82 
AUSTRALIAN SCATUTIDJ3. 
character, namely, the want of a terminal hook to the maxillae in 
Carenum and Pasimachus, which latter, he observes, “se rapproche 
du dernier (Carenum) relativement aux machoires, qui sont droiles et 
sans crochet terminal” (Regne An. iv., p. 382); but he describes 
Acanthoscelis, Scarites, Oxygnathus, and the remainder of his first 
subdivision as having the “ machoires arquees et crochues aubout.” 
This is however erroneous, although no subsequent writer on the 
predaceous beetles has corrected it. I have before me Latreille’s own 
dissections of several of these genera, in all which the maxilke 
are obtuse at the tip ; and in all the true Scaritides (composing 
his first subdivision, except Siagona and Enceladus) which I have 
dissected, I have found the same character*; except in Clivina, 
which is thus proved (contrary to the arrangements of most Con¬ 
tinental authors) to differ from Dyschirius in this important 
respect. 
Until very recently, only one true Scaritideous insect (or rather 
two species confounded together) had been described by entomolo¬ 
gists from New Holland—namely, the Scarites cyaneus ofFabricius, 
Carenum cyaneum Bonclli. Within the last few years, however, 
descriptions of three other species have been published—namelv, 
Arnidius marginatus Leach (described by M. Boisduval); Eutoma 
tinctilatus, desci’ibed by Mr. Newman; and Carenum perplexum, 
by Mr. A. White. Fifteen species are described in the present paper 
belonging to the first subdivision of Latreille, in addition to three 
other species which approximate closely to them. 
The chief cause of this want of descriptions of Australian 
Scaritidse is evidently the great rarity of the insects themselves in 
that portion of the globe. Dejean, the late possessor of the most 
extensive collection of Coleoptera formed up to that period, did 
not possess a single species belonging to this section from Australasia, 
and of the species now figured in the accompanying plates, the 
majority are represented from unique specimens ; of these also the 
majority are from the new settlements in the south-western and 
north-western portions of New' Holland ; so that we are, I think, 
fully justified, from the large collections of Coleoptera which have 
been sent to this country from the older settlements on the south¬ 
eastern part of Australia without any Scaritideous insect amongst 
them, in believing that these insects are either not indigenous to 
the latter district, or are of extreme rarity. 
* Considering the pre-eminently predaceous habits of the true Scaritides, it seems remarkable 
that the tooth of the under jaws should not be developed. 
