4 C;. Me Bs von EAWEK 
INTRODUCTION 
THE Elateridae considered in this work are those comprising the Agrypninae of the 
Schenkling Catalogue (1925), with the exception of Anaspasis (see p. 5), and 
those subsequently described as belonging or related to the genera in this subfamily. 
The genus Octocryptus is included as a matter of convenience as the species bear 
a superficial but close resemblance to certain Agrypninae. 
The category subfamily is adopted for the group principally because it is the 
one used in the most recent practical key to the Elateridae of the world (Fleutiaux, 
19g41a : 36). Other workers have treated the same group of species as a tribe 
(Agrypnini Schwarz, 1906, Adelocerini Arnett, 1969), subtribe (Agrypnina Hyslop, 
IgI7 : 236) or intermediate group (Agrypnitae Fleutiaux, 194Ic). 
Recent years have seen the establishment of a number of new genera and 
subgenera belonging to the Agrypninae. A study of the literature has shown that 
in almost every case the diagnosis of the old established and new genera and 
subgenera are little more than brief summaries of the most conspicuous features 
of the type-species. In very few cases only are there any indications of the range 
of variation which may be found within the genus or any effort made to define its 
limits. Attempts to identify material has shown that many species cannot be 
accommodated satisfactorily in any genus as at present defined, while others can 
be placed equally well in two or more genera. 
This unsatisfactory state of affairs suggests that the characters until now used 
for the separation of the genera display a greater degree of variation than has 
been hitherto suspected. The reason why this has only now become apparent is 
that both past and present workers have based their studies on restricted faunas 
and shown little or no interest in the relationship of the species considered in their 
works with those found in other regions. In addition, workers have continued 
to use the same classic characteristics for the separation of the genera as their 
predecessors over a hundred years ago, and almost no attempt has been made 
to evaluate these characters at the generic level or to discover new ones. 
THE CLASSIC CHARACTERS USED 
FOR THE SEPARATION OF THE GENERA 
The characters until now used for the separation of the genera have been the 
length and depth of the tarsal grooves, the appearance of the surface and lateral 
margins of the prothorax and elytra, the form of the mesosternal groove, the length 
of the antennae and of the femora of the middle legs and the structure of the fourth 
tarsal segment. 
Examination of a great deal of material in the British Museum (Natural History), 
the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, the Institut Royal des Sciences 
Naturelles de Belgique, Brussels, and other collections has shown that the degree 
to which these characteristics are developed varies from one species to another 
and sometimes from one individual to another and also that they occur in such 
varied combinations that they are of no value at the generic level. However the 
present investigation and a study of the literature has led to the discovery of new 
