490 NEW AUSTRALIAN SPECIES OF THE FAMILY LIBELLULIDM, 



Appendages: Superior 1 -5 mm., wide apart at bases; narrow 

 sublanceolate, curved downward and inclined so as to meet at 

 tips, which are blunt and rounded; hairy, granulate, deep black. 

 Inferior nearly as long as superior, thick, truncate, hairy, black. 



The specimen described was a somewhat immature one. Pro- 

 bably in the mature insect the whites and greys become yellowish. 



£. Differs from male as follows : — A larger insect; forewing 

 37 mm. Wings deeply suffused all over with rich orange-brown; 

 no spots at bases of costal nervures. Nodal Indicator 114 9-10] 

 Those parts of head and thorax which are white or grey 110 11 

 in male are bright yellow in the female. Abdomen thicker than 

 in male, subcylindrical, 2-8 tapering; 3-4 with a suspicion of a 

 brown basal spot on either side of dorsal ridge; 2-5 with a pair 

 of indistinct central brown spots; 10 projecting below, very hairy. 

 Appendages thin, short, cylindrical, 1 mm.; wide apart at bases, 

 parallel, hairy. 



Hah. — Kuranda, N.Q.; January, 1905; rare(l £, 2 £). 



Taken along the railway line in the dense bush on the side of 

 the ranges. It has an easy flight and is not difficult to capture. 

 Male very similar at first sight to Syncordulia atrifrons, but 

 easily distinguished by the basilar space being reticulate. 



M, Rene Martin has regarded this species merely as a variety 

 of S. guttata, a common southern species. A careful comparison 

 of S. nigra and S. guttata, however, will show that the differences 

 between the two are as great as, if not greater than, the differ- 

 ences between any two of the three species guttata, brevistyla and 

 virgula. Perhaps . they none of them deserve higher rank than 

 that of subspecies; but while the other species stand, I am con- 

 vinced that this must also take rank as a separate species. 



The following comparison will show the points of difference 

 between nigra and guttata : — 



<S'. guttata. S. nigra. 



Neuration close. Neuration much more open. 



A clear yellow line along the Only the slightest touch of 



dorsal ridge. yellow along the dorsal ridge. 



