RECLASSIFICATION OF SUBFAMILY AGRYPNINAE 119 
this ability to jump when turned on their backs plays in the life of the beetles. 
According to Horion (1949 : 118) murinus, when turned on its back, refuses to 
right itself in the accepted Elaterid fashion but defends itself by everting the paired 
[? stink] glands lying near the tip of the abdomen. I have found no descriptions 
of the behaviour of other Agrypnus species under similar circumstances. 
The larvae of a number of species, including murinus have been described and 
figured. They live in the ground and in so far as is known they are carnivorous 
though some (e.g. murinus) may feed on roots. Van Emden (1945) and Ohira 
(1962) contain useful bibliographies of works on Elaterid larvae. 
THE SPECIES INCLUDED IN THE GENUS AGRY PNUS 
The majority of species now assigned to the genus were described at the time 
when mwurinus Linnaeus was believed to be a typical representative, or later the 
type-species, of the genus Lacon and are listed under this generic name in the 
Schenkling catalogue. After Fleutiaux’s (1926) correction of the catalogue, a 
number of species were described as Adelocera. The following 409 species known 
to me are now assigned to Agrypnus. 
Agrypnus aberdarensis (Fleutiaux) comb. n. 
Adelocera (Archontas) aberdarensis Fleutiaux, 1935) : 199. 
LECTOTYPE (present designation). KENyA: 9, Kenya, Mais. Forest, Kinangop, 
Mts. Aberdare, vers ouest. 2,600m; Mission de l’?Omo, C. Arambourg, P.-A. 
Chappius, R. Jeannel 1932—33; aberdarensis Fleut., type [Fleut.] (MNHN, Paris). 
Paralectotypes. 22 ex., same locality as lectotype, one with Fleutiaux’s 
determination label (MNHN, Paris). 1 9, same locality as lectotype, with 
Fleutiaux’s determination label (BMNH). 1 ex., Elgeyo escarpment, 2500 m, with 
Fleutiaux’s determination label (MNHN, Paris). 1 ex., Kikuyu escarpment, 2300 m, 
without determination label (MNHN, Paris). 
Agrypnus abreptus (Candéze) comb. n. 
Lacon abreptus Candéze, 1893¢ : 170. 
Adelocera abreptus (Candéze) Fleutiaux, 1926 : 96. 
The description is based on unrecorded number of specimens from Kanara, 
Belgaum and S. Bombay [India] in the Andrewes collection. Selection of a lecto- 
type has been postponed until any material extant in the Candéze collection in the 
IRSNB, Brussels has been examined. 
Syntypes examined. Inp1a: 1 9, co-type, Belgaum P.; Lacon abreptus Cand. 
I g, cotype; Belgaum P.; Andrewes Bequest, 1922: 221. 1 9, co-type; Belgaum 
P.; 269; Lacon abreptus Cd., Andrewes Bequest, 1922: 221, 1 9; Belgaum N.; 
Andrewes Bequest, 1922 : 221. (BMNH). 
