370 Descriptive Catalogue [1898. 



Tachyb optimus. 



Brownish red, shining ; legs and palpi flavescent ; antennae also 

 flavescent with the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh joints darker 

 than the others ; prothorax elongato-cordate, i.e., longer than broad, 

 rounded laterally from the apex to two-thirds of the length, narrowed 

 and straight from there to the base, the angle of which projects, 

 convex in the anterior part and with two deep impressions on each 

 side of the base ; elytra twice as broad at the base as that of the 

 prothorax, and in the middle nearly three times as the prothorax at 

 its widest part, truncate at base with the angles sharp, broadly ovate 

 and sharply acuminate behind, convex, and having on each side 

 besides the sutural stria, which disappears beyond the top of the 

 posterior declivity, a dorsal one reaching from the base to the 

 median part of the disk, and a very distinct supra-marginal one ; 

 in the space between the sutural and dorsal stria there is a very 

 broad puncture placed nearer to the base than to the median part, 

 and none in the posterior part. Length 2i mm. ; width It mm. 



Hab. Natal (Malvern). 



Similar in shape to T. humeralis, Catal., p. 599, but a little larger 

 and having a dorsal stria on the elytra which is entirely wanting in 

 T. humeralis. 



Tachys servilis. 



Black, shining ; legs pale flavous, the two basal joints of antennae 

 flavescent, the four following distinctly fuscous, and the terminal 

 five nearly w T hite ; prothorax elongato-cordate with the basal angle 

 moderately sharp, convex in the anterior part, and having two deep 

 punctures on each side of the base ; elytra ovate, twice as broad at 

 base as the basal part of the prothorax, and also twice as broad on 

 the middle as the prothorax at its widest, acuminate behind, convex, 

 and having besides the sutural and supra-marginal striae, the former 

 of which is very indistinct, a short one, nearly median and reaching 

 from the base to one-fourth of the length, as well as two extremely 

 fine punctures difficult to distinguish, one at a short distance from 

 the base and the other just past the middle, the basal one is nearly 

 equidistant from the suture and the dorsal stria ; the elytra are 

 black with two red spots in the posterior part. Length 2^ mm. ; 

 width 1 mm. 



Hab. Natal (Malvern). 



This species is very closely allied to T. humeralis, Catal., p. 

 599, and also to the preceding species from which it is mainly dis- 

 tinguished by the shorter stria on each elytron, and by the smaller 

 size which approximates it more to T. humeralis. 



