On the insects collected by Doctor Abbott on the Seychelles, Aldabra, Glorioso, and Providence Islands, with descriptions of nine new species of Coleoptera

ON THY. INSECTS COLLECTED BY DOCTOE ABBOTT OX THE SEYCHELLES, ALDABRA, GLORIOSO, ANT) PEOVI-

DENCE ISLANDS, WITH DESCRIPTIONS OF NINE NEW

SPECIES OF COLEOPTEEA.

By Martin

L. Linell,

Aid,DepartmentofInsects.

The

insects collected

by

Doctor

W.

L.

Abbott

onthe Seychellesin 1890

and

onliisexcnrsiunstoAldabra,(ilorioso,

and

Providence islands in1893,while not

nnmerons

inspeciesareofnnusualintereston account oftheirgeographicaldistribntion.

The

writerhas paidparticular atten- tion to tlie studyof the Coleoptera, butit seemsadvisableto mention alsotheinsects of the otherorders,although all ofthese havenot been

specifically identified. Doctor^\V.J.Holland hasalready reported

upon

the Lepidoptera.'

INSECTS

PROM SEYCHELLES

ISLANDS.

LEPIDOrTEliA.

Eight species of butterflies

and

nine species of

moths

arereported

upon

by Doctor Hollandas collected

by

1)octor

Abbott

on theseislands.

Of

themoths,one ^isdescribed as

new and

the other eighthave awide distribution.

Of

the buttertlies,three are peculiartotheislands (one described

by

Doctor Holland), two occur also onMadagascar, two on the Africancontinent,

and

one species intheEast Indies.

Mr. CharlesAlluaud collected,in 1893, 67species of Lei)idoptera, on which

L'Abbe

de Joannis reports^that 80 per cent, is also found on Madagascar,60 to Qo per cent, in southeastern Africa, 45 per cent, in India,

and

20 to25.per cent, inthe Mediterranean region. Thispaper has unfortunatelybeen overlooked

by

Doctor Holland,

who

has rede- scribedAtellapMliberti ofJoannis asA. seycheUarum.

ORTHOPTERA.

Doctor

Abbott

collectedthreeimagoes

and two nymphs

of a splendid leafinsect,PhyJlium gelonus.Gray.

Two

otherspeciesofthegenusare recordedfrom theSeychelles.

The

distributionofthisfamilyof insects

iPioc. U.S.Nat.Mu8.,XVIII, No. _1064,pp.265-273.

2Bull, Soc.Ent. France, 1893,p.^51.

Proceedings U.S. National Museum Vol.XIX—No. 1119.

695

696 XIXE

XEJf

SPECIES or

rOLEOl'TEn.l

—

r.IXEf.T.. ^vol..XIX.

onthe Seychelles^aiul Mascareneislands, India,

and Malay

Arcliipelago, as far as

New

Caledonia, Fiji Islands,

and

the

New

Hebrides, has furnished one of the strongest arjinnieiits for the former existoneeof thehyi)otheticalcontinent Lemuria.

The

malescan hardlyfly,

and

the females not ^atall.

Jly^[EXorT^:^A.

J'<>li.st<s sp,, EuiiieneH sp., Apis ^mcllifica, Xf/h>copa sp.. Megachilesp.,

Lami

sp., SphegidiVjtwo species,

and

Pimplasp., all from

Mahe

Island.

irOMOPTERA.

A

species of Cicada,very

much

resembling-Tetlifiia oriii,fromEurope, butsmaller.

COLEOJ'TEh'A.

Only

three or four species of Coleoptera were

known

from the Seychelles as late as theyear 181)1, butin thatyear Doctor I-'airmaire recorded tifteeu species, collected

by

Pere Philibert.

From March

to

May,

1892, ]\Ir. Charles Alluaud nuide a thorough search forthe insectsgenerally,

and

Coleo])tera in particular.

Of

this latter order he ^collected about one

hundred and

tiftj' species, and remarksthat these islands, considering their ])lace under the ec^uator

and

beingabundanilycovered with woods, are the poorestin insects of anyⁱⁿ the world.

He

also considers therelation to theIndo-^Malaj^an fauna

and

favors the probable existence of the continent Lemuria.

Doctor Abbottcollected the following seven species,oneof Avhichseems to have escaped description

:

1.

AGRYPNUS INSULARIS,

^Fairmaire.

Aijri/pniiniii.siilaris, Faikm.vikk, Bull.Soc.Eut.Fiauce,LX, ^1S91,p. 70.

Thisspecies which

was

collected in six exami)les onthe Main'' Island

by

Doctor

Abbott

ispeculiartothe Seychelles,and,although thegenus

is well represented in Africa, its nearest allied species

known

is from the Philippine ^Islands.

Another

speciesofthegenus, A.fiiscipefi, Fab- ricius, alsooccurs here

and

extends to continental Africa

and

the East Indies.

2.

PARASTASIA COQUERELI,

^Fairmaire.

I'draslasiactxjitcre'i,Faik.maire,Aim.8oc.Eiit.Fraucc,4 ncv.,IX, 18G9,p. 789.

The

mostinteresting speciesofthe lot,belongingto agenus from the Indo-Malayan region. Doctor

Abbott

collected one

example

on the

Mahc

Island, where Doctor Fairmaire'stype also

was

obtained.

3.

ADORETUS UMBROSUS,

Fabricius.

Mcloloiitliaumhromi, F.visuicilTs, Ent.Sysl., I,Pt. 2.p. 1G9.

Thisspecies isrecordedfrom Uourbon,

He

deFrance, Senegal, Java, Sumatra,

and

PhilippineIslands.

One

example

was

collected on

Mahe

Island and anotherone on (Uorioso Island.

N0.1119.

rROCEEDIXaS OF THE NATIOXAL MUSEUM. 697

4.

ORYCTES MONOCEROS,

Olivier.

jSv(irali(ii(.s moiioccros,Olinikk, Ent., I,Pt.o,p. 37.

Of

thislargeDynastidbeetleDoctorAbbott brought threeexamples from

Mabe

Island

and

four I'rom DorosIsland of theAmirautes group.

Itisa speciesofwide rangeon the Africancontinent,

and was

originally described from Senegal.

The

genus occurs in the OldAVorld,

and

the largest species are from Africa

and

Madagascar.

5.

XYSTROCERA GLOBOSA,

Olivier.

Civamhir (jlohosus,OLiviEii, Eut., 1\,p. 27.

Callidiinii rUtaiiim, Fahricius, Ent. Syst.I, Pt.2, p.823.

Thisis a widely distributed longicorn beetle, recorded from Senegal,

He

de Franco, ]\radagascar,

Comore

Islands,

and

the East Indies.

Doctor

Abbott

collected oneexample

on Mahe

Island.

6.

COPTOPS BIDENS,

^Fabricius.

Lamiahideiis,Fahricius, Syst.Eiit., p. 177.

Lamiaadlficaloy,Faisricius, Ent.Syst., I,Pt.2, p.275.

Lamia tillica, Olivier,Enfycl. Meth.,A'll,p.4()S.

Another longicorn of wide distribution. It occurs in East Africa, on ^Madagascar, all the islands ofthevicinity,

and

in the East Indies.

Doctor

Abbott

collected three examples on FlatIsland.

7.

CRATOPUS GRISEOVESTITUS,

new species.

Ivobust,uniformlypiceous,densely coveredwith small grayish-white scales. Antenna' pubescent, rather stout; scape reaching the hind margin ofthe eye; lirst

and

second joint of thefnnicle subeipial, one- half longer thanbroad; third to seventh beadlike, slightlyincreasing

ill width; club tomentose, as long as the last five joints together, ter- minal jointthelongest, acuminate at apex.

Eyes

rather large, longi- tudinallyoval,feebly convex.

Eostrum

quadrangular,flatabove,with distinct lateralcarina^, starting fromthefrontal marginof the eyes at theirmiddle

and

divergingtoward apex. Frontwith a shortimpressed fovea between theeyes. Thorax broader than long, stronglyrounded at the sides, broadly constricted at apex; disk coarsely granulate.

Scutellum semioval, with densewhitescales. Elytra one-half broader thanthorax,S(|uarelytruncateatbase, slightlywiderbehindthemiddle, conjointly shortly acuminate at ajjcx; humeri oblique, obtuse; disk ratherstronglypunctatein regularstria'; stria', except the marginal, not impressed; intervals flat,less coarsely, sparsely punctate, slightly granulate atbase; the scalyi^ubescence forming

numerous

whitedots.

Ventral surface sparsely punctate, sides of thorax scaly,

median

part and

abdomen

pubescent. Legs short, stout, puT)escent, not scaly.

Femora

feebly incrassate,theanterior pair with acutetooth. Anterior

tibia' nearly straight, feebly dentate within. Tarsi v/ith first joint slightlylongerthansecond, third moderately dilated. Claws connate

698 NINE NEW SPECIES OF COLEOPTERA—LIXELL.

at base, divergentat apex. Leiii^tli, 10to11 mu\. Nine examplesfrom Main- Island.

Typv.—y^o. ^."iTO, r.S.X.M.

Cratopus is a genus of Cypliides, allied to the

West

Indian genus Laehnopuft

by

the ])rolonged anterior legsand robust femora, but dif- fering

by

^tlie claws being connate at base and thorax truncate,not bisinuate behind.

Xumerous

^species are describedfrom

Bourbon and

lie deFrance, and afew from India

and

South Africa.

INSECTS

FROM ALDABRA

ISLAND.

The

^onl}-insectsfromAldabraIsland thatIcanfindrecordedareafew Coleoptera

by

Doctor Fairmaire.'

He

enumerates five species: Cicin- (lela trihnutris, Klug,var.; OpatrinKS /».s»^/r/.v,-jNEulsant; GonoccphaJus micaufi.

GeniMW

^; Heterodcres conipldiudus^

Klug and

('assida decolorata,

Boheman,

with var. ^liiti'd, all of which were previously

known

from Madagascar.

The

only

new

species he describes is Craiopna riridis-

2)arsii.s.

As

will bo seen

by

the list below, the coleopterous fauna

of the island ^is raised to twelve species through the collection of Doctor Abbott,

who

has published

some

very interesting notes on this

and

(llorioso Island.'

After I furnished the footnote^ for this paper, additional material

was

received

by

the National

Museum,

asis

shown by

comparison with the reportonthe Lepidoptera^

by

DoctorHolland,

who

recordsthirteen species,

two

ofwhich hedescribed as new, from thisisland."'

The

additional material includes two species of

Hemiptera

—

l>ysdir- cus sp.,

and

Harpactor sj).,

and

raises the

number

of Coleoptera to seven, as follows:

1.

ERETES

STICTICUS, Linnaeus.

This waterbeetlehas about the

same

geographical distribution as the buttertly,

Dladema

mhippus, islikewise rarein the

warmer

])artsof America,including (lalaj^agos Islands,

and abundant

inthe

Old

^^orld throughAfrica

and

southern AsiatoJapan. Doctor Sharp remarks, inhis monograi)h of the family Dytiscida', that this speciesoccurs in alarger numl)erof islands than

any

otherDytiscid. It varies consid- erablyin size and markings, butis remarkably constant in structural characters thrcmghout its range.

Twelve

species of the genus have been described, ofwhich Doctor

Sharp

has united ten under theabove name, butthe twoAustralianforms heconsidersas distinct underthe

name

E.oustraliN, Frichson.

The

only

example

collected

by

Doctor Abbott on the

Aldabra

is a female of small size, dark color,

and

distinctmaculation on thethorax.

'P.ull. Soc.Ent. Fniiue,LXY, 1890,p. 222.

- True. U. S.Nat.Mns.,XVI,pp.759-704.

^Loc.cit., p. 762.

'Proc. IT. S.Nat.Mns.,XVIII,No.1064,pp.265-273.

'•The types of Doctor Holland's spocies, Teracoliix aldahrennis, are iVoiii Mahd

Island,but therearesevencotyi>osfrom.Aldabra.

N0.1119.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE XATIOXAL MrSEUM. 699

2.

CYBISTER TRIPUNCTATUS,

Olivier.

This species belongsto themost highly developed group of carnivo- rouswaterbeetles,wherethelimitofthe speciesisratheropinionative.

As

Doctor Sharp,in his

monograph

mentioned above,hasrestricted it, its range ^is very wide, from Senegal to theCape,

and

along the east coastof Africa to South Europe,

and

through southernAsiato China

and Japan

in the north,

and

over thewholeofAustralasiatoAustralia.

C. cincfus, Sharj),its representativeon Madagascar, he doubtfullycon- sidersadistinct species.

He

reviewscarefullythe races

and

generalizes

them

into four principal ones: ₍₁₎

An

Asiatic form also occurringin Australia, (2) an Archipelagicform from

Malay

Archii)e]ag<), occurring also on

Bourbon and

^I\ede France, (3) a sporadic form on the Philij)- pineislands

and

certainparts of

Malay

Archij)elago,

and

(4)anAfrican form.

Examples

of the last were collected

by

the Chanler-Hcehnel expedition onthe

Tana

^lliver.

They

arc large,oval,withbroadyellow margin, exactlysimilar to others before

me

from the

Cape and

Loanda.

The

six examples collected

by

Doctor

Abbott

on Aldabra are all small, ovate,

and

with narrow margin, exactlylikea large series from

Japan

beforeme. Thus,it isremarkableto seethatthe Asiaticvariety, occurshere, while the large broad Archipelagicformisrecorded from

Bourbon and He

deFrance.

3.

PHiEOCHROUS INSULARIS,

new species.

Ovate, convex, above piceousblack, margin ciliate with long rufous hairs; ventralsurface

and

legsrufocastaneous,rufohirsute.

Head

hnely l^uuctulate, abruptly

and

strongly constricted a^little before the eyes.

Clypeus continuous with the front, sides distinctly margined,slightly convergent; apex subtruncate.

Labrum

strongly transverse, coarsely punctate,broadly emarginate.

Thorax

atbasetwicebroader thanlong, surrounded with an entire margin; sides not deplanate, arcuately narrowed to the apex; anterior angles acute, posterior angles rec- tangular,withrounded apex; base broadlysinuateon each side; disk sparselyandfinelypunctulate,nearlysmoothatthe middle. Scutellum oblong, sparsely punctate. Elytra at base not broader than thorax, arcuatelywidened

and

broadestbehindthemiddle; sidesnot explanate

;

apicesseparatelyrounded; diskmoderatelyfinely,dilfusedlypunctate;

sutural striaimpressed butthe others indistinct. Anterior tibiii? tri-

dentate, serrulate even between theteeth; upper tooth small, the two apical teeth long,recurved. Length, 8 to 9

mm.

Male: Tarsi incrassate, claws broadly appendiculate atbase.

Tijpe.—^o. 581,U.S.K.M.

DoctorAbbott collected one male

and

three females of this Scara- bfeid onAldabraIsland. Itresemblesinform P.heccarii,Harold,from tropical East Africa, but is

much

smaller.

The

margins are not explanate

and

the sculpture is diflereut.

A

moderate

number

of

700 KIXE XEW srECIES OF COLEOPTEnA—LIXKLL.

species of this genus arc described from Africa, Madagascar, East Indies to Pliilii)i)in(' Islands

and

Australia. Tlicy i)r<)bal)ly live, like ourspecies olTrox, on decaying animal substances.

4.

OXYTHYREA ALDABRENSIS,

new species.

Slender, shining, glabrous above, very sparsely setose beneath, entirely black, with antenna' and palpi I'erruginous. Clypens strongly margined, slightly eniarginatc, lincly punctate. Front

and

vertex coarsely punctate, the latter with three smooth spaces, arranged transversely.

Thorax

very narrow; sides feebly rounded, almost sub- angulate at middle, strongly convergenttowardapex;posterior angles very obtuse, nearly rounded; base broadly rounded, with emargina- tions obsolete; disk coarsely punctate, with six impressed white patches: two on each side-margin, very large, nearly reaching the angles, separated just in front of middle,

making

theposterior ones twiceas large astheothers; two longitudinallylunulate spots infront of scutellum,

more

widely apartthan inallied continental species. In one specimen thereis another pair of smaller spots in frontof these.

Scutellumglabrous, sharply acuminate. Elytra outlined asin O. mar- ginalise Swarz,but the striaeare not impressed, except the

two

nearest the suture behind the middle.

The

intervals are nearly smooth, not depressed, and the white patches are less

numerous and much

larger.

There are three pairs of small sutural spots,

two

largersjiots inside

and

behindthe humeral callus,sometimes connected,

and

the innerone sometimes connected with the

median

sutural, forming an oblique band.

The

transversemarginal spotbehind the middle isvery large, extendinginward to thethird stria

and

has aposterior elongate mar- ginalspot as an appendix; apical spot large,transverse. Pygidiuni nearlysemicircular, with a few aunular scratches on the middle, each sidecovered with a triangular niveous patch. Ventralsurfacesparsely IHinctate ^^itli a large square niveous patch on the sides of metaster-

nnm,

an oblong one on its episternon,

and

another one on the side marginof thecoxa'.

A row

oftransverse spotseach sideon the abdo- men,not marginal, as in

many

alliett species, butatthemiddleof each segment, sometimes absent.

No

trace of spine on fifth ventral seg- ment. Projiortion oflegs, tibial arnmture, and claws as in manjinaHn, Swarz. Length, 9

mm.;

width, 4, 5

mm. Four

examples.

Tiipc.—^o. 577, TT.S.N.M.

This nicelittlesi)ecies is alliedto 0. marf/inaUs, Swarz, from South Africa, but is nuich smaller,

more

slender,

and

altogether differently maculate.

The

genus^isrepresentedby

numerous

forms over thewhole of Africa, Arabia, Syria, and l'ur()])e,extendingtoeast Siberia.

5.

MICROTHYREA ALDABRENSIS,

new species.

Lessrobust,very shining, glabrous above, entirelyblack, withlarge impressed niveous patches with arosytint, riypensas in ^f. (nnahilis,

Schaum,

but deeply cmargiuate atapex. Front rather sparsely puuc-

NO.1119.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. 701

tate; vertex smootliat middle. Thoraxshort,withtliesidesouly slightly converging from baseto middle, then strongly arcnate to apex; poste- rior angles obtuse; base broadly arcuate, scarcelytruncateat middle,

and

slightlysiuuateeachside;disksparsely

and

minutelypunctate with sixlargoroundedpatches:

two

pairsmarginal, theposterioroneoblong, larger,

and two

smallerroundedbasal spotsinthenormal position; one specimen has an additionalpaironthedisk,butverysmall. Scutellum smooth, acute. Elytra outlined asiu

M.

(onahilis,butthestria*are not im})ressed,thepuncturesarenearly obsoleteinthescutellar region,

and

the white patches are smaller. There are on eachside three sutural spots,rather small,a small spotabove

and

anotherbeneaththehumeral callus; threemarginal spots, theanterior

two

large, alarge apical

and some

irregular smallerspots.

The

pygidiumistransverselystrigose at middle and has a largeround niveous patch eachside.

Metasternum

smooth

and

polished at middle, Avith a large quadrangular niveous patch,covering thesides.

Hind

coxa' strigose,with aroundspotat side margin. Ventral segments strigose at the sides, with a transverse

row

ofi)unctures onthemiddle of each, fifthwith an obtuse tooth at thelateral posterior margin, sixth subtruncate. Legs as iu amahilis, theanteriorfemoradensely fimbriate. Length,11.5

mm.;

width,7

mm.

Threefemale examples.

Tyi}e.—:So. 578, U.S.X.M.

This species is very distinct from ((mabilis, Swarz,

and

allied forms of theAfrican continent

by

the characters given above.

The

genus MicrofJiyrcus has been erected for certain Africiin species, formerly included in Oxythyre<(, that

show

strongly developed sexual characters in the male. Thatthe above-described female belongs to thegenusis inferred from thefact that the fifth abdominal segment has marginal spines.

6.

LEPTOCERA ALDABRENSIS,

new species.

Elongate, black, with impressed longitudinal bands on thorax and

elytra, covered with a very dense, white, silkypubescence. Antennie piceous, as long as the body, very sparsely pubescent, slender; first joint stout, clavate, strongly curvate; third Joint nearly as long as fourth

and

fifth together.

Head

broader tliau thorax, densely pubes- cent; antennal tubercles

and

a spot on vertex glabrous; palpi small, last joint slender, slightly

and

obliquely truncate at apex.

Thorax

cylindrical, feebly constricted at each end, deeply punctate, opaque, with fourlongitudinal vitta". Elytra dark green, at base broader than thorax, slightlynarrowed behind; apices squarely truncate; disk some-

what

depressed, coarselypunctatein regularstri;e, interrupted

by

the impressedwhite vitta'; sutural vitta entire, a discal vittafrombaseto middle,

somewhat

directed toward the suture; a second discal vittaon the posteriorhalf,connected at •,\\)Qx with thesutural,extendingsome-

what beyond

the middle in front; subhumeral vitta short. Ventral surface densely pubescent, sidemargin of metasternum

and

middle of

702 NINE NEW SPECIES OF COLEOPTEBA—LINELL.

abdomen

<;labrous

and

smooth. Legs red, femora strongly clavate, finelypubescent. Tarsiinfuscate,broad,short; firstjoint ofbindtarsi

somewhat

longer than the second. Length, 9.5

mm. One

example from Aldabra ^Island.

Type.—^So. 579,T.S.N.M.

This species is nearly allied to Glaucites {Leptocera) UneatieoUis, Fairmaire, irom Madagascar, but ^isdistinct

by

the i»iceoiis antenna', stronger punctuation of thorax

and

a different arrangement of the pubescent lines on the elytra.

Two

other species of the genus are describedfrom Madagascar, oneofwhich alsooccurs on

He

de France.

7.

CRATOPUS VIRIDISPARSUS,

Fairmaire.

Cratopusviridiisparsm, Faikmairk,Bull. Soc.Ent. Fraucc, LXV,1896p. 222.

This is the onlybeetle recordedfrom

Aldabra by

Doctor Fairmaire that

was

also collected there

by

Doctor Abbott.

Two

examples were obtained. ¹ have

had

a manuscriptdescription of itforthe last two years

and

barely escaped

making

a

synonym

beforegoingto press.

INSECTS

FROM GLORIOSO

ISLAND.

The

insects collected

by

Doctor

Abbott

on this little islandare as follows

:

LEPIDOPTERA.

Two

species of buttertlies

and

three of moths, all of widedistribu- tion. (Reported

upon by

Doctor Holland.)

XEVliOPTEHA.

Two

species of Myrmeleon

and

one of Palpares.

DIVTERA.

Threespecies: Asilus, Tabanus,

and

Myodina.

IIYMENOVTEKA

.

Four

species: Eiimcnen Megachile,

and

Sphegidiv,two species. Three of thesewere also collected onMalic Island.

nEMIl'TEKA.

Nezara riridula, Linna'us, a cosmopolitan si)ecics, and Leptoglossus memhranarius,Fabricius.

The

latterspeciesis

common

onMadagascar.

nOMOPTEBA.

A

large Cicada, closely allied to the South .Vfrican PJatypJeKra Hm-

bata, Fabricius, but thefore wingsare

more

densely maculate.

GOLEOPTERA.

Fivespecies, ofwhich three arehere described as new.

One

is i)re-

viously described from the Seychelles,

and

theremaining oneis ofwide distribution inAfrica

and Malayan

Archii^elago.

NO.1119.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. 703

1.

LUCIOLA ABBOTTI,

newspecies.

Elongate, parallel, feebly sliming, finely pubescent, bright ferrugi- nous; bead with antenna' ^a;icl palpi, elytra, tibiae and tarsi black.

Antenna' short,notreachingto middleofbody, nearlyfiliform,densely setose; first joint ferruginous beneath, as long as the fourth; third slightly longer than fourth; fourth to tenth slightly decreasing in length. Thorax nearly twice broader than long,

somewhat

narrowed

infront; sidemarginfeeblyrounded,reflexed; posterioranglesrounded;

apex margined, feebly bisinuate; base

more

distinctly bisinuate, stronglymargined,deeply impressed each ^sideof middle; diskfinely

anddensely punctate,deplanate atthesides,deej^lycanaliculate atthe middle. Scutellum brownish red, obtuse at apex. Elytra- slightly broader than thorax, separately rounded at apex, very densely

and

finelyrngosopunctate; suture elevated

and

three obsoletecarina' each side.

Male:

Abdomen

with fourth

and

fifth segments pale, the fourth emarginate at middle, thefifth strongly constricted

and

produced in a large lobe; last dorsal segment triangularly emarginate. Length, 10

mm.

Tijpe.—^o.580, U.S.N.M.

One

single example, a male,

was

takenonGloriosoIsland. Itagrees incolorand

many

other characterswith L. tyansvcrsicoUis, Fairmaire, described from Sainte-Marie-deMadagascar, JMalie,

and

Mayotte, but DoctorFairmaire'sspecieshas thethird ventral segment pale

and

the posteriorangles of thoraxnearly rectangular.

The

genus is of wide distribution in theOld and

Xew

World.

2.

PERISSOSOMA ^ENESCENS,

Waterhouse.

rerissosomaanescens,Watekiiouse, Anu. ^Nat.Hist., 4ser., XV, 187.5,p. 415.

Four

examples ofthis very peculiar Melolonthid, ofdoubtfulsj^stem- atic position, were collected

by

Doctor

Abbott

on Glorioso Island.

They

agree exactly with Doctor Waterhouse'sdescription, the typeof which

was

from the Seychelles.

3.

ADORETUS UMBROSUS,

Fabricius.

Melolotitlia iimhrosa,Fabricits,Ent. Syst., I, Pt._2,p. 169.

For remarks on this species, see notes under Adoretus unibrosus^

Fabricius, from the Seychelles Islands,page 69G.

4.

OXYTHYREA ABBOTTI,

newspecies.

Eobust, shining, glabrous above, very sparsely pubescent beneath, dark castaneous, including

antenme and

legs; occiput

and

disk of thorax black. Clypeusshorter than in O. m((r(iinalis, Swarz, scarcely narrowedatapex,feebly rounded on the sides; distinctlybut slightly emarginate at apex, densely

and

flnely ])unctate; margins slightly depressed. Front immaculate, less densely but

more

strongly punc-

704 NINE NEW SPECIES OF COLEOPTERA—LINELL.

tiite, with irregular, smooth median lino.

Thorax

broadest _{at base,}

verystronglynarrowed toward apex; sidescolored exactlyas thedisk,'

broadly rounded before middle, distinctly sinuate before the hiiKl ano-les.wliidi are rectangular,witliobtuse apex; basebroadly rounded, with very slight indication ofemarginationon each sideand infront of scutellnm; disk sparselybut rather deeply punctate over the whole surface, with eight imju-essed niveous spots

—

the two largest are mar- ginal,one atthe middle

and

one in front,connected at themargin; the basal and discali)air in the normal position, asin 0. marf/hialis; oneof the specimens has still another pairofspots,though verysnmll,on the disk near the apex, as in

some

specimensof O. iiKtn/iiuili.s. Scutellum smooth, large, sharjdy acuminate. Elytra outlined as in marginaUs, but thestriic areless impressed,all coarselypunctate: intervals nearly smooth, varying in width,but none of them depressed, _{obsoletelystr[-} goseat apex; the niveous spots aresixor seven each

side—

_anelongate spot near apex of scutellum, a small round one behind _the humeral

calhis. a large transverse spot just behind the middle of margin; in one specimen a small oblique one on the disk inside;

two

spots just before apical callus, theone marginal, the other one near suture, the apicalspot touchingthe

margin

behind.

Pygidium

semicircular, with annular punctures, transversely strigose at base,

and

_{on each side a} largeniveousspot. Ventral surfa(;e punctate, with alargetransverse niveous patchcovering thesidesof metasternum

and

its episteruum.

Abdomen

with small round spots at the sides; tifth segment with out any trace of spines. Proportion of the legs

and

anterior tibia' as in marginalis. Anterior- femora with longer, grayish-white ciliatiou.

Length,11

mm.;

width, 6.5

mm. Two

examples.

Type.—^o. 582, U.S.Is'.M.

This species has theform of0.marginaUs, Swarz,from SouthAfrica, but is larger, stouter,

and

very different in the arrangement of the niveous patches.

5.

CRATOPUS ABBOTTI,

newspecies.

I'^longate, broader l)ehind, convex, black, shining, sparsely covered with small rounded metallic green scales above; antenna' and legs rufous. Antenna' slender, sparsely pubescent; scape verylong, reach- ing the margin of thorax, slightly clavate

and

curvate; firstjoint of fmiicle alittlelonger than the secoiul, both elongate: third to seventh short, equal in length, slightly increasing in width; club fusiform, densely tomentose,as longas thelast four jointsof thefunicletogether,' distinctly annulate, the three joints equally long. Ptostrum shorter than the head,cylindrical, convexabove, sparsely_puiu;tate,each punc- ture with a scale.

Eyes

large, longitudinally oval, feebly prominent.

Head

slightly constricted behindthe eyes,sj)arselyi)unctate

and

scaly, scalesdenser

and

forminga longitudinalvittabeneath theeyes. Thorax slightly transverse,truncatebefore and behind, strongly iiarrowoil

and

constricted atapex,feeblyrounded on thesidesbehind,coarsely,reticu-

1^0.1119.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. 705

lately punctate,the punctures densely scaly at bottom; scales

more

dense on the inflexed sides

and

spreadiug

upon

the anterior coxie.

Scutellumsmall,glabrous,smooth. Elytraatbasenearly twice broader than thorax, broadest behind the middle, acutely produced at aj)ex;

humeri obliquely truncate; side margin serrate toward ai)ex; disk coarsely striatopunctate; punctures transverse, densely sijuamose at thebottom; intervalsnarrow, smooth; the two orthree marginalstriic

deeply impressed, rugoseat base. Side piecesof

meso and meta

thorax

and

sides of the two iirst abdominal segments densely squamose;

medianlineofventral surfacenearly smooth, sparsely pubescent. Legs notscal}^, sparselypubescent, the

median

pair short,theposterior pair longerand tlieanteriorlongest; all femoraincrassate, bvittheanterior most strongly, with a small acute tooth

beyond

the middle; anterior tibia' slightly curvate, acutely denticulate on the inner side. Tarsi hairy above,without

any

traceofscales; firstjoint slightlylongerthan second; third very wide; claws large, connate at base, divergent at apex. Length; 10to 12

mm.

Three examples from GloriosoIsland.

Tijpe.—^o.583, U.S.K.M.

Thisspeciescomes very near C.purccsquamosus, Fairmaire,from the Seychelles, but differs in the sculpture

and

particularlyin the tarsi, that arecti?ruleo-squamose abovein DoctorFairmaire's species.

INSECTS

FROM PROVIDENCE

ISLAND.

Thisisland, located about

midway

between thenorth endof

Mada-

gascar

and

the Seychelles, is api)arently very

meager

in insect life.

Doctor

Abbott

brought

home

only three species, onebuttertiy

and

one

moth —bothof which also occuron theAfrican continentand the Sey- chelles— and

^the single beetle described below, which is nearest allied to the Microthyreaaldabrensis from Aklabra Island.

MICROTHYREA

PROVIDENCI>ffi, new species.

Moderatelyrobust, shining, glabrous above, with impressed niveous spots, s])arsely hirsute beneath. Clypeus formed as in

M.

amahilis,

Schaum,

but

more

narrowed

and more

deeply emargiuate at apex.

Sidesof thorax sinuatebehindthemiddle, arcuately narrowedinfront;

posterior angles subrectangular; base broadly rounded with obsolete emarginations; disk finely

and

sparsely punctate,

more

densely at apex, with sixsmall,roundniveous spots; onepair at thefront angles, a larger pair marginal behind the middle

and

one pair in front of scutellum inthe normal position. Scutellum large, acuminate, with a few punctures. Elytra outlined

and

sculptured exactly asin .If. ama-

hiiis, but the niveous spots are

much

smaller; on each ^side arethree sutural spots, one above

and

anotherone behindthe humeral umbone, twolarger

and

one smaller(posterior)marginal spots,

and

a transverse apical spot.

An

additionalspot occurson the diskinside theanterior

Proc. X.

M.

^vol. xix 45

706 XINE NEW SPECIES OF COLEOPTEIiA—LIXELL.

marginal.

Pygidium

elevated at middle

and

concentrically strigose, at apex transversely aciculate with subtruncate margin; a smaller niveous spot each side. A'entral surface hairy; metasternumcoarsely butsparsely i)unctate, broadly niveous at the sides; hindcoxa* partly strigose; abdominal segments coarsely punctate in transverse rows, strigose at side margin; lit'th with an obtuse spine at the lateral pos- terior margin, sixth covered at the sides, seventh truncate.

Legs

liairy, aciculate; anterior femora densely fimbriate; posterior femora

and

tibiic strongly incrassate(male),the former curvate; exteriorclaw of front tarsiverylong,incrassate atmiddle, and contorted. Length, 11

mm.;

width, 7

mm. Two

males from Providence_Island.

Type.—^o. 584,U.S.N.M.