1904.] Catalogue of the Coleoptera of South Africa. 287 



Asthenopholis sub-fasciata, Blanch., 



Catal. Coll. Entom., 1850, p. 152. 



A. dasypus, Burm., Handb., iv., 2, p. 318. 

 A. adspersus, Bohem., Ins. Caffr. ii., p. 94. 

 A. minor, Brsk., Stett. Ent. Zeit., p. 390. 



Chestnut or ferruginous-brown, with the club of antennae yellow r 

 but also occasionally with the head and prothorax fuscous or even 

 with the whole upper side fuscous-black ; clypeus, prothorax, and 

 scutellum covered with deep, closely set cicatricose punctures bearing 

 each a yellowish squamose hair ; elytra with each puncture bearing 

 also a whitish, minute scale, pectus densely hairy, abdomen and 

 pygidial part clothed with fine, appressed, sub-navescent hairs ; 

 clypeus deeply and closely punctured, rounded laterally, emarginate 

 in the centre, head with a distinct transverse prominence on the 

 vertex, scrobiculate ; prothorax with the squamose punctures set 

 very close to each other, the outer margins are slightly serrate in 

 the anterior part, the anterior and basal margins densely hairy ; 

 scutellum closely punctate hairy ; elytra with three costules 

 on each side and having past the median part three elongated, 

 parallel impunctate bands, which in some examples ascend how- 

 ever towards the base as in the type {sub-fasciatus) or are very 

 indistinct or not at all visible (A. minor); the appressed hairs 

 on the pygidial part and abdomen are a little more flavescent 

 than the squamose ones on the elytra. Herr Brenske has com- 

 municated to me his types of A. transvaalensis and A. minor which 

 I am unable to separate from A. sub-fasciatus and A. adspersus 

 Boh., the two types of which I have seen. In order to show how 

 variable this species is, I may mention that I have received from 

 Malvern, Natal, examples with black thorax and fuscous, or black 

 elytra taken with examples having a black thorax and nearly scale- 

 less black-red elytra. The first mentioned would be A. minor of 

 Brenske, to the latter, however, he assigned the name in litt. of 

 A. bechuana. A. transvaalensis, Brsk., is somewhat larger than the 

 typical A. sub-fasciata, and the colour of the upper side is fuscous 

 black, as in A. minor. The genital armature of A. sub-fasciata and 

 A. minor are absolutely similar. 



Length 16-21 mm. ; width 10 mm. 



Hab. Cape Colony (Graham's Town, Seymour, Transkei, East 

 London, Port St. John) ; Natal (Durban, Maritzburg, Malvern) ; 

 Transvaal (Pretoria, Eustenburg, Lydenburg) ; Bechuanaland, teste 

 Brenske. 



