BY H J. CARTER. 265 



A. ancilla Pasc, is a near ally of A. nitidum Carter, from which 

 it differs in its more distinct hind angles to the prothorax inter 

 alia. This and the preceding species are labelled Darling Downs, 

 Q., but I have never seen them in nature. 



A. commodum Pasc. — A common Tasmanian insect, very 

 Licinoma-like from its narrow and nearly smooth prothorax, 

 scarcely emarginate at the apex. It is in most collections. 



A. succisum Pasc, is a synonym of A. angidicolle Castel ,jide 

 Pascoe (Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. 1869, p.132). 



A. geniale Pasc. — I have long been in doubt as to its distinc- 

 tion from A. calosomoides. This doubt has been intensified by an 

 examination of the respective types. In Pascoe's notes following 

 the brief description he says A. geniale is distinguished from A. 

 calosomoides by having elytra striated with the same broad out- 

 line. I had some trouble in finding Kirby's type in the British 

 Museum, but Mr. Gahan kindly unearthed it from the " Century 

 of Insects Coll " in a separate place, and I was astonished to find 

 that it is distinctly striated, and that no specimen marked geniale 

 or calosomoides in the British Museum or in my own long series 

 had more marked striations. The figure given by Kirby, and 

 presumably copied by Blessig, is thus misleading, as presenting 

 smooth, unstriate elytra. It would appear that Pascoe had not 

 examined Kirby's type when he wrote the above. The pronotum 

 of Kirby's t}^pe is also more rugose than any specimens marked 

 geniale or calosomoides that I could find. In such polymorphous 

 insects as Tenebrionidae it is unwise to dogmatise, but the evidence 

 is strongly in favour of considering the above two species as 

 merely variations of a very polymorphic species of wide range. 

 The variations consist of (1) great diversity of size, especially in 

 width, and in relation to sex; (2) colour-variation from shining 

 bronze to a discolorous form in which the prothorax is green or 

 green-bronze; (3) variation in the rugosity of pronotum; (4) elytral 

 sculpture from being nearly smooth, i.e., with intervals not raised, 

 to marked striation in which the intervals are subconvex. (In 

 the latter case somewhat raised lines appear towards the apex). 

 It is possible that the greater rugosity of pronotum, and marked 



