) ; but that name had recently 

 been used by Champion for an American species (Biol. Cent. Am., iv. (2), 1890, 

 p. 240). On my attention being called to this I purposed altering the name 

 to A. rubriceps (These Proc, 1896, p. 295), but Pic in the same year (Feuille 

 jeun. Nat. 1895 (1896), p. 180) had named an European species A. rubriceps, 

 so that, although the name A. leae was not proposed until 1897 (Ann. Soe. ent. 

 Beige, 1897, p. 344) it must stand for the species. 



A specimen from Cairns, belonging to this species, differs from the type in 

 having the whole of the upper surface (except for an infuscated elytral fascia 

 just beyond the middle, and a space about the scutellum) flavous, and the legs 

 still paler. 



Anthicus brtanti Pic. 



This beautiful species is common at Cairns and Mount Tambourine in 

 Queensland, and has also been taken at Wollongong (New South Wales) and 

 Ringwood (Victoria). It varies in length from 2 to 3 mm. The depressed part 

 of the derm supporting the sub-basal fascia of silvery pubescence on the elytra is 

 often quite as black as the other parts, but is usually more or less conspicuously 

 reddish ; the" subapical fascia of pubescence is nearly always narrowly connected 

 with the sub-basal one along tlie suture, and frequently has a wider prolongation 

 along the suture half-way to the apex. 



Anthicus pallipes Lea. 



In the original description of this species I omitted to mention that the 

 prothorax is opaque, except that the dilated front sides are shining, this giving 

 the "angled" appearance noted, and being a conspicuous feature of the typical 

 form and all the varieties. On the typical form, common at Cairns, the upper 

 surface is black or blackish (the head and prothorax are often dark reddish- 

 brown) and the elytra have two interrupted flavous fasciae: one sub-basal, the 

 other post -median; but the sub-basal one is occasionally continuous, and may 

 even have a slight sutural prolongation towards the base. 



Variety A. A stOl more common form in North Queensland than the typical 

 one, has the upper surface pale, except that on the elytra there is a large dark 

 spot (usually black) on each shoulder, a wide black median fascia, rather narrow 

 near the suture, then strongly dilated and rather abruptly terminated before the 

 sides, and a deeply infuscated fascia near the apex, rather widely connected along 

 the suture with the median one, so as to form a fairly regular x; the tibiae on 

 specimens of this and the following varieties are usually entirely pale. On an 

 occasional specimen (including one from Eockhampton and another from the 

 Blackall Range) the median fascia is dilated so as to occupy almost one-third 

 of the elytra. 



Variety B. A specimen (trapped by sticky seeds of Pisonia brunoniana at 

 Kuranda) is pale as in the preceding variety, with the elytral markings reduced 

 to a large blackish spot on each side of the middle, and the humeral and sub- 

 apical ones to faint infuscations. 



Variety C. Seven specimens, from Melville Island, are even paler than the 

 variety A, but have the median fascia larger and more dilated to near the sides, 

 along which they are connected with the sub-apical fascia, the connection along 

 the suture is very narrow and faint, so that the resemblance of the dark mark- 

 ings to an X is lost. On two specimens, from Darwin, the pale portion at the 

 tip of the elytra is so obscure that it can scarcely be distinguished from the 

 subapical fascia; on all other specimens of the varieties the tips are conspicuously 

 pale. 



