358 



POROPTERUS MOLLIS, n. Sp. 



Very densely clothed with large soft scales, varying from 

 ashen-grey to sooty, the latter mostly composing fascicles; 

 apical fourth of rostrum glabrous. 



Head with normally-concealed punctures. Rostrum 

 moderately long, sides incurved to middle; with dense and 

 coarse punctures, concealed except near apex. Antennae in- 

 serted about one-third from apex of rostrum; first joint of 

 funicle much longer than second. Prothorax slightly longer 

 than wide, sides strongly rounded, subapical constriction 

 shallow but continuous ; apex with two fascicles, across middle 

 four more, but the median ones semi-double; with dense 

 normally-concealed punctures; with a feeble median remnant 

 of a median carina. Scutellum small. Elytra elongate or 

 elliptic-ovate; with many fascicles, mostly blackish, more 

 numerous on third and fifth interstices than elsewhere, some- 

 times appearing as more or less elongated crests, a distinct 

 fascicle on suture beyond the middle; with large punctures 

 more or less concealed, even on sides. Mesosternal receptacle 

 feebly raised; emargination strongly transverse. Abdomen 

 with numerous but more or less concealed punctures; first 

 segment slightly longer than three following combined, its 

 apex lightly incurved to middle; third and fourth strongly 

 depressed below level of second and fifth, their combined 

 length distinctly shorter than that of either of those segments. 

 Legs rather short; hind femora not extending to apical seg- 

 ment; third tarsal joint rather wide and deeply bilobed. 

 Length, 9 mm. 



Hah. — Tasmania: Hobart (A. M. Lea). 



A narrow densely-squamose species of the antiquus group. 

 In some respects it is close to alhoscutellaris, but is narrower 

 and with a fascicle on the suture just before hind declivity; 

 the latter character readily distinguishes it from all other 

 members of the group. Many members of the lifhodermvs 

 group have such a fascicle, but those species are all exscutel- 

 late. The type is probably a male. 



PoROPTERUs siMSONi, ucw name. 



I have to propose this name for the species I described 

 as P. nodosus, Dr. Ferguson having kindly drawn my atten- 

 tion to the fact that that name had been previously used for 

 a New Guinea species of the genus, originally referred to 

 Mormosintes.^^^) 



The type of the species is a male. The female differs 

 in having less of the rostrum squamose, and the antennae 

 inserted rather more distant from the apex. 



(33)Pascoe, Ann. Mus. Cir. Gen., 1885, p. 265. 



