1896.] of the Coleoptera of South Africa. 553 



oblong, subdepressed, not broader than the prothorax, striate, nearly 

 smooth except the two outer intervals, which are very finely acicu- 

 late, eighth stria punctulate all along. Length 8 mm. ; width 3 mm. 

 Hab. Cape Colony (Cape Town). 



Abacetus agilis. 



Black, with an senescent tinge ; antennae, palpi, and legs entirely 

 black; head smooth, frontal sulci hardly defined; prothorax am- 

 pliate laterally from the apical part to past the median part, and a 

 little more attenuate from there to the base than in the anterior part, 

 posterior angle conspicuous, lateral part of the posterior margins 

 recurved, moderately plane on the disk and with a very few shallow 

 punctures in the base ; elytra oblongo-ovate, a little attenuate behind 

 from the median part, depressed, striate, all the stria} punctured, 

 the punctures on the eighth one a little larger than on the other 

 intervals. Length 7 mm. ; width 2^ mm. 



Hab. Cape Colony (? Cape Town). 



Abacetus chalcites. 



Black, with a slight senescent tinge ; basal joint of antennae red ; 

 legs piceous, apex of femora piceous red ; head smooth, frontal sulci 

 hardly defined ; prothorax rounded laterally, base nearly as l:)road as 

 apex, posterior angle almost blunt, base punctured from side to side, 

 and with a deep impression along the lateral grooves ; elytra oblong, 

 depressed, striate, the striae smooth, the eighth one with a series of 

 interrupted large punctures. 



A near ally of A. cenescens, but distinguished by the shape of the 

 prothorax which is not quite so orbicular and is deeply impressed 

 along the basal lateral grooves, the base is densely punctured, 

 whereas it is smooth in cBnescens. Length 1^ mm. ; width 3 mm. 



Hab. Cape Colony (Cape Town). 



Abacetus chalceus, Chaud., 

 Bull. Mosc, 1869, p. 394. 



Bronze, shiny on the upper part, black underneath ; basal joint 

 of antennae slightly rufescent ; femora black ; tibiae subrufescent ; 

 head smooth, frontal sulci neither deep nor much arcuate ; prothorax 

 much rounded laterally, a little less broad at base than apex, plane 

 with the posterior margins recurved, posterior angle nearly blunt, a 

 few scattered small punctures along the base, which is sometimes 

 quite smooth ; elytra elongate, not broader than the prothorax at the 

 base, depressed, striate, the striae smooth, the eighth one with an 

 uninterrupted series of punctures from the base to three-fourths of 



