OCR Text |
Show 1890.] OF THE FAMILY BUTHIDCE. 137 ' hand-back ' 2'3; of movable dactylus 5. d • Total length 45 ; length of cephalothorax 5; of tail 27, of first two segments 8, of fifth 6 ; width of first and fifth 4 ; length of humerus 4'7 ; of brachium 5"5 ; width of brachium 2 ; of hand 2 ; length of ' hand-back' 3; of movable dactylus 5*5. The Museum has two specimens of this species from Lake Nyassa (Universities' Mission), and four ticketed merely E. Africa from the collection of Capt. Speke. This form may be recognized from all its allies by the uniformly green tint of the upper surface; moreover, the superior lateral margins of the fifth caudal segment are elevated behind, terminate abruptly and not gradually as in the other species. The spine on the inner surface of the hand points apparently to affinity between this species and U. triangulifer (Plate XIII. fig. 5), of which the Museum possesses a single male specimen from Pietersberg. But the form of the vesicle in the d of triangulifer is sufficiently peculiar to differentiate the species from all others. RHOPTRURUS KIRKI, sp. n. (Plate XIV. fig. 1.) Colour almost a uniform ochraceous tint throughout, the terminal segments of the tail and the dactyli of the palpi being somewhat darker. Cephalothorax divided throughout by a median sulcus, lightly emarginate in front, its posterior width greater than its length ; closely but feebly granular throughout ; ocular tubercle prominent, deeply and widely sulcate and perfectly smooth ; central eyes large and separated by a space about equal to a diameter;-lateral eyes three on each side. Tergites finely and closely granular throughout; from the second to the fifth armed with a low granular posterior median keel; the seventh with a low median keel in front, and two, more coarsely granular, anteriorly abbreviated keels on each side. Sternites mostly smooth, the fourth granular laterally, the fifth very feebly, if at all, granular in the centre, more coarsely so at the sides, bearing traces of four abbreviated granular keels. Tail very smooth, furnished only with exceedingly minute granules, almost parallel-sided, the fifth segment being only slightly wider than the first; the first segment bearing traces of ten minutely granular keels, the second and third segments with faint traces of but eight keels, the fourth with scarcely perceptible traces of the keels, and the fifth with scarcely perceptible traces of five keels; vesicle smooth above, minutely granular beneath, the spine beneath the aculeus simple, large and sharp. Palpi. Upper surface of humerus minutely and closely granular, bounded in front and behind by a coarsely granular keel; anterior surface minutely granular and furnished with many larger tubercles, inferior surface very finely granular, posterior surface more coarsely granular; upper surface of brachium very finely granular throughout and furnished with more coarsely granular keels; anterior surface also minutely granular and furnished with several |