20 PAPERS ON CEREAL AND FORAGE INSECTS. 



anterior femora and tibiae. Eyes scarcely discernible. Face with three pairs 

 of shallow tubercles, the basal pair the largest, and each giving rise to a 

 stiff, brown hair. Other minute piliferous tubercles, especially near the pos- 

 terior dorsal border of the abdominal joints, being very stout on the preanal 

 joint, or pygidium. where they form two series of quadridentate ridges. 



To Mr. Schwarz's description the following may be added: 



Lateral view : Body oblong, thickest at middle ; thorax depressed anteriorly ; 

 abdomen cylindrical, tapering from seventh segment; thoracic pair of spiracles 

 very prominent (fig. 9, d), first five pairs of abdominal spiracles prominent (fig. 

 9, c), the three on the rear segments not prominent. Elytra short, curving 

 ventrally between middle and hind legs, reaching tarsi of hind leg, covering 

 upper half of femur of hind leg ; middle leg resting on elytra. 



The pupae occur mostly during the latter part of August and first 

 part of September and are always to be found in their cells in the 

 larval burrows near the crown of the taproot and nearly always 

 below the surface. The pupal period is from 10 to 12 days. 



THE ADULT. 

 (Fig. 10.) 



The adults are very large, robust, and reddish black when newly 

 issued, changing to black when older. The original description by 

 Chittenden a is given here : 



Body two-fifths as wide as long, of robust appearance because of the sub- 

 quadrate thorax, which is nearly as wide as the elytra ; general color black or 

 piceous, moderately shining ; alutaceous deposit on unelevated surfaces incon- 

 spicuous, appearing to be normally dark rufous or piceous velvety when the 

 extraneous argillaceous covering does not persist. 



Rostrum three-fifths the length of the thorax, considerably arcuate, strongly 

 subequally compressed, apex prolonged at the posterior angle with an acute 

 spine, producing the appearance of greater curvature of the inner surface, base 

 feebly protuberant, moderately dilated ; anterior face of apex broadly deeply 

 concave; surface minutely punctate, more distinctly and densely at base, base 

 moderately deeply channeled with distinct deep interocular puncture and short 

 impressed line. 



Thorax longer than wide, fully three-fourths as long as the elytra, sides usu- 

 ally widest just in front of middle, anterior third suddenly and very strongly 

 arcuate and constricted at apex, posterior two-thirds or three-fourths subparallel, 

 or gradually narrowing to the base which is feebly bisinuate. Vittse feebly 

 elevated, tending toward obsolescence, moderately finely but distinctly and 

 sparsely punctate, more coarsely and densely at the ends ; median vitta extend- 

 ing from a fine line and rapidly widening to a point just in front of the middle 

 where it is broadly dilated, then more abruptly narrowed, extending in a nar- 

 rower line to near the base; lateral vittse sinuous with a tendency to become 

 confluent with the median in the apical half, generally a little wider in basal 

 half but narrower than the median, branch wide but ill-defined ; interspaces and 

 surface at sides coarsely foveate-punctate, punctures becoming confluent, espe- 

 cially posteriorly at sides. Scutellum deeply broadly concave. 



«Proc. Ent. Soc. Wash., vol. 7, No. 1, p. 59, 1905. 



