(F.)

Notes on some Insects from King George's Sound, collected and presented to the British Museum by CAPTAIN GEORGE GREY, by ADAM WHITE, Esq. British Museum, in a letter addressed to the author.

DEAR SIR,

FABRICIUS was the first, or among the earliest Entomologists, who described the Annulose animals of New Holland, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. At the time he published his Systema Entomologiæ (1775), these parts of the world had been visited by but few persons, and I believe that all the species he described as coming from them, he found in the collection which was made by Sir Joseph Banks and Dr. Solander, on their well-known voyage with Captain Cook; that collection was presented to the Linnæan Society of London. Several of the original specimens have been figured in the works of Olivier and Donovan, and it is perhaps unnecessary to say that modern Entomologists often refer to these specimens as the typical examples. As far as I am aware, the next important addition to the Entomology of New Holland was made by Dr. Schreibers of Vienna,* which was followed by that of

* Linn. Trans. VI. pp. 185-206, tab. 19-21. (1802.) "Descriptions of some Singular Coleopterous Insects, by Charles Schreibers, M.D., Deputy Professor of Natural History in the University of Vienna."-Lucanus æneus, (Lamprima Latr.) Scarabæus proboscideus, (Elephastomus Macleay).— Cetonia Philipsii, (Schizorhina Kirby) Silpha lachrymosa, (Ptomaphila Hope).-Clerus fasciculatus. Prionus lepidopterus, (Tragocerus, Dej.)— Cerambix Giraffa (Gnoma) Cer. Fichtelif (Enicodes G. R. Gray) Scarites Schrætteri (Hyperion Lap.) all new, and a singular Brasilian genus, Scarabæus dytiscoides, (near Anamnesis, Vigors, and supposed to be the Eucranium arachnoides, Dej. Cat. p. 150, ed. 1837.) are all admirably described and figured here.

Mr. Marsham.* All the specimens, described by these entomologists, were most probably collected by travellers touching only at certain points on the coast.

As New Holland became colonized, and settlements increased, Entomology was not altogether neglected, for we find a resident, John W. Lewin, A.L.S., of Paramatta, New South Wales, in 1805, publishing an elegant and curious quarto volume of plates, in which he describes many species of crepuscular and nocturnal Lepidoptera, in most cases figuring the insects in all their stages; it is highly to be regretted that this interesting work was not continued, and it is to be feared that want of encouragement alone prevented the industrious and acute author from persevering in the design of his work, which the title he gave it† shews he intended to have made of a general nature on the subject. The accounts of the habits of Cryptophasa and Agarista are peculiarly interesting, and it is much to be wished that some of the many entomologists now in New Holland and the islands of the Pacific ocean, would publish similar notes (however short) on the habits, &c. of the insects they may find.

Dr. Robert Brown, when on Flinders' voyage, collected many interesting insects, which were described by Kirby in the 12th volume of the Linnean Transactions.‡

* Linnean Transactions, IX. pp. 283-295, tab. 24-25. (1808.) "Description of Notoclea, a new genus of Coleopterous Insects from New Holland, by Thomas Marsham, Esq. Tr. L.S." This contains 20 species, some of which, however, had been previously described by Olivier under Paropsis, the appellation now universally applied to this " convex-backed" genus. The Rev. Wm. Kirby, in a note, added the more latent characters.

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+ Prodromus, &c.-Natural History of Lepidopt. Insects of New South Wales, collected, engraved, and faithfully painted after nature by J. W. L., &c."-London, 1805, 4to.

‡ Vol. 12, (1818), pp. 454-478.—“ A description of several new species of Insects collected in New Holland by Robert Brown, Esq., F.R.S. &c., by

Several specimens were deposited by this celebrated botanist in the British Museum. We find Dr. Leach commencing the description of New Holland insects in his Zoological Miscellany; and Macleay in his Hora Entomologica described many curious Lamellicornes. Since that time the communication with the great South Continent has been so uninterrupted that collections have been continually coming to Europe, and scarcely a ship now arrives without some additions being made to this branch of science.

The French voyages of discovery under Freycinet,* Duperrey, D'Urville, and Laplace, have contributed very much to extend our knowledge of the Natural History of the

the Rev. W. Kirby, M.A., F.R.S. &c."-33 species described, 13 figured on tab. 23.—Mr. Kirby, in his century of Insects published in the same volume, described 17 New Holland species, and in the same celebrated paper founded four new genera upon Australasian Insects, Adelium, Rhinotia, Eurhinus and Rhinaria. He would have described other genera but for his fear of interfering with Germar's labours on the Curculionidæ.

N.B.-Strongylium chalconotum is from Brazil and not from Australasia

as indicated.

* (Voyage autour du monde, &c. sur les corvettes de S. M. l'Uranie et la Physicienne, 1817-1820, Paris, 1824, Partie Zool.) Freycinet's Voyage, but for the lamentable shipwreck of one of his vessels, would have added much to our acquaintance with the Natural History of the places visited. Messrs. Quoy and Gaymard, "Medecins de l'expedition," published the Zoological part of their notes. They refer with regret to the disastrous accident which deprived them of large collections of Insects, made more particularly in the environs of Port Jackson. They describe and figure but one insect from New Holland (Curculio lemniscatus from Sharks Bay), a spider from Port Jackson (Aranea notacantha Quoy, Dolophones notacantha Walck. Apt. I. 383,) in which the brown callosities at the end of the cylindrical abdomen were taken for eyes, a position rectified by Walckenaer as above, and by Kirby in his Bridgewater Treatise, where he gives a copy of the French figure of this singular spider-Two Crustacea, one (Ocypode convexus) from Dirk Hatterick's and the other (Pagurus clibanarius) from Sharks Bay, are all the Annulose animals described or figured as coming from New Holland, from the pitiable circumstance above alluded to.

Southern islands, as the publication of the History of the Voyages of the Uranie, Coquille, Astrolabe, and Favorite, amply testify; we are more especially indebted to Admiral D'Urville, who seems to unite the seemingly incompatible duties of commander of an expedition, with an enthusiastic love of and search after insects. M. Guerin- Meneville published the Annulose animals of the Voyage de la Coquille, in which New Holland genera and species take a prominent place. Dr. Boisduval described those collected on the expedition of the Astrolabe, he also published the first Fauna Entomologica of New Holland and the Pacific; in his two volumes he gives a synoptical description of all the species he met with in the Parisian collections, indicating also such as he found in books whether he had seen the specimens or not. More detailed descriptions are looked for on some future occasion by the entomologists of this country, from the learned and talented author of so many well known works.

The figures and descriptions of Guerin, though fewer in number, are more detailed than those of Dr. Boisduval, who was much limited for space.

It would take up too much time to give a tithe of the names of the entomologists who have described New Holland insects,* as nearly every working student of insects abroad and at home, has added to the list. MM. Audouin, Blanchard, and Boisduval will shortly publish descriptions of the insects, &c. collected on D'Urville's last voyage. Latreille, Dejean, Schoenherr and Klug, must be specially particularized; Gory, Percheron, Chevrolat, Aubé, Serville, Reiche, Spinola, Fischer, and Mannerheim, have all more

* The entomologist who would attempt to do this must give a Universal Entomological Bibliography, as scarcely a Journal or volume of Transactions of any Scientific Society appears without containing fewer or more species from the great Australasian Continent and its islands.

or less added to our acquaintance with the species. Many New Holland Arachnida, and Pacific ocean Crustacea, have been described in the well-known works of the Baron Walckenaer and Dr. Milne Edwards. In this country, Kirby, Hope, Curtis, G. R. Gray, Waterhouse, Shuckard, Newman and Westwood, have been the principal scientific men who have attended to species of annulosa. Bennett, Mr. Surgeon Hunter, Darwin and Major Mitchell, when opportunities offered, collected many species, and neglected not the subject of their habits; the last-mentioned having also described (specifically) one or two species in his interesting work. Macleay's Appendix to Capt. King's voyage* is universally known. Curtis and Haliday have published and are engaged in publishing the description of Annulosa, collected by Capt. King, while those collected by Mr. Darwin on the voyage of the Beagle, have been entrusted to Mr. Waterhouse, who has published descriptions of some in the Entomological Society's Transactions, and in the Annals of Natural History. Hope's papers in the Zoological Transactions, and the Coleopterist's Manual are well known, as are Mr. Newman's, in different Magazines and Annals. We rejoice to see in a late number of a small periodical

*King (Capt. Philip P., R.N., FR.S. &c.) Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia, performed between the years 1818 and 1822, 2 vols. Lond. 1827. Appendix, “ Catalogue of Insects collected by Capt. King, R.N., 192 species of Annulosa, 188 Insects, 4 Arachnida," pp. 438-469; "eighty-one of the species are new." In this paper, Macleay institutes a Curculionidous genus near Phalidura, which he names Hybauchenia, the type being H. nodulosa. Carpophagus, type C. Banksiæ, "would probably with Linnæus have been a Bruchus."-Megamerus 'has an affinity to Sagra, but differs from that genus in having setiform antennæ, porrect mandibles, and securiform palpi, its habit is also totally different, and more like that of some of those insects which belong to the heterogeneous magazine called Prionus; it is undoubtedly the most singular and novel form in Capt. King's collection."-Type, M. Kingii.