219 



are often longer and stouter, and the front and middle tarsi 

 are often more dilated; the male is usually smaller than the 

 female, but in the big- jawed forms it is usually larger; 

 although I have seldom considered it necessary to describe 

 the proportions of the antennal joints they have in every 

 instance been examined, and are short, with the. five apical 

 joints forming a kind of club; on some species, especially 

 on their females, the five joints are moderately long, 

 approaching those of Elaphodes, but it was not considered 

 desirable to refer to that genus any species whose prothorax 

 and elytra are entirely glabrous. The shagreening of parts 

 of the surface of many species is very conspicuous, but on 

 some it is difficult to decide as to whether the surface should 

 be regarded as shagreened, or as densely and finely punctate. 

 Owing to the scutellar lobe the length of the prothorax is 

 distinctly more along the middle than elsewhere, and its 

 proportions are of use for identification, but these are usually 

 sexually variable ; the punctures on the prothorax are often 

 different on the sides to what they are in the middle, being 

 usually denser and coarser, but sometimes smaller and 

 sparser, they frequently become elongated and confluent, or 

 they may be replaced by striae, especially in the front angles; 

 the base is finely serrated, and the serrations are very distinct 

 on pale specimens whose prothorax and elytra are not closely 

 applied together; but on dark ones with those parts close 

 together the serrations are usually concealed. The scutellum 

 is always small, but its apparent length varies according as 

 to whether the prothorax is closely applied to the elytra or 

 not. The elytra usually have rows of distinct punctures, 

 not set in striae on the disc, but on the sides the punctures 

 usually become larger, and set in more or less deep striae, 

 these are two or three (rarely four) in number, but as the 

 depth of the inner one varies, it is not always easy to decide 

 as to their number, the marginal stria, however, is frequently 

 impunctate ; on most of the species the shoulders are smooth, 

 obtusely subtuberculate, and interrupt some of the lateral 

 striae. On many species the third segment of the abdomen, 

 although distinct on each side, disappears in the middle. The 

 genus is such a large one (with the exception of Paropsis it 

 consists of a greater number of species than any other of the 

 family), so many of the species have varietal forms, and so 

 many may be identified with certainty only from the males, 

 or by characters which may not be readily used for tables, 

 that I have not considered it advisable to give a table of the 

 genus. The species accordingly have been arranged in groups, 

 which may simplify future identifications, but owing to the 



