OF  THE  FAMILY  MELOLONTHID.^. 
309 
under  side  clothed  with  short  whitish-ochreous  puhescence,  the  sides  variegated  with 
shining  stripes  more  or  less  piceous  ;  apical  joint  of  the  abdomen  shining  and  naked  in 
the  male. 
I  have  the  pleasure  of  dedicating  this  fine  insect  to  Dr.  Francis  Klug  of  Berlin,  who 
was  so  obliging  as  to  transmit  to  me  one  of  three  cocoons,  from  which,  according  to 
Pavon,  this  beetle  was  bred.  The  cocoon  is  ovate,  hard,  and  somewhat  like  those  of 
Trichiosoma  Lucorum,  Leach,  in  texture ;  the  operculum  is  semiorbicular,  with  a  broad 
hinge  and  narrow  rim:  the  shell  of  the  pupa  is  similar  to  that  of  other  Melolon- 
thidcB. 
The  figure  of  the  male  beetle  represented  appears  scarcely  larger  than  some  speci- 
mens that  I  have  seen,  but  the  females  are  generally  considerably  smaller :  the 
latter  sex  is  at  first  sight  known  by  two  dull  spots  at  the  base  of  the  thorax,  and  by 
having  all  the  claws  bifid,  whilst  they  are  simple  in  the  male  excepting  in  the  hinder 
pair  of  feet.  It  is  difficult  to  imagine  the  use  of  the  curious  abdominal  spine  in  the 
male,  unless  it  be  employed  in  sexual  intercourse. 
For  a  beautiful  series  of  this  insect  I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  A.  Mathews,  A.L.S.,  who 
is  at  present  engaged  in  collecting  the  plants  and  insects  of  Peru :  they  were  found  by 
him  on  the  blossoms  of  a  species  of  Mimosa  in  Huanuco,  a  warm  valley  on  the  eastern 
side  of  the  Andes,  where  sugar-cane  is  cultivated,  and  the  climate  and  vegetation  of 
the  tropics  commence. 
PLATE  XL. 
^ 
A.  Ancistrosoma  Klugii, 
Fig.  1.  Labrum, 
2.  Mandible. 
3.  Manilla :  p,  palpus, 
4.  Mentum :  I,  labium :  p,  palpus, 
5.  Antenna. 
6.  Head  of  the  male. 
7.  Head  and  thorax  of  the  female:  h,  clypeus :  t,  angle  of  the  thorax:  *,  spine 
at  the  base  of  the  thorax. 
8.  Abdomen  and  elytra  of  the  male :  a,  disc  of  the  last  segment :  b,  junction 
with  the  thorax :  s,  basal  spine  peculiar  to  the  male. 
VOL.  I.  2  T 
