748 Annals of the South African Museum. 



in schistacea. Abdomen delicately reticulate and dull. The sculpture, 

 and to some extent the colour, is masked by the dense and decumbent 

 pubescence, which has a silky and bright silvery appearance. Pilosity 

 entirely wanting, even on the legs. Head quadrate rather than oval, 

 more rectangular than in schistacea, about one-sixth longer than 

 wide, the sides feebly convex or nearly straight, about as wide in 

 front as behind, and with a feebly convex or nearly straight posterior 

 margin which is plainly visible from above, (not so in schistacea, in 

 which the margin is placed very low down). Clypeus not carinate, 

 not depressed behind the anterior margin. The pronotal spines are 

 much wider at the base than in schistacea, and their outer margins 

 are continuous with the margins of the pronotum, not forming an 

 angle with the latter as in schistacea. The dorsum of the thorax is 

 more arched, especially behind, the posterior half of the dorsum of 

 the epinotum being almost vertical. The dorsum of the epinotum is 

 a little wider than long and slightly wider behind than in front ; the 

 posterior angles terminate in small obtuse tubercles, not teeth. The 

 spines of the scale are a little shorter and less divergent, and the outer 

 teeth a little longer than in schistacea. Otherwise like that species. 



$, (hitherto undescribed), 10 mm. Pronotal spines almost as long 

 as in the £, twice as long as their basal width. Mesonotum one-fourth 

 wider than long, scutellum half as long as the mesonotum, very little 

 wider (excluding the paraptera) in front than behind. Dorsum of 

 epinotum quadrate, two and a half times wider than long, barely 

 wider in front than behind, its basal half horizontal, the apical half 

 curving slightly downwards. The declivity vertical, a little shorter 

 than the dorsum, moderately concave from above to below. The 

 lateral teeth of the scale much stouter than in the £, the inner spines 

 one-third shorter and less divergent than in the $. Wings brown, 

 nervures and stigma blackish brown. Otherwise like the $. In hot 

 and moist localities only. 



Palm Grove, Victoria Falls ; Stella Bush, Durban. 



The specimens from Durban were separated by Forel as a distinct 

 variety, differing from the type only by the slightly less robust 

 stature and the less brilliant pubescence. The supposed difference 

 in the nature of the pubescence is, however, unreal, being due to the 

 specimens having been immersed in spirits of wine, which, to a very 

 great extent, destroys the brilliancy. In life, the insect is brilliantly 

 silvery. 



(S.A.M., P.M., G.A. colls. ; type of $ in my collection). 



