260 ME. M. JACOBY ON PHYTOPHAGOUS COLEOPTERA [Mar. 6, 



base, the mucronate tibiae, and the closed anterior cavities are the 

 principal characters by which the genus may be known. 



Estcocbtiana, gen. nov. 



Oblong, glabrous ; the antennae short, the joints submoniliforin ; 

 thorax subquadrate, without depressions ; elytra irregularly punc- 

 tured, their epipleurae continued below the middle ; all the tibiae 

 with a spine at the apex ; the first joint of the tarsi as long as the 

 following two joints together ; claws appendiculate ; presternum 

 nearly invisible, the anterior coxal cavities closed. 



Amongst the genera with closed anterior cavities, the present 

 one seems most nearly allied to Err/ana Chap., but the antennae in 

 that genus are filiform and the thorax much more transversely 

 shaped. The only species of the genus here described, known to me, 

 is a small insect of nearly subcylindrical shape which I have 

 received from Natal and Mashonaland. 



Estcourtiana bifasciata, sp. n. 



Below black, above testaceous, the head partly black; thorax 

 minutely puuctured, with a central black band and a lateral spot ; 

 elytra nearly impunctate, each elytron with a broad longitudinal 

 black band nearly extending to the apex. 



\ar. a. The elytral bands replaced by an anterior and posterior 

 spot ; head fulvous. 



Var. b. Elytra without any markings. 



Length 3 mdlim. 



Head impunctate, black, obliquely grooved above the eyes, the 

 frontal elevations obsolete, oblique ; clypeus flavous, rather broad ; 

 palpi rather robust, the apical joint conical ; antennas very short, 

 the lower five or six joints Havous, the others fuscous, the 

 third joint about one-half longer than the second, the following 

 joints widened, all very short ; thorax one-half broader than long, 

 the sides feebly rounded, the angles acute, the surface very finely 

 and subremotely punctured, with a rather deep fovea near the 

 anterior angles ; elytra much wider at the base than the thorax, 

 with some extremely fine punctures near the suture, the rest 

 nearly impunctate, testaceous, a broad black band extends from 

 the middle of the base nearly to the apex ; the underside and the 

 femora black, the tibiae and tarsi flavous. 



Hah. Estcourt, Natal, Salisbury, Mashonaland, obtained by 

 sweeping (&'. Marshall). 



The specimens from Natal all belong to the varieties and it may 

 just be possible that they represent a closely allied species, but I 

 cannot find any differences of importance except those of coloration ; 

 the thorax is a trifle more transverse iu shape and the extreme sutural 

 margin is likewise black : in the variety a the elytra have an elon- 

 gate black spot anteriorly and a rounded one below the middle, 

 thus indicating the direction of the band ; in the variety L all 

 markings except those of the thorax are absent, these latter 



