Memoirs on the coleoptera

TENEBRIONID^E 147
himself, and Dr. Horn, who transferred both species to Asida,
therefore changed the later one, which belongs to the present group,
to lecontei; but the name is not preoccupied in Euschides, a genus
which can never be legitimately united with Pelecyphonis, and still
less appropriately with Asida or Glyptasida, to which latter genus the
original costipennis is here assigned; so I have restored LeConte's
name, believing that the aphorism "once a synonym, always a
synonym" is unreasonable and consequently untenable. It is
stated by Horn under lecontei (Rev. Ten., p. 286), that some stout
females have a third discal costa, but his figure, which is evidently
drawn from a male, has the costa very prominently displayed, and,
moreover, the description of costipennis by LeConte, which is
evidently based upon the male, alludes to the third ridge as one of
its most conspicuous distinguishing features. The published size of
costipennis is apparently greater than that of any of the somewhat
incongruous examples in my cabinet. The description of costi-
pennis in the table in taken from the original by LeConte, with a
few additions inferable from the Hornian figure alluded to. Com-
pressus, of Horn, was not really described, the only written words
being that "the thorax and elytra are much more smooth [than in
costipennis] and the costee of the elytra represented by very faint
longitudinal ridges,," but, as a figure is given of the male which
may be assumed to be passably accurate, I have derived most of
the characters of the above description from this figure. As the
lustre of the upper surface is not mentioned by Dr. Horn, it is
assumed to be subopaque as in costipennis, otherwise so striking a
character as appears in the polished
surface of neutralis would in
all probability have been mentioned. The male of neutralis differs
however very strikingly in its shorter and broader outline from that
of the male compressus, as portrayed on the plate.
Group IV- -Type puncticollis Lee.
This group is more northern than any other, inhabiting the
regions from the Columbia River Valley
to northwestern Utah.
So far as known at present it is composed of but few rare species, of
very distinct habitus and distinguished from any others of the genus
by having visible pubescence, very short generally and perhaps only
distinct on the posterior parts of the elytra, but sometimes becoming