ee RA Ure res ethene} cia he IR pee Sry eagle no rra he Pood She a aS ts 3 eee ni peer Demy b d - 7 N98 20% Os Da anaes ia aa alae pies metre A “rs mo ao 3 ; Drache alee infer ott ‘. 1-16 [May 1838] 2 1: 49-112 [June 1838] 3 1: 113-160 el=32 [July 1838] A 1: 161-224 {Aug. 1838] 5 1 : 225-288 (Sept. 1838] 6 1 : 289-352 [Oct. 1838] 7 1 : 353-400 : 33-48 (Nov. 1838] 8 1 : 401-462 [Dec. 1838] 9 De l= 128 (Jan. 1839] 10 De 29-192 [Feb. 1839] 11 2: 193-224 [March 1839] 12 20225-=256 {April 1839] 13 2 : 257-288 : 49-80 [June 1839] 14 2)3289-352 [Nov. 1839] 15 2 : 353-400 : 81-96 [Jan. 1840] 16 2 : 401-587 : 97-154 (June 1840] i VEE 1 (S88 | i a Fi ‘ ee Mood MuAH Xe oar ul MW % ; ZS. in = . ~ : 4 A, neRe : | x > Wer Ss rhe) a, all Hl | Fi = "Hy a Zou oO SH: tl Fon : Ai of By rae hj Re o a» ~) * g | ch ty, i th oi ith * ) s Uy Pt aye os 4 | ye iS. a _ , 7 : uv ' ' ‘ ; *, t iu eT) ue : ‘ _ =o ! " no” / Ae i rit a : s yt 5 i ‘ A) es Piles " hot 1 . ? : ' - ion 1 ‘ ne 5 i 4 ‘ 7 1 ‘ ‘ , my ‘ 1 2 . = ' + ‘ os : “ ‘ 4 i 7 1 i i I A : i ' va i 5 ae : n eee, wy ) a ‘ : Pelt ' yt a LP rae, ‘ F q a 1 He - : ya ' a in De nen - ay a 6 Ae an Hs to D ” Woe 7 ni 0 orn oan +1 “ ee a mya re = ‘ ie Au w Aoi: ia i : Oe a a : - ; a 1 Onn , ; iV - oan 7 ani , a = 1) " cee ; ‘ : to pia: Pat ont ayy ai ey at Mure At / i - x oan ial ae ms iy. a a fats o ot iy 7 i ar ie ie Wits ea “ee "iy ah , Pn nh , a or | ae a ' ; OTA a Piryus il hy oe ayant Re cea nin eer a ha een ia er a i Gait en i i - fk on a fo ‘ i An " bag | ie i A Rt ‘ 4 nw | ‘“ Oke v0 A VATA hy? i de i a mt ti ae u | k ne f iy) i ie iM ay i i a) ie AV uliey allie i AI cee 7 .) | i cn i ai i‘ i) k Cn { ya ale en Ny ; My hay may h oe i us iy eG on re me a rien it ae 5 tig ania A Onis HUF ah, wit it a yt ‘ i ca a acai oe a ‘ ——— 7 aa - ae - ——— = Ee : iy f. #2) ) A .. ted i va 7 mM, mt ofa ae ie ARR if fe a ae aoa Rian gt fim) om) OMe Tee i! iifin aN) A Ny eter ft if fi Pu) ag fh abe ue Ny es Sa: Ge eas i iy! * ie iy me, oa i saat, : 9 ‘a arn a vi RAINES fo ARE is i rae gt Sea ve ant i any pit i ape: a res f aM tao oi i a ia . ; Y P| be 7 : i Mat Ly a ne Te A AN rhe ai re, A, he tar a on Vat, et . i pest ms \Aeay ( A eo rik Pore ve tt a” AN wag"? INTRODUCTION wt EN TO THE MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS; FOUNDED ON THE NATURAL HABITS AND CORRESPONDING ORGANISATION OF THE DIFFERENT FAMILIES. By J.O. WESTWOOD, F.L.S. HON. MEM. LIT. HIST. SOC. QUEBEC ; MEM. SOC. CHS. NAT. MOSCOW 3; PHYSIOGR. SOC. LUND 3 SOC. ROY. SCIENC. LILLE; SOC. HIST. NAT. MAURITIUS ; SOC. CUVIER. PARIS 35 PLIN. SOC. EDINBURGH ; LIT. PHIL. NAT. HIST. SOC. BELFAST, RICHMOND, SHEFFIELD 3 MEM. SOC. ENTOMOL. DE FRANCE 3 SECRETARY ENT. SOC. LONDON, ETC. ‘© Empirici, formice more, congerunt tantum et utuntur: rationales, aranearwm more, telas ex se conficiunt: apzs vero ratio media est, que materiam ex floribus horti et agri elicit ; sed tamen eam propria facultate vertit et digerit.””— Bacon, Nov. Org. lib. i. aph. 95. IN TWO VOLUMES. VOLE LONDON: LONGMAN, ORME, BROWN, GREEN, AND LONGMANS, PATERNOSTER-ROW. 1839, Lonpow: Printed by A. Srorriswoopr, New-Street-Square. EXPLANATION OF PLATE. Order CoLEorTERA. Fug. 1. Cicindela hybrida Zinn. (Linn. Cab.) Fig. 2. Anomala Donovani Steph. (Brit. Mus.) Order NEUROPTERA. Fig. 3. Boreus hyemalis Latr. Order HyMENOPTERA. Fig. 4. Dicladocerus ( W.) Westwoodii Steph. Fig. 5. Platymischus ( W.) dilatatus Steph. Order STREPSIPTERA. Fig. 6. Stylops Spencii Pek. Order HEmMiprerRA. Fig. 7. Aphelocheirus zstivalis Westw. Order Homoptera. Fig. 8. Dorthesia characias, ¢ , Latr. Order Diprera. Fig. 9. Phthiria fulva, 9, Laér. ‘ "7 > ——- Wrths «@ a mn | 7 iv - ” - , i a a ae U _ 7 5 Ht 2 - 5 8 «& or y a 7 . i - f ed oy hi die 7 7 7 _ mi x 7 oe A yk gic | te if = a . a 7 ; 7 7, rey >. ee y — - ; . ys di oe ta , 7 oy 1) = 7s. 7 i . - ih & th pun - = ie, ai Py or ay at ye ny. | bins ; : Al a Tne: A ee ye oe brn 4 ne c - i 7 : ite an 7 7 Ray f ait a i ‘ , ia a ny a - : : = a 7 7 7 ry om » pide he iy ce fe fe oe 7 7 —- aw 7 - i 7 i are 1 oa Paes iia ‘(er he a . 2 let ile ey wk fis aii! nn ary - 2 yn ey ae : : : - a > a a ae Tui! s _ 7 7 a 7 4 ee ea ig E a . _ ra a es - ie EN Min Hi ot 1s a Ay ats Me are a ; F ak ae _ yd I) SRS ss - ab ve se 7 yy > ee a ~~ as ata = wi. «i Le ie ne 2 a ‘ge a - “ a os x" v Pur it ail ie : x 3 -~ : ~ be i : 7 7 | 7 = ‘Fy yd Py ae thal ae : a i - a ei - _ a . ; : foe UG arta aig Pipi by tus ie = see Bn ae im ne a a ar ae 7 i i ae » > — oo — —_— “4 : ad SS 1s Lei = a om = ie = ERE A CE. THE majority of Entomological Works which have appeared, during the last quarter of a century, and which have not only given so great an impulse to the science, but have also imparted to it a philosophical character, of which it was previously des- titute, may be described as exhibiting either generalised views of the subject; or, of elaborate technical details of the genera and species of insects. Thus, whilst the delightful Introduction to Entomology of Messrs. Kirby and Spence, followed by Burmeister’s Manual, and, at more humble distances, by the Insect Architecture, Trans- formations and Miscellanies, the Grammar of Lintomology, by Newman, and my Lntomologist’s Text-Book, have made us ac- quainted with the general details of insect habits and structure; the Llustrations and Descriptions of the Genera of British Insects of Curtis, the Illustrations of British Entomology of Stephens, the Essay on the Kossorial Hymenoptera of Shuckard, the Lepi- doptera Britannica of Haworth, &c., have led us to the investi- gation of the minute details of generic and specific distinctions. The nature of these works necessarily rendered them essentially different in the information they conveyed; indeed, owing to the greater number of organs possessed by insects over the higher animals, and the consequently great modifications to which they are subjected in the different groups, in order to fit them for performing their various functions, it must be evident that the former class of works, unless extended to a great number of volumes, must necessarily exclude the description A Y 1V PREFACE. of genera and species; whilst the immense number of insect species in like manner prevented the latter class of works from entering into detailed accounts of habits and structure, or in- quiries into the relations of the different groups. Thus the student was led at once from the general views he had gained of the subject, to the minute technical details of genera and species, there being no work which he could take up to serve as a guide to the developement of the principles of modern classification, in the distribution of the orders and families. For years this deficiency has strikingly manifested itself to me, and it is long since I announced my present undertaking, in which I had proposed to myself to show the application of the modern views which have been entertained relative to the na- tural relations of animals in the arrangement of the entire groups of winged insects; illustrating the subject by details of the natural habits, transformations, and structure of the different families. Nothing can be more distinct than the views entertained by Linneeus and his immediate followers, and modern naturalists, as to the principles of classification. With the former, nothing further was requisite than the construction of an arrangement by which the name of a species might be arrived at in the most convenient, and, consequently, often in the most artificial, manner. ‘Totally regardless of the relations, more or less re- mote, existing amongst the different groups, their writings cannot be regarded otherwise, than as catalogues raisonnées. Modern entomologists, on the other hand, with Latreille at their head, have endeavoured to render the science more in accordance with nature by the establishment of ‘ Familles Naturelles” for the reception of the species most nearly according in habits and structure, the investigation of which, in all the various states of the insects’ existence, has been rendered requisite, in order to trace the limits, or to show the points of connexion existing between the different groups. Convinced that in our endeavours to perfect PREFACE. Vv this modern classification of insects, we should deserve the greatest assistance from an acquaintance with their preparatory states, I have, during sixteen years of attentive observation, con- stantly kept that object in view, carefully noting down with pen and pencil every fact which seemed to bear upon the subject. I have studied nature in the woods and fields, tending and observing insects in all their various transformations, well knowing, that the man who confines his researches to the mere collection and examination of museum specimens, can neither possess so intellectual an enjoyment, nor acquire so perfect a knowledge of the subject, as is to be derived from the exami- nation of living nature; and it is both with pleasure and with pride that I now submit the results of my numerous observa- tions to the reader. Another object, which strongly impressed itself upon my attention, was the necessity for a careful examination and ar- rangement of the facts scattered throughout the voluminous transactions of foreign and native societies, and the various zoological and entomological magazines and other repertoria of science. ‘The time occupied in wading through the hundreds of volumes which this investigation has necessitated, has been im- mense; but the value of the observations otherwise left to slumber unnoticed, will speak for itself. Independent of the materials thus obtained and alluded to in the body of the work, the “ Bibliographical Notices” attached to each family, cannot but be of infinite service to the student. It is not, however, to my own materials, and those derived from published works alone, that I have had recourse. I have industriously availed myself of every opportunity of studying the collections, as well in great Britain as in France and Ger- many; and I must take the present opportunity of returning my sincere thanks to all my friends who have assisted me in my undertaking, and whose communications I have punctually noticed in the body of my work; but more especially to M. vi PREFACE. Victor Audouin, professor of entomology at the Jardin des Plantes, who has kindly permitted me to make unlimited use of his unique collection and voluminous manuscripts relative to the economy of insects in completing my present work. I have commenced the work with general observations on insects, and then proceeded to divide them into orders: I have afterwards taken up each order separately, dividing it into families, and giving an account of the characters, habits, trans- formations, and general distribution of the insects comprised within each family, with an illustration of their characteristic anatomical details and preparatory states. It is thus that I have endeavoured to make my work a fitting “Sequel” to the Introduction to Entomology of Messrs. Kirby and Spence, who, upon being made acquainted with its nature, kindly sanctioned my thus styling it. That it may be deemed worthy of such a title, and of a place by the side of their volumes, is the highest object of my ambition. At the same time, in order that this work may serve as a precursor to the works of Curtis, Stephens, &c., I have added a synopsis of the British genera, brought down to the present time. The idea of the addition of this synopsis was derived from Latreille’s Considérations Générales, in which the genera are shortly characterised, and the names of the typical species given in an Appendix. The additions of generic synonymes, references to generic figures and indications of the number of British species, will render the synopsis more complete, although it must be evident that it can serve but as a guide to more ex- tended research. + The numerous figures with which the work is illustrated are, in almost every instance, original, and drawn by myself. I cannot conclude this preface without alluding to the endless . PREFACE. vil gratification to be derived from the study of this branch of natural history, of which the present work bears such ample testimony. For a long series of years, the collection of materials for its completion has been a ceaseless labour of love. Indeed, had it not been thus, it would have been impossible for me to lave proceeded in an undertaking “ of which the profit, if by great chance there should be any, could not be expected to repay, even the cost of books required in it, and from which any fame must necessarily be confined to a very limited circle*,” and in which the time absorbed in the preparation of the text, and in microscopically dissecting so many minute objects re- presented in the wood-cuts, has been so great. I have, however, persevered, and, if I shall have succeeded in inducing any of my readers to pursue the science with a higher aim than that of collecting specimens, by investigating the habits and the corre- sponding organisation of these animals with a view to the dis- covery of their natural relations and classification, my labours will not have been in vain. * Kirby and Spence, Introd, pref. vol. i, p. 10. © la , re, ; an oo i » : ay Pe 7 ; = os a ,¢ a : 7 er Sa ‘ as alii : i or | ey. v 7 4 with “i bes ae a fiat Pw ; — a ‘5 ee ol Ve in. ip arom an’, > mit 7 ere 4a > 7 Th / i / : “mn ic i pu. ato Fite am - iy Ai mt 7h i “7 wan an a 7 Ww - a a * x ‘ - % ie rete ’ # ‘a - ae mare fy ; A : ie av ae 7 a, ue i Sn. ore vy Wis a was atu nn ce a, aa o] ig re 7 Rae ree Or caus a slau! ee 7am aie 2) ee ee i re neg So bas ne : wk Nar ee es Te sl fags B ary von a Un eg ) 7 a = cide ae ir Ke Pile aie i ee) aa a 7 ‘ aU <>. ier -_ = 2 - ; : pt bf ini P! ay iy a in alt 7 A out i} —, ee) i : mile Sut E (eit 12% A ud i : Ta ear : an ae a eae 2 oe “ie - ty ie eile y an lite 7 vube i i“ ie : Si a ra =. ty iil ne 7 Rigi Bath a iid . iv a an hia a - “a | 7 7 ; | f eo! nf i ser>-< Tne Rat ot iy | Be ie ae rs . ip xen F LP IY Me ae rd : “ie Lal a ee an moat wre =) ee ima A a. " ee a =o ma 2 ad 2 ne ; ea.” Ba < el ro | re i o A “e lpia bap ipa ined fre ys) pit ie 7 cn Ag r i re Vy ogi! ae i 7 — hd = i 7 a hit ils ve ay « ou, Hak #1) Yael eS i 4 4 A = is ‘uth eels ae : Ges x 7 7 hw Vee wee yO a, uF ; =. it ; a rr ' _— as ie = “ ~ 4 ; gf af : 7 ; : fa % Ve a : 7 7 - 7 a : _ * -_ - _ au a : : a ws a 7 a Jars en Poser = q oe ian ax ae NS re ri rae ee ae fe Oy : oe) | = y. mM 2 so a oc . = Jee pi < | -t i ss ° : - a > b rs a 7 “a 7 i a ie 9° ong — i ’ » f= .~ aa f -. : J/g {ae caanrcy 2 nie = 1 ae > Se i Sie ae oe we : ae = : * = tag “ J : a OT t : at A i wae g CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME. Page Page Observations upon Insects in Hydradephagous Adephaga - 93 general - - ae * Dyticiwx - =o General Structure of Insects - 5 GyYRINIDE - 105 Head, &c. - = 16 Philhydridous Rypophaga - 111 Mouth - - Sh OS) HETEROCERIDA = le Thorax, &c. - =5 LO ParNiID& - = iss Abdomen - - - I4 HELOPHORIDE - 120 Internal Systems - - 15 HypDROPHILID® - 122 Transformations =e = 06 SPH ERIDIIDE - 128 Distribution of Insects into AGATHIDIDE - 150 Orders = - - 18 Necrophagous Rypophaga - 132 Metamorphotic System - 19 SCAPHIDIIDE - 134 Alary System - - 20 SILPHIDE - Br lists Cibarian System - = 21 NITIDULIDE - - 140 Eclectic System - - 23 ENGID& - - 143 Representative System - 26 Trogositides - 145 COLEOPTERA. Cucujides - - 148 Bibliographical References 30 Paussip& - - 150 Characters of Order - 33 MYCETOPHAGIDE - 152 Arrangement of Order - 37 DERMESTID& - 155 Pentamerous Coleoptera - 44 Brachelytrous Rypophaga - 161 Geodephagous Adephaga 45 Sv APHYLINIDE - 162 CICINDELID& 47 Pselaphides - 174 CaRABIDE - 57 | Clavicornes - - 178 Larvee of Carabidee - 65 Byrruipx% . - 178 Arrangement of Cara- HisTEeRID& - 181 bidze - - 71 Lamellicornes - - 184 Brachinides ara LUCANIDE- - - 185 Scaritides = - 81 Petalocera - - 191 Harpalides - 83 GEOTRUPIDE - - 201 Carabides - - 89 SCARABEIDE- - - 203 Bembidiides = Ml APHODIIDE - 207 VOL. I. a TROGIDE - DyYNASTIDE RUTELID - ANOPLOGNATHIDE MELOLONTHIDE GLAPHYRIDE CETONUDE - Serricornes - Buprestip& - EUCcNEMIDE - ELATERIDE - CEBRIONIDE - CYPHONIDE - LAaMPyYRID& - TELEPHORIDE MELYRIDE - CLERIDE - Prinip& - LYMEXYLONIDE BostrRICHIDE ScyDMENIDE Heteromerous Coleoptera Trachelia - Noroxipz - PYROCHROID#£ LaGriip® - Horupe - MorDELLIDE- CaNTHARIDE SALPINGIDE - CGEDEMERIDE. - MELANDRYID£ Atrachelia . CISTELID.E - CONTENTS. Page 208 210 213 Q Q 5w wow WN WD WD WW DW W oD > > on nat OG DO & Oo EE OoWOovrF OMWDOHYH Danan Ww wo 4d W wD W oo oOo 6 © @ om He Or Oe ivy) fo) Or HELOPID Cossyphides ~- DIAPERIDE TENEBRIONIDE BiLapsip& PIMELIID Pseudotetramerous Coleoptera Rhyncophora BrucHIp& ATTELABIDE CURCULIONID& ScOLYTIDE Longicornes - PRIONIDE CERAMBYCID& LEPTURID Phytophaga - CRIOCERID CassIDIDE GALERUCIDE - CHRYSOMELID® Pseudotrimerous Coleoptera EROTYLIDE ENDOMYCHIDE CoccINELLID EUPLEXOPTERA (For- FICULIDE) ORTHOPTERA BuatTrip#& MAnNTID& - PHASMID ACHETIDE - GRYLLIDE LocustTID£ oS a ow © Gr i=) ERRATA AND ADDENDA TO VOL. I. 2 Page 1. line 8. for ‘and antenne ” read “and two antenne.” line 11. after “ Aristotle” read “and the class of insects of Lamarck.” 3. line 5. for “mites” read “lice.” In reference to the observations in sect. 1. relative to the importance of metamorphosis as the leading character of the Ptilota, Mr. MacLeay, in consequence of the observations of Mr. J. V. Thompson, and the confirmation assumed to have been afforded to them by the recent researches of Captain Ducane (Annals Nat. Hist. No. 9. Nov. 1838.) has suggested the theory, that “the Ptilota may be characterised by their change of form taking place during their last two or three stages of ecdysis ; while the metamorphosis of all other annulosa only oceurs during the first or second moult after leaving the egg.” ( Illustr. Zool. So. Africa, No. 3. p. 53.) In opposition to this theory, I will only here reply that the most elaborate examinations hitherto made of the eggs of spiders and crustacea by Heroldt and Rathke, together with my own of the egg of one of West Indian Land Crabs, have clearly demonstrated that, at least in the species under examination, not the slightest change worthy of the name of metamorphosis takes place. 11. line 16. for “ininsects” read ‘in those insects.” line 18. for “being” read “are.” line 20. dele. line 30. for “are as destitute” read “ which are as destitute.’ 6. line 3. for “oxyginating ” read “ oxygenating.” 7. line 10. 29. for “ Homomorphous” read “ Monomorphous.” line 19. for “larve” read “ larva.” ] 1 21. line 21. dele “‘and” before Dermaptera. 32. line 44. for “ Harris in ditto?” read “ Harris in Nat. Hist. Soc. Hartford, vol. i.” 37. line 37. Mr. Haliday states in the Zoological Journal, that Clambus pos- sesses five joints in the tarsi. 42. line 40. for “ Philyhdrida” read “ Philhydrida.” 83. line 14. Mr. Newman assures me that Eutoma tinctilatus possess a max- illary unguis, which escaped my microscopical examination of it, If this be the case, it cannot enter into the genus Carenum, in which Latreille noticed the want of a maxillary hook. (R. An. second edition, tom. iv. p. 381.) 89. line 30. for “ Cbhychrus” read “ Cychrus.” 93: The elaborate volume of descriptions of Dyticide and Gyrinide recently published by M. Aube, must be particularly noticed. 118. line 9. for “to be the” read ‘to be those of the.”’ 123. note *, line 2. for “ species” read “ spaces.” 126. note +, M. Audouin has published a note upon this subject in the Hist. Nat. Ins. tom. vy. p. 268. xil ERRATA AND ADDENDA. Page 151. Mr. MacLeay states that his brother has observed that an Austra- lian species of Cerapterus resides in ants’ nests, and likewise possesses the power of crepitating. ‘ 152. note *, for “ Mycelophagide ” read ‘“‘ Mycetophagide.” 176. note *, Within a month from the time of the publication of this note (namely, on the 30th of August, 1838), I had the pleasure to capture the Claviger foveolatus in an ant’s nest in Whychwood Forest, Oxfordshire. 183. note t+, read “ Faun. Boreal. Americana.” 290. line 30. and $1. dele the statement of this cocoon being that of a Lepi- dopterous insect. The observation of Mr. MacLeay having applied to the supposed gall of Cecidoses figured by Mr. Curtis on the same plate, and which Mr. MacLeay informs me is the cocoon of a Lepidopterous insect, and nota gall. 221. The family Cetoniide has formed the subject of an Essay by Mr. MacLeay in the Jilustrations of the Zoology of Southern Africa. 231. line 34. This passage was written (but not published) previous to the pub- lication of the second edition of Stephens’s Nomenclature, in which the genera of Buprestide were introduced. 281. line 23. for “ palpi to appear to belong, this” read “ palpi, appear to belong to this.” 304. Fig. 35.1. The antenne ought to have been inserted at the base of the rostrum. , 365. line 21. for “naturally” read ‘ materially.” MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. I. OBSERVATIONS UPON INSECTS IN GENERAL. Insects, as proposed to be treated of in the following pages, may be defined to be, Annulose Animals breathing by trachez, having the head distinct, and provided in the adult state with six articulated legs and - _antenne, subject also to a series of moultings previously to attaining perfection, whereby wings are ordinarily developed. This definition, which comprises the characters _. of Be al or winged insects, of Aristotle, does not, indeed: accord with that required by the group of insects as extended by many recent authors ; but the group thus defined is regar ded Mr. Macleay (Linn. Trans. vol. xiv. p. 67.) as pre-eminently natural, and as constituting the typical division of Annulose Animals; and, indeed, when we call to mind the general characters of the classes of the Annulosa and other invertebrated animals, it will appear evident, that the extraordinary metamorphoses to which the Ptilota are subject, attended as they are by the ulterior development of organs of flight, which exist in no other group of invertebrates, ought to be regarded as especially entitling these insects to be treated not only as a distinct, but as a most natural, group*, and consequently as giving a superior degree * It will, perhaps, be objected by some persons, that the existence of metamor- phoses, as an exclusive character, is denied by the researches of Mr. Thompson, who has asserted that the Crustacea undergo equally striking transformations. I have, however, and I trust satisfactorily, disproved the statements of this author, in a Me- moir published in the Philosophical Transactions for 1835. It may also be said, that the character employed by Mr. Newman to isolate the winged insects (that of their incapability to reproduce their limbs) ought to have been employed. But this character has also been long since refuted by Dr. Heineken in the Zoological Journal, and by Dr. Burmeister in his Handbuch der Entomologie B g MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. of weight to that system in which they are regarded as distinct, over the numerous other methods which have hitherto been proposed from time to time, of some of the more celebrated of which it will be convenient to give a very short notice. : Linneus and his disciple Fabricius introduced into the great division of Insects, not only those subject to metamorphoses and the acquisition of organs of flight, but also all other articulated animals possessing articulated legs, which formed in the Linnzan system the order Aptera, but which Fabricius separated into several other classes. In the former of these systems we perceive the great disadvantages attendant upon the employment of a single character in our attempts to arrange zoological objects, since the order Aptera regarded as equivalent in rank with the orders Coleoptera, Lepidop- tera, &c., comprised not only apterous hexapod, and polypod insects, but also Crabs and Spiders, which more recent anatomical investi- gations have proved to be respectively groups of equal rank with all the winged orders united together. The elaborate researches of Cuvier in comparative anatomy fully proved, that the Crabs and other allied animals (genera— Cancer, Oniscus, and Monoculus, Zinn.) could not be retained amongst insects, inasmuch as they possessed a totally distinct system of respiration, breathing by means of bronchiz or gills, as well as a complete system of circulation: of these, therefore, he formed the class Crustacea, which has been regarded as distinct by all subsequent entomologists. Lamarck on similar grounds removed the spiders, and some other species of Apterous insects (genera — Aranea, Scorpio, and Phalangium Zinn.), constituting them into the class Arachnida, including therein, however, the Mites (G. Acarus, Linn.), which breathe by means of tracheze; tie Centipedes (G. Scolopendra and Iulus Linn.), the spring-tailed insects (G. Lepisma, and Podura Linn.); and the Lice (G. Pediculus Linn.*) These four last-mentioned groups have much _ perplexed systematists, none of whom are agreed as to their location, and by several of whom their situations have been frequently altered. By Dr. Leach+ the Mites were raised to the rank of a distinct class, under the name of Acari; the Centipedes were also elevated to the rank of a class under the name of Myriapoda Latreille ; whilst the spring- * The two remaining Linnzan genera are, Pulex (the flea), subject to metamor- phosis ; and Termes, which belongs to the order Neuroptera. t+ In Samouelle’s Comp. p. 75. INSECTS IN GENERAL. 3 tailed insects (as an order named Thysanura from Latreille), _ and the lice (as an order named Anoplura or the Parasita Zatr.) were united with insects as a subclass under the name of Ametabolia.* Mr. Curtis has adopted the group of insects as thus pence by Dr. Leach. By Latreille the spring-tailed insects and nites have been constantly regarded as belonging to the class of insects, from their possessing six legs, in common with the metamorphotic insects; and the mites have been constantly regarded as portion of the class Arachnida, from possessing in common with the spiders eight legs. The Centipedes, however, have been variously regarded by Latreille, either as forming a distinct order of insects, under the name of Myriapoda (as in the 2d edition of the Regne Animal), or as con- stituting of themselves a distinct fourth Annulose class (as in his last work, Cours d’ Entomologie, 1831.) Messrs. Kirby and Spence have adopted a classification totally dif- ferent from that of all preceding or subsequent systematists, in which three Annulose classes are formed, namely, Crustacea, Arachnida, and Insecta; but the latter is augmented by the hexapod spring- tailed insects and lice, the octopod mites, and the polypod centipedes, all of which are regarded as forming a single order, Aptera, charac- terised by respiring by trachez, and having no system of circulation. (Introd. iii. p. 22.) The incongruous character of the groups thus associated together ; the possession of pulmonary sacs by Thelypho- nus, which is thus placed amongst the mites; the recent researches of M. Dugés on the respiratory organs of Dysdera and Segestria, read before the Academie des Sciences on the 9th February, 1835, (clearly demonstrating that the respiratory system in the Arachnida is not entitled to pre-eminence as a character of the class); and, lastly, the admission of Messrs. Kirby and Spence themselves (Jntrod. iv. 383.), that their order Aptera is not a natural, but merely a pro- visional one, and that the hexapod insects are to be regarded as more peculiarly entitled to the denomination of Insects (Jntrod. iii. 22.), will, I trust, be considered as suflicient to authorise me in not adopt- ing their views. Mr. Stephens, in addition to the ordinary metamorphotic groups, has added the lice (Anoplura) to the class of insects, without, how- ever, offering an argument for this deviation from all previous systems. The general construction of the hexapod antenniferous body of the * Edinb. Encyel. vol. ix. B 2 4 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. lice approaches very closely to that of such of the very few true insects, which undergo an imperfect metamorphosis, without their wings being developed; as the bed bug, certain apterous Orthoptera, &e. Dr. Hermann Burmeister has, however, introduced both the spring- tailed insects and the lice amongst insects; placing the suctorial lice (Pediculidz ) in the order Hemiptera, and the mandibulated lice (Nir- midz) and the spring-tailed insects in an order with Libellula, Ephe- mera, Termes, and Psocus. (Comp. his Handb. der Ent. vol.i. § 352., and vol. ii. p. 39., and De Insect. Syst. Nat. 1829.) He appears to have been led to adopt this arrangement by giving too slight a weight to the developement of organs of flight; citing, in support of his views, the occasional apterous conditions of certain true insects, and even the occasional absence of wings in one of the sexes, as in the glow-worm. In these instances, however, I can see but exceptions to a general rule, for which allowances ought to be made, and, conse- quently, as not warranting the introduction of entire groups of Apte- rous animals into the class. It only remains for me to mention the system of Mr. MacLeay ; which, from the philosophical manner in which the subject has been treated, merits particular notice. In this system, the metamorphotic Annulosa are regarded as the true insects; the classes Crustacea and Arachnida are introduced, with the limits given to them by Latreille ; but the four other groups, which have already occupied so much of our attention, are, together with another group of Annulose animals, formed into a separate class, under the name of Ametabola, “ having no metamorphosis in the usual sense of the word, or only that kind of it, the tendency of which is confined to an increase in the number of feet.” (Linn. Tr. xiv. p.66.) All these Ametabola are destitute of wings, but their respiratory system is similar to that of the true insects. It would occupy too much space were I to recapitulate the arguments adduced by Mr. MacLeay, as to the propriety of the establishment of this class ; I must, therefore, refer the student to the fifth and sixth chapters of the second volume of the Hore Entomologice, premising only that I have adopted this classification, because it leaves the true winged metamorphotic insects as distinct from the other groups, and without expressing any opinion upon the Quinarian views of Mr. MacLeay, or upon the introduction of the Vermes amongst the Ame- tabola. STRUCTURE OF INSECTS. 5 Having thus determined the limits of the class of Insects, a slight sketch of their structural characters, and their distribution into orders, will next occupy our attention. II. GENERAL STRUCTURE OF INSECTS. The word Jnsect, derived from the Latin (iz and seco, sectum), indicates one of the chief characters of this group of animals; the body in which is not only composed of a continuous series of seg- ments, articulating with each other, but is also often divided or cut into three very marked portions, to which the names, head (caput), thorax, and abdomen have been applied. Unlike the higher animals, insects are not internally furnished with a bony skeleton ; but, to supply its want, the external envelope is ordinarily of a corneous-like texture, to which, on its inner surface, the muscles are attached, and which encases the viscera and other internal organs. This external Envelope is, therefore, the analogue of the skeleton of the mammalia, the external organs of locomotion being attached to it-- In its chemical composition, this envelope is peculiar, consisting of a substance which has been named Chitine, which is found only in the teguments of articulated animals. To this is added a certain quantity of albumen, an animal matter, certain salts, and an oil of variable colour, which last is generally disposed near the external sur- face, and supplies the varying colours so much admired in this tribe of animals. The Number of Segments, whereof the body of insects is composed, appears, at first sight, to be very variable, but this is more apparent than real; being caused either by the soldering together of certain of these segments, or the rudimental state of others, in consequence of the superior developement of the adjacent segments. It is, however, to be observed that, owing to the non-developement of wings and generative organs in the larva, the body, in this state, is more regu- larly segmented, and the segments more equally sized, than in the imago state. It has been supposed that the typical number of segments is thirteen ; but some late observations upon the larva of Hymenop- terous insects, and upon the common earwig ( Zrans. Ent. Soc. vol. i. p- 157.), have led me to consider that the number is greater. From the elaborate researches of Audouin and MacLeay into the structure of the thorax of hexapod insects, it has been considered that each of B 3 6 MODERN CLASSIFICATION GF INSECTS- the primary segments is typically composed of four other segments ; but as it is only in the thorax that this complex structure is to be traced, I shall notice it in describing that part of the body. The Distribution of the Segments of the body of insects into three distinct regions (head, thorax, and abdomen), although not observable in the early states of existence of many species (ex. gr. larvae of Lepidoptera), wherein the body is composed of a series of nearly equal-sized continuous rings, is so essentially indicated in the last and highest state of perfection of the animal, that we may, with propriety, adopt the Linnzean division of the body, into head, thorax (¢runcus a) and abdomen; but the limbs (artus), being attached to the segments forming the thorax, are to be regarded as appendages thereto, and not as distinct primary parts of the body, in the same manner as the antenne and trophi are appendages of the head ; and the ovipositor, sting, caudal forceps, &c., appendages of the abdomen. These three primary divisions of the body appear to be adapted for distinct ob- jects of equally great importance in the physiological relations of the animal. The head comprises the organs of sense, and consists of a single segment. The thorax comprises the organs of locomotion, and is composed of the three following segments; and the abdomen, which contains the generative organs, comprises the remaining segments. The Head is a generally corneous, and often somewhat globose, skull; having an opening in its anterior part for the reception of the organs of the mouth (¢rophz), and a similar opening at its posterior part, where it is attached to the following segment, and through which the cesophagus or other anterior part of the digestive canal passes. On each side of the head is fixed an immoveable eye, of large size and complex structure, between which are occasionally two, or oftener three, minute simple lenses (ocelli). Towards the front of the head, but behind the mouth, are also attached two move- able organs, of endless variety of form, size, and structure, which are _termed antennz, and of which the precise uses have not been deter- mined. The front margin of the head is often separated by a suture from the remainder of the skull, and is then termed the Clypeus. The under surface of the head is the Jugulum K. (Gula, Strauss, and Burm. ), the swollen anterior margin of which is the “piece prébasilaire” of Strauss and Burmeister (Manual, pl. iii. f. 12. d, d), being the stipes of MacLeay, and the mentum and insertion of Newman. It is to the front margin of this swollen part that the true mentum is attached. STRUCTURE OF INSECTS. 7 The form of the head and of its various organs is exceedingly varied ; the variations of the mouth are of the highest importance, serving for the primary divisions into orders. The Antenne are generally elongated, and consist of a number of rings attached together, but varying in structure, not only in almost every species, but also in the sexes of the same species; those of the males being often much more complex than those of the females. These organs, from their existence only in insects and cther articu- lated animals, as well as from their diversity of structure, have at- tracted much attention, and have been employed as excellent distinc- tive characters of genera, &c. They have received the names of filiform (thread-like), setaceous (bristle-like), moniliform (necklace- shaped), cylindrical, prismatic, ensiform (sword-like ), fusiform (spindle- shaped), aristate (terminated by a hair), dentate (toothed), serrated (saw-like), pectinated (comb-shaped), flabellated (fan-like), ramose (branched), furcate (fork-like), geniculated (elbowed), perfoliated (with a knob, composed of loosely attached joints), lamellate (with a plate-like knob), plumose (feathered), verticillate (with whorls of hair), &c., according to their various form and clothing. The Composite Eyes are exceedingly varied in their size; sometimes, as in the male hive bee, nearly occupying the whole surface of the head: they are composed of a number of minute transparent corneous hexagonal facets, representing the cornea, and being more or less gibbous, according to the carnivorous habits of the species. The number of these facets is equally varied; thus in the ant there are but fifty, whereas in the eyes of the butterfly, according to Geoffroy, there are not fewer than 34,650. From the elaborate anatomical re- searches of Muller and others, it is evident that each of these facets operates asa distinct organ of vision; and from an interesting me- moir lately presented by Mr. Ashton to the Entomological Society, it appears, that in some species (Libellula) the upper facets are of a larger size than the inferior ; whence a distinct kind of vision may be supposed to be possessed by these different sized facets, according with the habits of the insect. A similar observation was made by Hooke in Tabanus. The Simple Eyes (ocelli)are generally three in number, and arranged in a triangle on the crown of the head; they are of a simple and semiglobular form. The eyes of larva, spiders, and some other Annulosa are simple ocelli, arranged in groups. B 4 8 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. The Organs of the Mouth (upon the variations in which Fabricius constructed his system) are, notwithstanding al) their variety of form, reducible to one type of structure. They consist of six principal - organs, of which four are lateral and disposed in pairs: the two others are opposed in the opposite direction : thus, :.:, filling up the space left by the two other pairs above and beneath. The upper single piece is the upper lip (labrum): the upper lateral pair of organs are the mandibles or upper jaws; the lower lateral pieces are the max- illa, or lower jaws, and the under single piece is the under lip. The three lower organs are furnished with articulated appendages (palp/). The first principal variation in the structure of the mouth originates in the mode of action of the various organs. Thus, when the lateral pieces are short, inserted at a distance apart, and have a horizontal motion, the action is that of biting; when, on the other hand, the lateral pieces are elongated, originating near together, and having a longitudinal motion (by means of strong and elongated muscles at their base), the action is. that of sucking; the ascension of fluids in the latter case being produced by the gradual approximation of the pieces of the mouth (Latr. Cours. d Entomol. p. 206.), which thus form a siphon or haustellum. The insects having the former action are termed Broyeurs by the French, and Mandibulata by the English, and the latter Suceurs, or Haustellata; but as these,terms are liable to ob- jection (the insects composing the latter group possessing mandibles, although in an altered form), it would be convenient to employ some other names. The terms Dacnostomata and Antliostomata express the properties of the two groups, without involving the contradiction suggested by the terms ordinarily in use. In the Biting Insects, the upper lip is generally a simple and flat- tened plate closing the mouth above; the mandibles are generally horny, and more or less toothed (the teeth being, however, portions of the jaw itself), serving for gnawing in pieces the particles of food; the maxillz are more complicated, being furnished at the side with an articulated appendage like a short antenna, but of which the number of joints is never more than six. The maxilla itself is termi- nated by two lobes, the exterior of which is sometimes articulated, representing an internal palpus as in Carabus, sometimes formed into a helmet-like appendage ( G'alea), protecting the inner lobe as in Locusta, and sometimes soldered to the inner lobe. The lower lip is still more complicated: its base is a horny plate (mentum, or the labium of STRUCTURE OF INSECTS. 9 Fabricius): this is followed by a generally membranous organ (labiwm or the ligula of Fabricius), near to the external base of which is attached a pair of short articulated palpi; within this terminal la- bium is to be seen a fleshy organ, often forming its internal coating, but which in the dragon-fly and the grasshopper is a separate piece (lingua), and of which the lateral anterior angles (paraglosse) are oc- casionally prominent. Such is the general character of the mouth of the Coleoptera, Orthoptera, Neuroptera, and Hymenoptera. In the bees, however, the three inferior organs of the mouth are elongated, so as when in action conjointly to form a sucking apparatus; the mandibles, however, retain their ordinary form. Latreille, notwith- standing, terms this form of mouth Promuscis, a term long previously given by Kirby and Spence to the mouth of the Hemiptera. Amongst the Swetorial Insects, there is a much greater diversity of structure in the mouth. In the Hemiptera and Homoptera, the upper organ is very short and pointed; the four lateral pieces are elongated and transformed into slender lancet-like organs (the max- illary palpi being obsolete), enclosed within the equally elongated fleshy and articulated lower lip, which is turned upwards at the sides, forming a canal, up which the fluid food of the insect ascends; the labial palpi are also here obsolete. This variation of the mouth is termed by Kirby and Spence, promuscis; but by Fabricius, Olivier, and Latreille, rostrum. In the Diptera, the five upper organs, to- gether also with the internal tongue, are elongated into lancet-like organs, the maxillary palpi being attached at the base of the maxillz. These six organs are inclosed in a fleshy thickened piece (which is the lower lip), terminated by two large fleshy lobes which act as suckers. In many species, however, some of these lancet-like organs are obsolete. This kind of mouth is termed by Kirby and Spence, Linnzus and Fabricius, a proboscis. In the Lepidoptera, the three upper organs are almost obsolete, but the maxilla are greatly elongated into a delicate instrument, which when at rest is spirally folded up and hidden from sight, but when in action, is extended and thrust to the bottoms of flowers. At the base of these maxilla, a pair of minute palpi is often to be found. The lower lip is soldered to the head, but it is furnished with a pair of large palpi clothed with scales, which serves for the defence of the spiral maxilla. By Kirby and Spence, this kind of mouth is termed antlia; by Fabricius, lingua; and by Latreille, spirignatha (or more properly speirignatha). In the Apha- 10 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. niptera, the organs are all exposed, the upper lip, mandibles, and tongue elongated, the maxilla and labium short and furnished with articulated palpi. It is called rostrulum by Kirby and Spence, and rostellum by Latreille, which latter name had been previously em- ployed by Kirby and Spence for the mouth of the Pediculus, but which Latreille has termed Siphunculus. The Thorax, on account of its being the chief seat of the various organs of motion, is extremely complicated and variable in its struc- ture; and it is only within a few years that its investigation has been philosophically entered upon, or a concise nomenclature of its parts, founded upon such investigations, proposed. It is the truncus of Linnzus, and comprises the three segments following the head, which have been respectively termed prothorax, mesothorax, and meta- thorax, which were originally proposed by Nitzsch. The first of these segments bears the anterior pair of legs, the second supports the middle pair of legs and the anterior pair of the organs of flight, and to the third are attached the posterior pair of legs and the pos- terior pair of wings. A binary division of the thoracic segments has been proposed, founded upon the nature of the organs of motion; thus the anterior of the three segments is the manitrunk of Kirby, the collum of Knoch, and the corselet of Strauss; whilst the two pos- terior wing-bearing segments are united into the “segment alifére” of Chabrier, the alitrunk of Kirby, the pectus of Knoch, and the thorax of Strauss. The composition of each of the thoracic segments (and indeed of every segment according to the views of Audouin) is essentially similar, consisting of four dorsal subsegments, namely, the Preescutum, Scutum, Scutellum, and Postscutellum; and the Paraptera, Sternum, Episterna, and Epimera, which are lateral or ventral pieces. In the Hymenoptera, Diptera, and Lepidoptera, the prothorax is almost evanescent or reduced to a simple collar; but in the Coleo- ptera, the pronotum (its upper surface) is the very large piece suc- ceeding the head, and which has from the days of Linnzus been ordinarily but incorrectly termed the thorax, and its subsegments are entirely confluent, this segment being destitute of wings; indeed, it is only in the prothorax of some Locusts that the dorsal subsegments of the prothorax can be traced. But in the Mesonotum and Meta- notum (or dorsal parts of the meso- and metathorax) the subseg- ments are much more conspicuous, indeed the scutellum of the mesothorax was noticed by Linnzeus as one of the chief component STRUCTURE OF INSECTS. 1 F parts of the trunk or thorax, being the small triangular piece which is seen at the base of the suture of the elytra of beetles. The chief ventral or pectoral piece in each of the three thoracic segments is the Sternum, which varies considerably in its size and form: thus in the Elateride the prosternum is elongated into a point extending between the middle legs, whilst in the large Hydrous piceus the Mesosternum and Metasternum are soldered together between the middle legs, the former projecting in a point between the anterior legs, and the latter extending far beyond the base of the hind legs. The modifications of form in the various thoracic segments result from the complicated machinery requisite for the due performance of the two chief kinds of insect locomotion, namely, leg-movements of various kinds, and wing-movements ; but more especially from the great diversity of the wings and the occasional transfer of wing-motion to a single pair of wings, this pair being either the anterior, as in Diptera, or the pos- terior, as in Coleoptera: thus, whilst in insects which have the four wings of nearly equal size, the two aliferous segments of the thorax being also of nearly equal size, and their subsegments similarly developed (ex. gr. Hemerobius) ; those tribes of insects which haye the segment to which such pair of wings is attached consequently increased in size: thus in Diptera the mesothorax nearly occupies the entire thorax, there being only mesothoracic organs of flight. In the Hymenoptera, the posterior wings exist, but of a small size; the me- tathorax is therefore much larger than in the Diptera, but much smaller than the mesothorax. In like manner, in those orders which have the posterior pair of wings enlarged, the mesothorax is di- minished, and the metathorax equally enlarged: this is especially the case in the Beetles, but still more strikingly so in the Strepsiptera, “are as destitute of fore wings as the Diptera are of hind ones. * The Wings, or organs of aerial progression, (upon which the Linnzan arrangement is principally founded, ) bear no resemblance to those of birds, being, on the contrary, more analogous to the wings of bats, consisting ordinarily of a delicate double membranous plate, traversed by more or less numerous tubes, which Dr. Leach regarded as repre- senting a system of bony air vessels (Pterygostea), but which the recent microscopical observations of Mr. Bowerbank and others have proved to be veins. These organs of flight, with respect to their consistence, are termed elytra, hemelytra, tegmina, membra- 12 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. naceous wings, halteres or pseudo-halteres. In the Coleoptera the upper pair of wings is transformed into ‘a pair of corneous cases (elytra), generally extending to the extremity of the body, and, when unemployed, shutting closely together by a straight suture down the back. Thus united, they become a shield of great strength, defending the posterior pair of wings, which, when at rest, are transversely folded up beneath them, and which, when the insect is on the wing, are its only effective organs of flight. This lower pair of wings is membranous, and traversed by various corneous veins. In the orders Orthoptera and Homoptera the anterior wings (teg- mina), when at rest, form a roof-like shield to the posterior wings, although much less effective than that of the beetles, since they are of a much more coriaceous texture. The posterior wings themselves are membranous, of a large size, and, when at rest, they are longitu- dinally folded. During flight, both pairs assist in locomotion. In the Heteroptera, the anterior wings (hemelytra) are coriaceous through- out their basal half, and membranous throughout their apical portion ; the posterior wings are of moderate size, membranous, folded lon- gitudinally at rest, and defended by the hemelytra, which shut hori- zontally, the membranous portion of the one folding upon the same part in the other. In the Neuroptera the wings are generally of equal size: they are of a membranous texture, and the posterior are seldom defended when at rest by the anterior, and they are consequently not folded up: whilst in the Hymenoptera and Lepidoptera the ante- rior wings are larger than the posterior, which are likewise never folded up. We thus see, that where the posterior wings take a large share in the act of flight, it is necessary that, being of a larger size, they should be folded up and defended by more or less powerful wing-cases while unemployed; when, on the other hand, the anterior wings take the largest share of action during flight, the poste- rior are so much reduced as to require no defence; in other words, where we find large and strong wing-cases or shields, the active organs of flight are membranous, large, and folded up. The veins, which I have already noticed, are extremely variable in their number: thus, whilst the wings of the Dragon-fly are covered with cells or meshes formed by the conjunction of these veins, the wings of some Hymeno- ptera are almost destitute of them. The numberand position of these veins and cells are of great use in determining the genera, especially of Hymenopterous and Dipterous insects. The wings of STRUCTURE OF INSECTS. 13 the Lepidoptera are clothed with exceedingly minute feather-scales, which are rubbed off at the slightest touch, and which are somewhat analogous tothe scales of fishes. In the Trichoptera and some Diptera the wings are more or less clothed with hairs. In the Diptera there is a pair of slender clubbed organs attached at the sides of the metathorax termed halteres, and which have been considered as representing the hind wings, whilst in the Strepsiptera a somewhat similar pair of twisted organs are placed at the side of the thorax, in front of the wings : these have been termed pseudo-halteres, and are the analogues of the fore-wings. In addition to the foregoing appendages, the pro- thorax is occasionally armed with a pair of moveable spines (a«mbones K. and S.), and in the Lepidoptera there is a pair of scales (patagia K. and S.) clothed with hair, distinct from the tegula, with which they are confounded by Burmeister (Manual, p.77.). The latter organs acquire a large size in the Lepidoptera, and are the pieces clothed with hair, which repose upon the base of the wings. The Diptera are also furnished with a small membranous appendage (alu/a) attached to the posterior base of the wing, which Kirby and Spence regard as the true analogue of the posterior pair of wings: they are, however, decidedly portions of the fore wings ; there exists a similar pair of winglets at the internal base of the elytra of the Dyticida, and which I have discovered equally developed in Hydrous piceus. The Legs, or organs of terrestrial or aquatic progression, are six in number, attached in pairs to the three thoracic segments: tliey are arti- culated with the sternum of each segment, and are composed of a series of articulations, united together in such a manner as to permit the re- quired movements ; thus when the insect is pre-eminently cursorial, the basal articulations are freer than in those species which being nata- torial, the movement is confined to a simple working forwards and backwards of the leg. In other species, which are saltatorial, the hind legs are elongated and thickened, for the purpose of giving support to the strong muscles by which leaping is performed ; in other species, which are raptatorial, the forelegs are formed into a prehensile organ, whilst, in the fossorial species, the same legs are altered, so as to serve for burrowing or scratching in the sand. The chief divisions of the legs are the coxa, trochanter, femur, tibia, and tarsus: the coxa is the gener- ally large and flattened piece which articulates with the sternum, of a variable form, and which assumes its maximum degree of development in Dyticus and Haliplus : the trochanter is a small piece connecting the 14 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. preceding with the femur, which, in general, is the thickest part of the legs, and generally extends beyond the sides of the body. In leaping insects it is especially incrassated and often toothed beneath. The next piece is the tibia, which is generally nearly equal in length, but more slender than the femur; it is an important piece of the leg, and is often armed with various appendages, especially at its tip, where they generally assume the appearance of spurs, or acute points (calcaria). The tarsus is a jointed piece, armed at its extremity with one or two slender curved hooks (ungues), and often accompanied by membran- ous or fleshy cushions (plvilli). The number of joints in the tarsi varies from two to five. This part of the leg affords important characters for generical and family distinctions. The Abdomen consists of a series of segments, for the most part destitute of any appendages, which last are to be found only in a few species, where they appear either as the external organs of genera- tion, or as filaments, or other analogous pieces attached to the ex- tremity of the body. These segments are attached together by membranes, and either meet at the edges or slide into each other like the tubes of a telescope; each of them is formed of two arcs, or semi-segments, one of which is dorsal, and the other ventral. The typical number of segments is rarely to be found in the perfect state, some of them being ordinarily employed in the construction of the organs of generation ; in the male Earwig, however, nine distinct ab- dominal segments, exclusive of the anal forceps, are to be observed. The abdomen is attached to the posterior thoracic segment, either by its whole breadth, when it is said to be sessile, or by a slender portion of its base, which is called a peduncle: this latter mode of articulation is especially to be observed in the majority of the Hymeno- ptera, and some other orders. The chief appendages of the abdomen are the ovipositor, which is extremely varied in the different tribes, (being sometimes replaced by a powerful sting,) and the elongated setz, forceps, or other analogous organs. With respect to the Internal Anatomy of insects, a few brief notes must here suffice. They arrange themselves under the head of the sensitive, digestive, circulatory, respiratory, muscular, and generative systems. The Senses of insects are dependent upon the action of the nerves, the system whereof in insects consists of a pair of medullary threads, exhibiting a series of knots or ganglia, whereby they are united STRUCTURE OF INSECTS. 15 together at certain distances, but which ganglia are often confluent, especially in the imago state: from these knots or ganglia, an infinity of nerves ramify to the various organs, endowing them with the various senses of which insects are possessed. These are, vision, the external organs of which, the eyes, have been already shortly de- scribed ; hearing, which insects clearly appear to possess, but upon the precise organ of which naturalists are not agreed; smell, of which the external organ is also unascertained; taste, the seat of which resides in the parts of the mouth; and feeling or touch, whereof it has been generally supposed that the antennz were the chief organs, but of which the tarsi and the palpi have been respectively regarded as the instruments by various eminent physiologists. The Digestive Organs consist of an elongated canal, composed of several distinct portions, which have been termed the pharynx, im- mediately connected with the mouth; the cesophagus, the craw, the gizzard, the stomach, and the intestines, terminating at the anal orifice : there are moreover a number of delicate elongated tubes, or biliary and salivary vessels opening into the digestive canal, the secretions whereof assist in the conversion of the food. The length of the canal varies greatly, being short in the carnivorous species, and often several times longer than the body in the herbivorous ones, whereof an ex- cellent example will be found noticed in the family Coccinellide. The Circulatory System has only recently been proved to exist. It had been long noticed that a series of large reservoirs, easily to be perceived beneath the transparent dorsal skin of many caterpillars, termed the dorsal vessel, and supposed to be analogous to the heart, underwent alternate contraction and dilatation, but it was supposed that no aperture existed from these reservoirs, and consequently that there was no circulation. This, however, at length appears to have been de- cidedly proved, by the researches of Carus, Strauss-Durkheim, Bur- meister, and especially by the powerful microscope of Mr. Bowerbank, whose two papers in the Entomological Magazine sufficiently prove the existence of a circulation of a cold transparent and nearly colour- less fluid, not only in the larvae of ephemerz, &c., but also in the veins of the wings of the perfect Hemerobius. The Respiration of insects is effected by means of two great canals (tracheee) running along the sides of the body, beneath the outer sur- face, and communicating with the atmosphere by means of numerous short tubes terminating at or near the sides of the body in breathing 16 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. pores (spiracles or stigmata), varying in their number ; internally the trachez emit an infinite number of ramifications, PSEQN Oy to all parts of the body like the branches of a tree, and thus oxyginating the cir- culatory fluid which is diffused from the series of hearts throughout the various organs. The Muscles of insects are not unlike those of the higher animals, being however attached to the inner surface of the external covering of the animal, but being far more numerous than in the human bedy, Lyonnet having discovered more than four thousand in the caterpillar of the goat moth, whereas there are in man only 529; they are at- tached to the various organs intended to be brought into motion by their assistance, being either flexors or extensors, levators or depressors. Of the System of Generation it will be sufficient to observe, that in insects the sexes are constantly distinct, each sex being provided with its own peculiar generative organs ; those of the female consisting of numerous ovaries and egg passages, and an ovipositor of varied con- struction, and frequently external ; and that the impregnation of these eggs is produced by the union of the sexes. It is also to be observed, that amongst certain tribes of insects which are social in their habits, and where a certain number of individuals are required to perform the duties of the community distinct from those of reproduction, this effect is produced by the peculiar nature of the food given to these individuals whilst in the larva state, which has the extraordinary effect of retarding the development of their generative organs; moreover, there are other tribes (Aphides) in which a single impreg- nation suffices for several subsequent generations. Shortly after impregnation, the female commences the laying of her eggs, an operation not performed without the utmost solicitude on the part of the parent for the welfare of her future offspring. The various means adopted for the purpose of placing the eggs in such situations as will ensure a due supply of food to the young when hatched, are amongst the most extraordinary instances of instinct with which we are acquainted. When the young insect first makes its escape from the egg, it appears in a form generally totally unlike that of its parent, although in a few instances its form is that which it will retain through life. It is now termed a caterpillar, grub, or maggot (larva), and has a series of moultings to undergo, during the last two or three of which its form is more or less altered. In the earlier stages STRUCTURE OF INSECTS. 17 of its growth it is termed a larva, but the state immediately pre- ceding that in which it assumes its final or imago form is termed the pupa. The variations in the form of these several states in the different orders have been employed in the construction of the meta- morphotic distribution of insects, to be subsequently noticed, which will render it unnecessary to enlarge upon them at any great length in this place. Insects, in respect to the relation of the larva with the imago, may be divided into two principal divisions which I have termed Heteromorpha, or those in which there is no resemblance between the parent and its offspring; and Hotremorpha, or those in which the larva resembles the imago, except in the absence of wings. In the former the larva is generally worm-like and articulated in its form, of a soft and fleshy consistence, and furnished with a mouth, and often with six short legs attached in pairs to the three segments succeeding the head. In the latter, including the Orthoptera, He- miptera, Homoptera, and certain Neuroptera, the body, legs, and antenne are nearly similar in their form to those of the perfect insect, but the wings are wanting. The Period of the Larvag State is that in which the operations of _ feeding are especially carried on, and during which, owing to the rapid growth of the insect, whereby the outer envelope from time to time becomes too small for the creature, it is necessary that a succession of moultings should take place. When, however, the insect has at- tained its full size as a larva it ceases feeding, prepares for itself a retreat formed of various materials, but often composed of silk drawn from the spinnerets of the lower lip, and which is termed a cocoon. Within this retreat the insect again throws off its skin and appears as a pupa or chrysalis, in which the rudiments of the limbs of the imago are more or less distinctly seen. In the nomorphous division, however, the pupa continues active, differing only from the Jarva in its increased size, and in having attained short rudimental wing- cases upon the back of the mesothoracic and metathoracic segments. The Pupa is far more variable in its form in the different primary groups than the larve; and hence Fabricius* employed the cha- racteristic name of the variation of the pupa to designate the general nature of the metamorphosis, whereby the metamorphosis of an insect is incorrectly said to be zxcomplete in Scarabeeus and Apis, where the larva is quite unlike its parent, and the pupa pedate, but quiescent ; * Philosophia Entomologica, p. 56. § 6. c i8 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. whereas this kind of metamorphosis is the most complete of any of the changes which insects undergo. This impropriety has resulted from the improper application of the Linneean terms employed for the designation of the pupa: (Pupa completa, Spiders, &c. ; semicompleta, Grasshoppers, &c.; incompleta, Bees, Ants, &c.; obtecta, Butterflies and Moths; and coarctata, two-winged Flies.) When the insect has remained a certain period in the pupa state it again sheds its skin and appears in its perfect and final state; at first, indeed, its external envelope is humid and soft, but it soon dries and hardens by exposure to the air, acquiring at the same time its various colours. These modifications in the outer forms of insects are also accompanied by equally important changes in their internal structure as well as by the modifications in the economy of the insect consequent thereon. III. DrstrrisputTion or INSECTS INTO ORDERS. This branch of Entomological Science has attracted much of the notice of naturalists in all ages; but it was not until the era of Swammerdam and of Ray, that philosophical principles were introduced and made the basis of the distribution of insects into primary groups. As, however, most of the systems of Entomology have been noticed at considerable length in the fourth volume of the Jntroduction to Entomology, I must refer the reader thereto, deeming it, however, essential to offer a few observations thereon. Previous to the age of Swammerdam, the most vague ideas were entertained with respect to insects, of which the fanciful hypothesis of spontaneous generation was one of the most absurd. Hence, it is not to be wondered at, that Swammerdam (who together with Redi and Ray completely overthrew this system by establishing the theory of the universal developement of animals, ex ovo) was led to consider the principle of metamorphosis which he had so successfully employed against the spontaneous generationists, as of primary importance for the classification of insects. Indeed it is evident that the very nature of his studies, by which he had obtained so great a victory, could have had no other effect than to have produced the Metamorphotie System of Insects, detailed in his surprising and still invaluable Biblia Nature, and in which four primary divisions are established. j 1. Insects subject to a change of skin, but undergoing no change of form. (Spiders, Lice, Woodlice, and Centipedes.) DISTRIBUTION OF INSECTS INTO ORDERS. 19 2. Hexapod insects subject to metamorphosis, having an active pupa, in which the rudimental wings and wing-covers are exposed. (Bugs, Grasshoppers, Dragonflies, Mayflies.) 3. Hexapod insects undergoing metamorphosis, in which the pupa state is quiescent, either having the limbs enclosed in distinct cases (Beetles, Bees, Wasps, &c., and part of the orders Neuroptera and Diptera), or covered in an entire case (Butterflies, Moths). 4. Hexapod insects undergoing metamorphosis, the pupa state having neither motion nor wings, but enclosed in an ovate case (most two-winged flies and some other insects, whose transformations were not clearly understood by Swammerdam). Various other classifications of insects, from the nature of their metamorphosis, have been from time to time proposed by different authors, amongst which it will be sufficient to notice the two follow- ing: first, that of Lamarck, in which insects are divided from the structure of the pupa as follows : — 1. Those having an inactive pupa (Chrysalis), enclosed and entirely concealed in an opake covering. (1. a.) Chrysalis signata. Lepidoptera and some Diptera. (1. b.) Chrysalis dolioloides. Diptera (coarctata. ) 2. Those having an inactive pupa (Mumia), covered by a thin skin, through which the limbs of the insect are discernible. Coleoptera. 2 Tumi : 3 (2. a.) Mumia coarctata Hymenoptera. (2. b.) Mumia pseudonympha - Neuroptera in part. Orthoptera. 3. Those having an active pupa(Nympha) + Hemiptera, —— Neuroptera in part. The other proposed metamorphotic system is that given by Mr. Newman in an ingenious treatise published in the 9th Number of the Entomological Magazine, in which winged insects are divided as follows : — Amorpha, in which the penultimate state is provided neither with mouth nor organs of locomotion; consequently it neither eats nor moves; neither does it bear any resemblance to the perfect state. Lepidoptera, Diptera. Necromorpha, in which the penultimate state is provided with mouth and organs of locomotion detached from the body; but so c 2 4 20 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. enveloped in a case that it can employ neither. The resemblance to the perfect state is very considerable, excepting in total want of motion. Hymenoptera, Coleoptera. Isomorpha, in which all the stages are active and voracious, and of similar form. Orthoptera, Hemiptera. Anisomorpha, in which appear the Amorphous, Necromorphous, and Isomorphous characters, together with a typical and distinct character. Neuroptera.*~— It will be at once perceived, that these two systems are virtually almost identical. Mr. Newman’s divisions of the Amorphous Ader- mata and Dermata are also identical with Lamarck’s groups, Chrysalis signata and Chrysalis dolioloides, and the varied character of the Neuroptera is indicated by MacLeay. (Hore Ent. and Linn. Trans. xiv. p. 68.) A Besides the five variations of metamorphosis constituting the diagnostics of Lamarck’s five groups or sub-groups mentioned above, there are others of minor importance, which ought not to be omitted in a system established exclusively on Metamorphosis; thus some of the aquatic pupe of the Adermatous Diptera are locomotive, whilst some of the Dermatous Diptera are nourished within the bodies of the parent, the Hippoboscide not being excluded from them until their arrival at the pupa state. Again, the Phryganeidz, Libellulide, Ephemeride, Chalcidide, Raphidiide, Coccide , and Aleyrodes, respectively offer various striking modifications in the nature of their metamorphoses; whilst in the pupa of Quedius tristis, Water- house, and some othet Staphylinideous larvee, the limbs are soldered as completely to the body as they are in the pupz of the Lepidoptera. Hence I consider that the nature of the metamorphoses, if alone relied upon, will not afford a sufficient mode of classification. We will, therefore, next proceed to notice the Alary System, or that vie : : * In the Essay published by the same author, under the name of “ Sphinx vespi- formis,” this order is formed into a central circle, around which are arranged the six preceding orders, forming as many circles. The distribution of the English groups have been arranged by the same author in his Grammar of Entomology, and in a memoir inserted in the second volume of the Entomological Magazine, upon the same system; of which Dr. Burmeister has remarked — “ Die Eigenthumlichkeit dieses newen Systemes is vollkommen bezeichnet, wenn wir ein allbekanntes Urtheil darauf anwenden, indem ‘ das Gute desselben nicht neu und das neue nicht gut’ genannt werden kann.” Weigm.’ Arch. V.1. No. 4. { Trans, Ent. Soc. No. 1. pl. iii, f. 2. 2. DISTRIBUTION OF INSECTS INTO ORDERS. A | ~ founded upon the structure of the organs of flight, of which Linnzeus was the founder, and by whom insects were thus classed in accordance with the gradual diminution in the number and consistency of their wings. = horny, with a straight suture - - 1. Coleoptera. The anterior ; E ; : — semicrustaceous, incumbent - - 2. Hemiptera. 4 covered with scales - - - 3. Lepidoptera. Wings. All unarmed - - 4. Neuroptera. membranous, abdomen : ; Z with a sting - 5. Hymenoptera. 2 With a pair of halteres in the place of the posterior pair 6. Diptera. O i.e. Destitute of wings and elytra - - - 7. Aptera. The celebrated Swedish naturalist, De Geer, proposed another distribution of insects in 1778, the primary and secondary divisions of which were formed for the most part upon the structure of the wings, which were also employed to characterise the orders. The structure of the mouth was, however, regarded as a secondary character of the latter; the consequence of which was the neces- sary and advantageous separation of the Caddice-flies and Ephemeree from the other Neuroptera, under the name of Elinguia*; and the division of the Linnzean Hemiptera into three orders — Siphonata * (Cicada, &c.), aga Dermaptera *, having a suctorial mouth (Cimex and Nepa), and Hemiptera* having a mandibulated mouth, (Mantis, Gryllus, Blatta, and Forficula.) The genera Coccus and Pulex were also respectively raised to the rank of distinct orders. The genera Termes and Psocus, together with the spring-tailed insects and lice, formed another order of the remainder of the Linnean Aptera, which were divided into two others, thus forming fourteen distinct orders. This was a great step made in the distribution of insects; and the partial success with which the employment of the variation of the mouth was attended, probably induced Fabricius to construct his Cibarian system, founded upon the characters of the Trophi alone. This was as follows : — * Mandibulated Insects. A. Two pairs of jaws. a. The lower pair Palpigerous. 1. Lleutherata (Coleoptera L., Beetles.) Maxilla naked, free. * These names were proposed by Retzius, the commentator of De Geer ( Gen. et Spec. Ins. Lips.1783.) That of Dermaptera has, by some accident, been misapplied by English entomologists for the Earwig, instead of the Cimicide, for which it was proposed. c 3 bo iS?) MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. 2, Ulonata (Orthoptera Ol. &c. Grasshoppers, &c.). Maxillze covered with a blade. 3. Synistata (Neuroptera partly Z. and Thysanura Latr.), Maxille geniculated, and connected with the lower lip. 4. Piezata (Hymenoptera L., Bees, &c.) | Maxilla corneous, com- pressed, and often elongated. 5. Odontata (Gen. Libellula Z., Dragon-flies). Maxillee corneous, toothed. b. The lower pair of jaws, not palpigerous. Mitosata (Myriapoda, Centipedes). > B. One pair of horny jaws, armed with a claw. Unogata (Arachnida, Spiders, Scorpions). Sa C. More than two pairs of jaws. Polygonata (Isopod Crustacea, &c.). Jaws within the lower lip. . Kleistognatha (Brachyura, Crabs, &c.). Jaws outside of the lower lip. 10. Exochnata (Macrura, Lobsters, &c.). Jaws external, covered by palpi. o © ** Suctorial Insects. 11. Glossata (Lepidoptera, Z., Butterflies and Moths). A spiral tongue between palpi. 2. Ehyngota (Hemiptera Latr., Bugs, &c.) A rostrum enclosed in a jointed sheath. 13. Antliata (Diptera £., two-winged flies, &e.). Mouth with a soft exarticulate haustellum. The harsh nomenclature of this system, joined with its many errors and the incongruous manner in which insects, the most widely apart, were brought into the same groups, producing altogether a most artificial and unnatural classification, gained for it but few followers. The primary division, however, into mandibulated and suctorial insects, together with the adoption of some of De Geer’s more natural groups, were further steps gained in the approach towards a natural distribution. Entomologists had, however, by this time learned from the advan- tages and disadvantages connected with the Metamorphotic, Alary and Cibarian systems, but more especially from the more decisive DISTRIBUTION OF INSECTS INTO ORDERS. 95 views opened to them by the researches of comparative anatomists, that it was necessary to have recourse to the entire characters afforded by the insect in all its stages, and with reference also to its internal as well as external organization. Here, however, we are met, as might indeed be naturally expected, by difficulties of a far greater weight than were caused by the employment of a single character in its various modifications ; since a very slight acquaintance with any extensive group of insects will be sufficient to prove, that many characters which we find in one group, exhibiting a constancy of character, vary in the greatest degree in another, showing that although with the former they might, and indeed ought to be re- garded of the highest importance, in the latter they acquire but a secondary consideration; thus, whilst some groups which agree in their wings, disagree in the structure of the mouth; others agree- ing in metamorphosis, vary in their organs of flight. The first attempts made towards the establishment of this, which has been called, the Helectic System, were of course partial ; thus Olivier, in 1789, proposed a system in which insects were divided into eight orders, distributed primarily from the wings, from which, as well as, secondly from the mouth, the characters of the orders were derived. Clairville on the contrary, in 1798, divided the winged insects into two groups, Mandibulata and Haustellata, from the structure of the mouth, whether furnished with jaws or a proboscis, characterising the orders from the wings. But it is to Latreille that we are indebted for the great advances made towards the perfection of this system. For nearly forty years was this author unceasingly occupied in im- proving the classification of insects; and it was by him that the introduction of family groups was effected, from which so great ad- vantages were derived, by greatly limiting the number of the secondary groups ; which from the cutting up of the more unwieldy Linnean genera had become very numerous. It is true that his numerous suc- cessive publications exhibit variations in the classification of some of the orders ; but this was the natural result of his labours, which were closed by the publication of his introductory work, the Cours d’ Ento- mologie, in which the Hexapod Annulosa formed his fourth Class Insecta, distributed as follows : — 24 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. A. Without wings, eyes generally simple. a. Without metamorphoses. Ord. 1. Tuysanoura (Spring-tailed Insects). Mouth with jaws, tail forked. Ord. 2. Parasira (Lice). Mouth with a rostrum, tail simple. b. Metamorphoses. (Pupa incomplete.) Ord. 3. SrpHonarTERA (Fleas). B. With wings, eyes facetted, and occasionally also with ocelli. a. (Elytroptera.) Wings two, covered by two horny or coriaceous wing covers. * Mouth with four jaws. Ord. 4. CoLtrorreraA (Beetles). Wing-covers horny. (Pupa incom- plete.) Ord. 5. DermMAprera (Earwigs). Wing-covers horny. (Pupa semi- complete.) Ord. 6. Orruorrera (Locusts, &c.). Wing-covers horny. (Pupa semicomplete.) ** Mouth, an articulated proboscis, enclosing sete. Ord. 7. Hemiprera (Bugs and Cicade, &c.). (Pupa semicomplete.) b. Gymnoptera. Wings four, or two naked. * Wings four. + With four jaws. Ord. 8. Neuroptera (Dragonflies, &c.). Wings reticulated. (Me- tamorphoses various. ) Ord. 9. HymenoprEerA (Bees, &c.). Wings veined. (Pupaincom- plete.) ++ With a spiral tongue between two palpi. Ord. 10. LeprpopterRA (Butterflies). Wings powdery. (Pupa ob- tecta.) ** Wings two. Ord. 11. Raipiprera (Bee-parasites, &c.). Balancers, two in front of wings. Ord. 12. Diprera (Flies). Balancers, two behind the wings. There are, however, various objections to this system, which it will be seen has for its primary character the variation of the wings ; thus, for instance, whilst the semicomplete-metamorphosed Orthop- tera and Hemiptera were brought into contact, the mandibulated Neu- roptera were separated from the Orthoptera, to which they are so DISTRIBUTION OF INSECTS INTO ORDERS. 25 nearly allied. Mr. MacLeay has offered some other objections against Latreille’s system, which he describes as one “ expressing more importance to the aerial organs, and the texture of the body, than to the modifications of those organs upon which the very existence of the animal depends. ‘ Ainsi,’ says Lamarck, ‘les carac- téres si importans de la bouche ne furent nullement considérés, et cédérent leur préeminence aux organes si variables dela locomotion dans lair’ ”’—Hore Ent. p. 360. I can, however, by no means agree with Mr. MacLeay, in the inferior rank given to those organs, which, as before said, are the very organs which, by their extraordinary deve- lopement, prove the winged insects to be the centre or types of the annulose animals. Moreover, the variableness attributed by Lamarck to the locomotive organs is not less striking in the oral organs of some groups, as in the Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera, and Neuroptera ; thus evincing the correctness of the remark already made upon the insufficiency of a single character, when attempted to be relied upon as an infallible key to the classification of this class of animals. This is not denied even by those authors who are disposed to admit the or- ganisation of the mouth, as of the highest importance in the classifica - tion of insects; thus Savigny approves of the Lamarckian divisions into “ broyeurs”’ and ‘ suceurs;” but adds, ‘ je ne pense pas qu’on puisse tirer le caractére de ces divisions de la présence ou de l’absence des mandibules,” because he considers the mouths of all insects to be “ essentiellement composée des mémes ¢lémens.” (Mémoires, ch. 1.). Latreille also has suggested the division of insects into two other groups, Gymnostomes, or those which have the parts of the mouth naked, and Thecostomes, or those in which some of them are bristle- like, enclosed in a sheath. The Lepidoptera, as well as the Hymenop- tera, enter into the first of these divisions. (Fam. Nat. 334. 417.) In like manner, Dumeril (Cons. Gen. p. 9.) has remarked, that the lower lip and jaws of some of the Hymenoptera form an apparatus, having “ le double faculté de broyer les alimens, et de les pomper par une sorte du succion;” and Messrs. Kirby and Spence (Jntr. 111, 417.) remark, that “ If the mode in which insects take their food be strictly con- sidered, it will be found that in this view they ought rather to be regarded as forming three tribes ; for the great majority of the Hyme- nopterous order, and perhaps some others, though furnished with mandibles and maxilla, never use them fer mastication, but really lap their food with their tongue: these, therefore, might be denominated 26 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. 9 ‘lappers.’” And at a subsequent page (vol. iv. p. 366.), they regard Clairville’s Mandibulata and Haustellata as secondary groups*, “ be- ing convinced from the numerous characters they possess in common, notwithstanding the different mode in which they take their food, that they form one connected primary group; in which opinion they are further confirmed by the variations that take place in their mode of feeding in their different states ; some from masticators becoming suctorious (Lepidoptera), and others from being suctorious becoming masticators, (Myrmeleon, Dytiscus) ; which shows that this character does not enter the essential idea of the animal.” Much of the difficulty which has arisen upon this branch of our sub- ject has been produced by regarding the relations of insects as exhibit- ing themselves only in a linear series. It is not necessary for me here to advocate either the quinary or the circular disposition of groups ; but when I perceive that, by quitting the linear series we gain a decidedly greater number of points of contact, whereby groups, which in such linear series must be kept widely apart, are brought into juxta-posi- tion, I cannot but think, that some other than an undeviating chain of linear affinity is the correct mode of viewing the productions of nature. Now, Mr. Macleay, by his system (which may be termed the Representative System), has obviated more of the difficulties already pointed out, than could by possibility be effected by any of the previous systems. Here, indeed, as he observes, in the Hore Ento- mologice, “a beautiful regularity is perceivable, comprising those dis- tinctions of Trophi, insisted upon by Fabricius, Cuvier, and Lamarck ; those relations of metamorphosis, constituting the leading principle of De Geer, Olivier, and Latreille; and, finally, those characters from the organs of locomotion, upon which orders were founded by Aris- totle, Ray, and Linnzus.” By reminding the student, that in the following tables the first and fifth order in each series are supposed to be as nearly related to each other as any other two contiguous orders (each series returning into itself and forming a circle), an idea may be gained of Mr. MacLeay’s mode of distribution. The names printed in italics are * Mr. MacLeay, in order to establish a quinary distribution of the Annulosa, con- sidered the Mandibulata and Haustellata as classes, each possessing an equal rank with the Crustacea, Arachnida, and Ametabola. I cannot adopt this view; which, indeed, Mr. MacLeay has himself partially modified in his Memoir in the 14th volume of the Linnean Transactions, DISTRIBUTION OF INSECTS INTO ORDERS. a7 | “a either those of the osculant groups connecting the orders, or of those insects which point out the connection of the orders. Distribution of metamorphotic winged Insects from the “ Hore Entomo- logice,” ii. p. 367., and “ Linnean Transactions,” xiv. p. 67. MANDIBULATA. Relations of Analogy. HAUSTELLATA. 1. Tricuorrera ? K. Metamorphosis obtected. (Phryganea, Perla,{ Larva with membranous $1. Lepinoprera Linn. Tenthredo. ) legs, Ord. Bomboptera M. L. G. Pterophorus. (G. Sirex.) G. Psychoda. DMEF oea we Lins Metam. incomplete or f © pen, De coarctate. ; 2. Dierera Arist. ‘ Z Larva apod, or vermiform. O. Strepsiptera K. Fam. Hippoboscide. G. Atractocerus. G. Nycteribia, leading to Arachnidous class. 8. Corrortera Arist. Metam. incomplete. 3. Aprera (the Flea). Larvz various. (Larva apod, but of Co- leopterous structure ), Q. Dermaptera Leach. ( Earwig. ) 4 UG opens Ole f Metam. semicomplete. ]|4. Hemrrrera Linn, | Larva resembling Imago. J (G. Cimez. ) G. Mantispa. Fam. Hydrocorisa. O. Raphioptera M. L, (G. Boreus. ) 5. Homoptera. Metam. various, includ-) - 5, Neurorrera Linn. hs ing subsemicomplete. } (G. Cicada, &c:) arve hexapod. O. Megaloptera (G. Flata limbata Fab. & Sialis). Perlides, \ead- G. Aleyrodes, leading ing to Trichoptera. to Lepidoptera. The point of connection of the two circles, formed by the returning of these two series into themselves, is supposed to exist between the Trichoptera, and Lepidoptera, being effected by such species of the latter as have very long antenne, like the Adele, and such as have the trophi obsolete, as Aglossa. That objections existed against this mode of classification on various points of view, Mr. MacLeay was well convinced, and of which indeed he has enumerated several in the sixth Chapter of the Hore Entomologice, besides which it may be urged that the minor details, and especially the construction of the majority of the osculant groups and orders are quite untenable Still, however, as a whole, it must be admitted that the various Metamorphotic, Alary and Cibarian cha- racters have never before been brought to bear together with such weight as in the system now before us; which, far from regarding as all-perfect, I would rather consider as the first stepping-stone towards a natural system not founded upon a linear series of affinities, but 28 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. which it will require far greater investigations and much more elaborate research to bring to perfection than it has hitherto received. Modifications of the system of Mr. MacLeay have been published by Messrs. Kirby and Spence, and Mr. Stephens. The former authors (Introd. iv. p. 868.), distribute the Metamorphotic Insects in the following manner. * Orders in which the ordinary Trophi all occur, or the mouth is perfect. 1. Coleoptera. 2. Strepsiptera. 3. Dermaptera. 4. Orthoptera. 5. Neuroptera. 6. Hymenoptera. ** Orders in which all the ordinary Trophi do not occur, or the mouth is imperfect. a 7. Hemiptera (divided into Heteroptera and Homoptera as sub- orders). 8. Trichoptera. 9. Lepidoptera. 10. Diptera. 11. Apha- niptera (the Flea). Here we find the Strepsiptera interfering to prevent the passage between the Coleoptera and Orthoptera effected by the earwigs, the Neuroptera and Trichoptera far asunder, and other equally great objections. Mr. Stephens (Illustrations Brit. Ent. Mand. i. p. 2., Haust. i. p. 2.), adopts the divisions, Mandibulata and Haustellata, placing in the former the orders, 2. Strepsiptera, 3. Coleoptera, 4. Dermaptera, 5. Orthoptera, 6. Neuroptera, 7. Trichoptera, 1. Hymenoptera ; and in the latter the orders, 13. Hemiptera, 14. Homoptera, 8. Lepi- doptera, 9. Diptera, 10. Homaloptera, 11. Aphaniptera, and 12. Ap- tera (or the lice which I have excluded, as above mentioned). Like Mr. MacLeay, Mr. Stephens regards these two groups as forming circles, the extremities of each being allied together. Against these and other classifications *, which it would be too tedious to detail, and in which the number of the Linnzan orders is much in- creased, objections exist on the part of some authors who consider it more natural to place the Strepsiptera, Earwigs, Forest-flies, Fleas, Thrips, &c., in some of the old orders. Such groups, it is true, are of far more limited extent, and also of less decisive characters than the great groups; but it appears to me to be as erronecus to force them * Amongst these, that proposed by M. Laporte, in his Etudes Entomologiques, ought not to be omitted ; in which Termes, Libellula (with Perla and Ephemera), Aphis, and Coccus, are raised to the rank of distinct orders, DISTRIBUTION OF INSECTS INTO ORDERS, 29 into the larger groups as it is to regard them as orders equivalent with the great ones, such as Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, &c. It is indeed impossible not to be convinced that in many of these groups the structure of one order is partially lost, and that of the adjacent one assumed, whence it would be as correct to place the insects in the one as in the other order. Indeed, it appears to me to be the strongest evidence of the forcing of nature to a preconceived system, when we see introduced amongst a number of animals, characterised by a constant peculiarity of structure in some important organs, an animal, or group of animals, which does not possess such character, and find such a step attempted to be justified on the plea that this organ is variable in other groups, With a view to avoid some of the inconveniences which still exist in the distribution of insects, I would propose the following classifi- cation in which the approach of the Hymenoptera to the Trichoptera, and of the Lepidoptera towards the Diptera, as pointed out by Mac Leay, together with the direct passage between the Trichoptera and Lepidoptera, and the descending series in the first, and the ascending series in the second columns must be borne in mind. CLASS OF HEXAPOD METAMORPHOTIC INSECTS. Subclass, Mouth with jaws. Subclass, Mouth with a sucher. (Dacnostomata VW.) (Antliostomata W.) Ord. HyMENOPTERA. Ord. Diptera. ? Osculant Ord. Strepsiptera. —_? Osculant Ord. Homaloptera. Ord. CoLEOPTERA. ? Osculant Ord. Aphaniptera.* Osculant Ord. Euplexoptera (Earwig). Ord. ORTHOPTERA. Ord. Hereroptera (includ- ing the Water Bugs). ce Ghhrips': )- ? Ord. NEUROPTERA. Ord. Homoprera. ? ? Ord. Tricuoprera (Phryganea alone). Ord. LeprpopTera. ? ? Moreover, the relationships existing between the opposite orders must not be overlooked. Since, in some instances, as between the * The relationship of the Flea with the Hymenoptera, insisted upon by Strauss, does not appear to me to be well founded. + Order Thysanoptera Haliday, by whom an elaborate paper upon this tribe of remarkable insects has been published in the Lntomo!. Mag. No.15. April, 1836. 50 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Orthoptera and Heteroptera, they are so strong as to become direct affinities according to some authors. As, however, it has been the fashion to commence the series of orders with the Coleoptera (which it is true is the greatest in extent), I have followed the general plan, the effect of which will be the introduction of the Hymenoptera and Strepsiptera between the Trichoptera and Lepidoptera. With this explanation we take our leave of the modern distributions of the orders of insects, which from the nature of the present work it would have been in- consistent to have passed over in a more concise manner; the reader having been put into possession, not only of the modes of classification adopted by all the most recent authors of any eminence, but also of the principles upon which such distributions have been proposed. 4 IV. BiBLioGRAPHICAL REFERENCES. (COLEOPTERA.) (A. Cotrortera IN GENERAL. ) Fabricius. Syst. Eleutheratorum, 2 vols. Kil. 1801. 8vo. Olivier. Entomologie, 8 vols. Paris, 1789. 4to. Schonherr. Synon, Insect. Holm. 1806—27. 4 vols. 8vo. Dejean. Catal. des Coleopt. Paris, 1821. 8vo. 2d edit. Paris, 1833. 3d edit. 1836. Dejean and Latreille. Hist. Nat. Col. d’Europe, livr. 1—3. Paris, 1822. 8vo. Dejean and Boisduval, Hist. Nat. Col. d’Europe, livr. 1—. Paris, 1829—. 8vo. Germar. Insect. Noy. Spec. Coleopt. Halle, 1824. 8vo. Jablonsky and Herbst. Natursystem aller Bekannten Insecten. Berlin, 1783—95, 10 vols. (40 cah.) 1783—95. 8yo. with atlas of plates. Voet. Descript. et icones Coleopt. La Haye, 1766, 2 vols. 4to. pl.; ditto, Ger- man edition by Panzer, 4to. Erlang, 1793. Schwartz. Nomenclatur uber die Roselschen und Kleemanschen insecten. Erste Abth, Kafer. Nurnberg, 1793. 4to. Knoch. Beitrage zur Insecten geschichte. Leipz. 1781. 8vo. Knoch. Neue Beitrage zur insecten kunde. 1801. 8vo. Thunberg. Numerous Memoirs in the Swedish Trans. (Vet. Acad. n. Hand. 1781. 1804. 1806. 1814. 1816. and in Noy. Act. Upsal.) Bilberg. In Nov. Act. R. Soc. Upsal, t. 7.; and in Mem. Acad. Se. St. Petersb. t. 7. 1820. Miiller. P. W. G. in Germar’s Magazin. vol. iii. and iv. Schaller. Neue Ins. (Coleopt.) in Naturf. Gesellsch. Hale, b. i. Laporte. Etudes Entomologiques. Paris, 1834. 8vo. Laporte and Gory. Hist. Nat. des Coléopteres. Paris, 1835. S8vo. in parts. Audouin and Brullé. Histoire Nat. des Insectes. vol. iy. 5. 6. Coleopt. Paris, 1834. 8vo. Bonelli. Obsery. Entomol. ‘Turin, 1809, 4to. Vigors, in Zool. Journ. Nos. 3, and 4, Kirby, in ditto, vols. i. ii, iii, BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES. , 31 Phe. Cole oftar ats Man wal . Fa. 112-3. Ladbor~ fo. 16-357 ffir Hope. Descriptions new Coleopt. in Zool. Soc. Trans. vol. i. 4to. Duncan. Naturalist’s Library. Beetles. Edinb. 1835. Small 8vo. Léon Dufour, Recherchés Anatomiques sur les Carabiques et sur plusieurs autres Insectes Coléopteres in Annales des Soc. Nat. 1824—. B. Correorrerous Faunists. a. Great Britain. Martyn. The Engl, Entomologist, exhibiting all Coleopt. Insects, &e, Lond. 1792. Martin Lister. De Scarabzxis Britan. in Hist. Insect. Raii. Lond. 1710. 4to. Marsham. Entomologia Britannica, tom. i. Coleopt. Lond. 1802. 8vo. Stephens. lustr. Mandibulata, vols. i—v. 1828—. Hacasl Britt bclreplon Lena Burrell, in Trans. Ent. Soe. vol. i. (old series. ) Wilson and Duncun. Entomol. Edinensis. Edinb. 1834. 8vo. Dillwyn. Observations on the Coleopt. of Swansea. Swansea, 1829. 8yo. Pri- vately printed. b. Other Countries of Europe. Boisduval and Lacordaire. Faune Entomologique de Paris. 1 vol. 12mo. 1836. Illiger. | Verzeichniss der Kafer Preussens, &e. Halle, 1798. 8yo. Iiliger. Supplement to ditto, in his Magazine. vol. i. 1802. Kugellan. Kafer Preussens in Schneider’s Ent. Mag. vol. i. Erichson. Kafer der Mark Brandenburg. vol. i. 8vo. Berlin, 1837. Creutzer. Entomol. Versuche. Wien, 1799. 8vo. Kunze. Entomolog. Fragmente. Halle, 1818. 8vo. Nicolai. Dissert. Col. sp. Halensis. Halle, 1822. 8vo. Sturm. Deutschland Fauna. Kafer. 1805—-38. 10 parts. 18mo. Harrer. Beschreibungen zu Schaeffer’s Naturl. Ausgemahlten Abbildung. Re- gensburg. Insecten. Regensb. 1791. to. Preysler. Verzeichniss Bohmischen Insecten. Prag. 1790. 4to. Hoppe. Enumeratio Insect. Elytratorum cirea Erlangam indig. Erlang. 1795. 8yo. Duftschmidt, Fauna Austriz, oder Beschreibung der Osterreichischen Insecten &c. Linz. 1803—1825. 3 vols. 12mo. Beck. Beitrage zur Baierschen Insecten Fauna, &e. Augsburg, 1817. Gistl. Enumeratio Coleopt. Monacensis. Munich, 1829. Waltl. Verzeichniss Kafern in Spanien. &c. Isis, 1832. Panzer. Beschreibung seltener Kafer (in Der Naturforsch. 24. stu.) Frihlich. Ditto in ditto. stu. 23. and 26. Ahrens. Beitr. Deutscher Kafer. in Neue Schr. Naturf. Gesells. Halle, y. ii. Malinowsky, in ditto. vol. i. Eschseholtz, Zoologischer Atlas. - fol. Ditto, in Mem. Act. Nat. Mose. vol. vi. Ditto, in Mem. Acad. Soe. St. Petersburg. vol. vi. Palliardi. Beschreibung zweier Decaden. 8yo. Wien, 1825. Clairville. Entomologie Helvetique. Zurich, 1798—1806. 2 vols. 8vo. ( Pre- daceous Land and Water Beetles and Weevils). Laicharting. Der 'Tyroler Insecten. Zurich, 1781—8vo. Bassi, in Annal. Soc. Ent. de Paris. 1834. Sturm and Hagenbach. Coleoptera Alpina (Noy. Act. Cas. Acad. vol. xii.) Villa. Coleoptera Europe Dupleta, Milan, 1833; with suppl. of n. sp. a . 4 a al Ae { X 4tdo Shu a) Shacetdan 1b. Gale fo ate o YS belrrwrceales . / / i ut Clu oe Se ar /3 teed xs bbi.tén. clos b oh tan /yvl.§ vo-/F. Ava 1ORF ] Part J. 4939. 32 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Géné, in Act. Acad. Turin. tom. 39. (Italian Coleoptera). Detharding. Disputatio de Insectis Coleopt. Danicis. Buetzovii, 1763. 4to. Pauli. Dissert. de Coleopteris Danix. 4to. Butzov. 1763. Paykul!, Fauna Suecie, 8vo. Upsal, 1798. 1800. Zetterstedt. Insecta Lapponica. Leipz. 1838. 4to. vol. i. fase. 1. pp. 191. f. 2. Hoffmansegg. Portugeis Kafer, in Hliger’s Magaz. vol. ii. and vi. Gyllenhal. Insecta Suecica. Classis 1. Coleopt. Seara. 1808. 1827. 4 vols. 8vo. Sahlberg. Dissert. Entomol. Insecta, Fennica enumerans Coleoptera. Abo. 1817. - 8vo. Eschscholtz. Nova genera Coleopt. Fauna Europe. Bull. Soc. Mose. vol. ii. Zoubhoff, Krynicki, Mannerheim, Faldermann, Steven, Gebler, Hummel, Bohemann, and Fischer. Descriptions of many detached Russian Coleoptera by these Authors in the Memoires and the Bulletin Soc. imper. des Naturalistes de Moscow. Pallas. cones insect. Rossiz Siberieque. Erlang. 4to. 1781. CapAsia. Germar. Mem. sur la Faune Ent. de Kolywan (Siberia) in Isis. 1825. Faldermann. Coleoptera of China, Mongolia, &e. Ditto Coleopt. Persico, Ar- meniz (in Mem. Acad. imp. St. Petersb, tom. ii. 1835.) Perty. Observationes nonnulle in Coleoptera Indiz Orientalis. Monachii, 1831. Ato. Wiedemann. Several articles in his Zoologisches Magazin. vol. i. and ii. Hope. Synopsis of Nepaul Insects, Coleoptera (in Gray’s Zoological Miscell. No. i. London, 1831. 8vo.) MacLeay. Annulosa Javanica. London, 1824. 4to. d. Africa. Goldfuss. Enumerat. Insect. Eleuth. Capitis Bone Spei, totiusque Africe. Erlang, 1804. 8vo. Hausmann. Ins. Cap. Bon. Sp. Iliger’s Mag. vol. vi. Wulfen. Deser. quorund. Capens. Ins. 4to. Erlang, 1794. Klug. ‘Bericht tuber eine auf Madagascar sammlung Coleoptera. Berlin, 1833. 4to. (From the Abhandlung. der Kongl. Akad. der Wissenschaft, zu Berlin. ) e. Australasia. Schreibers. Descriptions of some New Holland Coleoptera (in Linn. Trans. ), vol. vi. Hope, in Trans. Ent, Soc. Lond. vol. i. pl. 1, 2. Sf. America. Say. Descriptions of Coleoptera of North America, in Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci- ences, Philadelph. vol. iii. and y. Contributions to the Maclurian Lyceum of Philadelphia, in American Phil. Trans. vol. iv. New series. And in the Journal of the Nat. Hist. Soc. Boston, vol. i. 1836. ; Leconte, in Annal. of Lyceum of New York. December, 1824. Harris, in &4OQ Val. Heat. Sec, Hartinr, vol-l, Hentz, in Journ. of Acad. Nat. Science. Philadelphia. vol. v. Payhull, Yaune Insect. Amer, Boreal. Prodromus, 4to. Erlang. 1794. COLEOPTERA. 33 Chevrolat. Coléoptéres du Mexique. Strasbourg, 1834. 12mo. in parts. Klug. Entomologiz Brasiliz Specimen, and Specimen alterum (in Nova Acta Nature Curios. vol. x. and xii. ). Perty. Delect. An. Articul. Brasiliz. fol. Munich, 1830. Sahlberg. Periculi Entomologici (chiefly Brazilian Coleoptera). 4 pl. 1823. 8vo. Lacordaire. Observations on the Habits of the Beetles of Brazil (in Annales des Sci, Nat. for 1830, and in Nouy. Ann. du Muséum). Orver COLEOPTERA Aristotle. Cuar. Anterior wings (elytra) horny or leathery, concealing the posterior wings when unemployed, horizontal, united down the back by a straight suture. Posterior wings membranous, longitudinally and transversely folded when unemployed. Mouth with transversely moveable jaws. Pupa incomplete.* This order comprises the extensive tribes of beetles, and, in respect to the size of some of these insects, or the number of individual species, must be regarded as occupying the foremost rank amongst insects. From our earliest childhood, when, at school, we learned the cruel trick of putting a pin through the tail of a Cockchafer to see it “spin ;” or caught the pretty ladybirds, and watched them take their flight from our hand, exclaiming, in the words of the childish couplet — “ Ladybird, ladybird, prythee begone ; Thy house is on fire, and thy children at home,” we have been familiarized with the leading character of this order of insects, derived from the structure of the wings and elytra, from whence, indeed, the name of the order, signifying “wings in a case,” was given to them by Aristotle. In the earlier editions of the Sys- tema Nature it was even employed as its sole characteristic ; so that the Grasshoppers, Cockroaches, and Earwigs were included in it; and, * It has been usual to apply the character of the pupa to designate the peculiar nature of the metamorphosis in general. This is, however, very incorrect; since the Coleoptera are thereby defined to haye an incomplete metamorphosis, whereas their metamorphoses are complete, in the ordinary acceptation of the word, the pupa being on the contrary incomplete. Moreover, Linnzus applied this and other similar terms to the pupa, and not to the metamorphosis; the confusion originating in their misappropriation by Fabricius, *D 34 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. in the last edition of this work, the last-named insect was still retained, from the straight suture by which the upper wings are united when unemployed. These insects, however, although nearly agreeing with the beetles in the structure of the mouth, are widely separated by the nature of their metamorphoses, which consist in a simple cast- ing of the skin from time to time, the larva nearly resembling the perfect insect, the pupa being also similar, but furnished with rudi- mental wings, and being active; whereas, in the beetles, the larva is quite unlike the beetle, and the pupa inactive. So that, on the whole, this may be considered as one of the most definitely marked groups of the animal kingdom. Mr. MacLeay has indeed (Hore Entomol. p- 42].) considered its insulation as the result of accident, although it is a group of that precise kind which he has since proved (in his Letter upon the Dichotomous System) to be a perfectly natural one. The number of species of this order with which entomologists are actually acquainted cannot be less than 35,000*; and it is more than probable that, when the number of species of foreign climes shall have been collected, the number will be doubled, if not trebled, as we may, indeed, conceive by noticing the great proportion of European species already in the lists. In this surprising number we find the most brilliant colours and most singular forms, with a variation of size from the most bulky to the most minute of the insect tribes. Hence, it is not surprising that these insects should have attracted the great, and even absolute, attention of so many authors and ama- teurs; and which has probably been increased by the comparative largeness of size and superior consistence of their external covering, whereby they are rendered so much easier in collection, preservation, and examination. In addition to the characters given above the following may be men- tioned : — The head is furnished with a pair of antenne, of which the form varies very greatly, even in the sexes of the same species, but which, except in a few instances, consist of eleven joints. The eyes are large and lateral ; and, in a few species, each is divided by a horny sinus (being part of the skull), so that in these four eyes appear to exist, an example of which occurs in Gyrinus. ‘The simple ocelli are here wanting, except in Paussus bucephalus, and some of the small Staphylinidz, in which Dalmann observed two tubercles on the crown of the head, which he considered to be ocelli, but Latreille * The Berlin Museum alone contains 28,000 species. COLEOPTERA. 35 considered them as mere tubercles. Curtis and Brullé have, however, recently discovered a small frontal tubercle in some of the Dermes- tide, which appears to be an ocellus, as it is indeed named by the former. The mouth consists of an upper lip, generally transverse ; a pair of horny jaws; a pair of lower jaws of less firm consistence, furnished with an articulated palpus, and a lower lip, also furnished with a pair of similar but shorter palpi; the lip itself (labium) arises from a transverse horny plate (mentum), articulated at its base with the head. The second segment is by far the largest ; it is generally termed the thorax, but, strictly, it is only the first thoracic segment (prothorax), having the fore-legs articulated to it on the under side. Latreille has claimed the discovery of a pair of spiracles on the inner membrane of this segment; Messrs. Kirby and Spence had, however, previously noticed it. (Introd. iii. p. 43.) The second thoracic segment (mesothorax) is very short, and is scarcely visible from above when the insect is at rest, the only ex- posed part consisting of a triangular plate (scutellum, or, more strictly, scutellum of the mesothorax), on each side of which the elytra are attached ; this segment also bears on its under surface the middle legs. The third thoracic segment (mesothorax) is larger in size than the preceding, bearing on its upper surface, near the anterior angles, a pair of membranous wings, and on its under surface the pos- terior legs, of which the basal joint is large and transverse. The ab- domen is intimately attached by its entire breadth to this last tho- racic segment, and generally consists of six or seven segments (the typical number being nine), each having a pair of spiracles at the sides, or upper surface ; the tarsi vary in the number of the joints, from two to five. In an order of such extent as the present, it is not surprising that some few variations from these typical characters should exist ; thus in some, as the females of the Glowworm and Drilus, the organs of flight are entirely wanting. Many genera of Carabide, Curculionidae, &c. have elytra, but no wings: in some the elytra are soldered together; others again, as Molorchus, Buprestis, &c. have the wings only longitudinally folded; others, as Meloe, have the elytra lapping over each other; and in some the elytra are narrowed, and do not meet in a straight line down the back, — Sitaris, &c. The only character which prevails throughout the order is that derived from the metamorphosis, which is of that species which has been termed D2 36 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. (but erroneously), incomplete, the term being applicable only to the pupa state. The darve are active, and generally resemble short thick worms, with the head and back of the anterior segments of the body scaly, and generally with a pair of short jointed legs attached to each of the first three segments, representing the three thoracic segments and the six legs of the Imago. The head is furnished with the same organs as that of the perfect insect, except that they are more rudimental; thus the eyes are represented by several small ocelli-like tubercles observable at the side of the head, and the antennze are very short ; the parts of the mouth are, however, more developed, as might be expected from the circumstance of the larva state being that in which the chief amount of nourishment is taken. The more inactive and retired these larve are, the more they resemble worms or maggots: thus the Nut Weevil, which is borne in the midst of its food, is destitute of legs. The larvae of the carnivorous species are the most active, being furnished with robust legs; whilst some of the larvee of the herbivorous species have the legs replaced by fleshy tuber- cles, which are even occasionally wanting. The last segment of the body is often furnished with horns or other appendages, and its under side provided with a fleshy retractile tubercle, which is employed as an additional leg, and even, as is asserted respecting the larva of the Glowworm, as an instrument ‘employed in cleansing the body when soiled. Until the publication of the Hore Entomologice, entomologists had neglected the study of these larvae since the time of De Geer. Within the last two or three years, however, the attention of several authors has been directed to this branch of the subject, including Messrs. Waterhouse, De Haan, and Hammer- schmidt. I have also been long engaged in the like manner, having observed the transformations of many species, as more fully to be mentioned in the various families. The pupa is inactive, the insect taking no nourishment in this state, it is of a dirty white colour, and often enclosed in a case composed of bits of earth or chips of wood, united by silken threads or viscid matter formed by the larva previous to undergoing its change. In this state the parts of the future beetle are plainly perceivable, being incased in distinct sheaths; the head is applied against the breast; the antenne lie along the sides of the thorax; the elytra and wings are short, and folded at the sides of the body, meeting on the under side of the abdomen; the two anterior pairs of legs are entirely exposed, COLEOPTERA. 37 but the hind pair are covered by the wing-cases, the extremity of the thigh only appearing beyond the sides of the body. In some few species of Brachelytra, as already mentioned, the limbs are so firmly soldered to the body, and apparently under a single sheath, that the pupa might almost be termed an obtected one. Some pupz are enclosed in the cases in which the larve resided; but the habitations, economy, habits, and period of duration in the various states of these insects vary exceedingly. Naturalists are indebted to Aristotle for the establishment of this order of insects, which embraced, according to his definition, all insects with encased wings, “ ocx to mrepoy eyes ev koAew,” and which has been adopted by subsequent authors. Fabricius, however, changed its name to Eleutherata, and Clairville to Elytroptera. Linnzus described 891 species of these insects, which he divided into 29 genera, distributed into the three following sections : — *Antennis clavatis extrorsum incrassatis, * * Antennis _ filifor- mibus, and * * * Antennis setaceis. Geoffroy proposed numerous additional generic groups, and adopted a different mode of classifi- cation, dividing the order into two primary sections, from the elytra entirely or partially covering the abdomen, and subdividing these sections according to the numerical variations in the joints of the tarsi. This latter character was subsequently adopted by Olivier to distin- guish the primary sections of the order, which were thence named as follows : — 1. Pentamera, in which all the tarsi are 5-jointed; 2. Heteromera, in which the four anterior tarsi are 5-jointed and the two posterior 4-jointed ; 3. Tetramera, which have four joints in all the tarsi ; and 4. T7imera, having only three joints in all the tarsi. To the four above-mentioned. groups Latreille added another, named Dimera, composed of the minute family Pselaphide, which were supposed to have only two joints in all their tarsi. He, also in the Regne animal, proposed a sixth section, Monomera, for the reception of the Clambus armadillo, supposed to possess but a single joint in the tarsi; but the real affinities of these insects (the former with the Staphylinide,' and the latter with the Agathidiide), as well as the real. structure of the tarsi, do not warrant the establishment of these two sections, the Pselaphide having three joints, and the Clambus, as I have ascertained, having four joints at the least in the tarsi. Cuvier, in his Tableau Elementaire, divided the order into 13 principal divisions, characterised by the forms of the antenne, tarsi, palpi, and elytra. x DS Welkedag in Leotegeeat Jornal cay S. / C : ‘a 38 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Fabricius added a great number of genera, and distributed the order into ten divisons according to the form of the antenne. The Zarsal System of Olivier has, however, been almost universally adopted, chiefly in consequence of Latreille having employed it in his numerous works. It would appear, however, from the observations of the last- named author, that he has always doubted whether its rigid adoption might not be inconsistent with nature. Thus, in several of his most valuable works, and especially in the Genera Crustaceorum, &c., we find him questioning the series of Coleoptera founded thereon ; adding, “ Coleoptera palpis sex, robustiora, agiliora, primates ordinis*; rhyn- cophora e contra instrumentorum cibariorum exiguitate, ore ros- trato, debiliores, Mammalia edentata hic quodam modo emulantes. Articulorum tarsorum progressio numerica decrescens in methodo naturali non admittenda.” (Vol.i. p.172.). In his Considérations Générales, he has entered more fully into this subject, discussing the distributions resulting from the employment of the antenne, tarsi, and trophi, as leading characters, again giving the preference to the latter, but admitting his inability to propose a natural system, and therefore adopting the tarsal system. Against this system it may be advanced, that by rigidly employing the numerical gradations of the tarsal joints, the real affinities of cer- tain insects (such as the Pselaphide and Clambus, above mentioned) are disturbed. It appears to me, however, that these ought rather to be regarded as exceptions, such as constantly oppose the adoption of every rule, especially when founded upon a single character. I do not, therefore, with Mr. MacLeay +, regard these instances as affording in themselves a sufficient ground for overthrowing the tarsal system. But another and more forcible objection has been raised by Mr. MacLeay, namely, that the Tetramerous Beetles are, in fact, Pen- tamerous, and that the Trimerous are Tetramerous; each of these groups possessing a minute joint, observable between the two lobes of the supposed penultimate joint. It appears to me, however, that this objection can only be maintained against the names of these groups, and not against the groups themselves, which, as it seems to me, are * Mr. Kirby more recently, on account of their perfection and symmetry of general structure, the lightness and velocity of their motions, and brilliancy of colours, has regarded the Cicindelide as the analogues of the Lion amongst quadru- peds, and as the typical and most perfect group of Coleopterous insects, + Linn. Trans. vol. 15. COLEOPTERA. 39 characterised by a strongly marked peculiarity of structure which it is impossible to overlook. * Mr. MacLeay is, however, of a different opinion ; and, rejecting the tarsal system entirely, has proposed a division of the Coleoptera, founded upon their larva state, of which he describes the five following types :— 1. A carnivorous Hexapod larva, with an elongated linear and flattened body, having a large head armed with two sharp falciform mandibles, and furnished with six granular eyes on each side. Ex- amples, Carabus, Dyticus. [ Analogy with Scolopendra. ] 2. An herbivorous Hexapod larva, with along and almost cylindri- cal body, so fashioned that the posterior extremity being curved under the breast, the animal, when at rest, necessarily lies like an Iulus on its side. Examples, Petalocerous Larve. [Analogy with Iulus. ] 3. An Apod larva, having scarcely the rudiments of antenna, but furnished, instead of feet, with flat fleshy tubercles, which, when con- tinued along the back and belly, give the animal a facility of moving in whatever way it may be placed. Examples, Curculio or Cerambyx. [Analogy with Vermes.] 4, An Hexapod and distinctly antenniferous larva, with a subovate rather conical body, of which the second segment is longer and of a different form from the others, so as to give the appearance of a thorax. Examples, Coccinella or Chrysomela. [Analogy with Pediculus. ] 5. An Hexapod antenniferous larva, of oblong form, having, like the former, vestiges of a thorax, besides two or more articulated or un- articulated appendages to the last segment of the abdomen. Example, Meloe. [Analogy with Podura. ] «Each Coleopterous larva, I have observed, may be assimilated to one or other of these types, which it is scarcely possible to look at without being reminded of the primary types of the Ametabola. Indeed, it occurred to me almost immediately, that I had Chilopodi- form, Chilognathiform, Apod or Vermiform, and Anopluriform larve, with a fifth form (Thysanuriform), of which, even now, I know little, * Several French entomologists (Solier, Chevrolat, Brullé) have very recently rediscovered this minute joint, to which they have attached as much importance as Mr, MacLeay. The advantages resulting from the discovery are not very apparent when the Longicorn Beetles are separated from the other Tetramera, and brought into the Pentamera, as proposed by Mr. Brullé. M. Solier also (Ann. Soc. Ent. Fr. 1834, pp. xlii.), considers that all the Coleoptera are in fact Pentamerous. pd 4 40 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. except from the examination of two or three collected by myself, together with the marvellous descriptions of Goedart and De Geer.” (Hore Entomol. vol. ii. p.422.) Subsequently the same author states, that “ the types of Chilopodiform larvee are those carnivorous insects with four maxillary palpi, forming two groups, Carabus and Cicindela Linn., and Hydrocanthari Latr. To the same tribe, Hydro- philus Geoffr. ought to be ascribed, from which, by Spheridium, we enter among the Chilognathiform larvae, the type of which is ap- parently Scarabeus Linn. The tendency of Chilognathiform larve is herbivorous, having among them Lucanus, Byrrhus, Ptinus, Hister, Elater, Buprestis, and part of Tenebrio and Dermestes. By means of Bostrichus Geoffr. we probably quit the Chilognathiform for the Apod or Vermiform larve, including Bruchus, Curculio, Attelabus, Cerambyx, Leptura, Necydalis, and part of Tenebrio and Dermestes. With the help of Donacia (nearly allied to Leptura), we quit this tribe for the Anopluriform larve, including Chrysomela, Cryptoce- phalus, Coccinella, Cassida, and Hispa. These last lead to the Thysanuriform larva, including Meloe and Mordella, with many Heteromera Latr., and perhaps Clerus. I suspect that some of the Malacoderma Latr., find a place in this group, but certainly Staphy- linus Linn., reconducts us from these insects to the Chilopodiform tribe of larva. Some groups I dare scarcely venture on, such as Melasomes, Taxicornes, and Stenelytres Latr.” We are then informed of the important fact, that Pentamerous insects chiefly belong to Chi- lopodiform or Chilognathiform larve; that Apod larve become Tetramerous ; Anopluriform larve either Tetramerous or Trimerous ; and Thysanuriform larvee either Heteromerous or Pentamerous. * In the Annulosa Javanica, Mr. MacLeay declared his views relative to the Chilopodiform type or tribe as follows : — Ex, Typic. Families. 1. Normal group, consisting of Cicindelide. insects haying linear or 1. G oe Carabide. ‘setaceous antenna, with (*° 7POPPPHAGA. Carabus. < Harpalide. ‘the outer process of the Scaritide, maxille palpiform. Brachinide. (ADEPHAGA Clairville.) J 2. Hypraprruaca., Dyticus. ei yticide. * Hore Ent. p. 464, 465. COLEOPTERA, 41 Ex. Typic. Families. Heteroceridz ? Parnide. (3. Purtuypriva. Hydrophilus.~ Helophoride. Hydrophilidz. Spheeridiide ? Seaphidiide. 2. Aberrant group, consisting of insects having their antenne clavate, or at ‘ bat Silphide. elem tee src 4, Necrorpnaca. Silpha. Nitidulide. the external lobe of the ae i maxill is not palpiform, Rise a [RYPOPHAGA Steph. } Pe aaa Stenide. 5. Bracuetyrra. Staphylinus. 2 Omalide. Pselaphide. Tachyporide. The circularity of this tribe is supposed to be effected by the ap- proximation of Lesteva amongst the Brachelytra to the Carabidae. It must be borne in mind that the analogies existing between these five types of Coleopterous larvee and the five groups into which Mr. MacLeay divides his class Ametabola, constitute Mr. MacLeay’s chief argument in support of their correctness.* The above is the sub- stance of Mr. MacLeay’s hitherto published views upon this subject, whence the impossibility will be seen of following them out through the entire order, and which is indeed the more increased from our great ignorance of the larvae of many important groups. We have seen also that Mr. MacLeay himself admits the existence of a variation in the tarsal structure concurrent with the variation in the form of the larva, a circumstance dependent, as it seems to me, upon the principle that modifications of the preparatory states of an insect ought merely to be regarded as indications of corresponding pe- culiarities in the final state, the former modifications being subordinate to those observed in the imago, having in fact been undergone with a direct view to the perfection of the insect. We might indeed carry the subject still further. Thus, whilst the intimate connexion ex- isting throughout the whole of the Tetramerous Beetles cannot be denied, yet Cerambyx has a subvermiform and Chrysomela an * Tt is to be observed, that Mr. MacLeay’s views respecting the Ametabola have been adopted by no subsequent author, and that Messrs. Kirby and Spence (who regard Mr. MacLeay’s proposed distribution as requiring much more consider- ation and investigation than have hitherto been given to it— /ntrod. iii. 161.) have pointed out numerous other and equally striking analogies’ existing between the Coleopterous larvae and the Crustaceous and Arachnidous classes (Introd. iii. 166.) 49 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. anopluriform larvee ; whilst the latter and Coccinella (Mr. MacLeay’s two examples of the Anopluriform stirps), although agreeing in the larvee, are totally different in the habits and in the structure of the tarsi of the imago. | For these and other reasons which want of space prevents me from here detailing, but which I have embodied in a paper read before the Entomological Society, I have not considered it advisable in this work to adopt Mr. MacLeay’s views until they shall be more fully developed *, and shall therefore follow (with proper restrictions * Mr. Stephens has endeavoured to adopt MacLeay’s views in the distribution of the Coleoptera (Catalogue of Brit. Ins. p. viii.), and it cannot be denied that some of the relations thus elucidated are very strong affinities ; others, however, appear equally slight, not being more than distant analogies. It is to be regretted, that want of space has prevented him in his Illustrations from developing his own views so fully as could have been wished. I need not do more than mention the classifications proposed by Mr. Newrnan (Ent. Mag. No. 9.), and by M. Laporte (Etudes Ent. No 1.), these authors not having thought fit to detail the principles upon which their classifications (which certainly do not appear to be very consistent with nature) are founded. Mr. Kirby, however, in his Fauna Boreali- Americana (published subsequently to the preparation of the following pages relative to the Coleoptera), has proposed various important modifications in the general classifi- cation of the order, founded upon and accompanied by observations of their affinities, and of which it will be useful in this place to give a slight review. Many of these are of too great value to be overlooked; but not a few appear to me to be un- founded in nature. Rejecting the Tarsal System of' Latreille, by a too great reliance whereon “ groups evidently nearly related are scattered far and wide through his various sections,” and also that of Mr. Macleay, which he considers impossible to adopt through the “ mazy labyrinth” of nature, he: regards it as impossible ‘* either to conceive or delineate it so as to maintain all its connections undisturbed and unbroken. We must do it in a series, which can only be a series of mutilations and dislocations.” (Pref. p. Xxiii.—xxv. ) Commencing with Cicindela, and passing through the remainder of the Adephaga (Carabus, Dyticus, and Gyrinus Linn.), he next enters into various anatomical arguments relative to the respective relations of the Brachelytra with the Adephaga (Latreille’s method, but rejecting Latreille’s location of the Buprestide, &c. ), and of the Philhydrida with the same group (MacLeay’s method), from which he con- siders that the Brachelytra by means of Lesteva (analogous to Lebia), and Stenus (analogous to Cicindela), are intermediate between the terrestrial Adephaga and the Necrophaga, whence he passes to the Philwidrida, which bear a stronger relation to the aquatic Adephaga, and thus a circular distribution of these groups is com- pleted. In this distribution the groups Geodephaga and Hydradephaga are made subsections, whilst the genus Necrophorus is raised to the rank of a section, equivalent to the Adephaga, Brachelytra, &c., under the name of Entaphia, a step surely not adyiseable. The Byrrhide are introduced amongst the Necrophaga, and it is.from this group that we are instructed to approach the Lamellicorn beetles by means of the Histerida. The Spheridiide are also regarded as another transition COLEOPTERA. 43 and allowance for occasional exceptions), the Tarsal System, which, from being in general use and of easy application for every practical purpose, is superior to any of the other modes of classification yet proposed. The Coleoptera are therefore divisible into the four following sections : — 1. Pentamera, in which all the tarsi are 5-jointed, the fourth being of ordinary size. 2.. Heteromera, in which the four anterior tarsi are 5-jointed, and the two posterior 4-jointed. from the Philhydrida to the Histeride, and as consequently completing the circle of the Chilopodomorpha of MacLeay, Hister being an osculant group. Passing the Histeride, which he considers to be as much allied to the Copride as to the Lucanide, he proceeds through the Lamellieorns, and returns to the Histeride to take up the Lucanide, some of which (Passali, &c.) appear to diverge by Bostrichus to the Weevils. He then takes up, without indicating their affinities, the Sternoxi (Elater and Buprestis), which he regards as entitled to a station somewhere between the Ligniyorous Lamellicorns and the Capricorns; and, after simply hinting at the relation of the Sternoxi with the Malacoderma by means of Cebrio, he considers that there are two routes,—one from Lucanus to the Capricorns (through Cucujus, Pytho, and Trogosita), and thence directly to the Eupoda and Chrysomela; the other from Passalus through the G. Phrenapates K. Sinodendron, F., and an osculant tribe of timber-borers (Xylotrypa K.), including Ptinus L. (out of the direct line), Scolytus, Hylesinus, Bostrichus, &e., directly to the Weevils. This arrangement “ keeps together the great body of Lignivorous Coleoptera.” By means, moreover, of Anthribus and Clythra a connection is regarded as established between the Weeyils and the Cyclica Latr. The Coccinellide next follow, but their natural place is not yet satisfactorily ascertained. To these succeed the Heteromera in their ordinary course, merely “ because one of that subdivision, Meloe, appears evidently to be one of the links that connect the Coleoptera with the Orthoptera,” — “ which is proved not only by its galeate maxilla, but by its elytra lapping over each other, and its vertical and often inflexed head, in this respect re- > sembling the Blattina.” We are lastly to retrace our steps to take a fresh route from the Sternoxi by Cebrio to the Malacoderma, which, “in the soft substance of their elytra, and their reticulations in some species of Lycus,” seem to make an additional approach to the Orthoptera ; these relations being regarded as of higher value than that of Staphylinus and Forficula, adopted by Mr. Stephens for the like purpose. It is admitted, that there are numerous links wanting to complete many of these proposed passages ; and it is also to be observed that it is only upon a consideration of the perfect state that these views have been founded ; but at the same time it will be conceded, that if the difficult task of arranging the Coleoptera upon a review of the relations of the various groups be our object, these suggestions of Mr. Kirby will be entitled to great weight, from the evident justice upon which so many of them haye been made. 44 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. 3. Pseudotetramera* (or Subpentamera, Tetramera Latreille, Crypto- pentamera Burm.), in which the tarsi are 5-jointed, but the fourth joint is exceedingly diminutive, and concealed between the lobes of the preceding. 4. Pseudotrimera (or Subtetramera, Tetramera Laér., Cryptotetramera Burm.), in which the tarsi are 4-jointed, the third jomt being very diminutive, and concealed between the lobes of the pre- ceding. Sect. i. PENTAMERA. It is observable that although Linneus and Latreille considered very different groups as entitled to precedence amongst Beetles, by both Pentamerous insects were selected as fitted to commence the classi- fication of the order; the former, probably influenced by their su- perior size and strength, employing the giant Lamellicorns for that purpose; and the latter, in consequence of the superior developement of the manducatory organs and their agility, together with their internal organization, giving the precedence to the predaceous Tyger-beetlest and Carabi. Mr. Macleay, indeed, does not consider the latter in- sects as entitled to peculiar rank on these grounds; and, in fact, it only becomes a matter of importance with what insects we ought to commence our arrangements, when we have ascertained what are the precise animals composing the group immediately connected with or preceding them in a natural system, and by means of which the most easy passage between the two groups can be effected. The section Pentamera seems to be divisible into two tribes, cor- responding with Mr. MacLeay’s groups Chilopodomorpha and Chi- lognathomorpha. I retain them, however, as merely provisional. The tribe Chilopodomorpha, in like manner, seems to be divisible into two subtribes, viz. : — 1. The Adephaga Clairville. 2. The Rypophaga Stephens. The former, constituting the more typical portion, is again divisible into * J had elsewhere proposed the terms Subtetramera and Subtrimera for Latreille’s Tetramera and Trimera; but as the preposition sub implies a deduction from the quality of the word to which it is prefixed, and as these two groups require, in effect, a designation implying a slight addition to the character originally imputed to them, I have proposed for them the terms of Pseudotetramera (or Subpentamera), and Pseudotrimera (or Subtetramera). + See ante, p. 11. note *, p. 38. and Dahlbom, Clavis Noy. Hym. Syst. Pra- mon. p. iy. COLEOPTERA. — ADEPHAGA. 45 two stirpes, Geodephaga and Hydradephaga, the insects being very predaceous in their habits; and the latter, or the aberrant portion, composed of three stirpes, Philhydrida, Necrophaga, and Brachelytra, and feeding upon dead animal or vegetable matter. The circularity and natural progression of this tribe is effected, according to Mr. MacLeay, in the following manner : — Commencing with the Geodephaga we arrive at the Hydradephaga by means of Omophron, Hydrous in like manner connecting the latter stirps with the Philhydrida; whence, by the assistance of Helophorus, we arrive at the Necrophaga, which are united with the Brachelytra by means of Micropeplus; Lesteva, from its analogy with Lebia, and Stenus, from its analogy with Cicindela (as suggested by Mr. Kirby), form- ing the links which complete the circle, by uniting the latter stirps with the Geodephaga. In the following pages I have adhered to this arrangement, although by introducing the Brachelytra at the end of the Necrophaga, the series of affinity between Dermestes, Anthrenus, Byrrhus, Hister, and Lucanus is broken. The subtribe ADEPHAGA is distinguished by the outer lobe of the maxille being distinct and articulated, or palpiform*, so that these insects have been ordinarily stated to possess six palpi, one pair being attached to the lower lip, and a pair to each of the maxilla, as though the gluttony of these insects required an additional organ. The inner edge of their lower jaws is also armed with strong spines along its entire length, the extremity being also terminated by an acute hook. The antennz are long and slender, the legs of more than ordinary length, and the anterior tarsi generally dilated in the males. The variations occurring in this last-mentioned character have been employed by the French entomologists to distinguish several of the groups com- prising this subtribe, but it is to Mr. Kirby that we are indebted for the most satisfactory remarks upon them. (Faun. Bor. Amer. p. |.) In this respect, the Adephaga may be divided into — |. Those without dilatation; 2. Those having the two anterior tarsi dilated; 3. Those which have the four anterior tarsi dilated. Instances of simple tarsi in both sexes occur in Manticora, the Scaritides, many Carabides, and some Brachinides, with Haliplus; on the other hand, in some Cicin- delidz, Colliuris, &c., and in certain Brachinides, the tarsi are dilated * Tt is to Knoch (and not to Latreille nor MacLeay) that we are indebted for the first intimation of the true nature of this organ. 46 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. in both sexes. The Bimani (Dimani A.), or those with the two an- terior tarsi of the males dilated, are most numerous amongst the Geodephaga, and exist also in Hydaticus and Acilius, whilst the Quadrimani are more numerous in the Hydradephaga, and also in the subfamily Harpalides. The number of dilated joints varies from one to four, the basal joint exhibiting the greatest degree of dilatation. There is also considerable variation in the form of the dilated joints, and which (as in the Patellimani) has been employed to characterise divisions. An equally important character exists in the lining of the sole of these dilated joints, which Mr. Kirby describes (without being apparently acquainted with the observations of Messrs. L. Dufour and Audouin, subsequently alluded to), and divides the Adephaga into three sections thereupon, namely : — 1. SarroTHROPODA, or those with the dilated joints clothed beneath with a dense brush of stiff hairs: Cicindelidae, Carabides, Chlanius and its allies. (See also Aud. and Brullé, Hist. Nat. Ins. Col. vol. i. p. 395. and 444.) Others have only a few hairs at the sides of the joints of the tarsi. 2. CystTopropaA, or those with the foot-cushions formed of little mem- braneous vesicles or cysts variously arranged : Brachinus, Agonum, and various Harpalides. In Helluo and Anthia the dilated joints are furnished with lateral brushes, and in the middle with vesicles. 3. Pyxrptopopa, or those with the foot-cushions formed of pedun- culated cups or suckers: Dyticide. In the figures accompanying the various groups of Adephaga, I have illustrated the variations in these foot-cushions, which will thence be seen to be more numerous than stated by Mr. Kirby. These insects are extremely active, and eminently predaceous, devouring other insects with great avidity, and occasionally not even sparing their own species. This subtribe is divisible into two* stirpes, according to the element in which the insects reside — The Ist, Geodephaga, being terrestrial caress seh The 2d, Hydradephaga, being aquatic fin reir habits The former very far exceeds the latter in the number of its species. * Mr. Kirby (Faun. Bor. Am. p. 6.) has proposed another stirps, Hygradephaga, for those Carabideous insects delighting in humid places (the Acutipalpi,Subulipalpi, and Elaphridz), constituting an intermediate or transition group between the Geode- phaga and Hydradephaga. I cannot, however, find any decisive characters for such a separation of insects so closely allied together as the Acutipalpi, &c., and the other Geodephaga. COLEOPTERA. — CICINDELIDZ. 4.7 The first stirps, GEODEPHAGA, or predaceous Land-beetles, have the legs long and formed for running, the four posterior being placed at equal distances apart, and capable both of vertical and horizontal motion ; the jaws are long, horny, and curved, not being concealed by the upper lip; the terminal internal lobe of the maxilla is straight, except at the tip, which is hooked; the antenne are long and slender ; the body is generally oblong, seldom oval; and the eyes prominent. This is one of the most extensive groups of insects; Dejean enume- rating 2500 species, and Stephens describing about 450 as inhabitants of this country. From their numbers, therefore, they must be emi- nently serviceable in keeping in check the tribes of other insects which, if undisturbed, might become noxious. They are chiefly found beneath stones, under clods of earth, &c. This stirps corresponds with the Linnean genera Cicindela and Carabus, which appear to constitute the two chief divisions of the stirps. Mr. MacLeay has indeed divided the Carabi into four groups, and Mr. Stephens into six, each of which is considered of equal rank with Cicindela. Messrs. Kirby and Spence, however, follow Linnzus and Latreille, adopting only two chief divisions, proposing for Ci- cindela the name of Eupterina (in allusion to their powers of flight), and for Carabus that of Eupodina (from their power of running). I however prefer regarding these two divisions as families, and of equal rank : — Ist, Cicindelide, or Tiger-beetles (maxille armed with a moveable claw). 2d, Carabide, or Ground-beetles (maxilla not armed with a move- able claw ). Tue first family, CicinDELIDA Leach*, is distinguished by the terminal hook of the maxilla being articulated at its base (fig. 1. 3.): * Bisriocr. RererENCEs TO THE CICINDELIDA, Dejean. Spécies Général des Coléoptéres, vol. i. and App. to vol. ii. and v. Paris, 1825—1831. Latreille and Dejean. Coléoptéres d’Europe, 8vo. Paris, 1822. 7 Van der Linden. Memoir upon the Inseets of Java, part 1. Bruxelles. 4to. 1829. MacLeay. Annulosa Javanica, part 1. 4to. London, 1825. Laporte de Castelnau. Etudes Entomologiques. 8yo. Paris, 1834. — Memoirs in Silbermann Rey. Entomol. tom. i. and ii. — Hist. Nat. des Anim. Articulés. Paris, 8vo. 1837. ‘ F . , J ' x 08 a OA tateert etlilign of Hew lubrotuc fa mr é ite Sines ca TS 435 ile a Q o On Ppt es a 2 48 MODERN CLASSFICATION OF INSECTS. the head is large, and broader than the thorax (fig. 1.1. Cicindela campestris, the common green Tiger-beetle): the eyes are very large Thunberg. Museum Upsaliense, p. 51,52. (Cicind. Cap. Bon. Sp.) Gory. Centurie, &c. Ann, Soc. Ent. France. t. ii. Audouin and Brullé. Histoire Naturelle des Insectes Coléopteres, vol. i. Lund. Trycondyla aptera; Schrift. Natur. Gesellsch, vol. i. Copenhagen, 1793. Mathes. Mem. Soc. Imp. Natur. Mose. tom. ii, p. 311. (Cicindela gracilis. ) Kirby. Century, Linn. Trans. vol. xii. Perty. Delect. An. art. Brasilia, ut supra. Griffith. Animal Kingdom. Insects. Pl. 29. Fischer. Entomogr. de la Russie. 4to. Say. In Trans. Amer. Phil. Soe. vol. i. New series, 1818 (containing a Monogr. on the N. Am. Cicindele); and vol. iv. — Ditto, in Journ. Acad. Nat. Se. vol. i. 1817, vol. iii. 1823. Philad.—Amer. Entomol. vol. iii. 8vo. 1824—28. Klug, in Wiegmann’s Archiv. vol. i. (Stenocera, Pogonostoma.) — Ditto, in Mem. Madagascar Col. in Kon. Akad. Wissensch. Abh. 1832. — Ditto, in Ehren- berg’s Symbola Physicee. — Jahrbucher for 1834. Berlin. 8vo. Gory and Laporte. Hist. Nat. Coleopt. (Stenocera Monogr.) Gistl, Syst. Insectorum Monachi. 1837. Part 1. containing a Synopsis of the Species. 8vo. Guérin. Mag. Zool. (various detached species. ) Brullé, in Silberm. Rev. Ent. Nos. 9. and 18. Mannerheim, in No. 2. Bullet. Soc. Imper. Nat. Moscow, 1837. (Including the Description of a new Genus, Oxygonia, from Columbia. ) Erichson. Kafer Brandenburg. part 1. Berlin, 8vo. 1837. Westwood, in Ann. Sciences Nat. vol. xxii. (Mem. Hist. Nat. Cicindel.) — Ditto, in Zool. Journ. No. 17. (On Ctenostoma. )— Ditto, in Jardine’s Mag. Zool. and Bot. vol. i. (Comprising the Description of a new Genus, Distipsidera. ) A. A. Gould, in Boston Journ. Nat. Hist. 8vo. No. 1. 1834. (Cicind. of Massa- chusetts, with 1 pl.) Eschscholtz. Zool. Atlas. fol. Berl. 1831. (Genus Omus.) Kollar, in Annal. Weiner Mus. der Naturgesch, b. 1. 1837. And the general works of Fabricius, Olivier, Herbst. &c. COLEOPTERA. — CICINDELIDZ. 49 and prominent: the mandibles (fig. 1.2. the head,) very large, acute, and armed with several strong teeth; the palpi are not longer than the mandibles: the lower lip is concealed by the broad mentum (jig. 1. 4.); and the labial palpi (which are three-jointed, and appear to arise from a moveable base, and are densely clothed with white hairs), as well as the legs, tarsi, and antenne, are long and slender: the anterior tibia are not notched on their inner side, and the penultimate segment of the abdomen is often notched in the males: the anterior tarsi of the males are often broader than in the females (fig. 1. 5., anterior tarsus Cicindela ¢ — 1.6. ditto? ). Of these characters, that afforded by the slight development of the labium is, perhaps, the most valuable, although that of the articulated terminal maxillary hook has been chiefly relied upon; but M. Audouin has recently observed, not only that in the genus Ctenostoma the hook is entirely wanting —as, indeed, I had previously noticed by dissection (fig. 1. 10.) —but also that, in the Carabideous genus Trigonodactyla, the hook is distinctly articu- lated. In the genus Stenocera Brullé (Pogonostoma Alug), the hook is also wanting. The Cicindelide generally frequent hot sandy districts, where they may be observed flying in the sunshine with great velocity; whence Messrs. Kirby and Spence have termed them Eupterina. Their flight is, however, of short duration ; but they immediately take wing again on our approaching them. From the brilliancy of their colours they have been termed sparklers, whilst the name of Tiger-beetles has also been conferred upon them, not only from the spots and stripes with which they are ornamented, but also from their savage propensities, preying upon every insect which they can overcome, their extreme agility at the same time rendering escape impossible to their luckless prey. In the warmer climates of the New World some of the species of Cicindela, Iresia, Euprosopus, &c., appear to lose some of the habits of their congeners of more moderate climes; since it is upon the leaves and trunks of trees that they are generally found; where, like their terrestrial relatives, they carry on a ferocious war against other insects; flying from leaf to leaf with the agility of flies, and darting upon their prey with great quickness: some, however, make less use of their wings, running rather than flying, and seeking the most arid spots of ground for their abode. The only larvae hitherto observed in this family are those of several species of the genus Cicindela. Geoffroy (Hist. des Insectes, vol. i.), E 50 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Desmarets (Bull. Soc. Phil., 1801 —1805, No.190.), Ratzeburg (Forst. Ins. 1837. pl. 1.), Latreille (Nowe. Dict. d Hist. Nat. 2d ed., &c.), and Messrs. Kirby and Spence (Jntrod., vol. ili. pl. 17. f. 13.), have given accounts and figures of these larvee; and in the Annales des Sciences Naturelles for March 1831, ina Memoir by myself, containing a detailed account of the habits of the insects of this family, both in the pre- paratory and perfect states, I have minutely described the structure of these larvee, which in Cicindela campestris are long, subcylindric, and of a whitish colour and of a fleshy consistence (fig. 1. 7.); the head (jig. 1. 8. head and prothorax seen beneath) is very large, obscurely coloured, horny and hollow above, with a pair of large and powerful, sickle-shaped jaws, two short 4-jointed antenne, and, as it appeared to me, six small simple eyes. The maxilla and labium are re- presented at jiy. 1.9. The first segment of the body is alse horny, flat, and of a semilunar form, being, as is also each of the two following segments, furnished with a pair of strong articulated legs. The eighth segment of the body is the largest, and is armed with a pair of bent hooks placed upon a fleshy retractile tubercle. The four remaining segments are narrowed and terminated by a conical anal process. These larvae burrow cylindric retreats in the earth to the depth of a foot or more, employing their legs and jaws in loosening the particles of sand and earth which they, carry to the surface upon their broad saucer-like head, ascending by the assistance of the two hooks upon the back, somewhat after the fashion of a sweep going up a chimney. Having completed this burrow, they station themselves by means of their legs and dorsal hooks, at its mouth, their large flat- tened head and first segment fitting the hole; here they lay in wait for such insects as may be crawling about, seizing them with their jaws, by suddenly throwing the head backwards and then dragging them to the bottom of the burrow where they may generally be found in the position represented in fig 1.7. At the least approach of danger they also immediately slide down to the bottom of their retreats. When ready to assume the pupa state, it is stated that they close the aperture of the cells. Mr. Curtis (Brit. Ent. No. 1. 2d ed.) has suggested that the hooks on the back of the larva “may, by being brought into contact with the head, enable it to hold its prey.” This, however, I conceive can scarcely be correct, since, at the period when the larva seizes its prey, its hooks are employed like anchors, to sup- port it at the mouth of the burrow. Moreover, in the larve which I COLEOPTERA. — CICINDELID®. 51 kept alive, I never saw these organs employed in the manner suggested by Mr. Curtis, although I repeatedly saw them seize their prey. Nothing is known respecting the transformation of the exotic species of this family; Latreille, however, considers that they are similar to those of the European ones, neither have the pupz been observed. Respecting the name given to this group of insects, it is to be ob- served that our Latin dictionaries, and Cowper’s pretty poem, Ad Ci- cindelam, supported by the authority of Mouffet ( Theatr. Ins. cap. xv. De Cicindela), and some others of the old entomologists, would lead the entomological tyro to suppose that the Glow-worm was the insect under consideration. Such, however, is not the case; Linnzeus, who at first described that insect as a species of Cantharis, having with evident impropriety applied the name of Cicindela to the Tiger- beetles. Geoffroy, however, erroneously considering the latter as not even generically distinct from the Linnean Carabi (which he regarded as the Buprestis of the ancients), improperly gave the name of Ci- cindela to the Soldier-beetles ( Telephorus, or the Cantharides of Linneus), applying at the same time the name of Cantharis to the Blister-fly (Canth. vesicatoria), and to the Glow-worm, the old Greek name of Lampyris. In the subsequent editions of the Systema Nature, Linnzus adopted the latter alteration, and the Glow-worm is now known by the name of Lampyris; but for the Tiger-beetles, which he correctly considered as distinct from the Carabi, he still re- tained the name of Cicindela, which, notwithstanding its evident impropriety, has been universally adopted. The Soldier-beetles, he named Cantharis, and the real Cantharis of the shops or Blister-fly he called a Meloe, whilst to complete the confusion Fabricius con- sidered the Blister-fly as distinct from Meloe, and gave it the name of Lytta. Such is one of the instances (of which it is to be regretted that too many are to be found in the works of the earlier entomo- logical nomenclaturists) of that want of unity which has resulted from the great deficiency of some fixed rules of nomenclature in Natural History. In the instances before us, this confusion still exists ; for although the two insects which gave rise to it, the Tiger-beetle and the Glow-worm, have at length by general scientific usage acquired a title to the names of Cicindela and Lampyris, modern entomologists are still at issue respecting the names of the Blister-fly and the Soldier-beetle, the former being called by some of the most recent authors (Dejean, Gyllenhall, &c.,) Lytta; and by others (Latreille, E 2 52 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Stephens, &c.) Cantharis; whilst the Soldier-beetles are by some writers termed Telephorus, and by others Cantharis. The number of insects belonging to this family scarcely exceeds 250 (or one tenth of the family Carabide*); of these by far the greater portion are exotic, and the Baron Dejean has described about 200 of them as belonging to the genus Cicindela. They are generally of a moderate size, the majority varying from half an inch to an inch in length: none are beneath one third of an inch long; their ferms, as well as the disposition of their colouring, are generally very elegant. The affinities of these insects with the Carabidae are very varied and interesting ; thus whilst Manticora and Anthia (as indicated by Latreille, Col. d Eur. No. 1.) are strikingly allied together, Elaphrus seems not less nearly to approach Cicindela. In like manner Colliuris Latr. closely resembles some of the genera of the Brachinides, espe- cially Colliuris De G. (Casnonia Laér.), and Agra (see Kirby, Faun. Amer. Bor. p.5.); and M. Audouin has lately placed Trigono- dactyla (one cf the Brachinideous genera) at the head of the Cara- bide, from the identity of structure of its maxilla and those of the Cicindelide. Mr. MacLeay also appears to consider that the Cicindelidee and typical Carabide are allied, from the identity in the unnotched anterior tibia. From these varied points of affinity of the Cicindelidz with the various divisions of the Carabidz, it is impossible to arrange them in a series, or to describe them in the order in which they are arranged by nature. A more distant relation of the Cicindelide with the Brachelytra, by means of Stenus has been suggested by Mr. Kirby (Fauna Bor. Amer.). Several modes of distribution of the genera of this family have been proposed by Latreille, MacLeay, Brullé, &c.+ ; but these authors have chiefly selected isolated organs, and as the genera are entirely * Tt is a remarkable circumstance in the distribution of insects, that whilst some families abound in species, such, for instance, as the Carabidae, &¢. others intimately allied to them, as the Cicindelide and Dyticide, possess but very few. The same observation may be made of generic groups: thus, Dejean enumerates 163 species of Carabus, whilst of the more widely distributed allied grovp, Calosoma, he only describes 28. + Mr. Kirby divides the family into Longicollia (Colliuris), Brevicollia (Cicin- dela), Fissicollia (Manticora), forming them into a cirele with some of the Brachi- nides, namely, Agra as the counterpart of Colliuris, Anthia of Manticora, and Calleida of Cicindela. These Brachinideous genera appear, however, to me to be in this manner unnaturally separated from their legitimate allies, the remainder of thee Brachinideous group. COLEOPTERA. — CICINDELIDZ. 53 exotic, with the exception of Cicindela, which is the only British, and, indeed, European, genus, the discussion of these arrangements may be here dispensed with. The species of the G. Cicindela are generally of a green or bronzed colour, ornamented with white spots and streaks upon the elytra. * The typical species C. campestris Zinn. the common green tyger-beetle (fig. 1.1.) is by far the most abundant species in this country, being generally distributed throughout England. It is rather more than half an inch Jong, of a deadened green colour, with several white spots on the elytra, varying in number from three to six; the upper lip also is white ; the female has also two additional spots, but of a dusky colour, near the base of the elytra. I have found this species as early as the middle of February at Coombe Wood, and have noticed, that when handled, it exhales a pleasing scent, something like that of roses. Messrs. Kirby and Spence have observed, respecting another British species (Cic. sylvatica Linn.), that it flies with a considerable hum- ming noise. Another species of this genus, which has only recently been ascer- tained to be indigenous, is the true Cicindela hybrida of Linneus, respecting which great confusion exists in modern entomological works. See Stephens (Jl/lust. Brit. Ent. vol.i. pp. 8. 18.175. and vol. v. p. 366.); Curtis (Brit. Ent. No.1. second edition); Au- douin and Brullé (Hist. Nat. Ins. Coleopt. 1. livr.1.). Laporte (Sil- berm. Rev. Ent. No.7. and Hist. Nat. An. Artic.); Klug. (Zahr- bucher, 1834); Erichson (Kafer Mark Brandb.). I am therefore happy in being able to clear up the doubts which have been raised, by giving a figure from the specimen of this species, preserved in the Collection of Linnzeus, now in the possession of the Linnean Society. The insect attached to the label of Cie. hybrida, in the handwriting of Linneus himself, is that to which the French entomologists have assigned (but doubtingly) that name, and which Mr. Stephens has de- scribed under the name of Riparia. Moreover the Linnzan Cabinet does not contain a specimen of the species which Mr. Sowerby figured * M. Audouin has taken occasion, in describing a beautiful species of Cicindela from the East Indies, ornamented with golden yellow spots, to make some obsery- ations upon the general uniformity and prevalence of particular colours in particular groups of animals, giving the Cicindelx as an example ; the species under descrip- tion of course forming an exception to their prevailing hue. — Guérin, Mag. Zool. Ins. pl. 18. ; a E J 54: MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. under the name of Hybrida, and which has been described by the French authors under that of C. maritima. The smallest British species is the C. Germanica Zinn., which is only five lines long, of a dark green colour with four small spots, and a terminal lunule of a white colour on the elytra. It has been found in great abundance at Blackgang Chine in the Isle of Wight, and elsewhere ; and instead of frequenting hot sandy places, like the other species, it is observed running amongst grass and low herbage in moist situations. It has also been observed, that it makes but little use of its wings: this, and some other circumstances, induced me to suggest the establishment of a subgenus (named Cylindera, from its cylindric neck), for the reception of it, and some allied species ; in the majority of its structural characters, however, it agrees with the common species. Some of the exotic species of the genus Cicindela are generally found upon the leaves of trees (Westermann in Silberm. Rev. Ent. No. 3.; Lacordaire, Annales Sci. Nat., June, 1830, &c.). These species have been separated by M. Laporte, under the name of Odontocheila : they are of a narrower form than the other species, and have the upper lip more advanced and toothed; M. Brullé, moreover, having examined the structure of these tree insects, discovered that in some of them the anterior tarsi are channelled down the centre beneath, whilst some have a style or bristle at the tip of the internal max- illary palpi; but these characters, net being permanent throughout the group, he is induced to regard them as merely indicative of a sectional division, of which the Cic. cylindricollis, Cayennensis, &c. are examples. The Cic. nodicornis Dej. also belongs to the same group, but is distinguished by the curious structure of the antennze of the males, which have the basal joint terminated in a thick knob. We are informed by M. Chevrolat, that the Mexican species, Cic. curvata, burrows in moist sand, whenever the wind blows or the sun is obscured, and that the natives macerate it in water or spirit of wine to prepare a medicinal liquid (St/berm. Rev. Ent., No. 6.). According to M. Westermann, the Cic. 6-pustulata, bicolor, and 20-punctata are found upon the young rice plants in the East Indies (Silb. Rev. Ent. No. 3.). Mr.W. W. Saunders has published an account of the first of these three species, as well as of another new species, which he has termed Cic. limosa, which he observed near Calcutta, and which are attracted by the light of lamps entering apartments, COLEOPTERA. — CICINDELID®. 55 or even ships lying at anchor by night, thus totally differing from their European brethren (Zrans. Ent. Soc. London. No. 1.). M. Guerin has figured a remarkable species from Cochin China, in his Lconographie, in which the legs are excessively long and slender ; and M. Barthelemy has described and figured another curious species ( Cie. Audouinii) from the coast of Barbary, in which the last joints of the antenne are much thicker than the rest (Ann. Soc. Ent. France, 1835, pl. 17. f.1.). The species had, however, been previously de- scribed by Mr. Vigors in the Zool. Journ., under the name of C. Ritchii. {It forms the genus Laphra, in Dejean’s new catalogue. The largest insectsin the family belong tothe genus Manticora, of which the type is the M. tuberculata De G. (maxillosa Fabr.). It is about two inches long, an inhabitant of the arid sandy plains of Southern Africa, entirely of a black colour, and destitute of wings, the elytra being soldered together: hence the insect is confined to the ground ; it runs with great agility, and secretes itself under stones. Mr. G. R. Waterhouse has described a second species of the genus (M. lati- pennis) brought from the interior of Southern Africa by Dr. Andrew Smith, by whom it was discovered in a clump of dead trees (Mag. Nat. Hist. Sept. 1837). Other genera (Ctenostoma, Aptema, Dromica, Platychile) are also apterous, or furnished only with rudiments of wings. The species of Megacephala, also owing to the great length of their legs, and their somewhat less developed wings, are more accustomed to running than flying than the other winged species of the family; and according to M. Lacordaire, Meg. sepulchralis makes no use of its wings, but runs with great agility through the grass growing in sandy situations in the forests of Brazil. This species emits a strong smell of roses, but which shortly after death becomes fetid and disagreeable.* Another Brazilian species of the same genus hides itself beneath dry dung in the burrows of the On- thophagi and Coprides, where it remains during the heat of the day, endeavouring to defend the mouth of its hole, if an attempt be made to drag it forth. If this be persisted in, the insect soon descends to the bottom of its burrow, whence it may be drawn in the same manner as the larva of our common species, by introducing a straw, which itimm ediately seizes, and will then allow itself to be drawn up forcibly, rather than * This species differs so materially from the other species of the genus in its pro- duced labrum and short antenna, as to require a distinct subgenus for its reception. E 4 56 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. let go its hold. According to Olivier and Lacordaire, the insects of this genus make a noise somewhat like a grasshopper, by rubbing the hind thighs against the margins of the elytra. M. Laporte has pub- lished a monograph upon this genus in Silbermann’s Revue Ento- mologique, No.7. Another of the exotic genera, Oxycheila De7., is distinguished by having the upper lip very long, pointed in front and notched at the sides. According to M. Lacordaire, the species of this genus fly more heavily and run slower than the Cicindele, and hide themselves under stones during the heat of the day: they also emit an acute sound when handled, by rubbing the posterior femora against the elytra, as does also the species of which the genus Hu- prosopus is composed. The upper lip is also greatly developed in my genus Distipsidera (fig. 1. 12.). The genus Therates Latr. (Eurychile Bonelli) is remarkable in having the internal maxillary palpi rudimental (zg. 1.11.) and the tarsi with the penultimate joint dilated and heart-shaped (fig. 1. 13.). From this circumstance Bonelli (who had made the interesting observation, that in general those insects which creep upon the ground have simple tarsi, whilst in those which frequent plants they are more or less di- lated,) was led to suppose, that the Therates seeks its prey upon plants in the same manner as the Calosoma. I have, however, elsewhere shown, that in this family, at least, such an observation does not entirely prevail (Annales Sc. Nat.): the genera Euprosopus and Iresia, for instance, which are known to be tree insects, have the tarsi, even in the males, but slightly dilated, as is indeed the case in Calosoma, whilst some of the apterous, and consequently terrestrial species in the family (Tricondyla, Ctenostoma,) have the anterior tarsi in the males greatly dilated. The structure of the tarsi is very different between those insects in which the dilatation is merely sexual, and confined to the fore legs, and the true herbivorous Coleopterous insects, in which all the tarsi in both sexes are dilated and cushioned, and which is also the case even in the genus Collyris (fig. 1. 14. anterior tarsus, f . 1.15. ditto @.). Of the exotic genera, Collyris Fadr. (Colliuris Lat.) Tricondyla, Therates, Procephala, and Ctenostoma are distinguished by their very narrow form, and by their thorax, which is globose in the middle. Of the last named genus I have published a detailed account in the Zoological Journal, No. 17. The Brazilian genus Iresia is distinguished from all the other genera by having the terminal joint of the labial palpi longer than the penultimate. The COLEOPTERA. — CARABIDA:. 57 genus Stenocera Brullé (Pogonostoma Klug.) is confined to Mada- gascar, and is remarkable for the great length of the antenne, palpi and legs, and the cylindrical body. The second group of predacious land Beetles or the family Cara- BiD& Leach*, comprises the entire genus Carabus of Linneus with a * Brisriocr. REFERENCES TO THE CARABID&. Dejean. Spécies Général des Coléoptéres, vol. i—y. 8vo. Paris, 1825—1831. Dejean and Boisduval. Iconogr. Coléoptéres d’Europe, 2d edit. vol. i—iy. 1829. Latreille and Dejean. Coléoptéres d’Europe, Ist edit. Nos. 1,2, and 3. 1829. Klug. Jahrbucher for 1834.— Ditto, in Entomologische Monogr.— Ditto, in Nova Acta. Acad. Curios. t. x. — Ditto, in Ehrenb. Symbole Physicee. — Ditto, in Descriptions of Col. of Madagascar. Audouin and Brullé. Histoire Nat. des Ins. Coléopt. vols. i. and ii. 1834. Laporte. Etudes Entomologiques. — Ditto, Hist. Nat. An, Articulés. — Ditto, in Annal. Soe. Ent. Fr. vol. 1. MacLeay. Annulosa Javanica. Clairville. Entomologie Helvetique. Say, in Amer. Phil. Trans. vol. ii. new series, and vol. iv. Paykull. Monogr. Caraborum Sueciee, 8vo. Upsal. 1790. Bonelli. Observations Entomologiques. Turin, 1809. 4to. Sturm. Deutchsland Fauna. 12mo. Guérin. Iconographie du Régne Animal. Gory. Centurie de Carabiques Nouveaux, Ann. Soc. Ent. de France, vol. i. Gory and Laporte. Hist. Nat. et Teon, des Coléopt. (G. Eunostus, and Nycteis. ) Various detached Memoirs by Chevrolat, Laporte, and Brullé, in Silbermann’s Reyue Entomologique. Faldermann, in Nouy. Mem. Soe. Mose. vol. iv. Zoubkoff, Bullet. Soc. Hist. Nat. Mosc. vol. i. 1829. Bassi, in Annal. Soc. Ent. de France, 1834. (G. Cardiomera, &e. ) Buquet, in ditto, for 1835. (Various new exotic Carabide). Dufour, in Ann. Général des Se. Phys. Bruxell. 1820. Palliardi, Beschr. zw. Decad. Neu. Carab. Vienna, 1825. 8vo. Eschscholtz, in Mem. Soc. Imp. des Natur. Moscow. t. vi. Rylands, in the ‘ Naturalist,” April, 1837. (On Amara. ) Mannerheim (Mem. sur quelques Genres et Espéces de Carab.), in Bull. Soc. Imp. Nat. Moscow, 1837. Part ii. Chaudoir, in ditto, part iii. — Ditto, in Ann. Soe. Ent. de France. 1836. Newman, in Entomol. Mag. Nos. 22. and 24. Various new genera and _ species of exotie Carab. Guérin. Mag. de Zool. Figures of various detached species. 58 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. few of his species of Cicindela. This is a family of very great extent, 2250 species having been described by Dejean, which are contained in his own collection, and their are numbers which he does not possess. It is a family which has attracted much of the attention of modern entomologists, Clairville, Bonelli, Paykull, Dejean, Leach, Latreille, &c., being amongst those whose investigations have been directed to its elucidation; hence, the structure of the perfect insects has in a great degree become well known: few observations have, however, been made relative to the natural history of the various species. This family is at once distinguished from the Tiger-beetles by the maxille terminating in a simple point without any articulation at Gory, in ditto. (Monograph on Pamborus.) Lequien, in ditto, (Monograph on Anthia. ) Westwood, in ditto. (Memoir on the Genus Ozena and its allies. ) Erichson. Kafer der Mark Brandenburg. Cadolint. Enumeratio Carabicorum Ticinensium. 8vo. 1830. Mannerheim. Monographia Pelophilarum in Hummell’s Essais Entom. part iii. ; and Descriptions of new Species of Carabide in ditto, pp. 4, 5, 6. Eschscholtz. Zoologischer Atlas, fase. 2. Griffith. Animal Kingdom. Part, Insects. Fischer. Entomographie de la Russie. 4to. Kirby, in Linn, Trans. y. 12. (Century), and y. 14. (Pseudomorpha and Catascopus. ) Zimmerman. Monographia Amaroidum. Berlin. 8vo. — Ditto, Monographie der Carabiden, Ist Stuck. Berlin, 1831. 8vo. — Ditto, Monograph on Amara in Gistl’s Faunus, Ist band, Ist heft. Munchen. 1832. Germar. Coleopt. Nov. Spec. Hoppe, in Noy. Act. Acad. Curios. vol. xii. Knoch. Neue Beitrage. (On Cychrus. ) Adams. Mem. Soc. Nat. Moscow. vol. v. Waterhouse. Monograph on Nothiophilus, Entomol. Magazine, vol. i. Schilling, on Holoenemis (Pteroloma Gyll.) in Beitrage zur Entomologie, Ist heft. Hrichson, on the same genus in Weigman’s Arch. (in which the genus is regarded as belonging to the Necrophaga). Hope, in Synopsis Ins. Nepaul (Gray’s Zool. Mise. i.) — Ditto, in Zool. Soe. Trans. vol. i. — Ditto, in Trans. Ent. Soe. vol. i. pl. 1. Babington, in Trans. Ent. Soe. vol. i, (On Dromius. ) Solier, in Ann. Soe. Ent. de France. 1834.— Ditto, Ditomus, Aptinus, &c. — Ditto, 1837, various genera. — Ditto, 1835, various new species. Kollar, in Annal. der Weiner Mus. der Naturgesch. b.i. 1837. (G. Damaster, near Cychrus; G. Panagzus. ) Schiodte. Memoir on Danish Amare in Kroger’s Naturhist. Tidsskrift. And the Works of Linneus, Fabricius, Gyllenhall, Olivier, Stephens, Curtis, Marsham, §e. COLEOPTERA. — CARABIDE. 59 the tip* (jig. 3. 2., 4. 14. 16. 18.). The lower lip is more or less de- veloped, generally square, and sometimes with a short tooth on each side in front+ (fig. 3. 4. 4. 19.). The mentum, or horny basal portion (fig. 3. 3. fig. 4. 8.19.) is advanced into corneous lobes at the sides, the centre of the emargination being either simple, or furnished with an entire or bifid tooth. ~The mentum in some few species (Enceladus, Silphomorpha Westw.) is soldered to the under side of the skull. The head (fig. 3.1. head of Omaseus melanarius) is generally narrower than the thorax, the eyes but slightly prominent, and the various parts of the mouth are considerably advanced in front; the upper jaws are very powerful and hooked at the tip, but they are destitute of teeth or have them very short; the labial palpi (jig. 3. 4.) are 4-jointed ; the basal joint is, however, soldered to the lip, merely forming a support to the three terminal joints. The palpi are generally longer than the mandibles (fig. 4.1.11.), and smooth or but slightly clothed with bristles. The body is oblong, rarely ovate, and the posterior legs have a vertical as well as a horizontal motion, the pectoral laminez (coxz) to which they are attached, being small (fig. 4. 9.). Mr. Kirby has observed that in all those species which have the anterior tibiz notched (with the exception of those which have the elytra dis- tinguished by elevated ridges) there is usually a series of from twelve to thirty ocellated impressions near the Jateral margins of the elytra on the 8th, or between it and the 9th furrow: these impression, but not ocellated, also exist in Cicindela; the typical number of furrows is nine, but in Omophron and some others there are fifteen (Fawn. Bor. Amer. p.7.) Fig. 3. 6. represents an elytron of Omaseus me- lanarius. Many species are furnished merely with rudimental wings: these, however, in some instances are fully developed in certain spe- cimens of the same species; occasionally also the elytra are soldered together, whence these insects are distinguished from the Cicindelida, which are especially fliers, by their great activity and running powers, and whence they have been termed by Messrs. Kirby and Spence, Eupodina. The body of these insects is of a very firm consistence, whereby they are enabled to creep about under stones, &c., as well as * In the genus Trigonodactyla, as has been obseryed by M. Audouin, the max- ille are terminated by an articulated hook. + These lateral appendages, or paraglosse, as they have been termed, have been generally considered to be portions of the lip itself; such, however, is not the case, as they are evidently the exserted margins of the internal lingua or tongue (jig. 3. 4; 5.) 60 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. prevented from falling beneath the power of the insects which they attack; most of the species of this family being eminently insectivorous, prowling about on the surface of the ground, under stones, &c., or beneath the bark of trees, or in the moss growing at the roots of the Jatter, in search of their prey, which consists of larve, or of herbivorous beetles and other insects, sometimes even attacking their own species. Latreille in like manner informs us (Histoire Générale, &c., vol. viii. p. 374.), that the Scarites gigas burrows into the earth under cow-dung in sandy places by the assistance of its an- terior palmated fore legs, which singular habitat appears to be ac- counted for by the circumstance, also stated by him, that when confined with some of the stercoracious lamellicorn Beetles (Helio- cantharus sacer, &c.), they pull them in pieces and devour them; and M. Lefebvre de Cerisy, who has published some observations upon the same species, informs us that they are nocturnal insects of prey remaining in their retreats during the day, but sallying forth at night and preying upon such Melolonthe, &c., as fall in their way. These latter insects seem indeed to be a favourite food of the Carabidee in general, for the former author elsewhere states that the chief nourish- ment of the true Carabi consists of the larvee of insects and of herbi- vorous beetles, such as Cockchafers, Rosechafers, &c., which,as Mr. Dill- wyn also observes, they certainly prefer (Memoranda, p. 56.) Latreille adds that the beautiful Carabus auratus, which is probably thence termed in France “ Le Jardinier,” devours more cockchafers than all the other enemies of these destructive insects by attacking and killing the females at the period cf oviposition, and thus preventing the birth of thousands of young larve. These insects are therefore of es- sential service in keeping down the numbers of noxious insects with which our gardens and pastures might otherwise be overrun. It has been suggested to me by a celebrated zoologist, that the carnivorous quadrupeds which are the analogies of the predacious land beetles, in like manner prey upon herbivorous quadrupeds. * * The anterior tibiz of a great number of the species are deeply notched near the tip, on the inside; and Mr. Curtis has noticed an interesting peculiarity of structure in the anterior tibia of the genus Cillenum, which are not only armed with the two ordinary spurs (one above and the other below this notch), but have, also, two additional deflexed spines at the outer extremity of the notch, between which spines he presumes the lower moveable spur is received: hence he conceives that these notched anterior legs of the Carabida are used in seizing and retaining their prey, for the limb of an insect being received into the notch, and the lower COLEOPTERA. — CARABIDE. 61 The habits of the family are not, however, exclusively carnivorous, since some of the species generally found in cornfields are clearly ascertained to feed upon growing grain; thus Nicolai observes re- specting Broscus cephalotes “in agris occurrit frumenti vastator videtur, certe ejus larva.” (Dissert. Inaugural. &e. Hale, 1822, p.12.) La- treille also says “ J’ai vu souvent aristus bucephalus grimper sur des graminées en arracher les bales et les emporter avec ses mandibules.” ( Regne Animal, vol. iii. Ist ed. p. 190.) : hence, he was induced in the Coléoptéres d’ Europe, to consider that the Scaritides were less car- nivorous than the other Carabide. Its larva, however, resembles that of the Cicindele, both in form and habits; and as the carnivorous habits of another of the Scaritides had been previously observed upon by him as above mentioned, it seems not improbable that the circumstance noticed, of the Aristus thus feeding upon grains, was accidental. The larve of Zabrus gibbus (fig. 2. 6.) also, upon the authority of Germar and otlier German naturalists ( Magaz. der Entomol. vol. i.), which are produced from numerous clusters of eggs a short time previously deposited by the females, feed during the night upon the young shoots of wheat, occasionally doing great mis- chief, as in the instance recorded by Germar, where 230 acres of wheat in the canton of Seeburg, near Halle, were destroyed by it. During the day these larva were observed to bury themselves in the earth several inches deep; they remained about three years in this state, and attained their full size in June, when they formed for themselves an oval cavity in the earth, sometimes two feet deep, in which they became pupe, appearing in the perfect state at the end of a month, when they resumed their destructive habits by climbing up the stalks and feeding upon the grain. When confined in a box in which several ears of corn had been placed, they first fed upon the grains ; and when they had consumed the whole, they then attacked each moveable spur being then pressed upon it, the insect would be effectually secured, whilst the spurs of the posterior legs are supposed to be employed in securing a firm footing upon the objects they wish to destroy or tear to pieces. The former of these suppo- sitions is probably correct ; indeed, a direct observation in support of it will be found in the account of the Cantharide : the latter, however, is probably, less correct, since many insects, which have the spurs of the hind legs much developed, are remarkable for their leaping and shuffling kind of motion, as Orchesia, Platyura, &c. I imagine that the claws alone are employed in retaining hold of objects by insects whose tarsi are simple. 62 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. other. These larvae were accompanied, in the proportion of about one fourth by the grubs of the Melolontha ruficornis ad. which, from belonging to a group of insects eminently destructive to the roots of vegetables, must have augmented the mischief. Messrs. Curtis and Stephens have, indeed, doubted whether any portion of the injury is attributable to the Zabrus, the latter author considering that it might rather have been entirely caused by the grubs of the chaffer, and that the larve of the Zabrus (belonging to a decidedly carnivorous group) contributed to lessen the damage by devouring the other larvee whilst the perfect insect ascended the corn for the purpose of feeding upon the insect parasites thereon, and hence questioning whether the de- struction of the Zabri would be desirable. The opinion of Mr.Stephens (Illust. Brit. Ent. Mandib. i. 140.) was adopted also by Messrs. Au- douin and Brullé in their first volume. Contrary, however, to these opinions, we have the express statements of Germar and Kollar (Naturg. Sch. Ins.): the circumstance of the imago eating the grain when confined, the comparative paucity of the grubs of the chaffer, whence it would happen, were the larvee of the Zabri really carnivorous, that they would be unable to find sufficient food to supply their ravenous appetites ; moreover, the grubs of the chaffer are subterraneous, whilst it is stated that the young growing shoots were devoured, and lastly, the circumstance that the perfect Zabri are constantly found in corn- fields and even upon the ears of corn, crawling up the stems or hovering upon the wing just above the heads of the corn, as Mr. Vigors has informed me that both sexes may occasionally be observed. The question, however, has been set at rest, at least as regards the perfect insect by the Rev. G. T. Rudd, who has stated to me that he and a friend distinctly perceived several specimens of Zabrus upon the ears of corn, opening the husks and extracting and devouring the grain. He has subsequently published an account of this circum- stance in the Entomological Magazine, vol. 11. p. 182. * I have in like manner noticed several of the large black species of Harpalides running about pathways near cornfields, especially in the evening, and creeping from amongst the standing wheat, where it is probable that they have been feeding during the day: their appearance * Messrs. Audouin and Brulle, in the fifth volume of their work upon the Coleop- tera, adopted this opinion, being contrary to that which they had entertained in the fourth volume of their work. Mr. Tulk has also informed me, that he has kept several Zabri alive, for many months, feeding them upon grain. COLEOPTERA. — CARABID/ZE. 63 in the evening, although it certainly bespeaks a predacious dispo- sition, does not disprove their herbivorous habits during the day. I have also occasionally observed several of the metallic-coloured species of Harpali, Amare, &c., amongst the upper branches of umbelliferous and other plants during the autumnal months, where it is not im- probable that they ascended for the purpose of feeding upon the ripe seed. M. Zimmermann, in a valuable memoir upon the genus Amara has published an account of their habits, from which it appears that vegetable substances form their chief support; they feed upon the pith and stems of graminez, succulent roots, and likewise upon the larvee of other insects which they can master; they eat much, as may be seen from the swelling of the abdomen. Hence, as Messrs. Au- douin and Brullé (v. p. 29.) observe, this genus, together with the Zabri, compose a group of herbivorous species amongst the carnivorous family to which they belong. Signor Passerini has also published a Memoir upon the ravages occasioned to young wheat by the larvae of Zabrus gibbus and Calathus latus. Some of the Harpalides, as we are informed by the Rev. Mr. Bird, not only fly by night, but are attracted to the light of a lamp, some- times in great numbers. (/ntomol. Magaz. ii. 41.) Mr. G. R. Water- house has also informed me that a specimen of Harpalus ruficornis flew into his chamber in which a light was placed, a short time previous to a storm; hence it is evident, not only that these insects seek their prey by night, but that their flight is high, and that they are subject to the same influence arising from lights as moths. Mr. Curtis has also recorded a similar circumstance respecting Harpalus griseus. The flight of the former insect, shortly previous to a storm, is also curious, as it is well known that many insects are peculiarly liable to be affected by sudden atmospherical changes. Some of the species, especially the larger Carabides, exhale a fetid odour, discharging at the same time from the abdomen to a con- siderable distance a caustic and acrid fluid, whence some of them, as the Carabus auratus, already mentioned, have obtained the name of *‘ Vinaigriers” in France; indeed, as in the instance recorded by De Geer, in which some of this fluid was discharged into the eyes of his friends, it is capable of producing very violent pain for several moments.* It is owing to the rapid volatilisation of this liquid, that the genus Brachinus makes the explosions subsequently described. * See Dufour, Recherch. Anatom., p. 204. 64: MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. In like manner Anchomenus prasinus (one of the Harpalides) is said to combat its enemies with repeated discharges of smoke and noise. (K. and S. ii. 247.) They also discharge a very acrid liquid of a black colour from the mouth, when captured or whilst eating, which pro- duces similar effects on the skin to those caused by powdered can. tharides; indeed, by the ancient physicians they were employed in medicine as being highly vesicatory, whence Geoffroy considered them to be the Buprestis of the ancients, which were accounted as a dangerous poison to cattle. Latreille, however, in a valuable memoir upon these poisonous insects in the tenth volume of the Annales du Muséum, has satisfactorily shown them to have belonged to the modern family Cantharide. Olivier informs us that a sort of soap is made by the natives in some parts of Africa from a species of Carabus, to which he gave the specific name of Saponarius, belonging to the subfamily Harpalides ; and from information given by M. Dumolin to Dejean, it appears that these insects are not employed in the manufacture as affording alka- line matter, as had been supposed, but for the fatty matter which is obtained from them. The majority of the Carabidze inhabit the elevated regions of the southern parts of Europe, Asia, and North America. The first of these quarters of the globe is, however, their chief metropolis, none other possessing so great a number of species. In England we scarcely possess more than 400 species. The insects composing the true genus Carabus disappear as we go either to the North, or towards the tropics, whilst the allied genus Calosoma is distributed over Europe, Africa, America, and New South Wales. The genus Pam- borus is confined to the latter country, whilst Procerus and Pro- crustes are chiefly found in the countries bordering the northern shores of the Mediterranean Sea, where other equatorial genera begin to make their appearance. Some species are found upon the margins of streams or standing water, whilst some of the Carabi and Pteros- tichi, &c. are only found on the tops of the highest mountains. Again, many of the species of the Brachinides are generally found either upon the trunks or beneath the bark of trees.* These species are likewise more variegated in their colours and lest robust in their * It is evidently owing to this circumstance that some of these insects are occa- sionally found embedded in gum anime, in which substance I have observed several beautiful species. (See also Germar, Mag. Ent. vy. i. p. 13. G. Lebina.) COLEOPTERA. — CARABIDZ. 65 structure than the majority of the family. They are also cha- racterised in many instances by having the tarsi dilated, and the penultimate joint more or less bilobed in both sexes, a peculiarity re- sulting, as Bonelli has observed (Mem. Acad. Turin, vol. xxiii.), from the situations in which they reside, this structure being in fact ana- logous to the cushioned feet of flies as well as of those of the true herbivorous Beetles. M. Lacordaire has confirmed these observations in his account of the habits of the Brazilian Coleoptera (Ann. Se. Nat., June, 1830). The internal anatomy of the Carabide has been investigated by M. Dufour, in the Annales des Sciences Naturelles, for August, Oc- tober, and December, 1824. Ramdohr also has published an account of the anatomy of Carabus monilis, in the Magazin Gesellsch. Na- turf. zu Berlin, vol. i.; and Dr. Burmeister’s Memoir on the Anatomy of the Larva of Calosoma, published in the Transactions of the Ento- mological Society, vol. i.. must also be mentioned. Few observations have hitherto been made relative to the larve of this family: this may indeed, perhaps, be partially accounted for, from the obscure situations in which they are found, and from the difficulty of rearing them. Those, however, which have been noticed, are equally voracious with the perfect insects, and are found in simi- lar situations: they are generally long, with the body of equal breadth throughout, and the head of a moderate size, with the rudimental eyes equal; a scaly square prothorax, and with the eighth segment simple, and resembling the remaining joints: the terminal segment is, however, armed with two conical horny appendages, toothed in the Carabi and Calosome, but (according to Latreille, whose state- ment I am, however, inclined to doubt) long, fleshy, and articulated in the larvee of the Harpali and Licini; in the latter, also, the body is shorter and the head larger. The part where the anus is situated is prolonged into a membranous deflexed tube, which serves as a sup- port to the tail: the jaws resemble those of the perfect insect. The larvee of Ditomus bucephalus, however, according to Latreille (Régne An. second edit. t. iv. 190.), resemble those of the Cicindelx, whilst that of Omophron decidedly approaches the form of those of the Water-beetles (Dyticidz ). One of the most voracious larve in the family, is that of Calosoma Sycophanta, first described by Réaumur, in the third volume of his Mémoires. It is black, with six scaly legs: when full-grown it is F 66 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. an inch and a half long, subdepressed and fleshy; the upper surface of each segment and the head are, however, more scaly ; the tail is terminated by two horny spines, and the head is armed with two powerful jaws, wherewith it seizes the body of its struggling prey, which consists of the fleshy larve of | Lepidoptera. As it is very ravenous, devouring several large Cater- pillars in a day, it has the sagacity to find its way to the nests of the gregarious processionary Moths, in the midst of which it takes up its abode; and Réaumur states, that he never found a nest of these Caterpillars which was not infested with from one to six of these larva: here they feed in the midst of their prey (not even sparing them when they have become chrysalides), in so gluttonous a manner that the segments of the body become distended, and ren- der it unfit for any movement, so that it becomes an easy prey to its young and more active brethren, which, in mere wantonness, seize it with their jaws, although surrounded by their natural food. All Réaumur’s larvee died before they became perfect insects ; but there can be but little doubt, that they are the larva of the Calosome, of which, as Réaumur observes, the habits are precisely similar ; in- deed, Clairville, and the French entomologists, appear to entertain none upon this subject. And M. Boisgerard, in a communication made to M. Audouin (published by the latter, in the Hist. Nat. Ins. t. v. p. 94.), states, that having placed some female Calosome upon trees greatly infested with the Caterpillars of Bombyx Dispar, the larvee of the Calosomz were found in the following season in the nests of the Caterpillars, and that in the course of two or three years the trees were cleared. Dr. Burmeister has published a very elaborate account of the anatomy of the larvae of Calosoma Sycophanta (which is not rare in the pine forests in the vicinity of Berlin, where, both in the larva and perfect state, it devours the Caterpillars of Bombyx Dispar, and other Moths,) in the first volume of the Transactions of the Entom. Soe. of London, illustrated with two plates. This larva does not confine itself to Lepidopterous Caterpillars, for Nicolai informs us, that it is occasionally found in some profusion, in the pine forests near Halle in Germany, devouring the larve of the Saw-fly of the pine, Lophyrus Pini. (Déssert. Inaugural, p. 13.)* M. Audouin has also published (in the Hist. Nat. Ins. vol. v. p. 99.) an account of the larva of one of the largest European species of the * Dr. Ratzeburg has given several very characteristic figures of this larva (as well as of that of Cicindela campestris) in his Forst. Insect. (pl, 1.), just published. COLEOPTERA. — CARABID®. 67 family, Procrustes coriaceus, found in France, and also, but very rarely, in England: the larva resembles that of the Calosoma; it is corneous, subcylindric, and terminated by two strong curved spines, each of which is furnished beneath with a smaller spine. It is about an inch and a quarter long, lives under moss and in damp situations, where it feeds upon snails and slugs. It is full grown in the spring, be- comes a pupa at the beginning of May, in a cell which it forms in the ground, and remains in that state not more than a fortnight. The perfect insect also feeds upon snails. Dr. Heer has described and figured the larvee of the following species of Carabus and of Cychrus rostratus in his Observationes Entomolo- gice, 1836. The larva of Carabus auronitens (fig. 2. 1.) is very similar to that of Yeti ly, Calosoma in its general form, the mandibles sickle-shaped with a strong tooth inside at the base, and the terminal segment of the body armed on each side with a thick horny spine with a spur on each side. The antennz are 4-jointed, as well as the maxillary palpi: the eyes are simple ocelli, there being six on each side. It was found on the Ist of June under a stone, and was transformed to the pupa on the 3d, and to the imago on the 15th of the same month. The pupa (jig. 2. 2.) is of an ordinary form, with the abdominal seg- ments rounded at the sides, and furnished on each side with a fascicle of hairs; the anal segment is terminated by two conical appendages. The larvae of Carabus depressus and C. hortensis are also very similar to the preceding, differing chiefly in the greater or less breadth of the abdominal segments, and in the greater elongation of the anal fork, which are simply setulose. Clairville also states, that the larva of one of the species of the restricted genus Carabus, which he had noticed, precisely resembled that of Calosoma, figured by Réaumur. F2 68 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS, Dr. Heer states, that the larva of Cychrus rostratus (jig. 3. 3.), “a Caraborum larvis capite parvulo, palporum articulis exterioribus cras« sioribus, mandibulis erectiusculis, et corporis forma breviori latiorique facile distinguitur ;”” in addition to which the prothorax is conical, and the anal segment very short, with the hinder angles prominent, and armed in the middle with two very short and simple spines. De Geer has figured a larva (Mémoires, vol.v. pl. 12. f. 1—3.) closely resembling that of Calosoma, which was found in the ground, and which he presumes to be the larva of one of the species of this family. He was not, however, able to rear it. _In the first edition of the Coléoptéres d Europe, M. Latreille announced a memoir upon a larva sent to him by M. Westermann from Bengal, supposed to be that of Anthia 6-guttata. This larva, since the death of Latreille, has been described and figured by M. Lequien in his Mo- nograph upon Anthia, published in M. Guerin’s Magasin de Zoologie, Insectes, pl. 41., and by Messrs. Audouin and Brullé, in their Histoire naturelle des Insectes. It is nearly three inches and half long (fig. 2. 8-) with a subcylindric scaly body, consisting of twelve segments, exclu- sive of the head (fig. 2. 9. under side of head), which is armed with strong acute mandibles, very short three-jointed antennz, and a single pair of eyes; the upper side of the head is rugose with several tubercles in front ; the terminal segment is scabrose, serrated at the sides, with a deep notch at its extremity ; this segment is furnished beneath with a single fleshy anal proleg. The second? and nine fol- lowing segments are respectively furnished with a pair of lateral spiracles ; the mentum and maxilla are long and extend almost to the base of the head. ‘The legsare short. This larva is of a black colour, with the posterior margins of the segments obscure red. It has not been stated upon what grounds this larva was considered as that of Anthia 6-guttata, and indeed upon comparing the details of its structure, and especially its trophi, with that of the known Carabideous larve, I have no doubt that it does not even belong to any of this family ; since, in its general appearance and organisation, it approaches much nearer to the larve of the Elateride.* * Since the above was written, I have received the following communication from M. Westermann himself, relating to this larva, in answer to the inquiries which F was induced to make concerning it: “ With the greatest pleasure I shall give you all the information in my power of the circumstances which led me to believe that the larva I brought from India, and sent to the late M. Latreille, was that of Anthia 6-guttata. M. De Haan of Leyden made a similar inquiry last year, and I informed COLEOPTERA. — CARABIDE. 69 The larve of Zabrus gibbus (fig. 2.6.) already mentioned, are described and figured by Germar in the first volume of his magazine ; they are long and flattened, being nearly of equal breadth throughout, except towards the tail, which is gradually narrowed: the body ap- pears to be of a more fleshy consistence than in the majority of these larvee, and the body is terminated by two small spines. The pupa does not present any material characters. A Swedish naturalist, M. Acrel, in a Memoir inserted in the sixth volume of Nova Acta, of Upsal, relating to larve and other objects sometimes found in the human stomach, has described and figured a larva which he considers to be that of Sphodrus leucopthal- mus, and which had been ejected from the stomach of one of his patients. Such, of course, is not the real habits of this insect, since Latreille considers that the larve figured by Geedart, (fig. 107. a, 6,) are referrable either to this species or to Abax striola. Certainly, Geedart’s insects, in their general appearance, strong jaws, and pre- dacious habits, coincide with the typical larvee of this family, one of them being described as preying voraciously upon softer larvae; and the other, which remained in the larva state two years, and of which he has given the transformations, feeding, not only on other larve, but also on the pupe of ants, the eggs of mole crickets, &c. I am not certain to which species of the family the larva which I have represented in fig. 2. 4. is referable; it agrees, however, with him that being on a visit in Burdwan in Bengal, one night returning home I ob- served by the light in a lantern the larve crawling in theroad. I immediately took it to be the larva of some large Coleopterous insect, but had not the least idea to which it belonged till the day after, when I observed at the foot of a large Banian tree several Anthia guttata, which I could not, however, secure, as they retreated into holes when I came nearthem. I therefore ordered my palankin-bearers to dig them out, when we at the same time obtained another of the lary found on the pre- ceding evening ; without being positive, as I wrote to M. Latreille, I now, naturally considered it to be that of an Anthia and concluded it was in the habit, during the night, of leaving its hole and crawling about in search of worms. M. De Haan hay- ing observed to me that this larva, whereof he had seen a figure in the French works, appeared according to his observations to belong to an Elater, I informed him that on the very tree where we obtained the larve from the holes at the roots, I found Elater fuscipes Fabr., in great abundance; this being the largest Elater which ever came under my observation in Bengal. I think this larva is much too large for such an insect, nor should I think a larva of an Elater would crawl so well on the ground. In other parts of India very large Elaters are found ; in Jaya I once took a pair as large as E. flabellicornis.” Copenhagen, July 5. 1836, F 3 70 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. the typical larve of the family. And as I have found numerous specimens of it, as wéll as others, but slightly differing from it in essential characters, I have little doubt that it belongs to one of the large common black Harpalides (perhaps Steropus madidus, or Omaseus melanarius), and do not hesitate to give it as an example — of the group. It is black and scaly, the head (fig. 2. 5. under side) is armed with two acute mandibles, two moderately long 4-jointed antennze, two long 4-jointed maxillary palpi, and two short thick labial palpi; there are six small simple eyes on each side behind the antennz, set in a circle. The under side of the head is scaly, the parts of the mouth being inserted near the front ; the legs are moderately long, and the terminal segment of the body is armed with a pair of horny bifid spines. The larva represented in jig. 2.7. was described and figured by Desmarets (Bulletin Soc. Philomat. vol. i.), whose reasons for re- garding it as that of Omophron limbatum appear to be satisfactory ; it is of an intermediate form between that of the larvee of the Cara- bide and Dyticide, being oblong, depressed, narrowed behind, with the head very large, and broader than the rest of the body, and armed with two very robust jaws, and other usual parts of the mouth, two 5-jointed antennz, and two small eyes placed at the sides of the head ; the tail is formed of a slender 4-jointed appendage, with two hairs at its extremity; the legs are moderately long. It was gene- rally found in moist sandy places on the banks of the Seine, where the perfect insect was also met with in company with it, the food of both consisting of small sub-aquatic insects. The larva is very active, and, when touched, throws up its tail in the manner of a Staphylinus. he anatomical observations of M. Dufour seem to confirm the intermediate location of this genus between the Carabidee and Dyti- cide ; the perfect insect, although unable to swim, cannot live except in damp situations, and, indeed, Clairville placed it at the head of the Water-beetles. M. Zimmerman, in his Monograph upon Amara, has given some ac- count of the early stages of the insects of this genus. Considering some species as annual, and others as producing two broods in a year, and that the period of their appearance is not, like that of Moths, &c. fixed to a particular time, he adds, that the duration of life of these insects, from their bursting from the eggs to their death, never exceeds a year, whilst, in some species, it is certainly shorter. Those which COLEOPTERA. — CARABID&. Tt appear at the end of the summer in the perfect state, generally couple in the autumn, whilst in others this does not take place until the following spring. The eggs do not arrive at maturity until seve- ral days after coupling ; they are deposited under stones, or at a small depth under ground. The larvee soon appear; they change their skin once, and attain, previous to becoming pupe, twice the length of the imago: the larve have the same general form of those of the Zabri and Peecilli, and are so much alike that it is not possible to distin- guish the species. They remain about six or eight weeks as larvae, and half that time as pupe; the perfect insects are able to live a much longer time, especially if coupling is delayed, immediately after which they die. Latreille is the first author who directed the attention of ento- mologists to the distribution of the numerous groups composing this family. So far indeed from abandoning the hope of effecting a natural arrangement (as asserted by Mr. MacLeay), he has proposed a classi- fication of them “ fondée sur des rapports naturels” in the Coléopteres d' Europe which appears to me to be the most natural of any given, and which I propose to adopt in the following pages. He considers that the first group having truncated elytra, and noted for their ex- plosive powers (Brachinidee MacLeay, Truncatipennes, Latr.) is con- nected on the one side with the Cicindelide by means of Anthia and some other genera; and on the other, to the second group dis- tinguished for its fossorial habits, having the elytra separated from the thorax by a wide incision (Scaritide MacL., Bipartiti Latr.) by means of Enceladus and Siagona. From this second group he pro- ceeds by Aristus and Acinopus to Zabrus, Cephalotes, &c. in the third group composed of the Harpaliens and Feroniens (Harpalidz MacL., Thoracici Latr.) distinguished by their great quickness in running; whence by means of Licinus, Panagzeus, &c. we approach the fourth group, having the inner surface of the anterior tibia not notched, and which emit an extremely acrid fluid (Carabidae MacL. Abdominales, Zaér.), from which by Nebria, Elaphrus, &c., we arrive at the fifth group, composed of the genus Bembidium, having the last joint of the maxillary palpi minute and acute (Bembidiide Stephens, Subulipalpes Laér.), which approach the Water-beetles in their sub- aquatic habit: the genus Haliplus, amongst the latter, closely re- sembling Bembidium in the curious structure of the palpi. Other instances in support of Latreille’s arrangement may be given; F 4 72 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. thus Ozena hitherto regarded as one of the Bipartiti of Latreille, is now, from its explosive powers, proved to belong to the Bombardiers ; whilst on the other side Mr. Curtis has suggested that a connection between the Scaritides and Harpalides may be effected by means of the genera Miscodera (Leiochiton Curt.) and Clivina; but a more beautiful connecting link between these two subfamilies exists in a yet undescribed insect from New Holland in the collection of the Rev. F. W. Hope, which strongly partakes of the characters of both groups; whilst between the Harpalides and Carabides the genus Eurysoma (Brachygnathus Perty) having the appearance of Cychrus, may be mentioned, as well as the genus Teftlus, regarded by M. Brullé as more nearly allied to Panagzeus than to Carabus. Latreille, indeed, was subsequently induced to adopt an arrange- ment of these groups proposed by Dejean by commencing with the Abdominales or Carabides, and in so doing has pointed out other apparent transitions; but in their more recent works, both authors have abandoned the latter arrangement and adopted that given above, with the exception that Dejean has raised these five groups, as well as two others, separated from the Harpalide, to an equal rank with the Cicindelide. Mr. MacLeay, also, in his Annulosa Javanica, has elevated the sections of the Linnean genus Carabus to an equal rank with the last-mentioned family ; but from pursuing a quinarian ar- rangement of the Geodephaga, he has been enabled only to admit four divisions of the Carabide. The group of Bembidiide is there- fore sunk, the structure of the palpi being considered insufficient for its support: if this character were indeed the only distinctive mark of the group, this step might still be questioned, as no other Carabidae possess such a structure; but the group is also characterised by the minute size, great agility and subaquatic habits of the insects of which it is composed; moreover, in point of number of species, it is not an inferior group. If even it were to be suppressed, its situation would evidently be nearer to Elaphrus than to Harpalus, which would, of course, interfere with Mr. MacLeay’s distribution, which (notwith- standing his remark upon the Latreillian distribution) is, with the exception of the suppression of the Bembidiidz, identical with that given above; the progression being merely reversed, by which means a passage is effected between the Cicindelide and Elaphrus amongst the Carabidae *, which two families he considers as forming a normal * Mr. Curtis has adopted this view in his observations on Pelophila, although in those upon Elaphrus, he regrets that Dejean should have removed that genus and COLEOPTERA. — CARABID#. 73 group, having entire tibize, whilst, in his three other families, which he terms aberrant, they are deeply notched. Messrs. Kirby and Spence divide the Carabidz into two subtribes, Lamprona, named from the brilliancy of colour of many of the species and corresponding with Latreille’s Abdominales, and Amaurona or those of obscure colours, and comprising all the other groups of La- treille, the latter subtribe being divided into stirpes, as Truncipennwza, &c.; these stirpes, however, being evidently of equal value with the entire subtribe Lamprona, this primary mode of division cannot be considered satisfactory. Mr. Stephens has proposed six families of Carabideous insects : — 1. Brachinide Mach. 2. Scaritide Mach. 3. Carabide Macl. 4. Harpalidee MacL. 5. Bembidiidze Steph., and 6. Elaphridee Steph. This distribution is, however, evidently unnatural, separating, as it does, the Harpalide and Scaritidz, and the Carabidae and Elaphride. No affinity, moreover, is traced between the Scaritide and Carabide. Other modes of distribution have been proposed by Zimmerman (Monog. Amaroidum), Laporte (Etudes Entomol. livr. i.) and Brullé (Hist. Nat. Ins. Col. vol. i.), which it would be tedious to detail, In all these arrangements, however, the Harpalides are divided into three groups, corresponding with the Simplicimana, Patellimana, and Quad- rimana of Latreille (#égne Animal, 2d ed.). The latest arrange- ment of these insects is that of Mr. Kirby, given in the Fauna Boreali- Americana, and which is as follows :— Euptera, (Cicindelide. ) Truncipennia. Geodephaga. f Guechanie M‘L.) Guresipcanis f Nobilia (Carabus, &e. ). Buceccha | Plebeia (Nebria, &e. ). z Sarrothropoda. | (Chleenius. ) G H Dimana ( Agonum, Calathus, _Cystopoda. and Feronia, &c. ). | Quadrimana ( Harpalus). Quadrimana. Acutipalpia Re sit as ) (Trechus, Patrobus, &c. ). Hygradephaga. Subulipalpia. (Peryphus, Bembidium, &e. ) Filipalpia. ( Elaphrus, ) Omophron (both belonging to the same group) from the termination of the Carabide, considering the latter genus as “ ordained by nature perfectly to connect the Carabide with the Dyticide.” 74 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Mr. Kirby as well as Messrs. Laporte and Brullé have also adopted the plan of subdividing the primary groups into numerous minor sub- divisions named after the typical genus in each: thus by both the last named authors, the Brachinide are divided into six minor groups, not however corresponding with each other, as the sixth subdivision (Brachinites) of Laporte embraces Brullé’s Ist, 5th, and 6th, sub- divisions, In considering the different primary divisions of this very natural family, as possessing a value inferior to that of distinct families, and as constituting collectively one family of equal rank with the Ci- cindelidz, I am but treading in the steps of Linnzus, Latreille, Kirby, and Leach, as well as in those, I cannot but think, of nature herself, notwithstanding the numerical majority of the Carabideous over the Cicindelideous insects. The following is a concise tabular sketch of these different groups which I have considered as sub-families, termi- nating them, for uniformity, in zdes. A. External maxillary palpi terminated by a joint at least as large as the preced- ing (fig. 3. 2.). a. Anterior tibiz having a deep notch on the inside, near the tips ( fig. 3.192.). * Elytra generally truncated behind (fig. 3. 7.). Tarsi ] 1. Brachinides. of the g seldom dilated at the base. } ( Bombardiers. ) ** Elytra rounded at the extremity; abdomen pedun- ) 2. Scaritides. culated (fig. 3. 14.). J (Burrowers. ) ***® Elytra rounded behind; abdomen not pedunculated | 3. Harpalides. (fig. 4. 1.). } ( Black clocks.) Koen coghote bo 5 , 4. Carabides. b. Anterior tibiz net notched near the tip (jig. 4. 12.) { (Dischargers. ) 5. Bembidiides. B. Palpi terminated by a minute conical joint ( fig. 4. 18.). { (Subaquaties.) ubaquaties. The first sub-family BracuinIDEs, in addition to the truncature of the extremity of the elytra, are characterised by having the head and thorax narrower than the abdomen (fig. 3.7. Lebia Crux minor, 8 ungues, 9 antenne). The labium is often oval or square, and occasionally furnished with two small lateral linear iobes: in many of the smaller species the penultimate joint of the tarsi is bilobed (jig. 3.10. anterior tarsus of Cordistes), and the anterior tarsi of the males are very rarely dilated at the base; in some of the large exotic genera, as well as in the true Brachini, the body is apterous, whilst others are very narrow and subcylindric, and have been supposed to be allied to the cylindric Cicindelide.* Their colours are more * M. Bruilé places his division Trigonodactyliens at the head of the Carabide, M. Audouin having observed that the maxille in the typical genus have the terminal unguis articulated, as in the Cicindelide. COLEOPTERA. — CARABIDZ. 75 pleasantly variegated than in the majority of the family. Other pecu- liarities have already been pointed out. This sub-family, as at present constituted, is perhaps the most in- congruous of all the sub-families of the Carabide, the term Trunca- tipennes applied to it by Latreille by no means indicating a constant character, as many of the species have the elytra rounded at the tips. The tarsi indeed are generally alike in both sexes, or if dilated in the males, the dilatation is of a different character from that of the other sub-families. In may, indeed, be rather regarded as a convenient receptacle for such groups as have not the bipartite and palmated structure of the Scaritides, the simple tibiz of the Carabides, the dilated male tarsi of the Harpalides and its subdivisions, or the minute conical terminal joint of the maxillary palpi of the Bembidiides. The tarsal claws are often denticulated (fig. 3. 8. claws of Lebia) ; but this structure is found elsewhere in the family. The typical species of this sub-family are endowed with a means of defence of the most singular description, from whence they have derived the name of Bombardier-beetles, and which was first men- tioned by Rolander in the Transactions of the Academy of Stockholm for 1750. When the insect is attacked by other and larger insects, or placed in a situation of danger, it suddenly emits from the anus a fluid of so highly volatile a nature that, immediately upon coming into contact with the atmospheric air, it becomes a bluish vapour of a very pungent scent, accompanied with considerable explosion, whereby the insect is enabled to effect its escape. This it is enabled to repeat seven, eight, or even a dozen times. It is stated by an anonymous author (Ht. Mag. iii. 377.), that on immersing a specimen of Br. Grecus in boiling water, it let off one of its explosions, and the water 76 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. for about an inch around it effervesced much in the same way as a Seidlitz powder. The typical species Brachinus crepitans Linn., is not uncommon, being found in company under stones; and it is stated that these communities have been found at times to consist of at least a thousand individuals. The effect of this vapour upon the skin is very similar to that produced by nitric acid. M. Dufour has published a description of the organs by which this fluid is secreted in the Brachinus balista, which will be found in the eighteenth volume of the Annales du Muséum, as well as in the sixth volume of the An- nales des Sciences Naturelles.* Kuhn has also published an account of the habits of these insects in the thirteenth volume of Der Natur- forscher. Some authors have thrown doubts upon the statement that the explosion of these insects is accompanied by a noise; the fol- lowing circumstance, however, communicated to me by the celebrated traveller Burchell, will be sufficient (were other evidence wanting, which is not the case) to confirm the correctness of the recorded statements. Whilst resting for the night on the banks of one of the large South American rivers, he went out with a lantern to make an astronomical observation, accompanied by one of his black servant boys; and as they were proceeding, their attention was directed to numerous beetles running about upon the shore, which, when cap- tured, proved to be specimens of a large species of Brachinus: on being seized they immediately began to play off their artillery, burning and staining the flesh to such a degree, that only a few specimens could be captured with the naked hand, leaving a mark which re- mained for a considerable time; upon observing the whitish vapour by which the explosions were accompanied, the negro exclaimed in his broken English, with evident surprise, “Ah! massa, they make smoke.” ‘The late traveller, Ritchie, communicated to Mr. MacLeay some particulars respecting this secretion; his companion, M. Dupont, having taken a nest consisting of more than a thousand individuals near Tripoli. He says the crepitating matter made Dupont’s fingers entirely black when he took them: it is neither al- kaline nor acid, and it is soluble in water and in alcohol (Kirby and Spence, Int. iv. p. 143.). From a communication made by Mr. Holme to the Entomological Society ( Zrans. vol. ii. p- 7.), it would appear that the crepitation may be produced for a considerable time after the * Also in the “ Recherches Anatomiques,” p. 204. COLEOPTERA. — CARABID. aa death of the insect by pressing the abdomen near the anus, probably until the secreting organs are become rigid. Mr. R. H. Lewis also states that the New Holland species of Lebia emit a very pungent odour, resembling muriatic acid, which, applied to the nostrils, pro- duces considerable irritation. Trans. Ent. Soe. Lond. vol. i. p. 81. The British genera are Drypta, Polystichus, Odacantha, Demetrias, Dromius, Lebia, Lamprias, Tarus, and Brachinus. The only British species contained in the genus Polystichus is a curious insect about one third of an inch long. It has lately been captured in considerable numbers on the coast of Suffolk, and has been regarded by all English authors as the Polystichus fasciola- tus of Rossi, from which, however, it is distinct. M. Brullé, who has corrected the synonymy of this and the allied species, has given to the English species the name of P. vittatus. ‘The only English species of the genus Odacantha is one quarter of an inch long, of a bright tes- taceous colour, with the head and thorax blue. It is found in Nor- folk, and some of the ether eastern counties, and has lately been taken in profusion by the Cambridge entomologists in the reedy fens in that neighbourhood. It is also found in the sedge boats upon the river Cam, having escaped from the bundles of sedge, which is brought in great quantities to Cambridge. M. Brullé mentions, that many hundred specimens of this insect were taken under the bark of trees growing in water in Italy, although they have never since oc- curred in the same locality, and, indeed, are very rare in the neigh- bourhood. The species of the genus Dromius are amongst the smallest Carabideous insects, and are generally found under the bark of trees, especially during the winter. A memoir upon this genus has been published, in the Transactions of the Entomological Society, by C. C. Babington, Esq., in which the difficult synonymy of many of the species has been cleared up. The genera Lebia and Lamprias are regarded as congenerous by the French entomologists, notwithstanding their evident distinction. The species of both are very elegantly diversified with different colours, and are generally rare. Like the Dromii, they are often found under the bark of trees. Some of the species of Tarus have the palpi consider- ably dilated in the males ( fig. 3. 11.), which induced Fischer to form them into a distinct genus, named Anomeus. ‘They are chiefly inha- bitants of Europe. The genus Brachinus ( fig. 3. 12. anterior tibia) contains about forty 78 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. species, which are very widely distributed. Their explosive proper- ties have been already described, to which may be added, that both sexes possess this power. M. Solier has published a memoir upon this and the allied genera in the Annals of the Entomological Society of France, vol. ii., to which M. Brullé has published a reply in the fourth volume of the same work. In addition to the genera enumerated above, Mr. MacLeay has suggested that the genus Plochionus Dej. may be expected to occur in the south of England or Ireland, particularly Plochionus Bonsfilsii Dej. (Annul. Javan. No.1.); but, from the observations of M. Bar- thelemy, it is evident that the insect last named is imported into France from the island of Martinique, with Cassia bark. (Ann. Soe. Ent. France, vol. iii. 429.) The following are amongst the most remarkable exotic genera be- longing to this subfamily : — Anthia, Weber, comprising some of the most gigantic species in the whole family ; in some of which the males have the mandibles of an immense size, and the thorax, as it were, divided into two parts. M. Lequien has published a monograph upon this group in Guerin’s Magasin de Zoologie. The large East Indian species, Anthia sex- guttata is found, according to Mr. Westermann, at the roots of the Banian tree. The majority of the species are from Southern Africa ; there are some observations on the habits of these insects in Burchell’s Travels in the Interior of Southern Africa, 1824, by whom one of the species is named A. effugiens. This genus, with Helluo and its allies, exhibits a peculiarity in the clothing of the under side of the anterior tarsi. (fig. $. 13. Helluo.) The species composing the allied genus Graphipterus have some- what the appearance of broad Cicindele. They have been gene- rally considered to be nocturnal in their habits; but M. Lefebvre, whilst in Egypt, observed the habits of one of the species, which was discovered by him running about in the hottest part of the day, at the commencement of March near the confines of the desert. He likewise observed that it produces a very distinct noise, by rubbing the posterior femora against the margins of the broad elytra. (Ann. Soe. Ent. France, No. 3.) The beautiful South American genus Agra is distinguished by its long narrow body; the thorax being conical; the maxillary palpi filiform, and the labial terminated by a securiform joint. According COLEOPTERA. -——CARABIDE. 79 to M. Lacordaire, the species, which are numerous, are found upon trees, preferring those leaves which have been rolled up by other insects, upon which they sit, remaining immoveable, with the fore legs and antennee stretched forwards. When approached, they escape quickly, falling amongst the grass. Their long neck and head are said to hin- der them from walking quickly, these parts being constantly brought into contact with the leaves upon which they are in motion. Dr. Klug has published a beautifully illustrated monograph upon this rare genus in his Entomological Monographs. The elegant exotic genus Casnonia Latr. (Ophionea Alug, or rather, Colliuris De Geer, but not of Latr.) is distinguished by the very long cylindrical neck-like thorax, wide head, prominent eyes, and broad elytra. The species are of small size; the type is the Attelabus pensylvanicus Zinn. M. Lacordaire has observed that they reside in marshy places, running very quickly on the margins of streams, and taking flight readily, when they are easily mistaken for small Ci- cindele. The genus Mormolyce Hagenb. comprises the largest known Cara- bideous insect, the form of which is quite flat, and so extraordinary that it would scarcely be recognised as a Coleopterous insect. The head is attenuated behind the eyes into avery long narrow neck; the thorax has the lateral margins strongly denticulated; and the elytra are dilated at the sides and extremity into a very bread leaf- like appendage, giving the insect the aspect of a Mantis. The notched tibize, and structure of the mouth and posterior trochanters appear to give it the affinity with Sphodrus, as suggested by Latreille, of which genus it is even regarded by M. Brullé merely as a subgenus. Its situation has, however, greatly perplexed systematists. By Klug and St. Fargeau (Zinc. Meth.) it is arranged with the Brachinides ; the for- mer placing it between Drypta and Agra, with which last it has some general resemblance in form, with the exception of the dilatation of the elytra; whilst Mr. Curtis considers it natural to place it as the head of the Coleoptera and Eumorphus at the end, thereby to com- plete the Coleopterous circle. I would suggest that, as its general appearance indicates a certain weakness of structure, very unlike that of the Harpalides, and as, out of the many individuals which I have examined, I have never been able to find an individual with dilated anterior tarsi, it would be more natural to consider it as allied to the SO MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Lebize and some other of the Brachinides*, which are found under the bark of trees, it being in such situations in Java that the Mormo- lyce is said to be found. It is subject to considerable variation in size : the largest specimen which I have seen measures three inches and a half in length, and is in my collection. M. Laporte de Castelnau has suggested that the extraordinary larva described by Perty, and sub- sequently noticed under the family Lampyridz, may be that of Mor- molyce (Hist. Nat. Anim. Art. p.119.). I cannot, however, adopt such an opinion. The genus Ozena Oliv. has been placed by Latreille and Dejean amongst the Scaritides; its characters are, however, very unlike those of that sub-family ; and M. Lacordaire has observed, that the Brazilian species possess similar explosive powers to those of the Bra- chini; hence Messrs. Brullé and Laporte have introduced this genus into the latter family. (Ann. Scienc. Nat. June, 1830. Ann. Soc. Ent. France, No. 4.) Most of the species have a curious tubercle near the base and apex of the margin of each elytron. I have published a memoir upon this and seme new allied genera in Guérin’s Magasin de Zoologie, 1834. The extraordinary North American genus Pseudomorpha Kirby (Linn. Trans. vol. xiv. Heteromorpha Kirby, ibid., pl.3. f. 3. Axino- phorus Dej.) may also be here mentioned. Although exhibiting the characters it has not the aspect of a Carabideous insect, and might be mistaken for a large Nitidula. It appears to have been previously described by Illiger under the name of Drepanus. ‘Its situation is very dubious; Mr. Kirby thinking it nearer to Omophron than to the Brachinides, with which in several respects it agrees, and in which it is arranged by Dejean, whilst Latreille in his last works has placed it amongst the Feroniens. The head and thorax are very broad, and the legs and antennz short. But a still more extraordinary genus is Adelotopus Hope ( Trans. Ent. Soc. pt. 1.), in which the body has all the appearance of an elongated Gyrinus, and the antenne are clavate. In some other respects, it is nearly allied to Pseudomorpha. I have communicated a memoir upon these and some other equally singular allied Australian insects to the Linnean Society. * This opinion has been confirmed by the recently published observations of Count Mannerheim, who has described the sexual distinctions of this insect. (Bull, Soc. Imp. Mosc. 1837, p. 26.) COLEOPTERA. — CARABIDE. 81 The second sub-family Scaririves (Bipartiti Zaér.) is distinguished by having the elytra separated from the lunate thorax by a consider- able space, which causes them to appear pedunculated (fig. 3. 14. Scarites levigatus), and they are rounded at the extremity; the antenne are short, and often elbowed ( fig. 3. 15.), the first joint being long ; the head is large; the tarsi (fig. 3.18. under side of tarsi of Scarites) are generally alike in both sexes ; and the tibiz of the fore- legs are broad, and very much dentated (fig.3.17.) or palmated, wherewith the insects are enabled to burrow in the earth or sand; the mandibles (fg. 3.16.) are generally very powerful, and internally armed with broad teeth. These insects are for the most part found under stones, and in holes in the ground near water, or upon the sea-shore. They appear to be chiefly nocturnal in their habits, and hence their colours are for the most part black or obscure. The larger species are chiefly inhabitants of the New World. Their numbers are much more limited than those of the Brachinides or Harpa- lides. Latreille and Dejean consider these insects as not carnivorous, but Olivier and De Cerisy have stated, that they are insects of prey, and that 5. gigas lurks by day in holes and under stones, and _sallies forth at night to feed upon Melolonthide and other insects which may fall in its way. (See Ann. Jav. pt. 1.) M. Lacordaire states that the species of Scarites burrow in the sand of the sea-coast in South America, but are more generally found under the stumps of felled trees ; whilst one of the species, Sc. anthracinus De7., is necrophagous, being found in half-decayed carcasses. Scarites lavigatus, according to an anonymous author (4int. Mag. vol. ili. p. 177.), feeds upon live sand shrimps (Gammari ?) upon the shores of the Mediter- ranean, which it drags out of their perpendicular burrows. The genus Scarites comprises some of the largest species in the family: that found in this country is very rare; the body is oblong, subdepressed, the antennz strongly elbowed, and the jaws armed with strong teeth. I have already noticed the habits of Scarites gigas. M. Brullé* has observed, upon the sea-coast in Greece, a quantity of the Scarites levigatus running about in the hot sunshine, and entering into circular burrows in the sand, from which they passed and repassed without apparent reason: “car il ne transpor- * Hist. Nat. Insectes, col.2. p.35. G 82 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. tait point de proie.” He conjectures that they were occupied in searching for their mates. I should however rather consider that, as in the case of the Scarites levigatus already, anda species of Dyschirius subsequently, mentioned, they were searching after other insects (which formed these burrows) for their prey. M. Lefebvre has de- scribed, in G'uérin’s Magasin d’ Entomologie, a remarkable monstro- sity occurring in a specimen of Scarites pyracmon, in which three distinct tibiae and tarsi arise from the extremity of one of the anterior femora. The Oxygnathus anglicanus Hope is a remarkable insect, of which a single dead specimen was picked up near Peckam, Surrey. It is half an inch long, and is evidently an insect imported from the tropics. Brullé considers it identical with the Camptodontus Cayennensis De. The character pointed out by Mr. Curtis, for the discrimination of the species of Clivina, is not constant; the C. fossor sometimes occurring with ample wings. See the observations of Mr. Stephens upon this subject (Z/lust. Mand. i.177.). The insects considered as distinct species by English entomologists are regarded as varieties of C. fossor by some Continental authors. The species composing the genus Dyschirius, Bonelli, are the smallest of this sub-family, never exceeding one-sixth of an inch in length, and, like the Dromii, their numbers in temperate climes far exceed those of the larger genera. Their colours are generally black, tinged with brassy green. There appear to be twelve or fourteen British spe- cies, of which the D. gibbus is very common in damp situations. Ac- cording to Ahrens, however (who has published a monograph upon this genus in Thon’s Entomological Archives, vol. ii.), the insect described by Gyllenhal, Dejean, &c. as the gibba, is distinct from the true gibba of Fabricius ; the former insect, which is our common British species, is described by him under the name of C. minima, whilst Mr. Curtis has also described another British species under the latter name, which must consequently be changed. The Rev. G. T. Rudd has published some observations upon the habits of one of the species of this genus, noticed by him upon the Yorkshire coast: “ On turn- ing up the sandy tracks or burrows above high-water mark, to uncover the Hesperophili (species of Brachelytra), I found their fero- cious enemy, the aforesaid Dyschirius, pursuing his work of destruc- tion. These Dyschirii burrow after, seize, shake, as the Cicindela cam- pestris does its prey, and devour the luckless Hesperophili: so intent are they on their purpose, that I have frequently observed them to COLEOPTERA. — CARABID®. 83 shake their victim after they were both brought to light.” (Eintom. Mag. vol. ii. p. 181.) Amongst the exotic Scaritideous genera may be mentioned Oxys- tomus, remarkable for its narrow elongated form and the very large size of its falcate mandibles, from South America; Ditomus, of which the males have the head generally armed with a strong occipital horn, chiefly from the shores of the Mediterranean (see Brullé, Expedition Scientifique de Morée); Enceladus, comprising a single species of large size, from Angola, having the anterior tibiz quite simple; Siagona, having the body quite flat; Carterus, having the anterior tarsi of the males dilated ; and Apotomus, having the maxillary palpi of very great length, and composed of a few minute European species, with long slender legs and the thorax narrow. ‘The genus Carenum is confined to New Holland; the Eutoma tinctilatus Mewm. being merely a linear species of that genus. This genus exhibits a re- markable character, which has not hitherto been noticed, and which exists in no other Carabideous insects, namely, the maxille are des- titute of a terminal hook (jig. 3. 19.). The third subfamily Harparipes (Thoracici Zatr.) is far more extensive than any of the other subfamilies, and is distinguished by having the elytra sessile and not pedunculated, entirely covering the abdomen, and rounded at the extremity (jig. 4.1., Abax striola). The palpi are not terminated by a minute conical joint (fig. 3. 2. 4.) ; the anterior tibia have a deep notch near the tip, but are not palmated ; the basal joints of the two or four anterior legs are dilated in the males (fig. 4. 2. anterior male tarsus of Broscus cephalotes ; 4. 3. ditto, Abax striola; 4.4, 5, ditto, Harpalus rufipes, above and beneath ; 4. 6, 7, ditto, Chlanius, above and beneath) ; the body more or less elongated, G2 84 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. and the neck scarcely ever distinct. The mentum is produced on each side into a rounded lobe, the centre portion being deeply emar- ginate, occasionally entire (fig. 4. 8. Licinus), but generally with a short spine in the centre of the emargination, which is sometimes notched at the tip (fig. 3. 3.). This subfamily comprises a vast number of species, divided into numerous genera by Bonelli and the more recent entomologists, forming small natural groups, which are, nevertheless, very difficult to characterise, their structure gradually passing into the adjacent forms, so that it is almost impossible to fix their limits with any degree of precision ; which difficulty is still further increased by the obscure tints and slightly varying characters of the species. Latreille and Dejean have divided this subfamily into three groups, which, from the structure of the anterior tarsi of the males (upon which they are chiefly founded), they term Quadrimani, Simplici- mani, or-pedes, and Patellimani. Mr. Stephens, however, considering the impossibility of distinguishing genera from such a mode of dis- tribution, when the females alone are known, has given a table (Iltustr. Brit. Ent. Mand. vol.i. p.67.) founded upon characters common to the sexes; the mentum, however, upon the variation in which he has founded his chief divisions, is liable, as he himself admits, to con- siderable variation. Moreover, the general results of this table are similar to those of Latreille’s mode of division; whence I propose to adopt the latter, especially as, in his later works, Latreille has added other characters to distinguish his three groups. Messrs. Audouin and Brullé have noticed (without acknowledging the observation as that of L. Dufour, Rech. Anat. Col. pl. 21*. f. 3-5.) a peculiarity in the construction of the tarsi of the Patellimani (Chizeniens), the males of which have the cushion-like clothing of hairs on the under surface of the foot generally dis- tributed over the sole of the tarsus (jig. 4. 6, 7.) In the Quadrimani (Harpaliens) the dilated joints of the anterior male tarsi are furnished beneath with a double series of narrow cushions, which, in H. rufipes, appear to be fleshy and transversely striated, and to be destitute of pilosity (fig. 4. 4, 5.). This character, although it may be sufficient to separate the Chleniens from the Harpaliens, as suggested by Messrs. Audouin and Brullé, does not, however, appear to be a fixed character, being liable to much variation in the Feroniens ; thus, in Abax striola, each joint is provided with a double hairy cushion, ex- tending beyond the extremity of the joint (jig. 4. 3.); but in Broscus COLEOPTERA. — CARABID&. 85 cephalotes the cushion of each joint is entire and nearly circular (fig. 4. 2.); and Burmeister figures a tarsal joint of Zabrus, with cushions transversely striated, as in Harpalus. Comparatively few of the species are ornamented with metallic colours, the majority being of black or obscure tints, whence they have obtained in some parts of the country the name of Imps. Mr. Stephens mentions that they are greatly infested with Gordii. The metallic species of Amara and Poecilus are termed Sun-beetles, from their habit of running about footpaths during hot sunshiny weather. The obscure coloured species, on the contrary, are barely seen by day, chiefly coming abroad in the twilight, thus affording an instance of that dis- tribution of colours which I have often observed in other groups; from which it is evident that, although Nature is lavish in her brilliant hues, they are only bestowed upon those which, from the nature of their habits, are exposed to the glare of light and to the view: The subfamily HarpacipEs is closely allied on the one hand to the Scaritides as above mentioned, whilst some of the genera (Licinus, Badister, Panageeus) approach the aberrant Carabides; others again, as the Trechi, are intimately allied to the Bembidiides. 1. The first division (Feronidea Westw., Feroniens Dej., Simplici- mani Zatr.) has the two anterior tarsi of the male alone dilated, the basal joints not being oblong nor orbicular, the four posterior tarsi simple. The central tooth of the mentum is generally notched at the tip. The characters of many of the genera of this section are so un- decided, that Dejean has expressed his inability to separate them pre- cisely, and has accordingly united them into one great genus, Feronia, which he has subdivided into various sections; still, how- ever, to a practised eye, their appearance is so distinct that, with a little tact, they may be at once recognised. 2. The second division (Harpalidea Westw., Harpaliens Dejean, Quad- rimani Za¢r.) has the four anterior tarsi dilated in the males (fig. 4. 4., anterior male tarsus, Harpalus). The mentum-tooth is generally acute, but never notched: in some genera, however, it is almost im- perceptible ; the claws of the tarsi are simple, and never toothed. I have added the genus Trechus into the synoptic list of the British genera, from its decided affinity with Stenolophus. 3. The third division (Chleniidea Westw., Chlaniens Dej., Patellimani Latr.) has the anterior tarsi of the males with two, three, or four of the basal joints square or cordate, with the anterior angles rounded, and G 3 86 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. not acute (fig. 4.6. anterior tarsus of Chlenius). The legs are generally long, and the thorax often narrower than the abdomen. Amongst the British genera the following are most worthy of notice : — Division 1. The species of the genus Pogonus are of small size, not exceeding one-third of an inch in length. They are found in the salt marshes bordering upon the coast, which are, during the winter, entirely covered with water. Mr. Curtis has published some interest- ing observations upon these insects in his Brit. Hnt. p.47., commu- nicated by Mr. Burrell. The Rev. F. W. Hope has informed me that he has noticed the subpellucid margins of the thorax and abdomen of Calathus rufangu- lus to be slightly phosphorescent, which he conceives must have arisen from the insect feeding upon dead carrion lying on the shores of the Thames, whence the luminosity may be caused by the decomposition of the putrid matter which the animal had eaten. Perhaps, however, it is more probable that the luminosity arose from some of the matter in the midst of which the animal had been feeding still adhering to the surface of the body. Mr. Curtis has given a beautiful figure of a remarkable species of this genus, under the name of C. latus De. ; but the C. latus Zinn. is regarded by M. Brulle as synonymous with the C. cisteloides, whilst the C. latus De. is the C. punctipennis Germar. In the genus Sphodrus the males have the trochanters of the hind legs produced into along spine (fig. 4. 9.). The typical species is one of the largest Harpalideous insects, and is found in dark cellars and outhouses. The species of the genus Agonuwm are very numerous; they fre- quent damp situations; some, as the A. marginatum, 6-punctatum, and fulgens, are of brilliant metallic colours, but the majority are black or obscure. They do not exceed one-third of an inch in length. The genera Broschus and Miscodera, in their pedunculated abdo- mens, considerably resemble the Scaritides. The type of the former genus is found upon the coast; that of the latter has the appearance of a large Dyschirius, but the anterior legs are not palmated; the structure of the antennee, trophi, and tarsi (having three dilated joints in the males) is also indicative of its situation amongst the Harpalides, as suggested by Latreille, in the Régne Animal. This insect has COLEOPTERA. — CARABIDE. 87 lately been taken somewhat plentifully by the entomologists of the North of England, by one of whom, W. Hewitson, Esq., I am informed that the Leoichiton Readii of Curtis is a variety only of M. arctica. The investigation of the species of the genus Amara is attended with very great difficulty, and has been much neglected. Dejean de- scribes sixty-three species ; Stephens gives twenty-six as British. M. Zimmerman has recently published a valuable memoir upon the genus in Gistl’s Faunus (Munich, 1832), in which the species are carefully analysed, and several new subgeneric groups proposed. The genus Zabrus is nearly allied to Harpalus in the following sec- tion. I have already detailed its natural history in the introductory observations upon the family. M. Zimmerman has published a me- moir upon this genus and its allies, in his Monographia Amaroidum. The anterior tibize are terminated by a pair of strong spurs. Division 2. The genus Harpalus is of very great extent, and requires a much more minute revision than has hitherto been given to it. The genus Masoreus is at once distinguished from all the British Harpalides by the posterior lobe of the thorax, a character which exists in Lebia and /Ephnidius MacLeay (Java). In other respects it nearly approaches Stenolophus. Mr. Curtis thinks it not improbable that this genus may form the connecting link between Dromius, amongst the Brachinides, and the Scaritides. There, however, ap- pears to me to be but little ground for such an opinion. I am in- debted to Professor Henslow for a specimen of this rare insect. M. Zimmerman has published a monograph on this genus in the second number of Gistl’s Faunus. The genus Aépus Leach is united with Blemus by the French en- tomologists, notwithstanding its manifest differences. The fourth joint of the anterior tarsi of the males is armed with a strong spine; a character not noticed in any other Carabideous insect. M. V. Au- douin has published a very interesting memoir upon the habits of this insect (Nouv. Ann. du Mus. @ Hist. Nat. tom. ili., and Ann. des Se. Nat., 1835), which resides, in general, under pebbles, at a considerable distance below high-water mark, on the shores of the ocean, in situ- ations which are only exposed during very low tides. In this me- moir the author has endeavoured to account for the physical peculi- arities enabling the insect to sustain life in such a situation. Dr. Johnstone, to whom I am indebted for the insect, has discovered it G 4 88 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. in the same situations near Berwick-upon-Tweed. It has also been found on other parts of our coast. Division 3. The species of Mr. Stephen’s genus Z’rimorphus (both of which are found near London) are nearly allied to Badister, with which they are united by the French authors. They are also appa- rently allied to Stenolophus ; indeed Mr. Curtis considers S. conspu- tus Steph. to be a Trimorphus. ‘Their relationship with Domius ap- pears to be very slight. Mr. Stephens appears to have mistaken the yellow membranous unnotched clypeus for the labrum, which, upon dis- section, I find to be very minute and deeply notched. The terminal joint of the maxillary palpi is but little longer than the preceding, and, as well as the labial palpi, is terminated by an inflated membrane, which gives them the appearance of being obliquely truncate. The genera Chlenius and Epomis are of great extent, being found in all quarters of the globe. They are elegant insects, having the upper surface of a silky green colour, bordered with a narrow yellow margin. Amongst the exotic genera of this subfamily the most remarkable are a genus for which I propose the name of Campylocnemis (Hyperion * Laporte), and having for its type the large Australian insect, Scarites Schreeteri Screib., Zinn. Trans. vol. iii., and which is placed by Laporte between Stomis and Poecillus. Having recently dissected this insect, I agree with M. Laporte in the propriety of its removal from the Scaritides, but regard it as more nearly allied to Omaseus and Cata- dromus. M. Brullé has regarded it as a subgenus of Morio+, but in the smaller size of the mentum (which in Morio occupies the entire of the under side of the front of the head and covers the maxilla) and the strongly toothed mandibles, it is quite unlike that genus. The French genus Gynandromorphus Dej. (Car. Etruscus Sch. Sturm., D. F. tab. 93. c.) is remarkable for having the anterior tarsi in the females very much dilated, a character only observable in another Carabideous genus, Gynandropus, from North America. The interesting genus Catascopus of Kirby, Linn. Trans. vol. xiv., somewhat at first sight resembles a large Bembidium or Elaphrus, but its real affinity is considered by Mr. Kirby to be towards the Harpa- lides. It is regarded by some French authors as belonging to the * Mr. MacLeay has described another Carabideous genus in the Annulosa Java- nica, under the name of Hypherion. + An aberrant genus of the Scaritides, but possessing the dilated anterior tarsi ; so that it ought, probably, to be considered as belonging to the Harpalides. COLEOPTERA. — CARABIDE. 89 Brachinides. The species are of brilliant colours, and are inhabitants of the tropics. The fourth subfamily CARAxBipeEs (Grandipalpi or Abdominales Latr., Simplicipedes Dej., Carabidae MacLeay, Stephens) comprises the typical Carabideous insects (fig. 4. 11. Carabus nitens), being for the most part of a large size, and distinguished from all the other sub- families by having the anterior tibie destitute of the strong notch near the extremity (fig. 4.12. Carabus), although, in some of the terminal genera, an approach is made to the emarginate structure of the Harpalides by a slight oblique canal occupying the tip only of the tibia. The jaws are strong, with but very few teeth on the inner edge; the antenne are long and setaceous, the second joint being the shortest ; the terminal joint of the palpi is often very large and securi- form (fig. 4. 14. maxilla of Cychrus) ; the eyes are large and promi- nent; the abdomen and elytra often comparatively very large, the latter being rounded at the tips, and in the typical genera soldered together, the wings in such cases being obsolete ; the anterior tarsi are greatly dilated in the males. The larger insects of this family, CARABIDEA Westw. (Carabide Steph.), are generally adorned with metallic and brilliant colours ; they run fast, are very carnivorous in their habits, and when irritated eject an exceedingly acrid and volatile fluid from the abdomen. ‘The genera Elaphrus (jig. 4. 15. Elaphrus uliginosus), Pelophila, Blethisa, and Notiophilus, are formed by Mr. Stephens into a distinct family, named Elaphride (ELapuripea Westw.); whilst the same genera, together with Nebria, Leistus (fig. 4. 16. maxilla of Leistus showing its curious spines), and others, are separated by Messrs. Audouin and Brullé under the name of Elaphrides. Amongst the British insects belonging to this subfamily several species of the genus C&ychrus appear to have been incorrectly re- corded as British. The only indigenous species, C. rostratus, as I am informed by Mr. Plimpton, makes a very loud noise when cap- tured by the friction of the tip of the abdomen against the elytra, a peculiarity not observed in any of the other species of the family. Its upper lip is represented at fig. 4.13., and one of its maxille exhibiting the curious internal palpi at fig. 4. 14. The genus Carabus, notwithstanding its modern restrictions, com- prises nearly two hundred species, varying considerably in form. 90 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. They are distinguished by their general large size, varying from three-fourths to one inch and a quarter in length. They appear to be confined to moderate climes, being seldom or never found nearer than 30° to the equator. It has been stated by M. Westermann (Si/- _ berm. Rev. Ent. No. 3.) that no species of this genus exists in India. Mr. Hope has, however, described one, C. Wallichii, in his Synopsis of Nepaul Coleoptera (Gray, Zool. Mis. vol.i.). The Carabus monilis has been stated to reside in a chamber dug out in the earth of a garden, just sufficient to contain its body, and carefully smoothed and polished ; formed, as it would seem, not by digging out the earth and removing it, but by the insect pushing its body forcibly against the walls of its cell. I should conceive, however, that these cells were the situations in which the insects had undergone their transformations. This insect appears to be fond of celery trenches. Mr. Sheppard once observed a specimen running cautiously round a small luminous Centipede, which it evidently wished, but feared, to attack. M. Von Winthem noticed, at the meeting of German naturalists in 1830, the oc- currence of the larva of Tachina pacta, one of the parasitic Muscidae, in the bodies of Carabus gemmatus and violaceus ; and Walch describes a curious emigration of myriads of a species of Carabus, which he observed in the month of August (Vaturf. St.xi.). The greatest confusion ex- ists in the works of English entomologists relative to the specific names of many of the species of this genus, much of which might have been avoided had the original Linnzan specimens, preserved at the Lin- nzean Society, been collated with British individuals of the different species. It will be sufficient to state, that the Carabus hortensis Linn. is not a British insect. The species of Calosoma are found upon trees, being furnished with ample wings, enabling them to obtain their necessary food, which consists of great numbers of the larva of Lepidoptera, their larvee having also similar habits, as above detailed. The species of Nebria are for the most part inhabitants of the sea- coast ; whilst the Helobiz, which are united with the former by French authors, are inland species, some frequenting the highest mountains. I have taken the H. Gyllenhallii on the summits of Snowdon. The structure of the mouth of Pelophila so nearly resembles that of Nebria, whilst its general form is similar to Blethisa, that the propriety of uniting the Elaphridea with the Carabidea appears evident. The species of Elaphrus (fig. 4. 15. El, uliginosus) and Notio« COLEOPTERA. — CARABID&. 91 philus are of small size, and have the aspect of the Cicindelidz. They are found in damp situations, and on the margin of streams, &c. running with velocity in the sunshine. The former genus is dis- tinguished by the embossed spots on the elytra, and the latter by the brilliant smooth shining surface of their bodies. Mr. G. Waterhouse has published a monograph upon the latter in the Hntom. Magazine, No. 2., in which he has described eighteen British species, some of which are not probably sufficiently distinct, Mr. Stephens having re- duced their number to six. Amongst the exotic genera are to be mentioned Procerus Megerle, containing the largest species of the subfamily, having the labrum entire, and the anterior male tarsi simple. The species are few in number, and generally of a rich purple colour, with the elytra very rugose. They inhabit the mountains of Turkey and adjacent countries. The rare African genus, Tefflus, is also of large size, and resembles the Carabi in form, but the labrum is entire, and the thorax suborbicular. It has been generally con- sidered allied to Procerus, but M. Brullé has removed it from the Carabides and placed it in his subdivision Panagiens, regarding it as more nearly allied to certain large exotic Panagei. I have figured it in Griffith's Animal Kingdom, Insects, pl. 30. The interesting genus Omophron (fig. 4. 10. O. limbatum), whose larva I have above described, is of a rounded convex form, thus approaching the Dyticidz ; the thorax is short and slightly lobed behind, covering the scutellum; the basal joint of the male tarsi alone is dilated. The species are varied in their colours, with green and yellow ; they are of small size, not exceeding one-third of an inch in length, and are found upon the banks of streams. The relationship of this genus to the Water-beetles has been pointed out above ; but its true situation is evidently in this subfamily, which is confirmed by the similarity in its habits and the structure of its trophi with the Elaphridea and allied genera. The fifth subfamily Bemprpiupes (Subulipalpi Zaér.) is distin- guished by the terminal joint of the maxillary and labial palpi being very minute and acute (fig. 4. 18.19. maxilla and labium of No- taphus). The anterior tibiae are always notched on the inside near the tip, and the insects are of small size, and generally ornamented with metallic tints (fig. 4.17. Lopha 4-maculata). The typical genus, Bembidium Zatr., is nearly alli d in general characters to the 92 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Elaphri and Notiophili, whilst other groups approach Trechus, amongst the Harpalides; indeed, Latreille and other French authors have placed the last-named genus in this subfamily; Brullé even giving to” it the name of Trechides, although it ought evidently to be termed Bembidiides, Bembidium being certainly the typical genus. The minute size of some of the aberrant Harpalides appears to prove the propriety of considering the Bembidiides as a distinct subfamily, Nature evidently, in the former insects, departing from one typical form towards another; thus, in some of the genera allied to Trechus, placed at the end of the Harpalides, are found the maxillary palpi, terminated by an acute conical joint, which, in the typical Bembidiides, is very minute and pointed, and the size of the insects reduced to that of the Bembidiides. This peculiar structure of the palpi and minuteness of size are again exhibited in the genera at the head of the Dyticide ; and hence, as well as from the subaquatic habits of the present group, it has been considered that the Bembidiides and Ha- liplus formed the connecting links between the land and water pre- daceous beetles. Many of the species are well figured by Sturm in his Deutehslands Fauna. These insects are generally found upon the margins of streams, running about with great velocity, and burying themselves in crevices in the ground or under stones, &c.; hence at the time of high floods in winter the floating refuse is crowded with them, at which time the col- lector will not fail to obtain a rich harvest. They prey upon other in- sects as well as upon dead animal matter; thus Cillenum laterale, ac- cording to Mr. Haliday (2int. Mag. vol. iv. p. 251.), is common under stones and tufts of sea weed on the Irish sea sands near low-water mark, and preys on Talitrus locusta, seizing it by the soft parts of the under side, and in this way being able singly to master game many times its own bulk. A great part of its existence is passed under the sea, and the mode in which it obtains the necessary supply of oxygen during its prolonged submersion is similar to that adopted by Aépus fulvescens. The fore legs of Cillenum are very strongly spined, and in addition to the ordinary structure, the notch of the tibia is armed at its extremity with two spines at right angles below the notch, between which the end of the moveable spine at the basal angle of the notch is received, a structure evidently adapted to its mode of life. Tachypus Andre, one of the most beautiful and rarest species, is often found feeding upon dead carrion on the coast of Ireland, as I am COLEOPTERA. — DYTICIDZ. 93 informed by Mr. Davis. The species are comparatively numerous, but they require a more minute investigation into their specific cha- racters than has hitherto been given to them. The genera are for the most part established upon the form of the thorax, the majority being considered by late French authors as sections only of the genus Bembidium. The exotic genera do not offer material for particular observation. Tue second stirps of the predaceous beetles (Pentamera Adephaga) comprises those species which are aquatic in their various states, and are the HYDRADEPHAGA of MacLeay (Hydrocanthari Latretlle), con- sisting of the Linnzean genera Dytiscus (Dyticus) and Gyrinus, in which the legs are formed for swimming, the two posterior pairs being flattened and fringed with hairs (fig. 5.7.), the hind pair being placed at a con- siderable distance from the others, whereby a much greater impulse is given to the animal in its motions through the dense element of which it is an inhabitant. The body is oval, and generally depressed ; the head broad and immersed in the prothoracic cavity ; the mandibles short and strong, being nearly concealed by the upper lip; the eyes but slightly prominent; the inner lobe of the maxilla curved from the base, and not articulated at the tip. The thorax broader than long, and the tarsal claws often unequal in size. These insects swim with agility, occasionally rising to the surface for respiration, the feet at such times being held still and the body ascending, being specifically lighter than the water: in this situ- ation they rest obliquely, the extremity of the body being pro- truded out of the water, whereby the air is enabled to enter the large space beneath the elytra and reach the spiracles along the sides of the back. When captured they emit an extremely disagreeable odour, arising from a fluid which they discharge ; a white milky liquid is also often emitted. They occasionally fly during the night, at which times they are often attracted by a lighted candle. The larve are long and narrow; those of the Gyrinidz are depressed, and those of the Dyticide convex, being composed of eleven segments, exclusive of the head, which is large and armed with two strong sickle-shaped jaws, a pair of short antenne, four palpi, and six minute eyes on each side of the head; the first segment is the largest, and corresponds with the pro- thorax of the perfect insect, and almost similar in texture to the re- 94 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. mainder of the body. These larve respire by tracheal branchie, placed either at the anus or along the sides of the body, under the form of numerous small oar-like appendages. They quit the water previous to becoming pupz, and construct an oval cell, in which they. pass the latter state a few inches beneath the surface of the borders of ponds, &c., in which they had resided whilst larve. Mr. MacLeay has remarked that aquatic insects do not differ so much in form as terrestrial ; their numbers, as is especially the case in the present stirps, are also very considerably less, and consequently there are fewer genera amongst them, the exotic species being for the most part congeneous with our own, offering, as Latreille long ago remarked, “ rien de remarquable ;” moreover the European species are equal in size to, and occasionally larger than, those of tropical regions, of which but few have been received by collectors belonging to the larger and more typical genera; indeed M. Lacordaire states (Ann. Sc. Nat., 1830.) that there are very few to be met with in Brazil. It is also a curious circumstance that, whilst the Dyticidz are so much inferior in point of numbers compared with the Carabide, the Gyrinide are still less numerous in comparison with the former of these families, Dejean enumerating 286 species of Dyticidz and only 37 of Gyrinide. The colours of these aquatic insects are generally dark olive, black, or brown, variegated occasionally with metallic tints and with markings of a dirty ochreous hue. This stirps comprises only two families, which are very distinct from each other. MacLeay and Stephens, however, appear to regard the genus Haliplus (Hoplitus Clairv.) as the type of a third family, and which, from the small size of the insects and the structure of the ter- minal joints of the palpi, seems most nearly allied to the Bembidiides. Mr. Stephens, however, considers it to approximate rather towards the genus Omophron. Messrs. Kirby and Spence propose for these two families the names of Eunechina (swimmers), and Gyronechina, (swimmers in a circle), adding that the larvee of the latter are the most perfectly Chilopodomorphous, and those of the former the least so. They have also added some valuable observations upon the affinities of these and some other allied groups, which want of space alone compels me to omit. (Vide Jntrod. vol. iv. p. 394.) Adopting the ordinary plan the two families will receive the names of — ist, Dyricip® (Diving-beetles); anterior legs short, antenne long. 2d, Gyrinipm (Whirl-wigs) ; anterior legs long, antenne short. COLEOPTERA. — DYTICID®E. 95 The first family Dyticipm* Leach (Eunechina K. and S.) corre- sponding with the Linnzan genus Dytiscus+, is distinguished from the other families of Water-beetles by the antennz, which are long and slender} (fig. 5.1. Acilius sulcatus, divided down the centre bya line to show the peculiarities of the sexes), and by the articulated Fig. 5. external lobe of the maxilla (fig. 5. 4.).. They are of an oval, elliptic, or rounded form ; of a very firm consistence ; the head large and broad, Leach, in Zool. dowen. v. 3. Clairville, Entomol. Helvet. vol. i. Ahrens, in Act. Soc. Nat. Scrut. Halens, vol. i. Kunze, in ditto, vol. ii. Ditto, Entomol. Fragmente (Descriptions of several nearly allied Species of Hydroporus). Sturm. Deutchst. Fauna, vols. viii. and ix. Erichson. Genera Dyticcorum. Berol. 1832. 8vyo. And Kafer der Mark Bran- denburg. Laporte. Etud. Entomol. vol. ii. Audouin and Brullé. Hist. Nat. Ins. vol. v. Say, in American Phil. Trans. new series, vols. ii. and iy. Stephens. Tllustr. Mand. vols. ii. and y. Suppl. Dejean and Aubé. Coléopt. d’Europe. Klug. Symbolx Physic, and Deseript. Coleopt. Madagascar. And the general works of Fabricius, Olivier, Gyllenhall, Stephens, Duftschmidt, Ger- mar (Ins. Sp. Nov. ), Marsham, &c. And for additional notices of habits, Disderi, in Trans. Turin Academy, vol. iii. DeGeer, vol. iv. Risel, Abhandl. &e. vol.ii. Lyonnet, Posthum. Memoirs, vol. i. Goeze, in Der Naturforscher, Stuck 7. And the Journal of a Naturalist, vol. i. Clairville, Ent. Helvet. / _*, Bisiocr. REFERENCES TO THE Dyrticip a. + The incorrect Linnzan name, Dytiscus (derived from Av7:xés, urinatorius), has been rejected by most of our entomologists in fayour of Geoffroy’s name, Dyticus. ¢ The genera Agabus and Laccophilus offer partial exceptions to this character. 96 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. deeply immersed in the prothoracic cavity; the eyes large and but slightly prominent; the upper lip is transverse (jig. 5. 2. head of Dyticus marginalis) ; the upper jaws short and robust, with a strong internal tooth (fig. 5. 3. mandibles of Dyt. marg.) ; the lower jaws short, flat, and internally ciliated, with the tip acute; the outer lobe is palpi- form, and is of nearly equal length with the jaw itself; the true max- illary palpi are about twice as long as the jaws (fig. 5. 4. maxilla of Dyt. marg.); the mentum is transverse, with the sides produced into two lobes; the under lip is short and square, and the labial palpi about , twice as long as the lip and 3-jointed; when unemployed they are generally folded backwards (fig. 5. 5. labium, &c. of Dyt. marg.). The general structure of the mouth is more compact, and it is capable of being more closely shut than in the predaceous Land-beetles, a peculiarity beautifully dependent upon the opposing nature of the element in which these insects reside. ‘The thorax is broader than long, and of equal breadth at its base with the elytra, its sides being rugose in the females of some species; the elytra are generally de- pressed, with deep longitudinal and pilose furrows in the females of some of the larger species; the prosternum is terminated by an acute point received into the emargination of the anteriorly produced and furcate metasternum (fig. 5.7. meso- and meta-thorax of Dyticus, beneath). The anterior legs are lodged in a deep cavity on each side of the base of the prosternum; the legs are of moderate length, the anterior being the shortest and the posterior the longest; the tarsi are 5-jointed, the two posterior pairs being flattened and strongly ciliated, so as to be employed in swimming, being capable only of a horizontal motion (fig. 5.7.). In many species the basal joints of the four anterior tarsi are dilated, whilst in some of the larger species the two anterior male tarsi have the three basal joints enlarged into a broad and nearly circular shield, convex above, fringed with fine hairs and cushioned beneath, or rather covered with a multitude of minute in- verted caps, with several larger portions resembling suckers, varying in number and size in the various species (fg. 5. 6. anterior tarsus, Dyticus marginalis ¢, seen beneath; jig. 5. 8. ditto, Cybister 3; fig. 5. 9. ditto, Hydaticus ¢). This structure enables the male to retain his situation upon the back of the female during copulation, the rugosities upon the thorax and elytra of the latter being also similarly serviceable. ‘The elytra are furnished at the base, internally, with a pair of remarkable small circular membranous and ciliated COLEOPTERA. — DYTICID&. 97 plates or alulets, which Dufour considers produce the humming noise which these insects have the power to make. The wings, which are large, exist in all the species. The spiracles are eighteen in number, the first pair being situated between the pro- and mesothorax, the second between the metathorax and first abdominal segment, and the seven remaining pairs upon the second to the eighth dorsal segments of the abdomen. The Dyticide are found in all quarters of the globe, inhabiting stagnant in preference to running waters. They swim with great agility, the hind legs acting together in concert like those of a frog, the antennz at the same time being erected, and the palpi concealed. (Newman, in Ent. Mag. vol. i. p. 315.) They are very voracious in their habits, attacking and devouring not only other aquatic insects, but are also occasionally very destructive to young fish in fish-ponds (Vide Mag. Nat. Hist. No. 12.). Mr. Anderson, the curator of the Chelsea Botanic Gardens, has also informed me that he has suffered much from these insects attacking young gold and silver fish, eating their dorsal and pectoral fins. Dr. Burmeister also mentions that a specimen of Cybister Roselii which he kept, devoured two frogs in the space of forty hours, and nevertheless, when he dissected it shortly afterwards, it was found to have entirely digested them, the intestinal tube being empty. They are very fearless in their attacks, seizing insects much larger than themselves. A specimen of Dyt. marginalis, which Esper kept in water alive for three years and a half, feeding it with raw beef, is recorded by Clairville to have destroyed a specimen of the large Hydrous piceus (although twice its own size) piercing it with its jaws on the only vulnerable point, viz. on the under side, at the insertion of the head in the thorax, and sucking its juices. Messrs. Kirby and Spence endeavour to account for the extra- ordinary duration of life of this specimen by supposing that it was caused by the celibacy of the insect. (See also Mag. Nat. Hist. No, 12. for observations on the tenacity of life exhibited by these insects). They employ their fore legs as claws in seizing and conveying their prey to the mouth ; and Dr. Esper observed that his D. marginalis so com- pletely sucked the blood out of the bits of meat with which he fed it, that they appeared only like small white masses floating in the water. Dr. Erichson, however, states that those which he kept alive refused to eat flesh, neither would they feed upon their companions unless one happened to die ; and one, which De Geer kept, died in consequence H MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. (03) 9 of having eaten a large leach which disagreed with it, large portions of it being discharged the following day, undigested, from the mouth. According to Esper and Erichson they are, however, able to fast for many weeks, and even months, but if they are kept out of the water | they die in a very few days. It is also requisite for them to ascend repeatedly to the surface of the water for a supply of air for respiration, where they may be observed in sunny weather, resting with the ex- tremity of the body protruded above the surface, and their legs extended at right angles. On approaching them, however, they im- mediately dive to the bottom. Esper also ascertained that they are very susceptible of atmospheric changes, indicated by their movements ; thus, when the air is agitated they remain at the bottom, but rising by degrees and stationing themselves at different heights in the water, according to the calmness of the weather. Hence, their internal or- ganisation will not allow them (like the fishes) to remain without access to the air; indeed, they may often be seen in a calm summer’s evening creeping up rushes to take flight, rising into the air almost perpendicularly, until they are out of sight. Their descent is also perpendicular, dropping with considerable force into the water. It would also appear that it is by the reflection of the light upon the surface of the water that they are informed of a proper place for their descent, since I have several times observed specimens of various Water-beetles falling with violence upon glazed garden frames, and which they had evidently mistaken for water. The Rev. Mr. Bird has occasionally caught a Colymbetes, which has been attracted into a room by a lighted lamp in the evening. (nt. Mag. No. 6.). On the ground their motions are rapid, although their fore legs alone can serve them as legs. Some, as the Laccophili, whose hind legs are thick, spring to a considerable distance. When laid upon their backs the quick muscular action of the hind legs gives them a whirling motion. The small species may occasionally be observed resting upon the flowers of aquatic plants, to which they have crept, either to luxuriate in the sun, or to gain an elevation previous to taking flight. They are to be found in all seasons of the year, but more frequently towards autumn. During the winter, some remain in the water, or bury themselves in the mud in a torpid state; others retain their agility, and may be seen coming to take the air in places where the ice is broken. I have even seen them swimming about in the water be- neath the ice whilst I have been skating on the surface. Some also are COLEOPTERA. — DYTICID™. 99 stated to leave the water and to hibernate beneath moss and lichens. The union of the sexes takes place in the autumn or at the beginning of spring; the female deposits her eggs from time to time, each laying consisting of from forty to fifty eggs, which are long and cylindric, and deposited in the water at random, the larve being hatched in the course of a fortnight. The larva of Dyticus marginalis, according to Rosel, is very active, and when four or five days old is about four or five lines long, when it casts its skin for the first time. The second moulting takes place at about the same distance of time,and when the larva has increased about twice its former size, and it continues to grow and cast its skin (ten days intervening between each moulting, according to P. Lyonnet, Mem. p- 109.), until it istwo inches long, when it has attained its full size (fig. 5.14.). The exuviz may often be observed floating on the water, with the mandibles and caudal appendages attached to them. These larve, which have long been known under the names of Squillz or Shrimps, are of a dark ochre or dirty brown colour, with the body long and sub- cylindric, slenderer at each extremity, but more especially towards the tail, and consisting of eleven segments, exclusive of the head; the first nine segments are somewhat scaly above, but fleshy beneath; the first segment is longer and narrower than the following, and represents the prothorax of the imago; the sixth, seventh, and eighth are larger than the others, which are of nearly equal size; and the two terminal joints are long and conical, the apex being slightly truncate and scaly, with the sides fringed with hairs, whereby the insect is enabled to swim along in the water; these joints serving both as an oar and a rudder, and imparting a worm-like motion when the tail is moved in various di- rections. Theterminal segment is provided with apair of long and slen- der pilose appendages, whereby the insectis enabled to suspend itself at the surface of the water, which, as Swammerdam says, flows from them on every side, and thus the suspension is effected. These appendages, moreover, are tubular*, and communicate with the air vessels which run along the sides of the body, which is moreover furnished with sixteen spiracular points, which, however, from the observations of Lyonnet, appear to be but rudimental, not becoming aeriferous until the period when the insect puts off its larva state. The head in these larvee is * Latreille and De Geer, however, mention two additional bodies of small size and cylindric form, each having a distinet spiracle, and placed at the extremity of the body, at the base of the long and slender filaments. H 2 100 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. large, oval, or rounded, and depressed, united to the following segment by a short neck, with five or six small elevated tubercles near the an- terior angles, representing the eyes. They have tworudimental slender antenne, about as long as the head, inserted in front of the eyes, and composed of seven joints, the first, third, fifth, and seventh of which appear to be merely nodules of the joints which they connect. The mouth is remarkably constructed, being destitute of the ordinary aper- ture, so that the insect may be, and indeed has been, described as wanting a mouth. The mandibles ( fig. 6. ee are very ame hollow, sickle-shaped, and acute, having a longitudinal slit near the extremity, so as to enable the larvee to suck their prey, the juices running down the mandibles into the head. I have, however, discovered that this canal, which runs within the mandibles and may be easily distinguished, being apparently covered with a thin membrane only, externally terminates in a small circular aperture at the base, on the upper and internal edge of the jaws.* The maxille (fig. 6. 2.), which have hitherto been regarded as part of the external palpi, are slender, cylindric, and terminated by a short lateral spine ; the maxillary palpi being of equal thickness, arising from the tip of the maxilla, and 7-jointed ; the lower tip (jig. 6. 3.) is short and bilobed; andthe labial palpi are slender and 4-jointed, the first and third joints being very short. These palpi, and the organs from which they arise, must here necessarily, from the closing of the mouth, be employed only as feelers. The muscles with which the man- dibles are moved are cf a very large size, occupying almost the entire of the interior of the head; when unemployed, these jaws are closed upon each other in front of the head, which then appears nearly * De Geer, after describing the suctorial structure of the mandibles, has sug- gested that the insect must be provided with some other means of taking food, as he observed one of the larve not only suck the juices of an aquatic Woodlouse, but also devour, by small degrees, all its solid parts. COLEOPTERA. — DYTICIDZ. 101 straight infront. The legs are rather long, slender, and ciliated on the inside, serving as oars when swimming quickly ; the body is carried in a straight line, but when they stop to breathe or to seize their prey, they assume the shape of the letter S. During the summer the larva is said to attain its full size in about fifteen days, and then quits the water and creeps into the neighbouring earth, where it forms, with considerable skill, around cell, in which, in about five days, it changes to a pupa of a whitish colour, with two obtuse points at the extremity of the body. It appears in the perfect state in about a fortnight or three weeks ; those individuals, however, which became pupz in the autumn, do not appearas Beetles until the following spring. The Beetle is at first soft and yellowish, but it soon hardens and becomes darker coloured ; it is not, however, untilthe end of eight days that it has acquired its proper consistency. Figures of the larva and pupa of Dyticus marginalis are given by Rosel, Insect. Belustig. vol.ii.; Ins. Aquat. tab. 1.; Lyonnet, Posth. Mémoires, vol.i. pl. 11.; Swammerdam, Book of Nat., pl. 29.; Mouffet, p. 320.; Kirby and Spence, vol. iii. pl. 18. f. 5. See also a Memoir by Lancretand Miger in the Bullet. Soc. Philom. No. 32. Inthe Transactions of the Entomological Society of London (vol. i. p. 86.), it is stated that the larva of a Dyticus had been forwarded to Mr. Curtis, which had been voided by a female who had been long subject to con- vulsions. The larva of Cybister Roselii (figured by Rosel, loc. cit. tab. 3.), is longer and more slender ( fig. 5. 15.) than the preceding ; the front of the head has thin pointed processes, the central one being supposed by Résel, but evidently erroneously, to be the rostrum ; the extremity of the body is also destitute of the two pilose appendages above de- scribed, and the corresponding caudal tubercles of the pupa are wanting, the head of the latter is also furnished with a transverse ridge, having several small teeth on its edge. The larva of Acilius sulcatus (fig. 6. 4. Rosel, loc. cit. tab. 3., and De Geer, vol. iv. tab. 15.) is much smaller than that of Dyt. mar- ginalis ; its head is rather longer behind, and the first segment of the body is considerably lengthened, forming a narrow neck; the body is more continuous, the segments not being separated by incisions; the neck is generally bent downwards, and the head turned rather upwards, the parts of the mouth having also the latter direction, so that the animal has the appearance of a small snake. It is extremely in- sidious in its attacks; the position of the neck and head inducing H 3 102 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. it to seize objects above rather than in front of it; so that when an object is perceived floating on the surface of the water, the larva rises very cautiously until it has nearly reached it, when, by a sudden jerk of the neck, it seizes the object with its jaws, and immediately » drags it under water; ifit still struggle, the larva endeavours to dispatch it by repeated jerkings of the head. When in the water they may con- stantly be perceived jerking themselves in every direction, probably for the purpose of seizing upon other minute insects. The larvee of the genusColymbetes differ from the preceding in the large size of the quadrate anterior segment of the body ; the two caudal processes are also much longer. But the most singular larvae in the family are some of small size (fig. 6. 5.), which I have found in the neighbourhood of London, and from which the Rev. F. W. Hope, (who has paid great attention to the tribe of Water-beetles) informs me that he has reared Noterus crassicornis. They are of an elongate oval shape, attenuated towards the posterior extremity ; the head (fig. 6. 6. seen from above, 6.7. seen sideways) is produced in front into a slender beak, Jonger than the rest of the head, the jaws meeting to- gether at its tip; the terminal segment is furnished with the two long ordinary filaments, between which the segment itself is produced into along and acute point. The maxilla and Jabium are represented with their appendages in fig. 6.8. These larve are brown, with two ochreous bands across the back. They are about a quarter of an inch in length. I have also found another larva of a smaller size than the preceding, in which the produced part of the head is shorter and more robust, the terminal segment produced but very slightly between the caudal filaments, which are very long: this larva is of a dull pale colour, with two irregular, longitudinal, dark markings down the back. As to the affinities of the present family with the Carabide on the one hand, and the Gyrinidz on the other, entomologists seem to be entirely agreed. Many links in the chain, it is true, remain to be dis- covered, the larvee being also of a totally different appearance. Mr. MacLeay considers that an obvious analogy exists between the larvee of this family and of the Neuropterous genus Hemerobius, and as the former are not furnished with the lateral branchial appendages of the Gyrinideous larva, their appearance is much less scolopendriform Clairville, Leach, Erichson, and others, have made this family the sub- ject of especial memoirs; and by these authors various plans of classifi- cation have been proposed, and upon which the distribution of the British COLEOPTERA. — DYTICIDZ. 103 genera given in my Synopsis is founded, and which appears more natural than any previously proposed, by bringing together all the small species without a visible scutellum, and by removing Pcelobius to its legitimate station, as pointed out by Latreille, near to Colymbetes. Amongst the British insects of which the family is composed, the genus Haliplus (fig. 5. 10. H. elevatus) is distinguished by having the maxillary and labial palpi (fig. 5. 12. 13.) terminated by a short subu- lated joint, and especially by the extraordinary dilatation of the pos- terior cox (fig. 5.11.). Some of the species of Hyphidrus and Hydroporus vary considerably in the appearances of the sexes: their variations have been generally regarded as specific distinctions ; thus, in Hyphidrus ovatus, one of the sexes (Hyd. gibba Fabr.), has the elytra sericeous, whilst in the other (ovalis Fabr.) they are glabrous; the in- dividuals of the latter sex being also much larger than the former. But a difference of opinion exists as to the precise sexes of these respective individuals, Gyllenhal regarding the former as males and the latter as females, and Erichson and Dejean maintaining a different opinion. The larger size of the latter, indeed, leads to the supposition that they are females, whilst, from analogy with the larger species of the family, the glabrous elytra of the same individuals would indicate the male sex; and the anterior tarsi in these are dilated, whilst in the others they are compressed ; the latter character is also found in Hydroporus memnonius Nicol. (niger S¢., jugularis Bab.), and some others, in which the sexes are similarly variable in the appearance of the elytra; but in these the sexes are of nearly equal size. Peelobius Hermanni, a common species, is remarkable for the noise which it makes when held in the fingers, by friction of its abdomen against the elytra. Acilius sulcatus is another species which possesses the power of making a noise. Frisch states that this is produced under water ; but a specimen of the insect which I kept some time (and which I had caught on the ground, having fallen whilst flying upon some glass- panes which it had evidently mistaken for water) was equally noisy when confined in a box in the sunshine, making a loud humming for a considerable time, without ceasing, and without my being able to perceive the slightest motion of the abdomen against the elytra ; hence I conjecture that it might be produced by the action of the air upon the alulets, which is also the opinion of Dufour. This insect, more- over, is able to leap to a considerable height, when laid upon its back, H 4 104 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. by striking violently with its hind legs upon the ground. The thorax of the female of this species is stated by Messrs. Kirby and Spence to have a transverse and hairy furrow (Jntrod. vol. iii. 305.) ; there is, however, merely a triangular patch of hairs on each side, and several | small oblong pores, from whence the insect causes a milky fluid to exude when captured. The genus Dyticus as now restricted, comprises the largest species of the family, the colour of which is black tinged with olive, the margins of the thorax and elytra being luteous. They are almost ex- clusively European. Some of the species exhibit a very remarkable anomaly, certain individuals having the elytra destitute of furrows, as in the males, the anterior tarsi being, nevertheless, not patelliform. Bonelli, however, ascertained by dissection, that these individuals were females, and Ahrens took one of them paired with an ordinary male. Mr. Stephens, accordingly, gave them as distinct species under the names of conformis ? Aunze, and circumcinctus Ahrens ( Stephens, vol. ii. pl. 12. f. 6.); and Mr, Kirby, who at first thought these individuals might be neuters, raised them, subsequently, to the rank of a genus under the name of Leionotus. Mr. Curtis, how- ever, considers the latter species (which he misnames flavo-maculatus ) as a variety of the female of D. angustatus, and Ahrens described one of these smooth-backed individuals as a “.varietas problematica” of the female of Dyticus marginalis, whilst Dr. Erichson considers that there are three modifications in the character of the females in this genus: —JIst, those differing from the males (D. latissimus, dimi- diatus, &c.); 2d, those similar to the males (D. circumflexus, Fabr.) ; and 3d, those which are liable to variation, being either different or similar to the males (D. marginalis Zinn., and conformis Kunze, D. circumcinctus Afdr., and dubius Gyll., D. lapponicus Payk, and septentrionalis Gyl/.). An intermediate kind of individuals has also been described by Erichson, in which the sulcations and punctures of the elytra are obsolete; and an apparently similar individual has also been noticed by M. Guyot (Annal. Soc. Ent. de France, 1837. p. 16.). In the neighbourhood of Berlin both kinds of females of D. cir- cumcinctus are found promiscuously, elsewhere one or the other variety is occasionally wanting ; thus in the lakes near Magdeburg, amongst many thousands of Dyt. circumcinctus, not a single female with sulcate elytra could be found. Gyllenhal indeed has described a closely allied species (D. septentrionalis) as possessing simple anterior tarsi COLEOPTERA. — GYRINID. 105 in both sexes; but Erichson conceives there must be some error in this. The Rev. F. W. Hope possesses a most remarkable hermaph- rodite specimen of this genus, one side having male, and the other partial female characters. There has been considerable confusion introduced into the nomenclature of the species of this genus, Linneus having led the way by reversing the sexes of D. marginalis. The British species may be easily distinguished by the form of the two points which terminate the posterior cox (ordinarily misnamed the sternum, jig. 5. 7.). Notwithstanding their large size, these insects are subject to the attacks of a minute parasite, described by M. Audouin (Bull. Soc. Philom., 1822, and Zool. Journ.), under the name of Achlysia Dytisci, but which the recent investigations of M. Duges have proved to be the immature state of one of the Water- mites (Hydrachne), and which affixes itself to the thin membrane with which the upper surface of the abdomen is covered. (See also Bur- meister in Isis, 1834). ; The large exotic species belong almost exclusively to the genus Cybister Curtis, of which a single species only is European (C. Roselii, an extremely rare British insect). The remainder are dis- tributed over very wide tracts of country; thus one species is found in Guinea, the Cape of Good Hope, Madagascar, the Mauritius, and the Indian Archipelago; and in like manner, according to Dejean, Eunectes sticticus is found in India, the American Islands and France. The other exotic genera do not merit any particular notice. The family Gyrinrp®*, corresponding with the Linnwan genus Gyrinus, consists of a small but remarkable group of beetles, which, * BisBLioGR. TO THE GyRINID&, Forssberg. Nova Acta. Acad. Upsal. vol. viii. (Descriptions of 24 species). Modeer, in Vetenskeps, Acad. Hand]. 1770. Klug, in Symbol. Physic. and Coleopt. Madagascar. Dufour. Annal. Se. Nat., Oct. 1824. (Internal Anatomy. ) Sturm. Deutchsland’s Fauna, vol. x. Laporte. Etudes Entomologiques, p. 2. Audouin and Brullé. Hist. Nat. vol. v. Erichson. Kafer du Mark, Brandb. 106 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. in the structure of their antennz, trophi, and legs, especially merit attention. The body of these insects is generally ovate or elliptic, and more or less depressed ; (fig. 6.9. Gyrinus (Orectocheilus) villosus, jig. 6. 10 —17. details of the same insect), the head (fig. 6. 10.), | is of a moderate size, and somewhat triangular, deeply immersed in the cavity of the prothorax, and furnished with two pairs of eyes, one of which is placed on each side on the upper, and the other on the lower, surface of the head. The antenne (fig. 6. 14.) are inserted in a cavity in front of the eyes, and are very short; the basal joint is minute, the second large, globular, and produced externally into a long earlike process, with the margins ciliated; the remaining joints, apparently eight or nine in number, being very short and closely united together, forming a fusiform mass. The upper lip (jig. 6. 10.) is large, horny, and ciliated; the mandibles (fig. 6.11.) are short, horny, and strongly notched ; the maxilla (fig. 6. 12.) are flat, horny, curved, acute at the tip, and ciliated internally, with a prominent lobe below the centre; in the restricted genus Gyrinus (G. natator ) the maxille are also provided with a slender exarticulate lobe, but in the large exotic species, as well as in (G.) Orectocheilus villosus, this lobe is entirely wanting; the maxillary palpi are very short, and 4-jointed, the three basal joints being minute, and the third large and ovate. The mentum (fig. 6. 13.) is large, horny, and bilobed, the labium occupying the space between the two lobes; the labial palpi are short and 3-jointed; the thorax is short, transverse, rather wider behind, and closely applied to the base of the elytra, which are rather broader than the former; the scutellum is very minute, and occasionally indistinct. The terminal segment of the abdomen ex- tends beyond the elytra, and is furnished with two small cylindrical lobes, which the insect has the power of retracting at will. The fore legs (fig. 6. 15.) are long and of the ordinary form, except that they are more elbowed, which gives them the appearance of arms enabling them to seize their prey ; the four posterior legs (fig. 6. 16.) which are used as oars, are, however, very short, rarely extending beyond the side of the body, quite flat and considerably dilated, the Ahrens. : Neue Schrift. Naturf. Gesellsch. zu Halle, vol. iii— Ditto, Fauna, fase. ii. Say, in Trans. Amer. Phil. Soe. vols. ii. and iy. And the general works of Stephens, Gyllenhal Fabricius, Olivier, Perty, Germar (Ins. Sp. Nov.), MacLeay (Annul. Javan. ), Chevrolat. COLEOPTERA, — GYRINIDA. 107 femora and tibiz being trigonate, the latter with short flattish cilize at the external apical angle, and with the three basal joints of the tarsi (which are 5-jointed) produced on the inside into long, flat, ciliated leaf-like lobes ; the fourth joint is of similar size and form; but the terminal joint, which is very short, is attached near the extremity of the latter, the intermediate tarsi being provided with a pair of short ungties, and the posterior pair having only a single and almost ob- solete claw; the anterior tarsi are large and dilated, with two strong claws, the male tarsi being flat beneath, and covered with numerous minute granulations and margined with a minutely serrated cilia. The hind legs are very transparent, presenting an excellent object for the microscope, exhibiting very distinctly the circulatory system in nu- merous convoluted veins. From the apparently equal action of the two posterior pairs of legs, the meso- and metasternums are nearly of equal size, the posterior coxee being very greatly enlarged (fig. 6. 7.). These beetles are almost the only water insects which exhibit a bril- liant metallic lustre, a peculiarity dependent upon the habits of the insects which generally swim upon the surface of the water. With the exception of a few exotic genera, the Gyrinide are of a small size, not exceeding one third of an inch in length, the largest even not being one inch long. These insects cannot fail to have attracted the attention of every person when passing near standing, or gently running, water, on the surface of which they are to be seen in groups, varying in number from a couple to several hundreds, whirling about in every direction, but generally in circles, whence they have obtained the English name of Whirlwigs, and the French one of tourniquets. When thus occupied, their motions are so exceedingly quick, that the eye is perplexed in following them, and dazzled by the brilliancy of their wing cases which glitter like bits of polished silver or burnished pearl. These dances are kept up throughout the year, even during the winter, as the insects may be thus observed on fine days, whenever the water is not covered with ice. It has indeed been said that they retire in the autumn and repose in a dormant state during the latter season, attached to the roots of aquatic plants, or in the mud at the bottom of the water: on approaching them, they instantly take alarm, and dive beneath the surface, carrying with them a little bubble of air, which glitters like a drop of quicksilver, and is attached to the posterior portion of their bodies. Sometimes they may be taken flying, their large wings en- 108 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. abling them to change their abode without difficulty, when the drying up of their native pool compels them to emigrate. This will enable us to account for the occasional discovery of these insects in small puddles of newly-fallen rain-water. The structure of the short hind legs, and - especially of the curious branched tarsi, must be examined, in endea- vouring to account for the singular motions of these insects* ; the as- sembling together of which has been regarded by some writers as resulting purely from a streng social influence, and by others, as indi- cating no closer bond than that of animals congregating round their common food. That the food of the Gyrinide consists of small dead floating insects, I have ascertained; but I would further suggest that, being produced on the same spot, as is the case with the swarms of midges, they are influenced, in some degree, by the common desire of continuing their species. I have often ob- served that, in their gyrations, they hit against one another. In dull and inclement weather, they betake themselves to quiet places, under bridges, or beneath the roots of trees growing at the water’s edge. When touched, they emit a disagreeable odour, arising from a milky fluid, which is discharged from the pores of different parts of the body, or, according to De Geer, from the two minute retractile lobes at its extremity. It seems not improbable that this fluid, united with the high polish of the body, may have the effect of resisting the action of the water. It appears, however, that G. minutus and O. villosus are scentless. (Kirby and Spence, ii. 242.) The remarkable structure of the eyes, which, unlike those of the majority of insects, consist of two distinct pairs, one on the upper, and the other on the lower, surface of the head, must be greatly serviceable to the insect in the peculiar situation in which it is generally observed, and whereby it is enabled to see objects beneath it in the water, and above it in the air. The female, shortly after impregnation, deposits her eggs, which are small, and of cylindrical form, and placed end to end, in parallel rows, upon the leaves of aquatic plants ; and from which, at the end of eight days, the larve are produced. De Geer (Mémoires, vol. iv.) and Rose} (Abhandl. vol. ii. suppl. tab. 31.) succeeded in obtaining these larve from eggs deposited by the females ; but Modeer (Mem. Acad. Reg. Suec. 1770) is the only author who has traced the insect through * «Mr. Briggs observes, that the G. natator moves all its legs at once with wonderful rapidity, by which motion it produces a radiating vibration on the surface of the water.” — K, and S. ii, 364. COLEOPTERA. — GYRINIDZ&. 109 its different states. The larva (fig. 6. 18.) is long, narrow, and de- pressed, and nearly resembles a small centipede, of a dirty white co- lour, composed of thirteen segments (including the head), separated from each other by lateral incisions ; the head is large, oval, and de- pressed, armed with two strong jaws, two short filiform 4-jointed an- tennz, several small tubercular eyes (the number of which De Geer could not discover ), forming a group on each side the head, and slender maxillary and labial palpi; the clypeus is deeply notched in front, without any distinctly articulated labrum; to each of the three ante- rior segments of the body is attached a pair of moderately long and slender legs ; and from each side of each of the eight following seg- ments arises a long, slender, transparent, and membraneous filament, bent rather backwards, and terminating in a point; the terminal seg- ment is furnished with two pair of similar but much longer appen- dages. These filaments are employed as organs of respiration, each being internally provided with a delicate air-vessel, connected at the base with the ordinary lateral trachee ; the body is terminated by four minute conical points, bent downwards, and which are used by the insect when in motion ; whereas the long filaments have no pe- culiar motion. When the larva has attained its full size, at the be- ginning of August it creeps out of the water, up the stems of the rushes, or other aquatic plants, where it encloses itself in an oval co- coon, pointed at each end, composed of a substance spun out of its own body, and somewhat resembling grey paper, within which it be- comes a pupa, in which state it remains about a month, when it makes its appearance in the perfect state, and immediately resorts to its native element, the neighbouring water. Mr. R. Patterson of Belfast, has communicated to me the discovery of a specimen of Orectochilus vil- losus inclosed in a fresh-water shell taken out of a pool, the mouth of which was stopped with a piece of some plant, with slime, and which was lined with a soft, whitish, silky substance, extending to the margin of the aperture. It was supposed that the larva had taken possession of the empty shell, ia which to undergo its transformations. (See also Ent. Mag., ii. p. 530.) Mr. H. W. Griesbach has, however, discovered the whitish silky cocoons of this species beneath the bark of a rotten willow tree, at a yard’s distance from the edge of a river, and about two feet from the ground. (Aint. Mag. iv. p. 254.) The Gyrinide were at first united by Linnzeus with the Dyticide ; but this author subsequently adopted the genus Gyrinus, as proposed 110 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. by Geoffroy, and, until recently, the group has been kept entire. From this family they are at once distinguished by the shortness of the an- tenn, whilst the shortness of the palpi and the structure of the legs separate them from the other water beetles, Hydrophilide. Latreille, indeed, in his Genera, &c., separated them from these groups, uniting them with the Parnide, in a family to which he gave the name of Otiophori; but he was subsequently convinced that their relationship with the last-named family was merely one of analogy; and even in his Genera, he suggested that they formed the connecting link be- tween the Dyticide and Hydrophilide, a situation now assigned to them by British entomologists. Mr. MacLeay, in the Annulosa Javanica, proposed the separation of some of the large exotic species, in consequence of their apparent want of a scutellum; and, still more recently, Messrs. Brullé, Laporte, and Eschscholtz have introduced numerous other genera. The species of this family are very limited in number, not more than fifty or sixty existing in collections ; some of the species are found upon the margin of the sea, whence, indeed, one species (G. ma- rinus) acquires its specific name. One species (G. limbatus) has been communicated to me by M. A. Lefebvre, by whom it was discovered near the summit of Mount Etna, in the region of perpetual snow. Other species are very widely distributed, especially certain Dyneu- tes, all of which are strangers to Europe, but inhabit the remainder of the Old Continent. The genus Gyrinus appears more exclusively to inhabit Europe and North America. I have, however, received several species of the last-named genus from Messrs. Desjardins and Templeton, which inhabit the island of Mauritius. The type of the genus Gyrinus is the well known Whirlwig, or Water-flea ; that of Orectocheilus is a curious insect, which appears to be less gregarious than the other species. Nicolai says of it, “ In su- perficie Sale frequens, nocte vividus videtur.” (Dessert. Inaug. p. 36.) According to some observations made by M. Robert of Liege, and communicated by M. V. Audouin to the Entomological Society of France, this species is only to be observed running about on the sur- face of the water during the night, hiding itself under stones on the banks by day, and even, if forced into the water, immediately striving to gain the shore, never diving, like the other species, to the bottom. Mr. Howitt has also published some observations on this species in his Book of the Seasons, and which, together with the circumstances COLEOPTERA. — GYRINID#. Lut mentioned above, observed by Mr. Patterson, will be sufficient to show the necessity of separating this insect from the other Gyrinidz. The exotic genera do not require any especial notice. The second subtribe of the Pentamerous beetles, forming the tribe Chilopodomorpha MacZL., has been termed by Mr. Stephens, RYPO- PHAGA (or Cleansers), from the important offices assigned to its various members, of removing animal and vegetable substances in a state of decomposition; and is distinguished by having only four palpi, viz. the labial and external maxillary, the internal maxillary palpi being represented by the dilated external lobe of the maxille, which here loses its palpiform appearance, although occasionally evidently articulated, and acquires the typical structure of the Coleopterous maxilla. The antenne are also of a more complex structure, being either gradually or abruptly clavate, and the basal joints of the male tarsi are generally more or less dilated. This subtribe appears to comprise the three following stirpes : — PHILHYDRIDA, typified by the genus Hydrophilus. Elytra covering the abdomen; legs subnatatorial; antennz capitate. NECROPHAGA, typified by the genus Silpha. Elytra generally covering the abdomen; legs cursorial; antennze often capitate. BRACHELYTRA, typified by the genus Staphylinus. Elytra very short, not covering the abdomen; legs cursorial; an- tenne gradually clavate. But it is evident that several of the families placed by Mr. MacLeay in the Chilognathiform (Iuliform) tribes, ought to find a station amongst the Necrophagous Rypophaga. The stirps PHILHYDRIDA MacLeay (or lovers of water) is com- posed of insects having either aquatic or subaquatic habits, residing in the water, or in the damp margins and shores of streams and ponds. Theyare distinguished from the other water-beetles by the shortness of their clavate antennz, which often (although only, perhaps, in appear- ance) possess fewer than the general number of joints, and by the ordi- nary great length of their maxillary palpi, whence the typical groups have been named Palpicornes by the French entomologists ; the man- 112 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. dibles are short but very robust; their bodies generally of an oval form; the hind legs are ciliated, and formed for swimming, or rather paddling, in the majority ; and the tarsi are variable in the structure of their joints. . Mr. MacLeay divides this stirps into the five following families : — Normal group ? f Heteroceride ? Palpi shorter than the antenne. | Parnide. Analogous to the Gyrinide. Aberrant group ? Helophoride. Palpi at least as long as the an- + Hydrophilide. Analogous to the Dyticide. tenne. Spheeridiidee ? To these Mr. Stephens has added two others, viz. — Limniide (subsequently described as portion of the family Parnide). Anisotomide (Agathidiide Westw.), but until these various groups be strictly analysed, and entomologists made acquainted with their larva, the distribution and arrangement of the families cannot be considered as fixed. The Hydrophilide, however, appear to be the typical family; although, in their strict natatorial habits, general appearance, and, more particularly, in the circumstance that some of the true Hydrophili recede from the Ry- pophagous habits of the family, and feed in the larva state, according to M. Illiger, upon aquatic mollusca and larvee, it is evident that they approach more nearly towards the predaceous Dyticide, although, when arrived at the perfect state, they become more perfectly herbi- vorous, whilst the Heteroceride, Anisotomide, and Spheeridiide evi- dently conduct us towards other groups. In the Feegne Animal we find these insects far removed from the Dyticide*, and employed to establish a passage between the Clavi- corn and Lamellicorn Beetles, in the following arrangement : — : be: $ Tribe 1. Heterocerus. Second Section of Clavicornes. { f *Parnus eS r . arnus wC. Tribe 2. be | **Elmis (Limnius), &e. os *Helophorus, &c. J Tribe a eens &e. Palpicornes. | Tribe 2. = Spheridium. { have, however, preferred following in the steps of MacLeay and Stephens, by introducing the Philhydrida between the Hydradephaga * In the Fumilles Naturelles, we find the following note, relative to the affinities of these insects: —* Les palpicornes conduisent par un bout aux macrodactyles (Elmis, &e.), et par l’autre aux sphéridies, aux bousiers, &e. Les Dryops, genre de la tribu des macrodactyles, semblent se lier avee les gyrins de ceux-ci on passe aux Dytiques et de-la aux carabiques.”” (P.365.) Inthe Régne Animal (vol. i. p. 519.) we also find various observations in support of the nearer relation of the Hydrophilide to the Necrophaga and the Lamellicorns, than to the Dyticide. COLEOPTERA. — HETEROCERIDZ. 113 and the Necrophaga (the passage to the latter being effected by means of the Anisotomide), although I cannot but think that the Philhydrida are quite as nearly allied to some of the other Clavicorn families ; indeed, I would suggest that it would not be very unnatural to introduce the Brachelytra between the Philhydrida and Necrophaga, commencing their arrangement with the Pselaphides, which, in the great develop- ment of their palpi, resemble some of the Helophorida (Hydrena), and terminating with the Staphylinides, which are so nearly allied to the typical Silphide. By this means the Dermestide and Byrrhidez would be brought together. Mr. Kirby, however (aun. Bor. Am.), has made the Brachelytra intermediate between the terrestrial Ade- phaga and the Necrophaga, placing the Philhydrida between the aquatic Adephaga and the Necrophaga, and thus completing a circle. The family Herrrocertpm* (Acanthopoda Latr.), as above stated, comprises insects receding considerably from the type of the present stirps ; neither do they offer any marked relationship with the Hydra- dephaga, nor even with any of the other Philhydrida, although their subaquatic habits resemble those of the Parnida. They are of small size, with the body depressed ( fig. 7. 1. Heterocerus lwevigatus); the * Bristiocr. REFERENCES To THE HETEROCERID&. I. Dufour. Sur les Acanthopodes, in Ann. des Se, Nat. 2d series, vol. i. Say, in Journ. Acad, Nat. Science, Philad. vol. iii. ; and the works of Fabricius, Stephens, Curtis, and Gyllenhall, §c. The reference, by Latreille, to the Journ. d’Hist. Nat. et de Physique (in the Gen. Crustac. &e, noticed by Brullé) is incorrect, as Latreille himself noticed in Gen. Crust. &c. vol. iy. Append. 114 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. legs broad, compressed, and serrated ( fig. 7.3.) ; the thorax much nar- rower than the elytra, especially at its hinder part; the jaws robust, toothed, and advanced ( fig. 7. 4.); the antenne (fig. 7. 2.) short, with the two basal joints large, and the remainder forming an elongated club ; the palpi very short; the tarsi are short, and 5-jointed, the basal joint (overlooked by Curtis and MacLeay) being minute and oblique ; this part of the leg is capable of being folded back upon the tibia when the insect is engaged in making its burrows, which are formed, by the assist- ance of the broad flat spinose tibize, in the mud of the banks of ponds or stagnant water, out of which the insects make their escape when the earth is shaken or stamped upon, and again as quickly burying them- selves in the mud. It is in similar situations that the larva was dis- covered by Miger* ; I am not, however, aware that any description has been hitherto published of it. Mr. Ingpen has communicated to me a larva, several of which he found upon damp mud, in situations where he had taken Heterocerus marginatus, and of which I have given an outline ( jig.7. 5.): the head is broad; the eyes small, and placed behind the mandibles, which are strong, bent, and toothed at the tip; the three thoracic segments are large, and wider than the head, and the nine abdominal segments are much narrower, and sub- cylindric ; the legs are strong, and armed with a robust hook ( fig. 7. 6.) ; the body is clothed with long hairs. The situation in which these larvee were found, and their general structure, lead me to regard them as those of Helerocerus marginatus. From the advanced structure of the head of the imago, and the strength of the trophi, it is supposed that the habits of these insects must be carnivorous; and Mr. Curtis mentions that one of the species was met with under small dead crabs, left by the tide, beneath which they were burrowing into the sand. The bodies of these insects are clothed with a fine silky pubescence, whereby the action of the water upon their various parts is prevented. They walk but slowly; in the hot sunshine, however, I have observed them raise their wings, fly off, and again alight, with all the agility of the tiger-beetles. Their mode of walking is rather peculiar ; the anterior parts of the body being considerably elevated. Mr. Curtis notices the variations of breadth of the thorax, as probably indicating sexual distinctions. We are indebted to M. Léon Dufour for an admirable memoir on the ex- * Kirby and Spence (Jntrod. vol. ii. p. 294.) introduce, Heterocerus in a list of Coleopterous genera having aquatic larve. I know not upon what authority. COLEOPTERA.— PARNIDZ. 115 ternal and internal anatomy of this genus. The family comprises the single genus Heterocerus. The French entomologists regard the variations exhibited by the European individuals of this genus as indicating only varieties of a single species. Fabricius describes a species from Tranquebar, and Harris mentions an American species ; Dejean unites the North American species, H. pallidus Say, with the common European species. The family PArnip# MacLeay (or Macrodactyla Latr.), like the preceding, is composed of minute subaquatic insects ( jig. 7. 7. Dryops Dumerilii), distinguished by their narrow and unarmed tibiz and moderately long tarsi, which are formed for walking alone, the termi- nal joint being very long, and armed with two strong claws at the tip (fig. 7. 9. tibia and tarsus of Parnus). The body is oval or ob- long, and more or less convex, with the posterior part of the thorax as broad as the base of the elytra. The antenne are variable in their form, but are always short ; the upper and lower lips are large, the latter equalling the mentum in size; the palpi are very short, with the termi- nal joint rather thicker and longer than the preceding ; and the man- dibles are robust, notched at the tips, with the inner surface ciliated. The mode of respiration of these insects has been the subject of controversy ; M. Audouin considering it to be effected as in the Aépus fulvescens, whilst M. Wesmael, at the Academy of Sciences at Brussels, has observed that the upper surface of the body of Elmis is glabrous, and consequently unable to retain a coating of air; the under surface is, however, furnished at each side with a broad longitudinal band, contiguous to the lower margin of the elytra, formed of a silky coat ; the body of the Parnus is, on the contrary, entirely villose, so that it is probable that the entire body is surrounded with a coat of air when the insect is under water. (See Ann. Soc. Ent. Fr. 1835, p- xl.) This family comprises two divisions, which have been formed by Mr. Stephens into families ; but as they agree in many of their essen- tial characters, I have followed Latreille and MacLeay in considering them as constituting a single family, composed of two subfamilies, viz. the Parnides and the Elmides. The distribution of the groups composing this and the preceding t 2 116 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. family (which Gyllenhal unites together under the name of Amphibii), proposed by Latreille in the Légne Animal (vol. iv. p. 514. note 2.), and founded chiefiy upon the structure of the antennez, does not ap- pear so natural as that given in the body of that work ; Heterocerus and Parnus being, in the former, united together, the latter being se- parated from Elmis. Mr. MacLeay considers Potamophilus as leading to Octhebius amongst the Hydrophilide, and that Georyssus may be of service in effecting a passage between the Heteroceride and Sphe- ridiide. The subfamily Parnides * (or family Parnidee Stephens) is distin- guished by the very short antenne ( fig.7. 8. antenna of Parnus), of which the third and following joints compose a subcylindric, curved, and subserrated mass; the body is smooth and woolly, and of an oblong form. These insects, like the preceding, inhabit the borders of ponds and ditches; they are well defended from the action of the water by the woolly kind of covering of their bodies. I have observed them, when thrown upon water in the hot sunshine, make use of their wings in endeavouring to regain the shore, without, however, rising from the surface of the water, but sliding, as it were, along, and stopping occa- sionally to rest, and then closing the wings. Latreille presumes, from the structure of the jaws, that they feed upon animal matter. They burrow in damp loose earth, amongst the roots of aquatic plants ; and we perceive an interesting adaptation of structure exhibited by the front parts of the body, the prosternum being advanced beneath the head, and meeting the upper lip, so as completely to shut in the parts of the mouth, and defend them from injury whilst occupied in burrow- ing, * Briptiocr. REFERENCES TO THE PARNIDES. Leach. On the Parnidea, in Zool. Mise. iii. Miiller, in Tliger Mag. d’Entomol. 1806. Kunze, in Entom. Fragmente (on the G. Potamophilus). MacLeay. Annul. Javan. Klug. Entomol. Brasil. Specimen. Dufour. Sur les Acanthopodes, ut supra. Guérin. Icon. Régne Animal. Germar, in Neu Schrift. der Naturf. Gesellsch, zu Halle, 1811. vol. i. (G. Pota- mophilus). COLEOPTERA. — PARNID. 9 Er In his early works, Latreille, from the resemblance between the antenne of the typical genus Parnus and that of the Gyrinide, formed these two groups into a section, which he termed Otiophori ; subse- quently, however, he was convinced that the relationship between them was not a direct affinity, and they were accordingly removed to their proper situations. The European genus Potamophilus (G. Hydera Zatr.; P. acuminatus, F. Pz. vi. 8.), although exhibiting the elongated form of Parnus, differs in having the antennz 11-jointed, the second joint being large, but not internally produced; these organs are not received into cavi- ties on the underside of the head ; moreover, the mouth is not con- cealed beneath by the dilated anterior margin of the prosternum. The subfamily Edmides* (fam. Limniidee Stephens) is distinguished from the preceding by the shorter and more ovate form of the insects of which it is composed ( fig. 7. 10. Elmis zeneus), and by the longer and more regularly formed antenne ( fig. 7. 13.), the basal joints being smaller than the following. These curious little insects have been regarded as allied to the Byrrhide and Histeridz, but they are most evidently related to the Parnides. The species of the genus Elmis are aquatic in their habits, being found adhering on the undersides of stones lying at the bottom of run- ning water. Their motions are very slow; they do not possess the power of swimming, but are provided with very powerful tarsi and ungues (fig. 7. 15. hind-leg of Elmis), whereby they are enabled to retain firm hold on the stones in the most boisterous currents ; thus offering an admirable instance of adaptive creation in the provision made for those insects destined to live in violent running water, * Bietiocr. REFERENCES To THE ELmipes. Latreille, in Hist. Nat. des Fourmis, p. 400. Miiller, in Iliger Magasin, vol. vy. Ditto, in Germar’s Magasin, vols. ii. and iv. Dufour, in Ann. Se. Nat., new series., vol. iii. Audouin and Brullé. ist. des Ins. Coleopt. vol. ii. Contarini. Sopra il Macronychus. Bassano, 1832. (Ann. Soc. Ent. de France, 1833, p. xlv.) Guérin. Teon. Régne Animal. And the general works of Stephens, Curtis, Germar (Ins. sp. nov. ), §e. r 3 118 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. where, in fact, ordinary insect motions, swimming or walking, would be completely paralysed. I have found some of the species in such situations in places where the water is constantly a yard deep, and ob- served that they selected stones with flat rather than uneven sur- faces, and especially those covered with a slight coating of vegetable matter. In company with these insects I discovered a great number of small flat larvze, an outline of one of which I have given at fig. 7. 16. upper, 17. underside. The habits of these larvee, and their slow movements, induce me to believe them to be the Elmis eneus, which I found most plentiful at the same time. Iam indebted to W. Raddon, Esq., for a piece of soft whitish mortar-like stone, the under surface of which is very rugose, and burrowed in various directions, in the crevices of which a number of specimens of several species of Elmis were still to be observed; some of the burrows were formed into re- gular oval chambers, very smooth within, and in some of them I found several rather long and cylindric larve, with the segments constricted, and with six rather long legs. These larvee I should certainly have regarded as those of the Elmis, had I not discovered those above mentioned, which are more analogous to the perfect Elmis, and had I not also in some of the burrows discovered some of these last-described larvee, each in a fine tube of sand, which induces me to suppose that they must be the larvee of some Neuropterous insect. I have, how- ever, represented one of these larvee in fig.’7.18. The under surface of the prosternum, in the perfect insect, is advanced beneath the mouth ( fig. 7. i4.), as in the Parnides, so as completely to protect the latter at the will of the insect. We are indebted to M. Léon Dufour for avery valuable memoir upon the external and internal anatomy of Macronychus and Elmis, published in the Annales des Sciences Naturelles, new series, vol. iii., March, 1835. In this me- moir the maxille of the subgenus Stenelmis are described, and repre- sented as armed with several strong and acute teeth; but from dis- sections which I have made of Elmis wneus, I am inclined to think that the maxilla are unarmed, and that the appearance of teeth is produced by the transverse matting of the hairs at the tip of the maxilla, as represented in my figure 7. 12. Messrs. Dufour and Curtis represent the maxillary palpi as 4- jointed; but under the highest-powered lens and in the strongest light I can only detect three joints. The curious little insect composing the G'. Georyssus has been COLEOPTERA. — PARNID. 119 much confused as regards its affinities; Fabricius having called it a Pimelia, and Panzer a Trox. Its tarsi are only 4-jointed, but the structure of the parts of the mouth (see Guérin, Icon. Insectes, tab. 20. f. 5.) clearly proves its relationship with the Helophoride and Elmides. The anterior tibize are slightly dilated and notched. This insect is occasionally found under stones in running streams, but is more fre- quently observed * in damp earth, with which sometimes the insect is completely coated; but it is evident that this cannot be for con- cealment (as Kirby and Spence, vol. ii. 258., imagine with respect to some other insects placed by them in this genus, but belonging to Syncalypta Dillw.), because it is but rarely that this is the case, and consequently cannot be the natural economy of the animal, only hap- pening when it has by chance found its way into soft muddy ground : this coating of mud, when dry, may be scaled off the insect, all the markings of which may be observed on its inner surface. The Continental genus Macronychus Miiller is composed of a single species, M. 4-tuberculatus, a minute aquatic insect, found in the middle and south of Europe. The legs are very long; the antenne very short, and, according to Latreille and Dufour, 6-jointed, the terminal joint being long and oval, thus approaching, in their irregular con- struction, the antenne of some of the smaller Helophoride. We are indebted to Messrs. L. Dufour, and Contarini for memoirs upon this interesting insect (figured by Guérin, Zconogr. pl. 20. f. 4., and Germar, Faun. Ins. Fur, p.10.). : The body appears to be clothed beneath with a fine silken coat; but it is impossible, even with lenses, to discover the hairs of which it must be composed. The males, according to M. Dufour, are entirely apterous, and the females occasionally furnished with fully developed wings; at other times, however, these organs in this sex are very small, and unfit for flight. They are found in running water, appearing to prefer the underside of stones, and especially upon floating wood, burrowing beneath the bark ; their movements are very slow, like those of the Elmis. When taken out of the water they do not survive more than two or three hours. M. Dufour was unable to ascertain in what manner respiration is ef- fected in these insects ; he, however, as well as M. Contarini, noticed a small bubble of air occcasionally affixed to the extremity of the ab- * According to M. Wesmael it is always found on the surface of the ground, its body being entirely glabrous, and consequently unable to retain a coating of air when immersed under water, I 4 120 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. domen, which the latter considers serves to enable the insect to raise itself to the surface of the water, and descend to the bottom. The eggs are deposited in regular and transverse series upon floating wood, to which they are fixed by a glutinous substance. M. Contarini merely observes of their larva, that they bend themselves into a curved position, and resemble those of the Melolontha; they live under the bark of the floating wood. Like the Elmis, the perfect in- sects are unable to swim. Dr. Germar has described a second Eu- ropean species, Parnus obscurus Fab., Germ. Ins. Nov. Sp. i. 89.3 and Sturm has figured an insect from North America as a species, M. variegatus, in his Catalog. (Nurmb. 1826) ; but the regular struc- ture of its 11-jointed antenne indicates a much nearer affinity with Elmis. The three following families of Philhydridous Rypophaga are much more intimately allied together than they are to the preceding families. They correspond with Latreille’s tribe of Palpicornes, and have the maxillary palpi generally very greatly elongated; the legs are generally formed for swimming, although the motions of the in- sects are much less active than those of the Dyticide. Of these in- sects the Helophoridze approach nearest to the preceding families ; hence the transition is easy to the large typical Hydrophilide, from which, by means of some of the minute species Hydrobius, &c. (es- pecially Ccelostoma orbicularis Brud/é, which has. been always consi- dered as one of the Hydrophilide), we arrive at the Spheridiide, which, according to the views of MacLeay and others, are related to the Anistomide, although their affinity to the stercorarious Lamelli- corns appears equally strong. The third family HetopHoripa * MacLeay (Helophoridea Leach) is distinguished by having the body more or less oblong-ovate, and de- * Brptiocr. RerERENCES TO THE HELOPHORIDZ. Leach. On the Helophoridea, Zool. Mise. vol. iii. Illiger. Kafer Preussens. Gyllenhall. Ins. Suec. Weber. Beytrage zur Naturk, vol. ii. Say, in Journ, Acad, Se. Philad. vol. iii. COLEOPTERA.— HELOPHORID®. 121 pressed, with the surface of the thorax rugose (fig. 8. 1. Helophorus aquaticus) ; the legs slender, and slightly spinose, with filiform tarsi, terminated by two strong claws (jig. 8. 3.); the 9-jointed antennze are terminated by a perfoliated mass (fig. 8. 2.), and the mandibles have a single notch near the extremity. ‘This family is of small ex- tent, and the species of which it is composed are of a minute size. The structure of their legs indicates that they creep rather than swim. The under surface of the body is clothed with a thick coat of silky whitish down. They inhabit ponds and ditches, creeping slowly about the roots of aquatic plants, or occasionally coming out of the water, and walking upon the muddy banks, covered with dirt, whence the name of the typical genus; they also often fly about in the hot sunshine. Whilst larvae, their food consists of animal matter; but they are herbivorous in the perfect state. Some of the species are re- markable for exhibiting a metallic lustre. This family appears to be confined to temperate climates, no species having been hitherto re- corded as inhabitants of tropical countries, or, indeed, as belonging to the southern hemisphere. Mr. Wailes has published an interesting account of the habits of the genus Enicocerus in the F/ntomological Magazine (No. 3. p.256.), the species of which are found in the crevices of stones in rivulets, just level with or a little above the surface ; the larva and pupe are also Kugellan, in Schneider’s Mag. Germar. Insect. Species nove. Waterhouse, in Entom. Mag. vol. i. (Monograph of Hydrena). Sturm. Deutchslands Fauna, vol. x. Erichson. Kafer der Mark Brandenburg And the general works of Stephens, Curtis, Fabricius, &c. 192 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. found, in company with the perfect insects, in the autumn. The former are anopluriform, measuring, when full grown, about two and a half lines in length, and half a line in breadth; they are of a uniform black colour, and have the apex of each abdominal segment fringed with very short hairs ; their food is probably mucor, and they prefer rough slimy stones. When full grown, they leave the water, and construct, upon the edges of the stone, a small cell, by agglutinating together small particles of mud. These cells are sometimes very numerous, giving the fragment of stone a curicus appearance. The pupa is of an orange colour ; and the imago, when hatched, gnaws its way through its prison. This account will be observed to correspond with that given above relative to the nests of Elmis. Relative to the British genera, few particulars will suffice. The large size of the eyes in Hydrochus, the shortness and slenderness of the terminal joint of the maxillary palpi in Octhebius, and the extra- ordinary elongation of the same organs in Hydreena, are interesting peculiarities. One of the species of the last-named genus is found in brackish water; and Mr. Haworth (Ent. Trans. i. p. 87.) states its habitat to be “ ad littora salina,” near Kingston upon Hull. The genus Spercheus has been arranged by Leach and others with the Hydrophilide. It, however, appears to be the connecting link between the two families, approaching nearest to the Helophoride in the structure of the legs, habits, and oral apparatus. The curious structure of the maxillz (fig. 8. 4.) induced Fabricius to place it be- tween the beetles having six and four palpi to the maxille. The fourth family HypropuiILip# * is distinguished by the ovate or hemispherical and convex form of the body, which is not contractile * Breriocr. REFERENCES TO THE HyproruiLip&. Leach, in Zool. Mise. vol. iii. Solier, in Ann. Soc. Ent. de France, 1834. Audouin and Brullé. Hist. Nat. Ins. Col. vol. v. Illiger. Kaf. Pr. and Mag. vol. i. Germar. Ins. Nov. Sp. Say, in Journ. Acad. Se. Nat. Philadelphia, vol. iii. MacLeay. Ann. Jay. COLEOPTERA. — HYDROPHILID&, 123 into a ball ( fig. 8. 5. Hydrocharis caraboides) ; the thorax is broader than long; the edges of the tibia are but slightly spined, but they are terminated by strong spurs; and the tarsi, especially those of the posterior legs, are commonly ciliated, so as to be serviceable in swim- ming ; the basal joint is often minute. The mandibles ( fig. 8. 8. man- dible of H. piceus) are much toothed on their inner margins; the antenne (fig. 8. 7. antennz of the same) are clavate, and generally 9-jointed * ; and the maxillary palpi are often very much longer than the antenne; the outer lobe of the maxilla is short, broad, and articulated at the base ( fig. 8. 9. maxillz of the same). The mentum is transverse, and the labial palpi short ( ig. 8. 10.). The typical insects of this family are amongst the largest of the water-insects ; and it is a curious circumstance that the species found in our country exceed in size those from tropical climates ; many of the species are, however, very minute. This family is more truly aquatic than the preceding, although the species do not swim with that agility which is exhibited by the Dyticide, paddling along by the assistance of their ciliated posterior legs, which they move alternately, whereby the force of their strokes is weakened; when swimming, also, their antenne are concealed, and their palpi porrected ; thus dif- fering in both these respects from the Dyticidz : on being taken out of the water, however, they extend their antenne. Their walking Erichson. Kafer Brandenburg. Sturm. Deutchsl. Fauna, vol. ix. and x. Lyonnet, Posth. Memoirs, vol. i.* Miger, in Annal. du Muséum, vol. xiv. ; and Bull. Soe. Philom. vol. ii. Dufour, in Ann, Se. Nat. 2d series,. vol. iii. Risel. Ins. Belust. vol. ii. Harris. Aurelian; and the general works of Fabricius, Stephens, Marsham, §c. * Mr. MacLeay considers the antenne to be in reality L1-jointed; the place of the eighth and tenth joint being indicated by the “gnectss intervening between the seventh and eighth, and eighth and ninth, distinct joints. M. Percheron, however (Genera des Insectes, pl. 3.), describes the antennz as 11-jointed ; the three last joints being soldered together, and forming what has been regarded as the ninth joint. I can see no transverse trace of the articulations as figured by M. Percheron, although the margin of the nintb joint apparently indicates by its impression the existence of three joints soldered together; but, by carefully examining the antenne of the va- rious genera of which this and the preceding family are composed, I think it will appear that the loss has taken place among the small central joints at the base of the club. 124 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. motions are equally awkward. They generally keep in the water by day, but may occasionally be seen sitting upon plants by the water's edge ; they, however, come abroad in the evening, and take wing. On again seeking the water, they cannot dive without difficulty, owing to the dryness of their bodies. The relationship of these insects with the Dyticide has already been noticed ; indeed, both families were originally united in the same genus. ‘The anterior tarsi of the males of the typical species are also singularly dilated ; but it is the terminal joint only, and not the basal ones, as in the Dyticidze, which exhibits this peculiarity. The sternum of the thoracic segments is greatly developed ; that of the metathorax terminating in a long and acute spine, extending beneath the abdo- men (jig. 8. 6. Hydrocharis caraboides). According to M. Dufour, Dutrochet, in his observations on the metamorphoses of the alimentary canal of insects (Journ. de Physique, Mars, 1818, in which the digestive organs of Hydrophilus and its larva are purported to be described), has fallen into the error of describing the organs of a Dyticus instead of a Hydrophilus (fecherch. Anat. sur les Carab., &c. p. 37.). The preparatory states of various species have been observed by different entomologists, especially Résel, Miger, and Lyonnet. The females of the largest species, Hydrophilus piceus, possess the singular habit of spinning a gummy envelope for their eggs; and in this sex we find the excremental intestine replaced by organs for the secre- tion of the matter for the formation of such envelope, the anus being also furnished with two spinnerets. The eggs, fifty or sixty in num- ber, are disposed symmetrically, and in an upright position, in their re- ceptacle, which has somewhat the appearance of a small turnip, being nearly an inch broad, and which is attached to some plant until the larvee are hatched, when it floats about on the surface of the water. The larvee escape at the lower part of the cocoon, which is closed only by a few threads; one side is furnished with an upright bent horny point, an inch long, which has been supposed to act as a sail, being elevated above the surface of the water; but, from the observations of M. Miger, such cannot be the case, as the cocoons are invariably af- fixed to plants; he therefore considers it as serviceable in conveying air to the interior; indeed, on detaching a cocoon filled with eggs, the side from which the point arises is immediately submerged by its su- perior weight. The exterior surface hardens, and becomes impene- COLEOPTERA.— HYDROPHILID®. 125 trable to the water, being coated with a gummy secretion, whilst the interior is composed of fine silk of a delicate white colour. This cocoon is also described and figured in the Mag. of Nat. Hist. No. 18. In the posthumous memoirs of Lyonnet, this cocoon is stated to be composed of fine twigs of conferve ; but it is evident, from the more precise statements of M. Miger, that silk and a gummy secretion are the materials of which it is composed, the insect making use of the plants only as a support, or perhaps a mould, whilst forming the nest. The larvee are hatched in about six weeks, or, in warm weather, in twelve or fifteen days, according to M. Miger, and in a few hours make their escape from their common prison. They very quickly attain the - length of two thirds of an inch, although the eggs were not half that length. They undergo three moultings ; after the first of which they are an inch long, after the second an inch and ahalf, and three inches after the third ( fig. 8. 11.). They are of a long and somewhat co- nical form, of a more fleshy substance than those of the Dyticide, with shorter and more slender legs; the body is terminated by two short filiform appendages, which the insect employs in respiration. The head is horny, and of a singular form ; its lower surface being very convex, whilst the upper is flattened (whence Frisch fancied that the under side of the body was the back) ; the mandibles, also, which are robust, and armed with a tooth near the middle of the inner edge, are also elevated; in these respects resembling the structure of the larva of Cicindele. The maxilla are elongated, and compose the basal joint of what, at first sight, appears to be a pair of 5-jointed palpi but which are, in reality, slender maxilla, with a pair of 4-jointed palpi placed at the tip (f7g.8. 12. antennz and trophi). From the position of the head and jaws, the larva is enabled to seize upon its food, which consists of small aquatic mollusca and other animals inha- biting the water, by suddenly throwing back its head and stretching its mandibles; it is moreover stated by Lyonnet, that it bends its head so far back that it is enabled to employ its back as a table to support its food, which it procures by first breaking the shell. It is compelled frequently to come to the surface to take in a supply of fresh air. Immediately upon seizing its prey, or being taken by the hand, it becomes flaccid, and emits a blackish fcetid fluid from the mouth, accompanied by a slight noise. It is full-grown in July, when it creeps out of the water, and burrows into the adjacent bank, in which it forms an oval cell, by the assistance of an organ situated at 126 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. the extremity of the body, and in which it undergoes its metamor- phoses. The pupa is thick, and of an oval form, having two rather long curved anal appendages ; the sides of the abdomen and front margin of the thorax being beset with rigid hairs, which Lyonnet supposed served to keep the body of the pupa from resting on the damp earth. The pupz of some species are, however, destitute of these spines. The larva of this insect has been figured by Mouffet (p- 320.), Frisch (vol. i. pt. 2. tab. 6.), Lesser, Znsecto- Theologie (vol. ii. fig. 12. 16.), Lyonnet, Post. Mem. pl. 13., Audouin and Brullé (vol. v. pl. 11.). It assumes the perfect state in about one hundred days from the time when the eggs were hatched, of which period about sixty days were occupied in the larva state. The larva of Hydrocharis caraboides, figured by Rosel (Insect. Belust. vol. ii., Ins. Aquat. tab. 4.), and Lyonnet* (Mém. pl. xii. fig. 47. 50.), and Harris (Aurelian, pl. 26. f. e-i), somewhat resembles that of Hydrophilus piceus in its general form (fig. 8. 13.), but is con- siderably smaller ; and each of the seven basal segments of the abdo- men is furnished on each side with a rather long, slender, and ciliated filament, similar to the larvae of the Ephemeride ; the terminal seg- ment also bears at its extremity a pair of slender filiform appendages. The pupa resembles that of the Hydrophilus ; its abdomen being ter- minated by a strong pedunculated lunar-shaped process. The eggs are deposited by the female in a cocoon similar to that of Hydro- philus piceus. M. Miger (in the Annales du Muséum d’ Histoire Naturelle, vol. xiv., and in the Bulletin de la Soc. Philomat. 1812) has also observed the larvee of other species, namely, H. luridus, fuscipes, picipes, nanus, lividus, and truncatellus, belonging to the smaller genera, some of which are not furnished with appendages at the extremity of the body ; they are unable to swim ; neither do they suspend themselves at the surface of the water for respiration, as the preceding species are com- pelled to do. The female insects of these species swim also with difficulty, carrying their eggs for a long time underneath their abdo- men, enclosed in a silken web t+, which they at length attach by gluten * M. Brullé (Hist. Nat. Col. vol. v. p. 256.) has erroneously supposed this figure to represent a species of Philhydrus. + M. V. Audouin has communicated to me the observation that the female Philhydrus bicolor Solier, carries its eggs about with it by the assistance of three dilated setose appendages at the extremity of the posterior femora, COLEOPTERA. — HYDROPHILIDZ. 127 to the stems of aquatic plants above the surface; so that the larve, when hatched, drop into the water.* The larva of the last-named species (Truncatellus, belonging to the genus Limnebius) is not found in the water ; thus clearly indicating the propriety of the establish- ment of this genus, which Messrs. Solier and Brullé have so much confused, as well as its relationship with some of the Helophoride. In their perfect state these insects are much less voracious than whilst larve, the large Hydrophilus piceus chiefly feeding upon aquatic plants, although they also devour with avidity dead larvae and aquatic mollusca. In like manner, M. Miger kept, for several months, specimens of Hydrocharis caraboides, which he entirely fed upon the latter kind of food. This appears, however, not to be their ordinary food, the structure of the jaws, and more especially the internal anatomy, as observed by M. L. Dufour and by Dr. Gaede (Nova Acta, vol. ix. p. 2.), indicating herbivorous habits, the digestive organs differing materially from those of the predacious Dyticide, and resembling the Lamellicorns. Clairville has informed us, that notwithstanding its large size, Hydrophilus piceus falls an easy prey to the more voracious, but considerably smaller, Dyticus marginalis. When these insects rise to the surface of the water they protrude their antennz, which they again fold back when they descend ; this motion, according to recent observations, is essential for furnishing a supply of air to the spiracles, a bubble being carried by each beneath the thorax, and brought into contact with the organs of respiration. Vide Nitzsch, in Riels Archiv. fur Physiologie, xx. p. 440.; Burmeister (Shuckard’s Engl. edit. p. 392.), and Audouin and Brullé, Hist. Nat. Ins. The smaller species, especially the Hydrobii, may often be ob- served creeping slowly along, immediately beneath the surface of the water, with the back downwards, a globule of air, shining like quick- silver, being usually carried between the legs, and which is probably retained by the coating of hairs on the under side of the body which repels the water. During the winter they bury themselves in the mud. The species of this family received from tropical climates prove, as Mr. * Lyonnet, Posth. Mem. p. 127. M. De Haan, in his description of the plates, terms the insect, represented by Lyonnet (pl. 12. f. 48—46.), Elaphrus striatus Fabr. The former word is evidently a misprint for Elophorus, although the insect certainly does not belong to that genus, but rather to Hydrobius. There is, moreover, no palpicorn insect described by Fabricius under the name of striatus, 128 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. MacLeay observes, by their affinity to European insects, how much fewer typical forms there are of aquatic than terrestrial insects. Al- though few in number, however, the species are very widely dis- tributed, having been received from all quarters of the globe. Dejean, in his new catalogue, gives 101 species, of which seventy-nine are extra-European ; whilst Mr. Stephens gives descriptions of about forty British species. Dr. Leach in the Zoological Miscellany, and M. Solier in the Annales de la Société Entomol. de France, have published distributions of this family, — the various genera now adopted having been chiefly proposed by these two authors. The species of the British genus Limnebius are of a very small size, none exceeding one eighth of an inch in length. In their habits, and partially in their structure, they approach the Helophorida. This genus is one of the best marked in the family, and yet appears to be unknown to recent French authors, who, neglecting Leach’s characters, give the aberrant species of Hydrobius as its examples, which, from the differences which they exhibit, I have adopted as distinct groups, as introduced into my Generic Synopsis, p.10. The genus Hydrophilus comprises the gigantic H. piceus, a species not rare in the neigh- bourhood of London, and which is an inch and a half long, and many large exotic species, some of which, forming Solier’s genus Stethoxus, have the anterior male tarsi simple. The exotic genus Volvulus Brullé consists of a single species (V. inflatus), which I have received from M. Desjardins of the Island of Mauritius, remarkable for its inflated and very compressed form. That of Globaria, as the name implies, is very globose, and contractile into a ball. The family Spumripiip#* Leach, consists of a small group of species remarkable for their close relationship with some of the Hydro- * Brariocr. Rerer. TO THE SPHARIDIID. Leach. Zool. Mise. vol. iii. Stephens. Ill. vol. ii. Audouin and Brullé, loc. cit. supra. Say, in Journ. Acad. Se. Philadelph. vol. iii. Erichson. Kafer Brandenburg. And the general works of Gyllenhall, Illiger, Germar, Herbst, §c. COLEOPTERA. — SPHRIDIIDE. 129 philidee, arising from the general structure of the body, the form of the antennze, and more especially of the parts of the mouth, and produced sternum (fig. 9.7.). Their habits are, however, different ; since they frequent putrescent vegetable matter which has passed through the bodies of animals, the excrement of horses and cows being their chief abode, over which, when recently ejected, they may be seen hovering in troops, and in which they burrow by the assistance of their spinose tibia. Their legs are not formed for swimming, although some of the species (Cercyon hemorrhoidale, obscurum, anale, &c.) are subaquatic, which, doubtless, induced Fabricius to place them in the genus Hy- drophilus, whilst at the same time (thus confirming the relationship of the families) his Sphzridium dytiscoides belongs to the Hydrophilidee ; and his Hydrophilus orbicularis has recently been formed into the genus Ceelostoma by M. Brullé, and placed in the present family. Mr. MacLeay has also named a Javanese species, Spheridium hy- drophiloides. The body is generally broad, rounded, and convex or globose (fig. 9. 1. Spheeridium scarabeoides) ; the tarsi are distinctly 5-jointed, the terminal joint being very large in the anterior pair and dilated, especially in the males ( /ig. 9. 5. anterior, 9. 6. posterior tars!) ; the mentum is very large and transverse ( fig. 9. 3.; fig. 9. 4. the max- illae terminated by a large pilose lobe), and the antennz are terminated by a large 3-jointed club (fig. 9. 2.); the labrum is short and trans- verse, and the maxillary palpi are as long as the antenne ( fig. 9. 4.). The larvee of none of the species of this family have hitherto been observed. From the very few individuals brought from tropical regions, it may be inferred that their metropolis is within the northern temperate clime. It may, indeed, be questioned whether Nature K 130 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. in tropical regions requires the presence of such stercorarious in- sects as these, although it is certain that the smaller Coprides abound in such countries, which probably perform the offices assigned to the Spheridiide in regions where the Coprides are but few in number. Mr. MacLeay adopts the idea of Fabricius, that this family may possibly include such genera as Phalacrus, Agathidium, &c. That an affinity exists between these insects, cannot be denied; but there are other characters besides the numerical variation in the tarsal joints sufficient to warrant their separation. I have already alluded to the relationship-between these insects and the Lamellicornes; and may here add, that Mr. MacLeay, as well as Mr. Kirby, considers that it is from these insects that the transition is effected to that tribe of beetles. It is impossible, however, in a linear series, to exhibit all their com- binations of relationship. By Linnzeus these insects were arranged with Dermestes, and by De Geer with Hister. The species of Spheeridium are the largest in the family, not, however, exceeding a quarter of an inch in length; they are generally of a shining black colour, with the elytra variegated with large patches of red or dirty yellow. The family Acaruipiipa* Westw. (Anisotomide Steph.+) com- prises asmall group of insects placed by Latreille amongst the Trime- rous and Heteromerous Coleoptera, with which, however, they offer no other. relationship than that of having the tarsi composed of a reduced number of joints. In their habits, indeed, as well as their general structure, they appear to approach much nearer to some of the aberrant Spheeridiide, forming, probably, the connecting link between them and the smaller Necrophaga, to which they are still more nearly allied. That this is one of the groups in which the numerical variation in the * Bisriocr. Rerer. TO THE AGATHIDIIDE. Sturm’s Deutchslands Fauna. vol. ii. The works of Stephens, Curtis, Illiger, Gyllenhal, &c. + The generic name Anisotoma being regarded as a synonyme of Leiodes, ought not to be employed to designate the family. COLEOPTERA. — AGATHIDIID. 131 tarsal joints is apparent, and ought not therefore to be relied upon as affording clear grounds of relationship with other groups, cannot be denied; and accordingly Fabricius placed such of these insects as he was acquainted with between the Spheridiide and Byrrhide, whilst Mr. Stephens has placed them at the end of the Philhydrida. I can, however, by no means persuade myself that it would not be more natural to introduce this family amongst the Necrophaga; indeed a comparison of Mr. Curtis’s dissections of Leiodes and Catops, or mine of Agathidium and Choleva, will sufficiently prove this. The relationship of some of the genera, inter se, requires investigation, which, from the exceeding minuteness of some of them, is very difficult. These insects are of a small size, of a rounded or oval form, gene- rally convex, and occasionally contractile into a ball (fig. 9. 8. Aga- thidium atrum); the antenne are short and clavate, the club varying in the number of its joints (fig. 9.13. antenna of Agathidium). In Leiodes (fig. 9. 16. L. cinnamomea, the truffle-beetle ¢ ), which has the tarsi heteromerous, the club of the antenne consists of the five terminal joints, the second of which is very small (jig. 9. 17. the 7th, 8th, and 9th joints of the antenna of Leiodes). In Agathidium, which is also heteromerous (fig. 9. 14. the anterior, and 9. 15. the posterior tarsi), the same occurs, but less strongly marked (fig. 9. 13.); and this peculiarity is again found in the Pentamerous Cholevidee (fig. 9. 23.), which indeed Mr. Curtis appears to consider as_ probably entering the same family. Until, however, these groups have been rigidly investigated, and their structure ascertained, as well as an acquaintance with their larvae obtained (of which we are still ignorant ), it is impossible to decide upon the affinities of these insects. The palpi are generally short and filiform, the maxillary being terminated by an acuminated joint (fig. 9.11. maxilla, fig. 9. 12. labium, of Agathi- dium atrum). The labrum is transverse (/ig. 9. 9.), and the mandibles nearly triangular, without teeth (fig. 9. 10.) ; the legs short, and some- times spined. The species are generally found in damp situations, inhabiting putrescent vegetable matter ; some of them frequent flowers, and many may be often taken upon the wing in the hot sunshine. The British genera introduced into this family by Mr. Stephens are described in the Generic Synopsis, with the exception of Tritoma; which, as Latreille long ago observed, belongs to the Erotylida, but which Mr. Curtis has formed into a distinct family, named Tritomide. The species of Leiodes are amongst the largest British inseets in the K 2 132 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. family, and the largest of these is not more than a quarter of an inch in length. This is the L. cimmamomea, an insect found in truffles in the early winter months: the posterior femora in the males are large and toothed, and the tibia bent. The species of Agathidium and Clambus possess in a remarkable degree the power of counterfeiting death by rolling themselves into a ball, the head being laid upon the breast. The species of Orthoperus and Sericoderus are amongst the most minute Coleopterous insects. The second stirps of Rypophagous Pentamera is the: NECRO- PHAGA Latreille; a group of considerable extent and variable structure, but chiefly distinguished by having the antenne gradually or suddenly thickened at the tips; the mandibles generally robust and exserted; the maxilla with the outer lobe large, but not palpi- form nor articulated ; the maxillary palpi with the basal joint often small; the body often oval or oblong, with the prosternum not an- teriorly produced; the elytra sometimes shorter than the abdomen; the legs formed for running, and not contractile. In some of the aberrant species the tarsi differ in the number of their joints. As the name of the stirps implies, these: insects are highly service- able in removing the decaying remains of animal matter, and such kinds of impurities. Some of the species are, however, employed in feeding upon decaying fungi and other vegetable remains. Jn some, moreover, are to be traced vestiges of those predaceous habits which characterise the early groups of beetles: thus, as Mr. MacLeay observes, Silpha 4-punctata ascends the oak for the purpose of devouring the caterpillars, of which so many species infest this tree; whilst other Silphidz attack live terrestrial mollusca, just as we have seen the neighbeuring stirps of Philhydrida prey on certain aquatic animals of the same subkingdom. By Linneus the majority of these insects were ranged in the genera Silpha and Dermestes. This tribe of beetles is, on the one hand, nearly allied to the Philhydra, with which indeed Dumeril united it under the name of Helocera from the clavate structure of the antennze; and on the other hand, to the Byrrhidee and Histerida by means of the Dermes- tide ; Mr. Kirby introducing the Byrrhide amongst the Necrophaga, and making it thus the link between the Necrophaga and the osculant Histeride. The relationship of the Silphide and the Brachelytra is COLEOPTERA. — NECROPHAGA. 133 even still more distinct, as may be observed in the genera Necro- phorus and the larger Staphylinide, as well as in the genus Micro- peplus, belonging to the Nitidulide. The families into which Latreille divided this group in_ his “ Genera,” were — 1. Silphales ; 2. Nitidulariaw (divided into the Pel- tides, Nitidulariz propriz, and Ipsides); 3. Scaphidiles; and 4. Der- mestini. In his later works, however, he has adopted Dumeril’s views, and united them, together with the Histeride, Byrrhide, and the aberrant Philhydrida, into a group called Clavicornes. In all his works, however, he placed many of the small species far apart in a group, which he termed Xylophaga. Mr. MacLeay divides the stirps into the four following families : — Normal Group ? Club of antennz elongate, perfoliate, 4 or 5-jointed. f{ Seaphidide. (Silpha Linn.) | Silphide. Aberrant Group ? Nitidulide. Club of antenne short, 2 or 3-jointed. 4 Engide. (Dermestes Linn. ) Dermestide. These families correspond with those given by Latreille in his late works, with the exception of the Engida, in which Mr. MacLeay introduces a great number of insects which Latreille, too much influenced by a desire to retain the tarsal system, had placed among the Tetramerous Xylophaga: although, as I have endeavoured to prove in the Linnean Transactions (vol. xvi.), this is evidently a family, or rather perhaps a series of allied families, characterised by the variation in the structure of the tarsi. Of the affinities connecting these various families too little is yet known, either of their anatomical characters or the structure of their larvee, to enable us to speak with precision upon the subject; in like manner, the views of Geoffroy, Linnzeus, and other early authors, who never dissected a single insect, cannot be considered as entitled to that weight, with reference to the juxtaposition of these families, which Mr. MacLeay seems disposed to give to them. The following observations, however, by Mr. Kirby are worthy of attention: “ Though the transition from the Brachelytra by Necro- phorus to the Necrophaga, especially the Silphida, is so evident, yet the road to be taken when we depart from the latter tribe is not equally clear. The Nitidulide, indeed, manifest a close affinity to the Silphide ; but the Engidee seem separated from both by a rather wide interval, and from them various routes present themselves. 1) 134 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Some would go to the Catheretide, others to the Cryptophagide, and others to Choleva and the Scaphidiidee. The former of these tribes seems to me nearer to the Nitidulide than the Engide, and may be regarded as opening a road from them to the Brachelytra ; the Cryptophagidzee appear much further removed, and are leading towards the Dermestide.” aun. Bor. Amer. p. 107. The first family ScapHipitp% * (Scaphidiles Zaér.), is a small as- semblage of insects of small size (fig. 9. 26. Scaphidium 4-maculatum, 9. 18. Choleva angustata), with long and slender legs, 5-jointed tarsi (jig. 9. 24. anterior, 9. 25. posterior tarsi of Choleva; 9. 28. anterior tarsi of Scaphidium); the body oval; the head de- flexed; the thorax broad behind, generally forming a continuous lateral line with the elytra; the mandibles triangular; the max- illa terminated by two lobes, the outer of which is sometimes slender ; the antennz of moderate length, the club being 5-jointed (fig. 9. 23. antenna of Choleva, with the eighth joint smaller than the two contiguous joints; fig. 9. 27. antenna of Scaphidium) ; the labrum is transverse, bilobed in front (fig. 9.19.) ; the mandibles (fig. 9. 20.) triangular, with two minute teeth near the tip, and a pilose lobe on the inside; the maxille with two elongated lobes and subulated palpi (fig. 9. 21.); and the mentum conical, truncate ; the labium emarginate, and the palpi minute (fg. 9. 22.). The insects are very active in their movements, as the length of their legs indi- cates. They inhabit decaying fungi, rotten bones, &c., and are generally to be found in the perfect state in the spring. The affinity of the genus Catops with Leiodes, and Choleva with Agathidium, in the preceding family, Agathidiide, has been already pointed out; the relationship of Choleva with Scaphidium, although doubted by Mr. Spence, is confirmed by Latreille and Mac Leay. Indeed it is surprising that Mr. Curtis, whose figures of the mouth of Scaphidium and Catops confirm the latter affinity, should * Brietoer. Rerer. To THE SCAPHIDIIDZ. Spence. Monogr. on Choleva, in Trans. Linn. Soc. Lond. vol. xi. Illiger. Kafer Preuss. vol. 1. Erichson. Kafer Brandenburg. Say, in Journal Acad. Se. Philadelph. vol. iiii— Mem. Acad. Se. Stoeckhelm, 1824, p. 149. ; and the works of Stephens, Gyllenhal, Paykull, &c. COLEOPTERA. — SILPHID&. 135 doubt its existence (see fol. 566.), although he admits it in his fol. 379. Mr. Spence has shown the relations of Choleva both with Dermestes and Silpha, and noticed the analogy between it and Mordella, which is much more decided than that existing between Scaphidium and Ripiphorus, noticed by MacLeay; which latter, indeed, is very remote. | The British genera Scaphidium and Scaphisoma are found in agarics, fungi, and under the bark of rotten trees, whilst the other species of the family are more frequent amongst bones, and in the neighbour- hood of dunghills. In some species of Catops, the anterior and intermediate tarsi of the males are more or less dilated. The second family Sinpuipa Leach (Silphales Zatr.), is distin- guished by the depressed form of the body (jig. 10. 1. Silpha 4-punctata); the more or less depressed head often posteriorly narrowed into a neck (fig. 10.7. head of Necrophorus beneath) ; * Bistiocr. Rerer. To THE SILPHIDA. Leach, in Zool. Mise. vol. ii. and iii. Herschel, in Illig. Mag. vol, 6. Hope, in Trans. Zool. Soc. vol. i. Vigors, in Zool. Jour, vol. i. Germar. Mag. Entomol. vol. iv.; and Insect. Spec. Nov. Zetterstedt. Act. Holm. 1824. Creutzer. Ent. Vers. Erichson. Kafer Brandenb. Charpentier. Hore Entomologice. Quensel. Dissert. Hist. Nat. Lund. 1790. — Mem. Acad. Se. Stockholm, 1792. Say, in Journ. Acad. Science. Nat. Philadelphia. Bulletin Soe. Nat. Mose. vol. yi.; and the general works above referred to. K 4 136 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. the mouth prominent, with strong exserted mandibles (fig. 10. 7. and 10. 2.), entire at the tips*; the thorax orbicular, or nearly semicir- cular, forming a shield to the head; the tarsi are 5-jointed, the fourth joint being but slightly smaller than the preceding (fig. 10. 6.); the labrum transverse and emarginate ; the palpi filiform, the last joint being slender ; the maxilla (fig. 10.3.) with two lobes, the external one narrowed at the base, and the internal armed with a corneocus hook ; the mentum transverse, and the labium large and cordate (fig. 10. 4.) the antenne are thickened at the tips (fig. 10. 7. * and 10. 5.). These insects are the most pre-eminently Necrophagous+ of the stirps, it being their duty to remove from the surface of the earth animal matter in a dead and putrifying state, which would otherwise become injurious to health; hence they are constantly found in carrion and the carcasses of animals already exposed to the attacks of flies and other insects, whose office it is first to make an inroad upon such substances, which these insects subsequently and more effectually remove. Some species, indeed, frequent trees, where they probably devour Lepidopterous larvee; others feed upon the inhabitants of small shells found upon the banks of rivers, where they station them- selves to lie in wait also for such dead animals as are thrown ashore. Thus the Rev. F. W. Hope informs me, that the Silpha laevigata feeds voraciously upon live snails, digging its strong jaws into the fleshy bodies of the latter, which in vain endeavour to escape. Its larva also exhibits similar propensities; and in like manner Linnaeus (Lachesis Lappon. vol. i. p. 152.) mentions an insect, evidently one of the flat Silphide from the figure, which feeds on fish, and is found running about amongst the scales of fish, as well as in the crevices of the floors of the Lapland huts, and which smells like rue. The Ne- crophagous species do not, however, strictly confine themselves to dead animal matter, since I have discovered individuals of Necrophorus vespillo devouring a large decaying fungus in which they had taken up their abode. The fetid odour which these insects possess, as well as a black nauseous fluid which they discharge from the mouth, renders them obnoxious. ‘This, however, is not emitted by speci- * Tn Silpha 4-punctata one of the mandibles is entire, and the other bifid at the tip (fig. 10. 2. and 2*.). + Mr. Kirby has separated the genus Necrophorus from the Necrophaga, and raised it to a section, Entaphia, of equivalent value with the Adephaga, Brache- lytra, &c., a step of which the adoption does not appear to me to be advisable. COLEOPTERA. -—— SILPHIDZ®. 137 mens recently arrived at the perfect state, nor by such as have long fasted; whence, as Olivier supposes, it is from the nature of their food that these insects derive their disgusting scent, which is some- times so strong as to penetrate every thing in the immediate neigh- bourhood, and which has been known to be retained for upwards of twenty years without diminution, or without the insect losing any- thing in weight. The fluid which they emit also serves to mollify the substance upon which they feed, forwarding its decomposition, or being useful as a means of defence. The wonderful instinct of these insects, on the other hand, renders them objects of interest, and of which the proceedings of the Sexton beetles (Necrophorus) de- tailed by Gleditsch in his fecreations of Natural History (Physical Botan. @con. Abhandl. Halle, 1765) offer an admirable example. These insects are powerful for their size, and run well; their flight is also very strong, the wings being long; their elytra during flight are carried in an upright position, their upper surfaces being almost brought into contact. The insect produces a slight but sharp kind of noise by the friction of its abdomen against the elytra. These insects are not uncommon ; and no sooner is any small dead animal, bird, or bit of flesh exposed in the open air, than the Sexton beetles make their appearance ; and after rigorously inspecting the object, as it were for the purpose of taking its dimensions, several of them commence operations by creeping beneath the carcass, where, by digging away the earth with their fore-legs beneath and around the animal, it by degrees descends into the ground, although many times larger than the insects engaged in burying it; they then cover it with earth, and sometimes, indeed, bury it nearly a foot deep, the opera- tion occupying only a few hours. In this labour the males assist, and soon after it is accomplished the females deposit their eggs in the carcass. The author above mentioned also records a still stronger instance of instinct exhibited by the same insects; some of which, in order to get possession of a mole fastened to a stick stuck upright in the ground, undermined the stick so that it soon fell to the earth. From an observation of M. Cadet de Vaux, it appears that whilst several individuals of Necrophorus vespillo labour in concert, the larger Necr. germanicus works alone; and according to Latreille the larvee of the Necrophori entirely consume the buried carcass, leaving neither skin nor bones. Hence it seems that the number of labourers is proportioned to the quantity of food necessary for the support of 138 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. their progeny; the great quantity of materials (viz. four frogs, three small birds, two fishes, one mole, two grasshoppers, the entrails of a fish, and two pieces of ox’s liver) which Gleditsch’s four confined beetles interred in a small piece of ground in fifty days, must, how- ever, have been much more than sufficient for the nourishment of their future progeny, and it was only because these carcasses were placed within their reach that they continued their burying propensities, The larvee hatched from the eggs deposited in the buried carcass (and which now serves for their nourishment) are fleshy, and of a long and spindle-shaped form (jig. 10. 8. larva of Necr. humator), narrowed at each end, with a scaly head, and a scaly plate upon the upper surface of each segment, diminishing in size upon the terminal segments, and having several strong spines on its surface, which, from the shortness and weakness of the legs, Latreille imagines are em- ployed in pushing the body through the putrifying matter in which the insects are found when full grown. These larvee are nearly an inch and a half in length. They then form for themselves a cell under ground, with the inner surface smooth and shining, and in which they assume the pupa state (fig. 10. 9.), being at first of a whitish colour, and having two strong anal spines whereby they are enabled to turn themselves about in their cell; as they advance to maturity they gradually assume a darker colour. The figures of the larva and pupa of Necrophorus humator are from Rosel’s Jnsect. Belustig. vol. iv. pl.1. In the Sexton beetles we have seen that as the larva is reared in the midst of a supply of food, it is provided only with weak legs anda cylindric fleshy body; but in the larvee of the flat species, composing the genera Silpha, Oiceoptoma, &c., which feed upon the same sub- stances as the perfect insect, and are compelled to seek their own food, the legs are much stronger ; the body more crustaceous, broad, and flat, thus representing the perfect insect; the posterior lateral angles of each segment are produced into a short but acute point ; the anterior or prothoracic segment is the largest, covering the head; the mouth is furnished with a pair of strong jaws, &c.; and the antenne are 3-jointed; the extremity of the legs is armed with a claw; the anal segment is furnished at the sides with two small slender conical ap- pendages without joints. These larve run quickly. They undergo their transformations in the ground. Figures of these last-mentioned kind of larve are given by De Geer (Mem. vol. iv. tab. 6. Phos- COLEOPTERA. — SILPHIDE. 139 phuga atrata.* Vol. vii. tab. 44. Oiceoptoma rugosa) ; Schiffer (Ab- handlung, vol. iii. pl. 7. Oiceoptoma thoracica, and Phosphuga atrata) ; and by Brullé, in the Epedition Scientifique de Morée, liv. iii. pl. 29. larva of Silpha —? with structural details. Dr. Heer, in his Observationes Entomologice, has published a detailed description, with figures of the larva of Silpha alpina Gon., which is broadly oval and subconvex, of a shining black colour, with the terminal segment of the body small and armed with two corneous conical spines ; the mandibles are robust and horny, with a small tooth near the tip; the maxillary terminal lobe is broad, and denticulated along the inner margin; the eyes are four on each side of the head, arranged in a square. Frisch has figured the transformations of Silpha obscura (Part vi. tab. 5.) I have found many of these larvae being of a broader or narrower form according to the species; but not having succeeded in rearing them, I have preferred figuring the larva of Oiceoptoma thoracica after Schaffer, but corrected. In some of my larve, the body exhibits thirteen distinct segments exclusive of the head ; the eleventh segment is trans- verse, and produced on each side behind into a point ; the twelfth is transverse, from the sides of which is emitted the pair of short slender conical processes above mentioned, which are about the length of the following joint, which is probably the exserted portion of the anal ap- paratus. In some of these larve the antenne (fig. 10. 14.) are nearly as long as the prothoracic segment, and nearly as thick as the legs; the lateral anal appendages are also in some of them articulated be- yond the middle. The mandibles, maxilla, and labium of the larva figured above are represented at figs. 10.11.12. and 13. I have also some larvae which I apprehend belong to this family, having the head not concealed beneath the prothorax, which is short and transverse, and the head broad; these have the anal appendages much larger than in the preceding. + M. Laporte has noticed a singular instance of vitality in Silpha carinata in the Annales de la Soc. Ent. de France, 1836, (p. xxx. vol. iv.), which lived a long time after its entrails had been entirely consumed by acari, with which it was infested. The name of the typical genus Silpha was employed by Aristotle * De Geer states this species became a pupa on the 24th of August, and arrived at the perfect state on the 2d of September. + Panzer (aun. Ins. Germ. 41. t. 7. ¢. d.) has represented the larva of one of the Silphide under the name of the female of Lampyris noctiluca. 140 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. for one of the insects which change their skin; and in one of the comedies of Aristophanes it is said to emit a disagreeable odour. Hence some authors have regarded it as a Blatta. As it is impossible, however, to decide upon the real application of the name, it would be absurd to alter the Linnzean nomenclature. The species of Necrophorus are the giants of the family, and indeed of the stirps Necrophaga. They have the elytra generally marked by broad irregular orange-coloured bands, and not covering the extremity of the abdomen. The other genera comprise species of black or obscure colours. The genus Agyrtes Folich, consisting of a single species, A. cas- taneus (incorrectly introduced into the English Fauna by Dr. Leach), is distinguished by the oval and convex form of the body, the longer and incrassated palpi, and the gradually thickened antenne; the tibiz are compressed and spined. A species of the genus Peltidion St. Farg and Serv. (Peltis Fab., which Mr. Stephens introduces into the family Silphide, but which is nearer allied to Thymalus) has also been improperly introduced into the English lists. The two last noticed genera thus indicate a passage to the following families, The third family Nrriputipa# * MacLeay (Nitidulariz Zatr.) is nearly allied to the preceding family in the general economy of the insects of which it is composed, many of which are found amongst bones and other animal remains; others, however, frequent various fungi, or reside beneath the bark of trees; whilst some of the smaller * Bisriocr. Rerer. ro THE NItTimpuLipz£. Kugellan in Schneider. Mag. vol. iv. Illiger in ditto, vol. vy. — Ditto, Kafer Preuss. vol. i. Laicharting. Verz. Tyroler. Ins. Zur. 1781. Panzer. Der Naturforscher St. 24. Latreille. Gen. Cr. &e. vol. ii. Say. Journ. Acad. Science. Philadelph. vol. ui. Kirby, in Trans. Linn. Soe. vol. xii. Perty. Delect. Anim. Articul. Braz.,and Introduction to ditto (G. Rogodon- Psi- lotus. Fischer.) Dalman. Ephem. Entomol. (G. Acrops. ) Erichson, in Nova. Acta. vol. xvi. Fischer, in Bullet. Soc. Imp. Nat. de Moscow, 1829 (G. Psilotus) ; ditto, vol. vi. Trans. Acad. Roy. Naples, vol. i. and the general works of Fabricius, Olivier, Stephens, Gyllenhall, Se. COLEOPTERA. —NITIDULID. 141 species are found in great profusion in flowers, especially those of the white thorn ; these last are frequently of metallic colours. ‘The body is generally broad, oval, and more or less depressed, having the lateral margins strongly elevated (fig. 10.15. Nitidula grisea); the man- dibles are elongate, and bifid or notched at the tips (fig. 10. 17.); the palpi are filiform, and never thickened at the extremity (fig. 10. 18. maxilla, and 10. 19. labium with their palpi); the club of the antenne is abrupt, short, and composed of two or three joints (fig. 10. 16.), the last of which is sometimes (as in Strongylus) terminated by a kind of wart; the thorax is transverse, and emarginate in front to receive the head; the anterior tarsi (fig. 10. 20.) have the three basal joints in general dilated and occasionally bifid; and the elytra in some of the genera are truncate, and do not entirely cover the abdomen. The greater portion of these insects are inhabitants of our own country : they are of small size, none exceeding a quarter of an inch in length, and of obscure colours; those, however, which are found under bark exhibit various markings of pale colour. The larve of these insects, so far as known, considerably resemble those of the typical Silphide. In the first volume of the Linnean Transactions, Mr. William Curtis published an account of Nitidula grisea (recently introduced into the Arboretum Britannicum of Mr. Loudon, p. 1479.), which inhabits willow trees, feeding upon the moist and fermenting sawdust-like substance occasioned by the ravages of the Rhyncheenus lapathi. The larvae are somewhat depressed, of a dirty white colour, with six scaly legs; and the extremity of the body is also furnished with four small horny conical appendages curved upwards ; each segment is also beset with several short stiff hairs, and the lateral margins of the abdominal segments are furnished with a small fleshy somewhat conical protuberance ; the under side of the extremity of the body is also provided with an appendage which is employed as an additional leg. It is in similar situations that I have met with this larva which I have represented in jig. 11.1.; Mr. Curtis's figure not giving a correct idea of the form of the head. The pup are to be found beneath the surface of the ground amongst the moist earth and sawdust, as well as the perfect insects, which are also to be observed in the crevices of the bark. M. Bouché (Naturg. der Insekt. p. 188.) has described the larva of Nitidula obsoleta as being of a linear and flattened form, with a round head; short 4-jointed antennz ; and with a pair of diverging 142 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. nearly straight horns on the terminal segment. The same author has also described and figured the larva of Strongylus (Nitidula) ferru- ginea (jig. 11. 2.), which materially differs from those above described, being cylindrical, wrinkled, clothed with short hairs, the legs mo- derately long, and the abdomen obtuse at the extremity. It is found in autumn and winter in Lycoperdon bovista (fig. 11. 3. anterior tarsus of its imago). The genus Byturus (fig. 11. 5. B. tomentosus) in its habit of fre- quenting flowers, and in the bilobed form of the third and minute size of the fourth joints of the tarsus, approaches the Nitidulida, from which, however, it recedes in several important particulars. It is placed in the family Engidee by Stephens. ~ Bouché describes its larva as cylindrical, depressed in front ; antennee conical, 4-jointed; and the abdomen as terminated above by two brown curved points, and beneath with a cylindrical tubercle employed as a proleg. It feeds in June and July on the fruit of the raspberry, and is called in German “ him- beermade,” or the raspberry maggot. Kirby and Spence also state (Intro. i. 197.) that the perfect insect eats through the footstalk of the blossom of the same plant, so as sometimes to prove fatal to an entire crop. Dr. Hammerschmidt (De Insectis Agriculture damnosis, &c, Vienna, 1832, tab. 3.) has figured this insect with its larva feeding on the raspberry. The latter is represented in my fig. 11. 4., cor- responding with Bouché’s description. The pupa is very pilose. The typical species of this family are very nearly allied to the genus Ips in the following group; indeed the structure of the mouth is very similar, whence by some authors the latter genus has been introduced into the present family. ‘The general appearance of the insects, however, and the decided affinity of Ips to Cerylon, Ne- COLEOPTERA. — ENGID#. 143 mosoma, &c., induces me, in accordance with the views which I have more fully detailed in the sixteenth volume of the Linnean Trans- actions, to keep the two groups distinct. The fourth family ENcipa MaeLeay is an extensive group of insects, of very difficult location in a natural system, differing from the Nitidulidee in the more elongate form of the body and simple tarsi, and from the Dermestide in the more developed structure of the mandibles, and the generally more glabrous body. So diversified, however, is the structure of the various minor groups introduced by MacLeay and Stephens into the family, that it is next to impossible to lay down any general character. Latreille, as before observed, from giving too great a weight to the tarsal system, distributed these insects amongst his Pentamerous, Heteromerous, and Tetramerous sections; the greater portion, however, constituted his tribe of Xylo- phaga introduced between the Rhyncophora and Longicornes ; Sco- lytus, Apate, &c., being considered as the links uniting the group with the former, and Trogosita and Cucujus with the latter. It is true, indeed, that in many of these insects there are but four distinct tarsal joints; but at the same time it is equally evident that the great di- visions typified by Curculio and Cerambyx have so striking an uni- formity in the structure of their tarsi and the apod character of the larve, that the introduction of such heterogeneous groups as La- treille’s Xylophaga between them cannot be considered otherwise than as most unnatural. We know, however, too little of these groups, most of the species of which are of minute size, and have been much neglected, to speak with precision upon their various relations. In the Régne Animal we find these insects forming the following tribes : — Engidites amongst the Pentamera; the typical genera Paussus, Bos- trichus, Monotoma, Mycetophagus, and Trogosita, amongst the Xylo- phaga, and the tribe of Platysoma (Cucujus). Mr. MacLeay also considers Triplax and Languria to enter into the family Engidee, which latter genus would also necessitate the introduction of the Erotylide, the real pentamerous structure of the tarsi of which is clearly proved by an examination of such genera as Ips, Engis, Triplax, and Ero- 144: MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. tylus.* If, however, the Erotylide be thus introduced, the Endomy- chide appear to me to be too closely allied to them to be rejected. Mr. MacLeay, indeed, suggests that it is by the Erotylide that the opposite points of the circle of Coleoptera meet. One thing is, however, certain as regards these insects; namely, that although the tarsi in the Coleoptera generally offer a decided constancy of cha- racter in exclusive groups, they here exhibit numberless variations, even in the sexes of the same species (fig. 12. 9. 10. and 17. 18.). From these considerations, and from the very variable structure of the insects introduced into the family Engide, especially in their larva state, it will be evident that the family requires much subdivision ; a step which ought cautiously to be taken. With a view to effecting this, I have dissected many of the genera, and have been fortunate in procuring a considerable number of their larve ; but I would not wish the groups subsequently given to be regarded otherwise than as pro- visional. We have already seen that some of the genera, such as Ips and its allies, are nearly allied to the Nitidulida. The general habits of these and other approximating genera indicate a group, of which, both as regards the larvae and form of the trophi, I have regarded ‘Trogosita to be the type. In the majority of these the maxille are terminated by a large single lobe (fig. 11. 17. and 12. 4.), and the larve are more or less fleshy, with two short curved hooks at the extremity of the body. The affinity of these insects with the Cucujide, and of the latter with the Pausside, I have endeavoured to prove in the Zool. Journ. and Linn. Trans. There still, however, remain a number of genera which I would provisionally arrange with Mycetophagus, al- though I cannot but admit that they have but little real relation there- with. The Erotylide, notwithstanding their evident relation with Engis and Dacne, I have provisionally removed from the family. As regards the habits of these groups, it may be generally observed that they are found under the bark of trees, or in fungi, chiefly feed- ing upon decaying vegetable matter; never attacking either living or dead animal matter. * See the observations of M. Lacordaire, upon the strong affinity existing be- tween Engis and Erotylus, both in form and habits. In the larva state, the former reside in Boleti, &e., and it is also upon or in the neighbourhood of such pro- ductions that the perfect insects are found in South America. (Ann. Soc. Ent. France, vol. i. p. 359.) COLEOPTERA. — TROGOSITIDES. 145 The first subfamily, which I would name TRoGostTIpEs*, comprises not only the Trogositarie of Latreille (which Stephens and Curtis, following Latreille, remove from its legitimate affinities, and place between the Curculionide and Cerambycidz), but also many genera placed in the family Engidz, which latter name I have not retained for the subfamily, because, from the structure of the maxille of Engis (fig. 11. 8.), it does not appear to be so typical a form as Trogosita (fig. 11.17.). These insects have the body more or less oblong, and generally polished (fig. 11. 6. Engis rufifrons, 11. 14. Trogosita mau- ritanica); the antennz short, clavate, and composed of ten or eleven joints (fig. 11. 10.); the maxillary palpi scarcely longer than the produced lobe or lobes of the maxillz (fig. 11. 8. and 17.); the labium is advanced in front of the mentum (fig. 11. 9. and 18.) ; the labrum is transverse (fig. 11. 15.), and the mandibles generally bifid at the tips (fig. 11.7. and 11.16.); the tarsi are simple, and often 4-jointed ; in some, however, there are five joints, in which case one of them is of a minute size (fig. 11.11. anterior, 11. 12. posterior tarsi of Engis ; 11. 19. anterior, 11. 20. posterior tarsi of Trogosita). In addition to the affinities above noticed, the relations of this group with other insects is not less striking. Thus in the subcortical habits and form, as well as in the structure of the larvee of such genera as Cerylon and Rhyzophagus, an approach is made towards the Heteromerous genera Hypophleus, &c.; whilst the grain-feeding habits of Trogosita are very similar to those of Uloma, &c. as well as to some of the smaller Cucujide. + * Bristiocr. Rerer. to THE TRoGosIrIpEs. MacLeay. Annulosa Javanica. Gory and Percheron. Genera des Insectes. Westwood, in Zool. Journ. ; and in Trans. Soe. Linn. vol. xvi. Hellwig and Kugellan, in Schneider’s Mag. Thunberg, in Act. Upsal. vol. iv. Burrell, in Trans. Ent. Soe. vol. i. Aubé, in Ann. Soe. Ent. France, 1837. (Monogr. Monotoma). Fabricius. Determinatio Generis Ips affiniumque, in Act. Soc. Hist. Nat. Paris, telee tale. Der 2i6 Boerner. Ockon. Nachr. der Gesellsch. in Sehlesien, b. iv. s. 73. Westerhauser.. Monogr. on Cryptophagus, in Gistl’s Faunus, No. 1. Sturm. Deutchslands Fauna Insecten. + Gyllenhal, MacLeay, and Kirby regard the Trogositide as connected with the Lucanidex ; whilst Latreille is considered by the last-named author as correct in connecting the Xylophaga with the Capricornes by means of the Platysoma Latr. L 146 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Some of the species subsist upon the sap exuding from wounds in various trees. It is in such situations in the New Forest that the rare Synchita (Cicones Curt.) variegata Hellw. has been taken by Messrs. Hope and Rudd. I have found the larve of Rhyzophagus (Cerylon) bipustulatus (fg. 12.1.) in company with the perfect insect under the bark of trees in Kensington Gardens. They are long, narrow, and slightly convex, with six short legs; the antennz and trophi also short, and the terminal segment is furnished with a pair of small diverging spines. Mr. Curtis forms this genus into a family named Cerylonide, considered to be allied to the Heteromerous Hy- pophleeus ; but its entire habit, structure of the mouth, and economy are too near to the other insects amongst which it is here introduced to allow the variations in the tarsi, which are here also Heteromerous, to prevail. The rare Nemosoma elongatum ( fig. 12. 3.—fig. 12. 4. its maxilla) is found under the bark of old elm rails, frequenting the firmly fixed bark, and in company with great numbers of Hylesinus varius, which appear to me to make the labyrinth-like passages which have been at- tributed to the Nemosoma. Mr. T. Ingall discovered this insect in profusion near Sydenham, and was so kind as to conduct me to the spot, where I found many specimens. During the day they were slug- gish; but I observed that their motions by candlelight were much more active, reminding me of a small Lathrobium: when they ap- proached their companions they opened their strong jaws very widely, and attempted to bite each other. In company with these I also dis- covered the larve (fig. 12. 2.), which are very long, narrow, and sub- depressed, having a very quick motion when excited, and when touched throwing themselves into various attitudes like a small Sta- COLEOPTERA.— TROGOSITIDES,. 147 phylinus.. Unless excited or in fear their movements are slow, like the imago. The jaws are much exserted, and frequently opened whilst creeping about. The head is flat, and in walking it is constantly in motion from side to side, or upwards and downwards. They draw the abdomen after them by the contraction of the rings, affixing them- selves in their advanced position by means of an anal proleg; and in running backwards, which they easily do, they fasten themselves by this proleg, and then pull the rest of the body towards it; when fastening themselves by the legs again they extend the body back- wards, again affixing themselves by the anal proleg. The last segment of the body is furnished above with two small spines. The larva (fig. 11. 21.) of Trogosita caraboides (fig. 11. 14.) is long, narrow, especially towards the head, white, fleshy, and with long scattered hairs; the head small and piceous, as well as two spots on each of the thoracic segments ; the last abdominal segment has two rather strong conical spines. This larva is termed by the French Cadelle, and is extremely injurious to housed grain, upon which it feeds. There is a memoir by Mr. Kirkupp on this insect in Lxtomo- logical Trans. pt. 3.; and anotherby M. Dorthes upon its ravages in granaries, and an account of its transformations, noticed in Latreille’s Hist. Generale, vol. xi. Dr. Hammerschmidt has also figured this insect in its different states in his memoir De Insectis Agriculture damnosis, Vienna, 4to. 1832, pl. 2. Mr. MacLeay observes of the larva of Tribolium (Colydium Herdst.) castaneum, that it scarcely differs from that of Dermestes, except in being less hirsute (Ana. Javanica, No. 92.). I am indebted to M. V. Audouin for a figure and description of the larva of Colydium suleatum (fig. 12. 5.), which resides beneath the bark of the elm. The larva is long, subdepressed, slightly curved; with three pairs of short tho- racic legs, and a pair of short recurved horny sharp points upon the terminal segment of the body. Dr. Ratzeburg has also figured this insect in its different states in his Forst-Insecten, representing the larva as creeping in a horizontal position, and not with the body curved; the pupa is very much elongated, with two short obtuse points at the extremity of the body. Engis rufifrons (fig. 11.6.) inhabits Boleti. I am indebted to Dr, Dickson for a specimen of Boletus polymorphus, in which a great num- ber of this insect had been reared, and in which I also discovered the larve (jig. 11.13.) in great profusion, which are narrow, somewhat L 2 148 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. cylindric and scaly ; with six short legs, and two strong short points at the extremity of the body, which is sparingly clothed with scattered hairs. In this genus we do not find the subcortical habits of the sub- family ; and the lobe of the maxilla, which in the true subcortical spe- cies is elongated and ciliated, for lapping up sap, is here shorter, broader, and the internal lobe developed (jig. 11.8.). This is also the case in Cryptophagus (jig. 12. 7. C. cellaris, 12. 8. its maxille), which feed in puff balls, in one of which I found a great number of the larve (fig. 12.6.) in the month of September. They are long, narrow, subconvex, somewhat fleshy, with the sides of the segments with small fleshy tubercles, six short legs, and two distant short points on the last segment of the body. The majority died without undergoing transformation; but I afterwards found the perfect insect in the crevices of the puff ball in the box in which the larvae had been placed. The larva also agrees with Bouché’s description of the larva of Cryp- tophagus lycoperdi (Naturg. p.91.). The posterior tarsi vary in the sexes (fig. 12.9. 10.) ; the individuals with 4-jointed tarsi have been supposed to be females, but from analogy with Cucujus (fig. 12. 17. 18.) I apprehend they are the males. M. Macquart (Ann. Se. Nat. vol, xxiii. p. 94.) has described a new species of Cryptophagus (C. bette), which does much damage in fields of beet-root by de- vouring the plants as soon as they appear above ground. S or Boos SKS F - oc & es Sos Scarabeide. Mandibula membranacez. Cetoniida. wee Lar} _e Sas aS. O.°mt on 3 &2°5 Aphodiide. Maxille processu membranaceo. Gluphyrida: eS S os oS in” 2a OQ : : Maxille dentate ; mandibule : SES ee Trogide. One: va \: eee Melolonthide. aes Q-e acutiusculz laniatores. a S ad S C-4 = sae ; : Sos > 8 [eee dentate, vel were "es — . . e 7 =o “4 Dynastide. mandibule obtuse, mo- } Anoplognathide. aa roe aS) A . A, — © So °c l lares vel incisoriz, J lS AH rs ta a? Besides the analogous character afforded by the structure of the mouth, the opposite families in each group have a striking similarity to each other in general form, although their analogies can only be gathered from the most general view that can be taken of the differ- ent groups. But the most remarkable of Mr. MacLeay’s views was, that each of these two columns is capable of forming a circle; the Geotrupide being connected with the Dynastide by Orphnus and Oryctes, and the Rutelide with the Anoplognathide, by means of * The recently observed habits of this family clearly prove that it ought to be inserted amongst the Phyllophaga. See post. Oo 4 200 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Pelidnota and Arecda; the two circles touching one another at the families Dynastide and Anoplognathide, which are intimately con- nected, by means of Dasygnathus and Amblyterus, in the following manner : — Geotrupide. Rutelide. Scarabeide. Cetonitde. Dynastide. Anoplognathid@. Aphodiide. Glaphyrid@. Melolonthide. Trogide. These ten families are well represented by the ten following species : — Geotrupes stercorarius, Scarabzeus sacer, Aphodius Fossor, Trox sabulosus, Oryctes nasicornis, Rutela lineola, Cetonia aurata, Amphi- coma hirta, Melolontha brunnea, and Anoplognathus ; and Mr. Mac- Leay has taken this occasion to observe how necessary to the ento- mologist is the study of exotic insects, as five of the above-named species do not inhabit this country. Latreille, profiting by the re- searches of Mr. MacLeay, considerably modified his former views, dis- tributing the Petalocera, for which he advantageously retained the name of Scarabeeides, in the following manner, in his Familles Natu- relles : — | I. Coprophagi. ——- Antenne 8 or 9-jointed; labrum, mandibles, and maxilla, mem- branous. [Aphodiide and Scarabzide. | II. Antenne 10 or 11-jointed. 1. Mandibles corneous. A. Arenicole. — Mandibles and labrum exposed ; anus covered by the elytra, [ Geotrupidx and Trogide. | B. Mandibles and labrum concealed ; anus uncovered. a. Labium concealed by the mentum. * Nylophili. — Antenne 10-jointed; mandibles laterally exposed ; maxilla various. [Dynastide and Rutelidz. ] ** Phyllophagi. — Antenne 8 to 10-jointed; mandibles hidden by the clypeus and maxille; club of antenne sometimes 7 or 5-jointed. [ Anoplognathidz and Melolonthide. ] b, Anthobii. — Labium produced; mandibles corneous; maxillary lobe membranous. [Glaphyride. | 2. Melitophili. — Mandibles membranous. — [ Cetoniide. ] Here we find a portion only of the ground Scarabzei regarded as forming a section of equivalent rank with the entire remainder of the COLEOPTERA. — GEOTRUPID®. 201 Petalocera, which must be clearly unnatural ; whilst, on the other hand, if we look at the groups per se, and as of equal rank, we find the Xylophili composed of a most heterogeneous assemblage. I shall therefore adopt the groups proposed by Mr. MacLeay, observing only that they appear to be of equivalent rank with the divisions of the Carabide, and which it would be more convenient (in order to retain the Linnzan name Scarabeeus, in its Linnean extent) to regard as subfamilies, in the same manner as I have dealt with the Brachinides, &c. The first of Mr. MacLeay’s families, GeorruPID”, Is distinguished by the membranaceous structure of the maxillary lobes (fig. 20. 4.), Fig. 20. Z ! 18 by the porrected, curved, and horny mandibles (fig. 20. 2. and 20. 3.), the elytra rounded behind, and entirely covering the abdomen ; the tibiae broad and toothed; the labrum exposed (fig. 20. 2.), as well as the labium, which is bilobed ( fig. 20. 5. and 20. 6.) ; the fleshy tongue, large and internal ( fig. 20. 6.) ; antenne 10 or 11-jointed, the club large, subglobose, and 3-jointed, the middle joint of the club encased in the preceding (fig. 20. 7, 8.) ; the body short, thick, and convex, generally of a black colour (jig. 20. 1. Geotrupes vernalis); the elytra smooth, or simply striated; the males, in some species, are furnished with horns, or other sexual peculiarities; the thorax is broader than long ; the scutellum generally distinct. These insects perform an important part in the economy of nature, by feeding upon and burrowing under newly fallen dung ; thus not only diminishing the quantity of excrementitious matter, by devouring it, but also contributing to its dissemination in the earth, by the burrows 202 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. which they make. Such are especially the habits of the typical spe- cies of which our English shard-borne beetle (Scarabeus stercorarius Linn.) may be cited as one of the best known examples. Commentators have been at variance respecting the name of this insect *; some considering that it ought to be named the shard-borm (that is, born in shard, or dung) beetle ; and others, that the name should be written shard-borne (that is, borne, during flight, upon its shards, or scaly wing-covers). Some of the extreme genera of the family are said to feed upon roots, and may often be considered as even lignivorous. ‘They fly after sunset, and in the twilight, and counterfeit death, when alarmed, in a manner quite unlike that practised by the Byrrhide, &c. ; namely, by rigidly extending the legs. The New Holland genus Elephastomus MacZ. is distinguished by having the clypeus produced in front into along and narrow deflexed horn; furnished, on its under surface, near the base, with a second and shorter perpendicular horn, immediately in front of, and extending far below, the mouth. The Brazilian Hybosori frequent human excrement, without, how- ever, burying themselves in it. The Athyrei and Odontei resemble the Coprides in their habits, although some of the latter are found in grass and rotten wood (Perty, Del. An., art. Braz., and Lacordaire). The genus Lethrus Scop. consists of several curious species, inha- biting the south-eastern parts of Europe ; having the club of the an- tenne triangular, the two terminal joints being concealed within the extremity of the basal joint of the club ; the mandibles are very large, and furnished with a strong horn on the under side. They burrow in the ground, and do great mischief by gnawing off the young shoots of the vines, upon which they feed. Each burrow is inhabited by a pair ; and violent battles sometimes occur between the male and an intruder of its own sex. (Fischer, Ant. Russ. v. i.) The insects of this family are chiefly inhabitants of moderate cli- mates ; the numbers found in the temperate zone, as compared with those from the tropics, and from latitudes higher than 60°, being in the proportions of 10, 2,1; the greater number of known specics being found in Russia, Siberia, Central Europe, and North America. The * See Heineken, in Zool. Journ., No. 18. p.197.; Kirby and Spence, vol. i. p. 892.; Brit. Cycloped. vol. ii. art. Geotrupide; and Patterson’s Letters, COLEOPTERA. — SCARABAIDE. 9203 only species of Geotrupes found in the other parts of Asia is one brought from the Himalaya Mountains by J. FP. Royle, Esq., and figured in his work upon the botany and natural history of that region. The Geotrupide are distinguished from the Scarabzide and Apho- diide by their robust horny mandibles, and from the Trogidz and Dynastide by the membranaceous lobes of the maxilla. They are generally of a moderate size, when compared with some of the other Saprophaga, although the typical species found in this country may be considered as sufficiently conspicuous. The species of Geotrupes (respecting the number and variations of which considerable differences of opinion exist) are distinguished by the splendid metallic tints with which the under side of the body is adorned. The Bolboceri are of small size: they have been found, according to M. Le Vaillant, in considerable numbers in the stomachs of frogs and toads. They fly in the twilight. The second family, ScARABAID#, as restricted by Mr. MacLeay, is an extensive and important group, distinguished by the large, advanced, and generally notched clypeus, which conceals not only the membran- ous labrum, but also the mandibles, which are corneous at the base, but terminating in a long, lanceolate, compressed, membranaceous plate ( fig. 20. 10.), having its internal margin and apex ciliated ; the antennz are 8 or 9-jointed, with a 3-jointed club; the body is ge- nerally broad and depressed ( fig. 20. 9. Scarabzeus (Heliocantharus) puncticollis, from the south of Europe); the legs are long, the inter- mediate legs being inserted more widely apart than the others, and having the coxe elongated, and more or less longitudinal, causing the metasternum to appear as a wide plate between the base of these legs ( fig. 20. 13. underside of meso and metathorax and ab- domen of Chalconotus cupreus) ; the posterior legs are also placed far back, so that the abdomen is reduced to a small size ; the maxillz are terminated by two membranous lobes (fig. 20. 11.); the labial palpi are very pilose, with the last joint much smaller than the pre- ceding (jig. 20.12.) ; the scutellum is not exposed ; the elytra are ge- nerally somewhat square behind, exposing the extremity of the abdo- men; the anterior tarsi, in some species, are entirely wanting *; the claws are minute; the anterior tibia are externally 3-dentate, with a * See Brullé in Ann, Scienc. Nat., 1837. 204 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. single spur; the intermediate tibize have one or two calcaria, whilst the posterior have but one. These insects compose a very numerous group of dung-feeding La- mellicorns, of which, however, the majority are inhabitants of tropical countries*, few only being found in our island, and those but of small size. Some of the tropical species, as the metallic Coprides, are amongst the most bulky species of beetles. The species are gene- rally of a black hue; but amongst them are to be found some (es- pecially the Phanzi, many Coprobii, Onthophagi, &c.) adorned with the richest metallic colours. From the great similarity in the structure of the mouth of all these insects, a great uniformity of habits is evident. But a more remark- able peculiarity exists in the structure and situation of the hind legs, which are placed so near the extremity of the body, and so far from each other, as to give the insect a most extraordinary appearance whilst walking. This peculiar formation is, nevertheless (as Mr. Mac- Leay well observes), particularly serviceable to its possessors in rolling the balls of excrementitious matter in which they enclose their eggs; whence these insects were named by the first naturalists Pilulariz. These balls are at first irregular and soft, but, by degrees, and during the process of rolling along, become rounded and harder: they are pro- pelled by means of the hind legs; and the insects occasionally mount to the top, when they find a difficulty in urging them along ; probably in order to destroy the equilibrium, Sometimes these balls are an inch and a half or two inches in diameter ; and in rolling them along the beetles stand almost upon their heads, with their heads turned from the balls. These manceuvres have for their object the burying of the balls in holes, which the insects have previously dug for their recep- tion; and it is upon the dung, thus deposited, that the larvae, when hatched, feed. It does not appear that these beetles have the instinct to distinguish their own balls, as they will seize upon those belonging to another, in case they have lost their own; and, indeed, it is said that several of them occasionally assist in rolling the same ball. The males, as well as the females (of Gymnopleurus pilularius, at least), assist in rolling the pellets. They fly during the hottest part of the day. (See Dysderi, in Trans. Soc. Turin. vol. iii., Ent. Mag. vol. ii. * Mr. MacLeay stated the proportions which the tropical Scarabeeide bear to those from without the tropics to be nearly as 5:1. The former numbex has, however, been greatly increased of late years. COLEOPTERA. — SCARABZIDE. 2905 p. 187., Buckingham, Voy. in Mesopotamia, vol. ii. p. 410., Mag. Nat. Hist. No. 27., Literary Gazette, 1829, p. 686., Ionicus, in Ant. Mag. iii. 377., Sells, Ent. Trans. 2. p. xxiv.) M. Westermann has observed (Silberm. Revue Ent. No. 3.) the habits of Pachysoma /Esculapius (Cape G. H.), which does not roll balls like the Sacred beetles and Gymnopleuri, but carries and buries pieces of dried dung, by the help of its hind legs, which are pressed against the body. These legs are differently formed in this insect and in Scarabzeus; thus proving the correctness of Mr. Kirby’s re- mark, that the hind legs in the latter were analogous to the fore legs in Onites. The North American Scar. volvens, which, as the name implies, is a ball-roller, is, however, a Coprobius, with the hind legs slender; but the tarsi are terminal. Colonel Sykes has published some interesting observations on the Economy of the Indian Copris Midas, and the globular balls of earth and sand in which the pupa is enclosed. ( Zrans. Entom. Soc. Lond. vol. i. p. 130.) I have been indebted to W. Sells, Esq., for the some- what similar cells of Copris lunaris. “ The Sisyphus Scheefieri also rolls pellets. I could not discover the use of its long hind legs.” (Ionicus, in Ant. Mag.) It is curious that this writer should have noticed this fact immediately in con- nection with the proceedings of the Gymnopleurus and Scarabeus (which use their hind legs in rolling their pellets), and not have said in what manner the pellets are propelled by the Sisyphus. The Brazilian Anamnesis Macleayii Vigors is found, according to Perty, in carcases in the month of October. The Hybome frequent dung, but do not burrow. H. erythroptera, however, is found amongst leaves, running quickly, and flying in the hottest part of the day. Co- probius castanopterus is also a constant flier, and is found in rotten wood. The brilliantly coloured Brazilian Coprobii are found both in dung and amongst the leaves, and not uncommonly congregated round the flowing wounds of trees; others frequent dung alone, but do not burrow (except C. carbonarius). The Eurysterni are similar in their habits to these last. ‘The Coprides and Phanzei dig deep and oblique burrows, frequenting dung alone, and make a creaking noise, by rubbing the abdomen against the tips of the elytra. Ph. melon De). is, however, found under dead fish, and has a strong scent of musk; and Ph. nigro-violaceus, and sulcatus dig holes beneath, and bury, dead colubers in a few hours. The Brazilian Onthophagi are similar in 206 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. their habits to the European species; some, however, frequent the flowing wounds of trees, as, indeed, is occasionally the case with the European Onthophagus ovatus (Perty, Delect. Animal., art. Braz. p- 9, 10., and Lacordaire). The type of this family is the renowned “ Sacred beetle ” of the Egyptians, of which so many models, carvings, amulets, &c., are dis- covered, occasionally of a gigantic size, in sarcophagi, and rolled up in the mummies and other ancient relics of that remarkable people, by whom its appearance in great numbers on the sandy margins of the Nile, after the annual rising and falling of the river, together with its extraordinary motions whilst rolling along its little globular balls of dung, were regarded as mystically representing the resurrection of the soul, the motions of the earth and sun, &c. Latreille, who has published a memoir upon these Sacred beetles in the fifth volume of the Mém. du Muséum, translated by Bennett, in the first volume of the Zoological Journal, and in the Appendix to the Voyage to Meroe of M. Caillaud, considers the species which he has named Ateuchus Agyptiorum, and which is of a fine greenish colour, as that which especially engaged the attention of the early Egyptians, being found by M. Caillaud in Sennari, where their first settlements were established.* Mouffet, with his usual cumbrous loquacity, has given a long account of these insects and their supposed virtues. It was also regarded as the emblem of fertility ; and, even at the present day, we are informed by Dr. Clarke that it is eaten by the women of Egypt. ‘The various species of Sacred beetles, whereof Dejean enumerates twenty-six, are distinguished by their flattened form, radiated clypeus, long hind legs, clothed with hairs, with the posterior tarsi obliquely in- serted; head and thorax unarmed, and elytra, with the margins not sinuated, constituting the genus Ateuchus Weber, or the subgenus Heliocantharus MacLeay; the latter name being adopted from the Greek “HAwoxaryOapoc, being the term given to these celebrated insects by the early naturalists. This family is nearly allied, on the one hand, to the Aphodiide (with which, indeed, Latreille united it, under the name Coprophagi), from which, however, it is distinguished by the broad, orbiculate form of the body, the elongated mandibles, and the large metasternum. From the Geotrupide they are easily distin- guished by the large size of the head, the clypeus entirely covering * See also the Naturalist’s Library, art. Entomol., vol. ii. p. 188. COLEOPTERA. — APHODIID. 207 the parts of the mouth, and by the membranous mandibles. There are only two British genera (Copris and Onthophagus), of which the species are found in the spring, especially frequenting cow-dung. [ have communicated a memoir, comprising observations on this family, and the description of some remarkable exotic forms, to the Zoolo- gical Society of London, and which is published in the last part of the Transactions of that Society. The third family, ApHopiipa MacLeay, comprises those Copropha- gous species which have the body of an oblong or oval shape, rounded at the extremity, with the abdomen entirely concealed by the elytra (fig. 20.14. Aphodius Fossor); the legs placed at equal distances from each other; the mandibles short, dilated, and coriaceous (fig. 20. 15.); the scutellum is distinct and exposed; the labial palpi are glabrous, with the third and last joints often larger or longer than the preceding (jig. 20. 17.); the clypeus is entire, and never dentate, occasionally tubercular ; and the maxille are terminated by two membranous lobes (fig. 20. 16.) ; the antennz are 9-jointed (fig. 20. 18.). These insects are nearly allied to the Scarabeide, both in their antennze, organs of the mouth, and legs; the sexual differences are, however, less decided, the head never being armed with horns. The chief difference between the two families consists in the more elongated form of the body, the ordinary sized metasternum, and the developed scutelium in the Aphodiide. The species of this family are amongst the most minute of Lamel- licorn beetles. They are far more abundant in this country than any other Petalocera, especially during the spring months, swarming in the dung of the larger herbivorous animals, or hovering over it as soon as it is dropped. Their metropolis appears to be in the temperate zones of the northern hemisphere, in which the proportion of species, as compared to the tropical species, is stated by Mr. MacLeay as at 8:1; appearing to replace with us the want of the Scarabeide. Dejean gives a list of one hundred and fifty-two species of Aphodius, from various quarters of the world, including the Cape, Madagascar, California, and the Mauritius. None, however, have been received, either by him or by Mr. MacLeay, from New Holland* ; a peculiarity * Thave received two species from Van Diemen’s Land, collected by R. H. Lewis, Esq.; and the Rey. F. W. Hope has others. 208 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. in entomological geography dependent, as Mr. MacLeay observes, upon the want in the Australasian continent of all large herbivorous Mammalia, except of the marsupial kind. Some of the species feed upon vegetable matter in a decaying state, especially such as are found upon the sea coast (Psammodius), and in which the maxillz are of a more horny consistence, thus leading naturally to the following family. From the Geotrupide and Trogide these insects are distinguished by the structure of the mandibles, which, together with the labrum, are concealed beneath the large produced clypeus, and the short glabrous palpi. The fourth family, Trocipa of MacLeay, is a family of but moderate extent, although very generally dispersed over the surface of the globe (fig. 20.19. Trox sabulosus) ; and is distinguished by hav- ing the labrum coriaceous, and exserted ; the antenne 9 or 10-jointed ; the club 3-jointed, the lamelle being apart; the labium is entirely concealed by the mentum (jig. 20. 22.); the mandibles are herny, and sometimes toothed (jig. 20. 20.); the maxilla are terminated by two lobes, often corneous and toothed (fig. 20. 21.); the body is ovate and gibbose, the elytra being inflexed at the sides; the scu- tellum is distinct, and the anterior tibia are often but imperfectly toothed on the outside; the head is deflexed; the thorax short, and transverse, posteriorly sinuated, with the anterior angles advanced. Some of the species are destitute of wings,—a peculiarity not observed in any other of the Linnzan Scarabei; the elytra are very rugose, and often clothed with patches of short thick hairs or scales. This family is related to the Geotrupidz (with which Latreille has, indeed, united it, under the name of Arenicoli), in the exserted labrum and horny jaws; as well as to the Aphodiide, as above noticed. From these groups, however, they are sufficiently removed both in their structure and habits. They also bear a certain resemblance to some of the Histeridz. These insects produce a creaking kind of noise by alternately rubbing the anterior part of the mesothorax against the prothoracic cavity, or more probably the extremity of the abdomen against the elytra. They also possess the habit of counterfeiting death when alarmed, in the same manner as the Histeride. COLEOPTERA. — TROGID®., 209 The habits of the insects of this family have not been very satis- factorily recorded. If, indeed, as Mr. MacLeay notices, the observ- ations of the more modern entomologists are altogether to be relied upon, their economy differs very materially from that of the other Petalocera. Thus Olivier observes of the European species of Trox, that they are met with on the ground in fields and sandy dry places, and that they are sometimes observed on dried animal substances, occupied in gnawing the cartilaginous parts which serve as the last connection for the bones of carcases, from off which the flesh has been long devoured or consumed; and this last observation is partially confirmed by Latreille and Kirby. Mr. MacLeay, however, says that nothing can strictly be said to have been determined with respect to the manners of the Troges, except that these insects are attracted to dried bones. Pallas discovered a species, which he names Scarab. silphoides, in the arid deserts of Tartary, in company with Hister and Dermestes, under dried carcases; whilst Acrel, according to De Geer, found Trox luridus (Scarab. a tubercules DeG.) in rotten wood. Mr. Dillwyn records the capture of Tr. arenosus in carrion. Mr. Curtis states, that Tr. sabulosus has been found in abundance in a dead rook, and also beneath a dead animal, whilst the Rey. L. Jenyns captured a pair of Tr. scaber in decayed wood at Bottisham. In the Régne Animal, it is stated by Latreille, that they inhabit sandy districts, or reside under ground, appearing to eat the roots of vegetables. Trox sabulosus flies in the sunshine; and Perty states that the Braziliam species frequent carcases, devouring the tendinous parts, or are found in the excrement of man or her- bivorous mammalia. Messrs. Waterhouse and Pickering found Trox arenarius in great profusion in a quantity of rubbish in Battersea Fields apparently re- sembling the cuttings of felt. The genus A&gialia is found upon the sea coast, where Mr. MacLeay conjectures, that it feeds in company with the Psammodil, upon putrid sea-weed or other marine detritus. From the apterous structure of Trox (Phoberus) horridus, Mr. MacLeay is induced to suppose, that it does not feed upon dried cadaverous substances, “ because all insects, intended to live on animal matter, partially dispersed and collected in masses, are furnished with wings, in order to convey them the more rapidly to the objects pointed out by their instinct ;” and therefore, that the apterous Phoberus, like Pimelia, Brachycerus, &c. P 210 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. feed upon matter universally and generally spread over desert plains, whereby rapid and distant change of place is rendered necessary. The American Acanthocerus eneus MacL, frequents flowers in May, whilst A. MacLeayi Perty, is found throughout the year in rotten wood. (Perty, Del. An. Art. Braz. Pref.) Mr. Curtis has noticed an interesting peculiarity in the structure of the mandibles, which are furnished with a deep rounded notch on the inside, covered by a leathery lobe, a structure which also prevails in many of the sand Heteromera, thus confirming the above-mentioned observation of Mr. MacLeay. The Heteromerous genus Trachyscelis has no real affinity with this family: Mr. Stephens’s mutilated individual (from an inspection of which he was induced to place this genus in this situation) not being a Trachyscelis. The British species of this family are very few in number. The fifth family Dynastip% MacLeay, comprises an extensive series of gigantic insects, with which Linneus commenced the classification of the Beetles, the males of which are pre-eminently distinguished by various singular protuberances, horns or tubercles, arising from the head or thorax, and often from both of these parts of the body (fig. 21. 1. Dynastes abderus Sturm, from Brazil), Fig. 21. occasionally giving to the insect a very extraordinary appearance, and of which the females are destitute; the clypeus is small, trian- gular, pointed in front, or terminated by two small obtuse teeth ; the labrum (jig. 21. 2. labrum of Xylorictes satyrus) is a broad membran- aceous plate, entirely concealed by the clypeus; the jaws are very COLEOPTERA. — DYNASTID&. Zii robust and horny (fig. 21. 3.), furnished with one or two obtuse teeth; the maxillz are either terminated by a coriaceous ciliated lobe, or by an elongated corneous piece, having one or several acute teeth on its inside ( fig. 21. 4.); the mentum ( fig. 21.5.) is large, concealing the labium, and of an ovoid or triangular form, truncated in front ; the prosternum is not produced behind into a lobe; the tarsal claws are of equal size, and the scutellum is distinct; the elytra do not entirety cover the extremity of the abdomen; the antennae are 10-jointed (fig. 21. 6.) with the club 3-jointed; the central lamella not being enclosed within the two external ones. The colours of these insects are generally of a dark rich brown or chesnut colour. Latreille has divided this family into two groups, from the unarmed or toothed structure of the maxillz; but the dissection of a very few species of Oryctes and Dynastes will convince any one that the two groups are so gradually blended together that other characters must be resorted to. The Dynastide reside either in rich vegetable mould, or in the putrid detritus resulting from the decomposition of trees. According to Humboldt, however, Geotrupes A’geon is found in Chili upon cowdung. The common continental species, Oryctes nasicornis, a reputed native of this country, is found in the larva state (fig. 19. 4.) in tanpits; and De Geer mentions that, in shifting a dung heap at Stockholm, which had long remained in the same spot, he dug out a vast number of the larvee of this insect, as well as specimens of the imago. The eggs are oblong, about the size of a grain of hemp-seed, and of a yellow colour; the larva continues in that state four or five years, and then encloses itself in an oval arid very smooth cocoon ; the pupa lies upon its back, and the imago remains in its cell a month after it has attained the perfect state. Mr. MacLeay has made various interesting observations upon the structure of some of these insects, with a view to the discovery of their various habits. M. Lacordaire, however, who has carefully described the habits of the Coleoptera of Guiana, states that they are much alike in this respect, concealing themselves during the day in holes dug in the earth, or in the decomposed trunks of trees, or running about the footpaths in woods; on the approach of night they leave their retreats and fly around the trees to a considerable p 2 “ Qi; MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. height with a loud humming noise, for the purpose, as M. Lacordaire supposes, of seeking food ; but, as I should rather judge, from analogy with the proceedings of our Melolontha, in search of their mates. In the morning they are sometimes found under the leaves, or sticking to the branches: and Say records, that a great number of specimens of Dynastes Tityus were found in a cavity in an old cherry-tree near Philadelphia, which was blown down by the wind (Amer. Ent. vol. i); Dynastes bilobus is found during the winter in ants’ nests. (Perty.) Lherminier states that the giant species, D. Hercules, saws off the branches of trees in Guadeloupe, and that its larva resides in rotten wood. It is attracted by the mucilaginous substance which exudes from the Sapium aucuparium, when wounded. (Ann. Soc. Ent. France, 1837, p. 503.) The Phileuri burrow into the rotten trunks of trees in Brazil, and but rarely fly in the twilight. Some of the species devour half-dried carcases, and others are found under moist bark. It would be an almost endless task to detail the variations exhibited by the horns and other grotesque protuberances with which the males of many species are armed. It must be borne in mind, however, that these horns are immovable portions of the horny skeleton, and offer no real analogy with the horns of the mammalia; although it is interesting, in respect to the analogies existing in remote tribes of the animal kingdom, that the quadrupeds which are cornuted are herbi- vorous, and as comparatively harmless as the Dynastide. It is also a curious circumstance that in the Dynastes (Hoplites De.) Pan, the females are cornuted as well as the males. One of the most singular species is the Macropus longimanus, in which the anterior femora are twisted and dentate, and the tibiz very long and curved. Another interesting group from Mexico and Chili has been separated from Dynastes by Mr. Hope, under the name of Golofa, in which the head and thorax are armed with upright horns, and the anterior tarsi of the males very long, and articulated in such a manner that they cannot be extended except in a curved line. The metropolis of the Dynastide is evidently within the tropical zone, six or eight species being only found in Europe; the proportion of tropical species, as compared with extra tropical, being, according to Mr. MacLeay, as eight to one. From the Trogide these insects are at once distinguished by their arge size and concealed labrum; but the characters which separate COLEOPTERA. — RUTELID&. 213 the extensive families of Dynastide, Anoplognathidz, and Rutelida are sometimes very slight, consisting either in the concealed labrum, the transverse, section of the clypeus, or the anteriorly porrected mesosternum. Mr. Hope’s Coleopterist’s Manual must be consulted for various new genera separated from the typical genus. The two or three species of this family recorded to have been found in this country, were probably imported, as it is not likely such large insects would have escaped the observation of our numerous collectors, had they been real inhabitants. The sixth family Rure.ip™® consists entirely of exotic, and, for the most part, brilliantly coloured insects, of a moderate size, having the body of an ovate, subconvex or depressed form, and shorter and more rounded than in the Dynastide, from which they also differ in wanting the remarkable horns which arm the males of the latter family (fig. 21.7. Rutela lineola from Brazil.) The antenne are 10-jointed; the club 3-jointed; the labrum is exserted with the anterior margin, coriaceous (fig.21.8.); the mandibles are short and horny, and more or less exserted with a notch on the outer margin near the tip Jig. 21 9.); the maxilla are also horny and truncate, and with five or six teeth at the tip, with the inside sometimes membranous (jig. 21. 10.); the labium is concealed by the mentum (fig. 21. 11.); the elytra do not conceal the extremity of the abdomen ; the thorax is transverse-quadrate ; the scutellum is large and distinct ; the meso- sternum is anteriorly produced between the base of the middle legs (fig. 21. 12.); the legs aré robust, with the posterior femora some- times greatly thickened ; the claws of the tarsi are generally unequal in size, and occasionally divided. ‘The clypeus commonly exhibits a transverse section, dividing it, as it were, into two parts before the eyes. The curious genus Hexodon, serving to connect this family with the preceding, but respecting whose country and habits natu- ralists have been in doubt, has recently been discovered in con- siderable numbers by M. Luczot in Madagascar upon the sand, and not upon leaves as stated by Latreille. A new species of this genus has been described by Mr. Hope under the name of H. Kirbii (H. PS 214 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. Hopei, Kollar.) With the exception of a very few species, these insects are exclusively confined to the tropical regions of the New World. Out of eighty species belonging to Mr. MacLeay, only two or three are extra tropical, and none from higher lattitudes than 40°. The Brazilian Cyclocephale are abundantly found in flowers, C. melanocephala frequenting those of the Datura arborea in the month of December ; they also fly round the trees in the evening, and hide themselves beneath the roots by day. The Areodze and Pelidnotz are found upon leaves and flowers. P. micans frequents the flowers of Geonoma, a genus of Palms, in the month of December (i. e. the middle of the Brazilian summer.) The species of Macraspis are found in the morning upon the leaves, and fly by day round the trees with a humming noise, and gnawing the flowers. The Rutele are similar in their habits, often appearing in vast numbers. The singular southern European genus Ceelodera (Pachypus Latr.) is remarkable for the anomalous nature of the female, which is of a large size, with the abdomen greatly swollen, and which has been described as destitute of organs of flight (Feisthamel, in Ann. Soc, Ent. Fr. 1837, p. 260.). M. V. Audouin has, however, exhibited to me his dissections of this insect, in which he has discovered the rudiments of the elytra concealed beneath the prothorax. Two of the most remarkable species in this family are the Chrysophora chrysochlora Laé;., a splendid golden-coloured insect, discovered in Peru by Humboldt, having the hind legs of the males of avery great size, and the posterior tibiz produced into a strong spine. At certain periods of the year it is found in considerable numbers. The other is a South American insect, figured long since by Francillon, under the name of the Kanguroo Beetle, Scarabeus macropus, in which the size of the hind legs is still more extraordinary. ‘This insect has recently been received from America, and proves to be the male of Mr. Kirby’s genus Chrysina. The Chrysophora (or rather n. g.) Kirbii Gray, in Griffith An. K. from Brazil, and the Heterosternus buprestoides Dupont, figured in the Mag. de Zoologie, from Mexico, are also especially interesting. This family is very interesting as regards the natural distribution of the Linnzan Scarabeei. Whilst, on the one hand, it is so intimately allied to the Dynastide in the general structure of the mouth that Latreille has united it therewith, under the name of Xylophili; on the other hand it very nearly approximates to many of the Fabrician Melolonthz, and especially to COLEOPTERA. — ANOPLOGNATHIDE. 15 the Anoplognathide and Cetoniidz, the former of which families have the mandibles concealed beneath the clypeus, and the maxille obtuse; whilst the Cetoniidz (to which, in general habit and appear- ance, the species bear a great resemblance) have the mandibles membranaceous. Hence it is evident, that the affinity of the Rutelidee with the Anoplognathide is much stronger than with the Cetoniide. I have therefore adopted the classification of the follow- ing families given in the 2d edition of the Régne Animal. The seventh family ANoPLOGNATHID# is also entirely composed of exotic species, closely allied to some of the insects of the preceding family, but having the clypeus dilated in front, entirely concealing the mouth (fig. 21. 14. underside of the head of Anoplognathus), with a transverse suture before the eyes; its anterior margin is acutely incurved, having the labrum, which is small and triangular, on its lower surface, which meets the front margin of the mentum, and thus closes the mouth. The mentum is large but of variable shape ; the labium is completely concealed; the mandibles are large, horny, and generally obtuse at the tips, the base being internally dilated into a large square molary plate; the maxillz are terminated by an obtuse lobe (fig. 21. 15.), which is seldom acutely toothed, but which, in some of the species, has several deep transverse impressions; the antenne are 9 or 10-jointed, the club 3-jointed. ‘The body is subquadrate, or ovate and subconvex; the thorax transverse-subquadrate ; the scu- tellum distinct ; the mesosternum often produced in front into a spine extending between the fore legs ; the legs robust, with the posterior pair sometimes greatly thickened (fig. 21. 13. Repsimus Dytiscoides from New Holland); the anterior tarsi are occasionally dilated in the males, and the tarsal ungues are sometimes irregular, one or both being often toothed. This family, although allied to the Rutelidz in the produced me- sosternum, the 3-jointed club of the antenne and large size of the legs, evidently much more closely approximates to the Melolonthide, with which Latreille unites it under the name of Phyllophagi, but from which it differs in the obtuse, but singularly channelled maxilla, and in the identity of form in the antenne in the opposite sexes; the males being here distinguished by the large and square clypeus, the BS 216 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. dilated hind legs, the dilatation of the anterior tarsi, or the bearded mentum in the various groups. The habits of the New Holland species of these insects have not been recorded, but the molary structure of the internal base of the mandibles and the obtusely toothed maxilla seem to prove them to be pre-eminently phyllophagous. The Brazilian species of Geniates fly round the trees in the evening, remaining amongst thie leaves or in crevices in the bark during the day, and feeding upon the plants. The Leucothyrei, on the contrary, are not found amongst the leaves, but burrow into the soft trunks of trees, which they reduce to a soft paste (Perty.) Mr. MacLeay considers that the larvee of the typical genus are the New Holland grubs, said to be as useful to the natives as articles of food, as they are injuricus to the agricultural hopes of the European settlers. The species are numerous in New Holland and South America, where they appear to take the place occupied in the Old World by the Melolonthide: they do not appear to extend farther than 45° from the equator. The eighth family MELoLonTHID# is a very extensive and widely distributed group, distinguished by having the Jabrum transversely divided, generally into two lobes, the centre being more or less strongly Fig. 22. emarginate ( fig.22.2. underside of head, and 22.3. labrum of the com- mon Cockchafer, Melol. vulgaris); the mandibles ( fig. 22. 4.) are robust, horny, often obtuse at the point, but with the internal margin acute at the apex, thus serving to cut the leaves upon which the insects feed, COLEOPTERA. — MELOLONTHIDA,. Den and which are subsequently gnawed in pieces by means of the broad square molary portion of the internal base of the mandibles (jig. 22. 5.) ; the maxille are terminated by a horny truncated piece, which also ex- hibits several (generally five or six) acute teeth (jig. 22.6.); the clypeus is large and separated by a strong transverse suture, which extends between the front of the eyes. The antenne are 9- or 10-jointed, with the club large and composed of a variable number of joints (three to seven) according to the genus and sex, the plates being also considerably elongated in the males (jig. 22. 8. antennee of Mel. vulgaris ¢. 22.9. ditto, 9.). .The mentum is subquadrate or subovate-truncate, narrowed at the tip, of which the anterior margin is emarginate (jig. 22. 7.). This organ arises at the base from a trans- verse, narrowed piece (fig. 22. 2. x), which is part of the skull, al- though apparently articulated, and is the front part of the jugulum (jig. 22. 2. 0.), it is the piece prébasilaire of Strauss ; the head is sub- quadrate, the body ovate and subconvex ( fig.22.1. Rhisotrogus sol- stitialis, the common July Dor); the elytra do not conceal the ex- tremity of the abdomen; the scutellum is distinct; the metasternum very rarely porrected and the legs slender, with the tarsal claws often of irregular size and variously toothed (fig. 22. 10. claws of Mel. Fullo.). Mr. MacLeay considers the Serica brunnea as the type of this family, probably regarding the more developed structure of the an- tenn of the common Melolontha as aberrant from the ordinary 3-jointed club of the majority of the family. From the importance of the genus Melolontha in the economy of nature, and their large size, I should be induced to consider them as the real types. The Melolonthidz are rarely adorned with those brilliant metallic tints which ornament the Rutelidz and Cetoniide ; their bodies, on the contrary, are generally clothed with a slight pubescence, or layer of minute scales. The terms My\avOn or MydodayOn or MyndAodACvOyn appear to have been applied by the ancients to Scarabzi which flew about apple-trees ; and Eustathius describes them as larger than a wasp; hence, as the Melolon- thee of entomologists seldom frequent flowers, Mr. MacLeay conjectures that the name has been erroneously applied to these insects, and ought probably to have been given to the Trichius fasciatus, or some of the Amphicome, belonging to the family Glaphyride. As, however, the spinning of Cockchafers (a species of cruelty known to every school- boy) is also mentioned by Aristophanes in his Comedy of the Clouds, 918 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. as having also been practised with the Melolonthe (Act 2. scene the last) ; we may, perhaps, question the propriety of Mr. MacLeay’s con- jecture : the Grecian boys, however, only tied a string round the legs of the beetle instead of putting a pin through its tail. (S¢trutt’s Sports, p- 390., Hone’s edition.) These insects are very intimately allied to the Anoplognathidee (from which they differ in their labrum and toothed maxillz), and Rutelidez which have the mesosternum generally porrected. The structure of the mouth, however, as well as the variation in the tarsal claws are characters by which they are most closely associated with the last named family ; indeed the genera Hexodon and Chalepus appear to form a perfect passage, the latter genus being associated with the Rutelidee by Latreille, and with the Melolonthide by MacLeay. From the Glaphyride and Cetoniide they are at once distinguished by the corneous structure of their mandibles and maxille. The common Cockchafer (Scarabzeeus Melolontha Linn. Melolon- tha vulgaris Fabr.), is, at the same time, the best known, most common, and destructive of the Coleopterous insects, flying about in swarms in the evenings of May and June, resting during the day in hedges and trees, upon the leaves of which they feed most voraciously, sometimes de- foliating extensive districts; the females burrow into the earth and there depositing their eggs, the larve are hatched at the end of six weeks, and are generally known by the name of the white worm, and in Ireland, the Connaught worm*, devouring the roots of grass, in which state they continue for several years, and when numerous they are very injurious by completely stripping the ground of foliage, which dies off in consequence of the roots being eaten. In certain years these insects have appeared in such vast numbers that their ravages have been almost as extensive as those of the locusts. I cannot do more than refer to a paper by Baker in the Philos. Trans. vol. xliv., ,and another by Molyneux in the same Transactions for 1697, and to the statements recorded by Mouffet in his Theatrum Insectorum ; to the Memoir in Phil. Trans. of the Dublin Society ; also to Mr. Diilwyn’s Memoranda of Swansea Coleoptera, p.31.; and to Ander- son, in ftecreations in Agriculture, vol. iii. p. 420., who states that * See Dryander, Cat. Banks, Libr. sub Connaught Worm. Bingley Anim. Biogr. vol, iii. p. 233, COLEOPTERA. ——MELOLONTHID®, 219 14,000 Cockchafers were collected in a few days near Blois in France by children, at two liards per 100. In Hungary, according to M. Farkas (Ann. Soc. Ent. France, vol. ii. p. 339.) an oily matter is ob- tained by boiling numbers of the Cockchafers, and which is employed in greasing the wheels of carriages. (See also Kollar’s Obnoxious Insects.) Dr. Suckow has published a valuable little treatise upon the Natural History and Anatomy of the Melolonthe, entitled, Naturges- chichte des Maykafers, Carlsr. 1824, Svo. 3 pl. M. De St. Leu. Taverny has recently communicated to the Academie des Sciences the result of experiments, proving that the most violent poisons (to man) have no effect upon the larve of the Cockchafer, whilst alkalies (Cyanuses) are the most speedy, certain, and eco- nomical mode of destroying them without injuring vegetation (L’ Hermes, Feb. 1837.) See also Observations sur les Mans, (larve of M. vulgaris) et des Hannetons par M. Lefebvre Act. Soc. Roy. d' Agriculture Mai, 1791. Kleeman’s Preisschrift, von den Maykafern, in Bermerkung der Churfu, Phys. Gthon. Gesellsch. t. ii. 1770, likewise many articles in Loudon’s Gardener's Magazine, Encyclopedia of Agriculture, and Arboretum Britann. p. 1822. Both sexes of this insect are distinguished by having the extremity of the abdomen produced into a long and deflexed cone, Its internal anatomy has been investigated with very great labour by Strauss Diirckheim, (“‘Considérations Générales sur ? Anatomie Comparée des Animaux Articulés.” 4to. Paris, 1828, with an atlas of plates,) L. Du- four and Chabrier, (“ Sur le Vol des Insectes” vols. vi. and vii.). Germar has given an account of the injury done in the Mém. du Mus. to wheat by the larve of Mel. ruficornis in company with those of Zabrus gibbus, in the proportion of about one-fourth (Mag. der Lint. vol. i p.1—10.) Many of the other species fly together in swarms, some, as the male Hopliz, preferring the morning, and others the twilight. They appear to be very generally distributed over the globe ; several of the groups are, however, restricted in their localities ; thus, whilst the thirty-eight species of Melolontha mentioned by Dejean, are almost exclusively European, his forty-seven Ancylonyche (Mel. Quercina Knoch, &c.) are chiefly North American. Plectris, Philo- chlznia, and Ceraspis are chiefly Brazilian ; Diphucephala, and several other small groups from New Holland, and Monochelus, Dichelus, &c. from the Cape of Good Hope. 220 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. The Phyllopertha horticola is sometimes exceedingly abundant during June and July, eating the leaves of various flowers, leaving only the fibres. In this manner they occasionally do great injury to apple and nectarine and other fruit blossoms (except pears), roses, &c. The larve, according to Stewart, feed upon the roots of Brassica lotris and capitata, leaving B. viridis and subarida untouched. See the Rev. W. T. Bree, in Mag. Nat. Hist., No. xxix. for further interesting par- ticulars respecting this insect. The Hoplie, when alarmed, counterfeit death by extending their legs in a stiffened manner, and in different directions, the fore legs being advanced in front defending the head, the middle legs extended downwards, nearly at right angles with the body, and thus defending the under side, and the hind legs being direct upwards and backwards, defending the hinder part of the body. Cist (American Journ. of Science, t.viil. p. 269.), has published a notice, with figures of a North American species of Melolontha in its different states which appears to resemble the common M. vulgaris of Europe. The figures are, however, very defective, and Dejean supposes (Bull. Sc. Nat. vol. ii. p. 174.) that the species is M. punc- ticollis. Mr. Curtis has described and figured a very beautiful insect from Peru, belonging to this family, in the first volume of the Trans. of the Zoological Society, under the name of Ancistrosoma Klugii, in which the base of the abdomen in the male is armed with an acute deflexed spine. He has also figured a cocoon transmitted to him by Dr. F. Klug “from which, according to Pavon, this beetle was bred. The cocoon is ovate, hard, and somewhat like those of Trichiosoma Lu- corum in texture; the operculum is semiorbicular, with a broad hinge, and narrow rim; the shell of the pupa is similar to that of other Melolenthide.” Mrentheedhreas+—has,-hemever,—assuredme—thatthis The Grarnyrip#® Mach. or the Anthobii of Latreille is another exotic family, consisting of insects of a comparatively small size (jig. 22. 11. Anthipna abdominalis, from Italy), having the antenne 10-jointed, with a 3-jointed club, the labrum exserted and coriaceous, the mandibles dilated and horny, with the inner margin coriaceous ; COLEOPTERA. — GLAPHYRID. HPA | the maxilla (fig. 22. 12. maxilla of Amphicoma Lasseril), are termi- nated by a membranaceous or coriaceous lobe, which is very pilose, forming a small brush, and occasionally furnished with minute teeth, the inner lobe is corneous and dentated, the lower lip is pro- duced into two long membranous brushes (fig. 22. 13.) ; the body is ovate, depressed, squamose, or pilose; the elytra do not conceal the extremity of the abdomen, and in many species they do not meet in a straight suture along their whole length. The scutellum is distinct, the legs long, with the posterior femora sometimes incrassated. The tarsi are elongate and spinulose, the anterior ungues equal and simple, the posterior sometimes single, the hind legs are often remarkably dilated and toothed. This interesting group of insects is well distinguished from the three preceding families by the more or less membranous structure of the maxilla, the terminal lobe of which in some genera, as Lichnia and Cratoscelis Hrichson, is very much elongated, being in the former of these nearly as long as the body. From the Cetoniide the Gla- phyride are distinguished by their horny mandibles. The species of this family are almost exclusively confined to the Old World, those of the typical genera Glaphyrus and Amphicoma appearing to be confined to the Northern Coast of Africa, and other countries bordering upon the Mediterranean and the south western parts of Asia, whilst Anisonyx and the allied genera abound at the Cape of Good Hope, the species being very rarely found within the tropics or in higher latitudes than 45°. They are said by Pallas to frequent flowers, of which they must be enabled to lap up the honey from the structure of the maxillz, whilst the hairiness of their bodies must render them serviceable in effecting the impregnation of plants. According to Pallas, as quoted by Mr. MacLeay, they are chiefly vernal insects, and are found in liliaceous flowers, adding, that it is probable that the larva of one of the species lives on the bulbs of the tulip, giving however no reason for this opinion. The tenth, and last family of the Lamellicornes, or the Cerontrp Macl. (Melitophili Zaér.)-is an extensive and brilliant group of insects, having the body oblong-ovate, and depressed (fig. 22. 14. the common Rose Chafer, Cetonia aurata); the antenne 10-jointed (fig. 22. 19.), the labrum (fig. 22. 15. membanaceous and concealed beneath the QD9, MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. clypeus, with the anterior margin emarginate ; the mandibles are com- pressed, slender, lanceolate, furnished internally with a somewhat square membrane (jig. 22. 16.) ; the maxill are horny subtrigonate, with the inner margin membranous and ciliated ; the terminal process entire, membranous, compressed, and setose (fig. 22.17.). The mentum is large and pitcher-shaped, entirely concealing the labium (fig. 22.18.). The scutellum is distinct, although, in some species having the pos- terior margin of the thorax lobed (Gymnetis) this part of the body is concealed, the mesosternum is often produced into a point in front, extending between the anterior legs, which are slender, and the tarsal claws are entire and of an equal size. Buta more important character, which is found in a great number of the species, is the greatly de- veloped epimera of the mesothorax, which are so large that they here occupy the space between the posterior lateral angles of the pro- thorax and the humeral angles of the elytra, which are pushed con- siderably backwards to make room for the epimera. The elytra do not conceal the extremity of the abdomen. In the perfect state these insects frequent flowers, upon the juices of which they subsist, the structure of the maxillary lobes enabling the in- sect to lap up the sweets. Other species are found upon the trunks of trees, particularly such as are wounded, and from which the sap flows. Résel states that he kept a Rose Chafer alive for three years, feeding it with fruit and moistened white bread. Hence Latreille states, that in the perfect state they do no mischief to the essential parts of flowers ; but in a communication by Mr. St. John, published in the Mag. Nat. Hist., No. xxiii.. a Maltese species (Cet. hirta), which is called Bouzuff by the natives, and Botany Bay by the English resi- dents, does much mischief to the flowers of the apricot, of which it eats the nectary. This is not improbable, because, upon dissection, I find the maxillary lobes of this species are armed with horny teeth. There are many articles upon the Rose Chafer in the Gardener's Magazine. See also Blot. in Mem. Soc. Linn. du Calvados, vol. i. on Trichius nobilis and Cetenia aurata. M. Westermann has men- tioned a curious circumstance respecting the Cetonia carnifex and pubescens (Cape G. H.), namely, that he never found them upon flowers but always under dried cowdung (Silberm, Rev. Eint., No. 3.). The Brazilian Ynce repose, during the morning, in the plantations of Zea Mays, sitting under the leaves. They fly during the day round the high trees, upon the leaves of which they feed: all the Brazilian COLEOPTERA. — CETONIID. 293 species of Cetoniz are found upon leaves. The larve feed upon moist rotten’ wood, almost reduced to a state of decomposition. Those of Aleurostictus variabilis have been found by Messrs. Griesbach in rotten oak-trees; they have thus been enabled to rear many of these rare beetles. The most common British species is the beautiful Rose Chafer, Cetonia aurata, which abounds upon the roses, and es- pecially upon the flowers of the privet in the south of England. Its larvee are often found in ants’ nests. This family is at once dis- tinguished from all the preceding families of Thalerophagous Peta- locera by the membranaceous structure of the mandibles and maxille. These insects are very widely dispersed, but more especially frequent tropical climates. The genera Trichius and Cetonia, as now restricted, are found in all quarters of the world, whereas the Gymnetes are almost exclusively South American, and the Macro- note are chiefly Javanese. Tropical Africa is inhabited by the gigantic and very rare Goliaths, in which the front of the head is produced into two anterior and two lateral horns, and which are distinguished from every other species in the family by their strongly toothed maxillee, indicating a mode of life at variance with that of the ordinary Cetonie. (See Drury, Exot. Hntomol, 2d edit. by Westwood; Klug, in Erman’s Reise am Erde ; Hope, Coleopt. Manual.) Messrs. Gory and Percheron have illustrated the species of this family in their splendid Monographie des Cétoines, now completed. Latreille divides this family into three sections — Trichides, Goliathides, and Cetoni- ides, distinguished by the structure of the mentum and mesosternum. The remaining subtribe of Pentamerous beetles, which I have named PrioceraTa* (Serricornes Latreille), comprises several families of insects, having the antenne short or but of moderate length, very rarely thickened at the tips, being generally of equal thickness throughout, or more slender at the extremities, and often toothed, serrated, or pectinated (fio. 23. 2.), especially in the male sex. The outer maxillary lobe is not palpiform (fig. 23. 3.), so that the insects have only two maxillary, and two labial, palpi, these organs being generally short and robust; the body is commonly elongate and narrow, and the elytra (with few exceptions) entirely cover the abdomen. * Vide p.178. ante. 294. MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. The larvee are, for the most part, elongate, and furnished with strong jaws and six thoracic legs, in which state, as well as when arrived at perfection, they are eminently vegetable feeders ; a few, however, prey upon other insects, both in the larva and perfect states. In the ‘Genera Crustaceorum, &c. Latreille divided his great group of Saprophagous Coleoptera into eighteen families, including the Sternoxi, Malacodermi, Clerii, Ptiniores, and Palpatores ; but in his Familles Naturelles he united the four latter families into a section termed Malacodermi, adding a third, Xylotrogi. In the second edition of the Regne Animal, more recently he has endeavoured to effect a natural transition between the Sternoxi and Malacodermi, by proposing another intermediate section for the reception of Rhipicera, &c., and by removing the Cebrionide from amongst the Malacodermi to the Sternoxi, as a distinct division, connecting the Sternoxi with Rhipicera, &c.; the genus Dascillus (Atopa) at the end of the latter leading to Scyrtes (Elodes), at the head of the Malacodermi. Although, however, Rhipicera and Cebrio evidently form portions of the passage between the Sternoxi and Malacodermi, they appear to agree rather with the general characters of the latter. It is true, indeed, that in the firm consistence of the body, which was Latreille’s chief reason for removing them from the latter subsection, they agreed rather with the former; yet many other Malacodermi have the body quite as firm as it is in these genera. In like manner, the Cebrionide possess so few of the characters of the Sternoxi, whilst they so closely agree with Rhipicera, that I prefer leaving them in the same family. Uniting also the Xylotrogi with the Malacodermi, as subsequently noticed, the Serricornes will form two divisions, to which it will be more correct, as well as convenient, by way of comparison to give the names of, 1. MacrostTERNI (in lieu of SterNoxr), having the pro- sternum large, produced into a point ; and 2, APrRosTERNI (in lieu of Malacodermi), with the prosternum simple. The first of these divisions MacrosTEeRNI * (STERNOX! Latreille), comprises the Linnean genera Buprestis and Elater, in which the body * Brpriocr. Rerer. tro rue Macrostrerni (Sternoxi Latr.). Latreille. Mem. in Annales Soc. Ent. de France, 1834. Say, in Annals of Lyceum, Nat. Hist. of New York, vol. i. 1824. COLEOPTERA. — MACROSTERNI. 225 is of a firm consistence, the prosternum or pectus of the prothorax advanced in front beneath the mouth, and generally with an impres- sion on each side beneath for the reception of the antennz (which are always short), and likewise posteriorly produced into a point, which is received into an excavation in front of the mesosternum, or pectus of the mesosternum; the legs are partially or entirely retrac- tile; the head inserted vertically, as far as the eyes in the frontal cavity of the prothorax ; the body is generally of an elliptic elongate form, sometimes conic or trigonate, and narrowed behind; the legs are short, and the posterior angles of the thorax more or less acutely produced. In their perfect state, these insects feed either upon wood, leaves, flowers, or sap; the larvee are several years in arriving at their full growth. The two Linnzan genera above-mentioned form the types of the two families Buprestidee and Elateridz, the transition between which is very gradual, so that the point of separation is obscure. M. Lacordaire, in his Memoir upon the habits of the Coleoptera of South America (Ann. des Sc. Nat. June, 1830), has observed that various genera, such as Pterotarsus, Galba, Eucnemis, Lissomus, and Crypto- stoma, ranged by Latreille amongst the Elaterida, have not the power of leaping, which so eminently distinguishes this family, the convexity of their bodies preventing them from obtaining a “ point d’appui” upon the surfaces upon which they are laid upon their backs, and are consequently able only to roll over; and therefore suggesting that, from their habits, they should form a distinct family, nearly allied to the Ptinide and Lymexylonide. Without, however, denying this affinity, Latreille has endeavoured to remove the difficulty by the establishment of two new tribes or families, namely, the Eucnemides, more nearly allied to the Buprestide, and the Cerophytides to the Elateride. As these two groups are, however, of very small extent, and as they possess many characters in common, I shall provisionally consider them as forming one group (Eucnemidz) of minor value, divisible into two sections, intermediate between the Buprestide and Elateride. 296 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. The first family Burprestripm* Leach is composed of some of the most splendid of the beetle tribes, forming the Linnean genus Fig. 23. 16 17 SS i> 9 ED) DS ee eR Ge ee Buprestis. The body is of a hard consistence, generally of an oblong- ovate, and depressed form, occasionally narrow and linear (jig. 23. 1. * Breriocr. Rerer. to tue BuPrestipe#. Latreille. Genera Crust, &e. vol. i. Dalmann, in Schonh. Syn. Ins., vol. i. part 3. Eschscholtz. Zool. Atlas (in which 15 genera are introduced. ) Solier, in Annales Soc. Entomol. de France, 1833 (in which 34 genera are estab- lished. ) Latreille, in Ann. Soc. Ent. France, 1834. Spinola, in Annal. Soc. Ent. France, for: 1837. Klug, in the Symbole Physica of Ehrenberg, and in Memoir upon the Coleopt. of Madagascar. Guérin, in Magazin de Zoologie (in which some of Dr. Klug’s remarkable Mada- gascar species were previously figured. ) Kirby, in Linn. Trans. vol. xii. Gory and Laporte. Histoire Nat. et Iconogr. des Insectes Coleopt. Hope. Buprestidae Nove Hollandiz, 8vo. privately published. Westwood, in Jardine’s Mag. Zool. and Bot., 1837. Guérin and Percheron. Genera des Insectes. Falderman. Nouv. Mem. Soc. Mose. t. 4. Laporte, in Silberm. Rey. Ent., No. 16. Herbst. Beschreibung, &c. (Buprestide of Berlin) Schrift. Berl. Ges. Naturf. Freund, b. 1. p. 85. Say, in Ann. of Lyceum of Nat. Hist. New York, vol. i. (Buprestis, Trachys, Elater. ) Steven, in Mem. Soc. Imp. Nat. Moscow, t. 8. or Nouv. Mem. t. 2. Bulletin, t. 2. Ratzeburg. Die Forst. Insecten, vol. i. (description of German Agrili. ) And the general works of Fabricius, Olivier, Herbst, &c. COLEOPTERA. — BUPRESTIDE. on Dicerea Berolinensis from Germany) ; the elytra are for the most part narrowed at the tips, which are often denticulated ; the head is very short ( fig. 23. 2. head of Ancyl. rustica), and immersed nearly to the eyes in the thorax; the legs and antennz are short, the latter (fig. 23. 2.) being serrated; the scutellum is often obsolete ; the thorax broadest behind, with the posterior angles but slightly pro- duced. The posterior projection of the prosternum (fig. 23. 7.) is flat and obtuse, not compressed at the sides, as in the Elateridz ; this structure being consequent upon motions of the insects, which are unable to leap when laid upon the back, like the insects of that family ; the prosternum is also occasionally produced in front; the tarsi (fig. 23. 6.) are short and generally dilated and cushioned beneath ( fig. 23. 5.), the third and fourth joints being cordate and pulvillose ; the mandibles (fig. 23. 2.) are short, triangular, and entire at the tips; and the palpi are filiform, or but very slightly thickened at the tips (fig. 23. 3. maxilla, 23. 4. labium of Capnodis cariosa. ) Nothing can exceed the splendour of colour in many of the species of this family (of which very few, of small size, are found in this country), being decorated with the most brilliant metallic tints; some have a general coppery hue, whilst some present the beautiful contrast of fine yellow spots and marks upon a highly polished blue, or green ground, and others exhibit the appearance of burnished gold, or of rubies inlaid on emerald or ebony. Hence, their elytra are employed not only by the ladies in China, but also in our own country, for the purpose of embroidering their dresses. The perfect insects creep but slowly; they are, however, very active on the wing in the hot sunshine; but on attempting to seize them, they fold up their legs and antennz, and fall to the ground. The abdomen appears to be composed of only five segments ; the remainder are, however, internal, and constitute, in the female, a retractile, corneous, conical plate, employed for depositing the eggs in the chinks of the bark of trees within which the larve feed. These insects appear to be much attached to the various species of fir-trees; whence probably their rarity in this country ; and Dr. Hoppe records the discovery of Bupr. 8-guttata, which had been long regarded as extremely rare in Germany, in great numbers in a pine forest near Nuremberg, flying, during the month of July, in the hottest sunshine, and settling upon the horizontal roots of the Pinus sylvestris. Some species are occasionally found amongst flowers and upon leaves ; Q2 228 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. but the majority reside in thick woods and forests. They are also occasionally found in timber yards, and in newly-built houses, having made their escape from the wood of which the floors have been made, and in which they have passed the larva state. A most remarkable instance of this is recorded by Mr. Marsham, in the tenth volume of the Linnean Transactions, respecting the Bupr. splendens, which was found alive whilst endeavouring to extricate itself from the wood of a desk made of a plank imported from the Baltic, and which had stood in one of the offices in the Guildhall of London upwards of twenty years, and upon the surface being planed away, the track of the larva was exposed. It is a curious subject for inquiry, in what state this long peried had been passed by the insect. In the first volume of the same Transactions, Mr. Dryander pub- lished a notice of the ravages occasioned by an immature specimen of the Bupr. canaliculata? which had eaten its way through a bale of piece-goods received from Bengal, containing fifteen pieces of muslin, of eight or ten folds in each, forming a passage about its own size. From information furnished by Latreille to Mr. Kirby it appears, that the ocelli-like spots upon the elytra of the beautiful Bupr. ocellata, a specimen of which was brought alive from China to the Isle of France in wood, were observed by a friend of the former to be luminous. Mr. Percheron has, however, recently published some observations against this statement (Rev. Entomol. v. 3.). Amongst the ancients, the names of Buprestis, Vulpestris, Bul- pestris, Bustrepis, Bubestes, &c. were applied to a poisonous insect, which was supposed to cause oxen to swell, inflame, and burst. (“ Bovxpnaoric, rapa TO Tphoae Tuc ove, quia boves rumpit) ;” and, in- deed, so noxious was this insect considered that, by the Cornelian law those who, with malice prepense, applied it in order to cause death, were themselves condemned to die. Geoffroy, adopting an opinion of Mouffet, considered it to be a species of ground-beetle (Carabus), to which he accordingly applied the name of Buprestis; but Latreille, who published a memoir upon the subject in the nineteenth volume of the Annales du Muséum, regarded it as a species of Meloe, which genus possesses equally strong vesicatory powers; whilst Messrs. Kirby and Spence, upon the authority of Belon, consider it to have been a Mylabris; and Mr. Hope (in Mr. Pettigrew’s recent work upon Mummies) has suggested that it was an Cistrus; but as we learn from Elian, Dioscorides, and Galen, that the Buprestis had all COLEOPTERA. — BUPRESTID. 929 the stimulating properties of the Cantharides, being also, as Pliny says, “« Scarabzis simillimum,” the suggestion can scarcely be well founded Moreover, the insect which Belon discovered on mount Athos, having similar properties, was in his time termed by the inhabitants Voupristi, a name almost identical with the ancient names given above of the Buprestis. Hence, as well as from the still more explicit observation of Belon, that the Voupristi was “ Cantharidi similis sed major, colore flavo vel luteo,” the opinion of Messrs. Kirby and Spence (first sug- gested in fact by Latreille) appears the most tenable. Linnzus, however, notwithstanding its evident impropriety, applied the name of Buprestis to the harmless insects composing the present family, which Geoffroy , with considerable tact, termed Cucujus, a name used by the Romans to designate an insect of a golden green colour ; the Linnean nomen- clature has, however, prevailed ; but Fabricius and Olivier completed the confusion, by giving the name of Cucujus to obscure insects belonging to a very different family described above under that name. Until within the last year or two, owing to the majority of these splendid insects inhabiting tropical regions, but little information has been procured relative to their natural history and preparatory states. Madame Merian, in her work upon the insects of Surinam, plate 50., has represented the Buprestis gigantea accompanied by a large white fleshy larva, with a curved body, resembling the larvee of the Stag-beetle, having six legs, no antenne, and the extremity of the body rounded and entire. It was found under ground, feeding upon the root of Convol- vulus batatas ; and from it the Buprestis is asserted to have been reared. As it is, however, so different from the now known larve of the Buprestidz, and as, in all probability, the transformations are un- dergone in wood, the trunks of trees, &c., I fear that the authoress must have fallen into some error, although it must be observed that the same plate contains figures of Passalus in the larva and perfect state, the correctness of which has been ascertained, In the collection of the Rev. F. W. Hope are preserved several specimens of a larva (fig. 23. 12.), sent from Brazil, in company with B. attenuata (Atrby, L. Trans.), being about an inch and a half long, cylindric, somewhat fleshy, not incurved, with the antennz and or- gans of the mouth short ; the legs of moderate length, but only four in number, and attached in pairs to the second and third segments, the fourth segment being also furnished with what may be regarded as the rudiments of another pair of legs, of very small size, and appearing Q 3 230 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. to be composed of three divisions ( fig. 23. 13.). I know no other in- stance in which the two posterior legs are rudimental, whilst the four others are of the ordinary size. The last segment of the body is rounded and unarmed. M. Westermann (in Silbermann’s Fev. Ent. No. 3.) has published a short notice of the B. ocellata (India), and B. cuprea (Cape G. H.), of which he had observed the larvee (which he did not fully describe ) ; the latter species, as well as its larva, inhabits a species of Mesembry- anthemum ; the larva being very long, in proportion to its thickness, and of a yellow colour, with a brown head. I regret that he has not been able to furnish me with further details. M. Audouin has discovered a larva, considered by him to be that of D. berolinensis, which forms numerous narrow galleries in the solid wood of beech-trees. No description has, however, yet been published of it. (Ann. Soc. Ent. France, 1836, p. xvii.) I am indebted to this distinguished entomologist for the accompanying figures (23. 8. and 23. 9.) of this larva, from which it will be seen that it nearly resembles, in many respects, the larve of the Cerambycide. It is of a fleshy consistence, and the large semicircular anterior seg- ment of the body appears to me to represent the prothorax, within which the head is retractile. The prothoracic spiracle may be seen in the short piece which succeeds this large segment, and which is, I presume, the membranous connection between the pro- and mesothorax. M. Audouin, I believe, on the other hand, con- siders it to be the prothorax itself. There do not appear to exist the slightest rudiments of feet, and the terminal segment of the body is entire. M. Aubé has more recently published the description of the prepa- ratory states of Agrilus viridis, the larva of which he had detected in the stems of young beech-trees, which are much injured by its at- tacks. This larva is apod, and nearly agrees with that described above; being broadest in front, and gradually diminishing towards the extremity of the body, which is armed with two horny points. The larvee underwent their change to pupe at the beginning of May, and the imago appear about the middle of June. The pupa is consider- ably elongated, but does not offer any peculiarity of form (Ann. Soc. Ent. de France, 1837, p.190.). M. Audouin has also discovered the larva of another species of Agrilus burrowing in the wood of the pear. COLEOPTERA. — BUPRESTID&. 231 Dr. Ratzeburg has also published figures of the larva (copied in my Jig. 23. 11.) and pupa of Agril. nocivus, in his Fors¢t. Insecten, pl. 2., and which nearly correspond with those given by M. Aube. He has also figured the larva (copied in my jig. 23. 10.) of A. fagi, which differs from the former, not only in the large size of the prothorax? and narrow- ness of the body, but (which is more remarkable) in wanting the conical points at the extremity of the abdomen. ‘The structure of its maxillee and labium is also different from M. Aubé’s figures. The insects of this family offer some remarkable peculiarities in their geographical distribution. Thus, at the Cape of Good Hope, is found an extensive group having the elytra ornamented with tufts of white or yellow hairs (G. Iulodis Esch.). The conical species abound on the shores of the Mediterranean, Caspian, and Black Seas, and at the Cape. Madagascar produces an extraordinary group, having the body flattened, and of a nearly rounded form ; whilst, in New Hol- land, the genus Polychroma Dej., and several others, have been ex- clusively discovered. Moreover, as the hottest climates produce the most splendidly coloured animals, the greatest number of the species of Buprestidee (of which there are, probably, not fewer than 1500 species contained in the various collections), and the largest and most richly coloured species are found in the tropical and subtropical regions of both hemispheres ; whilst, in the northern states, but few species occur, and in England scarcely more than a dozen species, of small size, are strictly indigenous. The largest species in the family are the B. bicolor (G. Catoxantha De. Java) and B. gigantea* (G. Stig- modera Esch., Euchroma Sol. Brazil), and these do not exceed two and a half inches in length. Latreille has recently proposed to divide this family into two sections, from the proximity or remoteness of the antennz at the base ; whilst M. Solier, followed by Messrs. Gory and Laporte, has founded his divisions upon the absence or presence of a scutellum, the form of that organ, and the insertion of the legs, employing the parts of the mouth for his generic characters. Hitherto four genera only have been introduced into the British catalogues; the number is, however, much increased by the addition * Mr. Kirby regards Buprestis gigas as the “ original type of the genus,” and consequently as entitled to retain the generic name Buprestis, which is entirely omitted in the recent works of Solier, Dejean, Gory, and Laporte. Q 4 232 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. of the generic groups established by the more recent continental au- thors. The indigenous or reputed indigenous species may be accor- dingly generically arranged as in my Synopsis. Of these indigenous insects, the species of Anthaxie are small but elegantly coloured insects, of a rather broad form; the Agrili and Aphanistici, on the contrary, are linear. All the British species of this family are very rare, except the Agrilus viridis, which is repeat- edly taken in the neighbourhood of London, especially at Coombe Wood, on the oak. The species of Trachys are minute ; but easily known by their short subtriangular form. The typical species (T. mi- nuta, fig. 23. 14.) is of a bronzed black colour, ornamented with grey- ish waived lines. It is found upon the hazel, upon the leaves of which it is said to feed. I have always found the Aphanisticus pu- sillus in dry moss, at Coombe Wood, in the spring. This genus is distinguished from all the other Buprestide by its clavate antennz (ig. 235.15.): Amongst the exotic genera, in addition to those already noticed, may be mentioned that of the Sternocera, composed of various large and splendid Indian species, in which, as the name implies, the me- sosternum is produced into a spine, covering the base of the proster- num, in which respect it agrees with the Cetoniide. The second family Eucnem1px * (which, as above stated, must be ; regarded as provisional only) comprises the two small groups termed by Latreille, in the Memoir above referred to, Eucnemides and Ce- rophytides. They are jointly characterised by their inability to leap, the large terminal joint of their palpi, their antennz often pectinated or serrated, and sometimes lodged, when at rest, in grooves on the * Bisriocr. Rerer. ro THE EucNEMID&. } Guérin. Icon. Régne An. Insectes. Ditto, in Voy. Coquille. Latreille, in Ann. Soc. Ent. de France, 1834. Laporte, in Silbermann Rey. Ent., No. 16. Perty. Del. An. Art. Brazilie. Mannerheim. Eucnemis, Genus Insectorum, 8vo. Petersburg, 1823 Fischer. Lettre sur la Physodactyle, Moscow, 1824; (and in Ann. des Scienc. Natur. vol. iii. p. 448.) COLEOPTERA. — EUCNEMID2. 233 under side of the thorax. I have already in (p. 225.) given an account of the habits of the chief genera as well as their names. They are for the most part exotic. In the subfamily Eucnemipes the body is oblong and cylindric (jig. 24. 1. Microrhagus capucinus, fig. 2. mandible, fig. 3. maxilla, Fig. 24. (fig. 4. tarsus), the eyes circular and the basal joint of the antennz Jarge and subcylindric. There are only two British genera, Melasis and Microrhagus. Much confusion has occurred relative to the specific name of the type of the former genus, the same name having been applied to two apparently distinct species. More recently, how- ever, Gyllenhal, Dejean, and Latreille have regarded them as speci- fically identical ; so that it will be requisite to restore the Linnazan name instead of applying that of Elateroides or Flabellicornis. This insect (fig. 23. 16. the male, and 23. 17. the male antennz) resides in, decaying oak-trees, flying out of its cylindrical burrows in the hot sun- shine with great agility, as I am informed by H. Griesbach, Esq., who discovered them in Windsor Park. The Rev. G. T. Rudd has likewise communicated to me some observations which he has made as to their mode of coupling, which takes place at the mouth of their burrows, the males remaining on the outside of the tree. In the subfamily Cerorpuyrtives (fig. 24. 5. Cerophytum elate- roides), the mandibles are terminated by a simple tooth, the body is ovoid, the antenne are either lodged in the prosternal grooves, or are exposed; in the latter case they are ramose in the males; the tarsi are pulvillose and dilated, with the ungues denticulated (fig. 24. 6.). The only British genus strictly referrible to this subfamily is Cero- 234 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. phytum, to the typical species of which, in justice to Latreille, I have restored the name given by him. ‘This insect has been once found in the neighbourhood of Bristol, and is in the collection at the British Museum. According to M. Chevrolat, from whom I have received the insect, it is enabled to make a slight leap, thus approaching the Elateride. The curious little genus Throscus has much perplexed systematists, having been alternately placed in the Elateride, Byrrhide, or Der- mestidz: in its small size and perfoliate antenne (fig. 24. 23.) it cer- tainly disagrees with the Elateridz, whilst its elliptic form and clavate palpi equally remove it from the Byrrhide, and the structure of its mouth and sternum from the Dermestide. Of these characters, the least important as family characteristics, are those which distinguish it from the Elateride, wherefore it seems more correct to place it in the situation here assigned to it; it appears, however, to me to form the connecting link between the Elateride and Byrrhide, in which latter family the prosternum is also prominent. Gyllenhal states that the typical species inhabits oaks, and Mr. Stephens says that he has found it plentifully on old oak wainscotting. I have, how- ever, always found it (and somewhat abundantly) in sandpits, like the Byrrhide, although the second species, Thr. obtusus mzhi, was beaten by me out of an oak-tree, in which, according to Hellwig (quoted by Gyllenhal) the larva of the former also resides. Gyllenhal adds « Tactus antennas pedesque arcte retrahit sed dorso impositus saltare potest uti Elateres.” I have never, however, observed it to possess such a saltatorial power. The exotic genus Chelonarium, whose situation has also equally perplexed systematists, is introduced into this subfamily by Latreille ; the body is suborbicular, the second, third, and fourth joints of the antennz long, and the remainder very short and slender; according to M. Lacordaire, they are found upon the leaves and flowers of various plants, from which they drop on the approach of danger. The species of this genus are chiefly found in South America, but Dr. Horsfield brought one from Java. In the genus Cryptostoma (Elater denticornis Fab. from Cayenne); the third joint of the an- tenne is elongated into a linear branch. ‘ d : COLEOPTERA. — ELATERID. 935 The third family ELatrrtpm* Leach, corresponding with the genus Elater of Linnzeus, is very nearly allied to the Buprestidae, having the body of a hard consistence (fig. 24. 7. Ludius ferrugineus) ; the antennz short and more or less serrated; the legs and palpi are short, and the head immersed to the eyes in the thorax ; the body is, however, more elongated and narrower than in that family; the pos- terior thoracic angles are produced into an acute spine, whereby all Jateral movement is prevented, and the insects merely enabled to raise and depress the thorax; the tarsi are slender and simple (fig. 24. 13.); the labrum transverse (fig. 24. 9. labrum of Agriotes lineatus) ; the mandibles notched at the tip (fig. 24. 10.); the maxilla bilobed (fig. 24. 11.) ; the mentum short, transverse (jig. 24. 12.), and the palpi terminated by a large triangular joint ; the prosternum is pro- duced behind into an acute compressed spine (fig. 24. 8.), which is received at the will of the animal into a groove in the front of the me- sothorax, in front of the base of the middle legs, the latter peculiarity of structure resulting from the curious power which these insects possess, of springing when laid upon their backs. Being unable to re- cover their ordinary position in consequence of the shortness of the legs, Nature has amply supplied the apparent defect by providing them with an instrument which enables them to recover their position with facility. Folding their legs and antenne close to the body (the latter being lodged in grooves on the underside of the prothorax), they lower the head and thorax until they come into contact with the surface upon which they are laid, by which means the prosternal spine is entirely drawn out of its oval groove in the mesosternum, when, by again suddenly throwing the head and thorax forwards, the * Brsviocr. Rerer. to tHE ELAtTeRip&. Eschscholtz, in Thon’s Ent. Archiv. vol. ii. Latreille, in Ann. Soc. Ent. France, 1834. Stephens’s Illustr. Brit. Ent. Mand. vol. iii. and Nomenclat., 2d. edition. Serville and St. Fargeau, Encyl. Méthodiq. v. 10. Gory, in Ann. Soc. Ent. de France. Boisduval. Voyage del Astrolabe. Hope, in Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond. vol. i. (Macromalocerus. ) Guérin. Magasin d’Entomol. pl. 9. (Lobederus.) — Ditto, Icon, R. An. Iiliger, in Der Gesellsch. Naturf. Freund. Berlin, 1807. Say, in Ann. Lyceum, New York. vol. i, Stevens. Mem. Soc. Imp. Mose. t. 8. And the general works of Fabricius, Drury, Herbst, Olivier, &c. Y : ’ ~ . 4 ; as © 5 pr ; > ee j $ , oy Lec of I Mann aw _ a ie fn.42-4 ge~ F/ la lt,caa e& bhr~ bast mCECCCEWnY , f - “, CinGrinel . +2, 9236 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. prosternal spine is driven with violence and a clicking noise into the mesosternal groove, whereby, and in consequence of the elasticity of the body, the extremity of the elytra being brought into contact with the ground, and the head and thorax as suddenly again forced back- wards, the insect is raised to a considerable height in the air and falls generally upon its feet ; hence, these insects have received the names of Skip-jacks, Spring-beetles, Clickers, and Blacksmiths, and, in Latin, Elater. Swammerdam calls them Grasshopper or Locust-beetles, and by old authors they were termed Notopoda. (See Observations sur le Notopode, by M. Weiss. Act. Helv. vol. ii.) They are found upon flowers, plants, the stumps of trees, in grass, &c., creeping slowly and falling to the ground on the least approach of danger. Mr. Rudd has published a short note relative to the “assembling” of the males of Elater cylindricus in search of the female (Extomol. Mag. vol. ii. p- 207.). The number of species in this family is not so great as in the Buprestidz, nor are these insects to be compared with the latter in the richness of their colours, being, for the most part, of obscure and dingy hues. Some few, however, offer exceptions to this observation, as the Selatosomus zneus, Elater sanguineus, &c. They appear to be more generally distributed than the Buprestidae, about seventy species being inhabitants of this country ; they are of a moderate size, but few species attaining the length of two inches, and few being under a quarter of an inch. The Jarvee of these insects are Jong and slender, and feed upon vegetable matters, under the bark of trees, &c., Messrs. Kirby and Spence consider them (or at least that of Agriotes segetis, or the wire- worm) as referrible to the chilognathiform type, and as to shape, best representing the full grown Iulus. De Geer has described and figured (vol. iv. pl. 5.) the larva of one of the species (El. undulatus P2., 3-fasciatus Gyll., undatus Gm.), found under stones, in the ground, and in rotten wood. It is long, narrrow, and somewhat depressed, with very short antennez, palpi, and six legs, and with twelve seg- ments, exclusive of the head, covered with a hard and scaly skin, the last segment forming a nearly circular plate, with a recurved and 3-dentate margin, and terminated by two short pilose horns curved inwardly. On the underside, this segment is furnished with a large fleshy retractile tubercle, employed as a seventh leg. Messrs. Kirby and Spence mention this tubercle as being placed in a nearly semi- ; COLEOPTERA. — ELATERID®. 237 circular space, shut in by the last dorsal segment, adding that this space is, in fact, the last ventral segment, and seems characteristic of the genus. As, however, the insect (including the head) has thirteen segments (which is the typical number in larvze), exclusive of this tubercle, it is evident that it must be regarded only as a tubercle; the same structure prevails in many other genera. I have found this form of larvz in very decayed rotten wood ; but it is very difficult to rear them to the perfect state. Amongst my larve of this type o¢ form, I observe seven or eight variations in the denticulation of the last segment of the body, there being as many as seven or eight teeth on each side, besides the bifurcate terminal horns in some individuals (fig. 24.22.). Amongst them is also one (fig. 24. 21.) which I find not uncommonly at Coombe Wood creeping about the roots of moss; and as the Agrypnus murinus is found there in the same situation, as well as the exuviz of pupz, which appear to belong to this species, I have little hesitation in assigning it to that insect ; indeed, I should imagine that this form of larva is peculiar to the genus Agrypnus, as restricted by the late authors. The species of another group, to which Mr. Stephens, in allusion to their destructive powers, applied the name of Cataphagus ( Agriotes), the type whereof is the Elater lineatus Linn., or the El. segetis of Bjerkander, have differently formed larve. Those of the last-named species, and of El. obscurus of Marsham (Zinn. ?), which, indeed, Messrs. Kirby and Spence regard as a variety of the former, are known by the name of the wire-worm (fig. 24. 14.), from their slender cylindric form and hard texture ; they are of a fulvous colour ; their legs are so short as to be scarcely visible beyond the sides of the body, the terminal segment of which is entire, longer than the preceding, and terminating in an acute mucro at the apex, witha deep circular impression on each side at its base above (fig. 24. 15. terminal segment seen laterally.) These impressions are doubtingly regarded by Messrs. Kirby and Spence as spiracles. As, however, their position is certainly not that of spiracles, and as the other larve of this family are destitute of them, and, moreover, as this larva possesses a series of spiracles on each side of the body (overlooked by Messrs. Kirby and Spence), they ought scarcely to be regarded as such. Jig. 24.19. represents the antenna; fig. 16. the underside of the head and prothoracic segment, and jig. 17. the maxilla and labium. 938 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. A figure of this larva was given by De Geer, vol. v. pl.12. f. 4. 5., who, however, was unacquainted with its transformations. Another figure (of El. obscurus) was given by Mr. Marsham, Linn. Trans. ix. pl.18. f.4., copied in the Introduction to Entomology, vol. iii. pl. 18. f.4.; but the first segment of the body is incorrectly represented without legs, and a pair is given to the fourth ; the terminal segment is also misrepresented as furnished with two lateral apical lobes. The ravages of these larvee, which feed upon the roots of wheat, rye, oats, barley, and grass are occasionally so extensive as to render it necessary to resow the ground; and, when it is added that (according to Bjerkander, who has published an account of this insect in the Stockholm Transactions for 1779 *) it is five years in arriving at the perfect state, the amount of damage which they commit may be easily believed. They will also attack the larger roots of turnips (eating to the centre of the root), potatoes, carrots and salads, like- wise cabbages, (Gard. Mag. iii. 381.) Iridez, pinks, lobelias, &c. (ibid. p. 493.). I once found one of them in the stem of a lettuce plant, the interior of which it had completely devoured. This larva crept tolerably quickly, with a sliding kind of motion, the tail being bent on one side somewhat like the letter S. I never observed it, or indeed any of the larve in this family, roll themselves up like the luli. The wire-worm is evidently very fond of the lettuce, for Mr. Hogg (Gard. Mag. iv. 317.) mentions the great service, which he has found in laying slices of it as a bait for them, and Sir Joseph Banks recommended the same mode of capture, only substituting slices of potatoes for the lettuce. It is not generally known that the mole devours great quantities of these worms. Pheasants are also equally serviceable, since I have heard of instances where these birds, on being shot, have been found with their crops filled with wire-worms. I possess several other larve perfectly agreeing with that of El. lineatus above described, but wanting the black spiraculiform marks upon the last segment, which is terminated by three points, the central one being the longest and most slender (jig. 24. 20.). Bouché in his Naturgeschichte has described and figured the larva of * For further accounts of the ravages of the wire-worm, consult Marsham, in Com- munications to the Board of Agriculture, iy. 412. and in Linn. Trans. ix. 160. Passe- rini, Rapporta sopra l’opuscolo del Signor Negri, sopra il bruco che devasta i seminati difrumento. Kirby and Spence, vol. i. p. 181. Duncan, in Quarterly Journ. of Agricult. No. xxxvii. June, 1837. Westwood, in Gardener’s Mag. Feb. 1838. ; r, 9 f : COLEOPTERA. — ELATERIDE. 239 Elater fulvipennis Hoffm., closely resembling that of El. obscurus Marsh.; the larva of El. sanguineus is also stated by him to re- semble that of El. fulvipennis. The same author has also described the larve of El. fulvipes Gyl/. (obscurus Fad.) ; niger Linn., (aterri- mus Fab.) ; and lineatus Linn., (segetis Gyll.); the first differs from the larve of El. fulvipennis in having the terminal segment nearly square, with the posterior angles rounded, and the apical mucro larger; the second has the terminal segment rounded, the sides entire, with a terminal circular excision within the lateral margins; on each side is a series of four small tubercles. The de- scription given of the third does not agree with Marsham’s description of the larva of El. obscurus ; the terminal segment being flattened, with the lateral margins uneven, and a small apical circular excision. Geedart has figured the larva and imago of an insect of this family in his table 108. The larva of Elater noctilucus is very destructive in the West Indies to the sugar cane, feeding, according to Humboldt and Bon- pland, upon the roots, and destroying the plants. Mr. Guilding ( Transactions Soc. Arts), however, thinks that the damage done to these plants is, in a great measure, owing to other insects, as the Calandra saccharivora. The large larva, hitherto regarded as that of Anthia 6-guttata, appears to be rather that of a large Indian species of this family (See ante, p. 68 note *.). Mr. Dale (Mag. Nat. Hist. No, xix.) has recorded the capture of Elater sanguineus, and its larva and pupa on rotten oak stumps. The distribution of this family into generic subdivisions has been but little, and only recently, investigated ; a few of the more remark- able forms, it is true, had been established as genera; but until 1829, when the late Dr. Eschscholtz published a sketch of the family in Dr. Thon’s Entomologisches Archives, vol. ii. (wherein many new groups are proposed, the total number being augmented to thirty-seven), the great majority of these insects were arranged under the generic name of Elater. At the end of 1830, Mr. Stephens, being unacquainted with Eschscholtz’s Memoir, described the British species, amongst which he established several new genera, corresponding, in some respects, with those of Eschscholtz, who, previous to his decease, revised his former Memoir, and added twenty more genera in his manuscripts, which, subsequent to his death, were again revised by Latreille, and 24.0 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. the memoir of the latter (contained in the Ann. de la Soc. Entomol. de France, vol. ii., and in which the genera of Stephens are not noticed) was the last work which he lived to complete, thus rendering this memoir doubly painfully interesting, as combining the closing labours of these two distinguished men. In my generic list, I have endeavoured to do justice to each of the three labourers above-mentioned, whose distributions are founded upon the laminiferous, or simple structure of the tarsi*; the serrated or simple form of the ungues ; the form of the basal portion of the hind legs, and of the scutellum, &c. Amongst the British genera of this family enumerated in the Synopsis, that of Ctenicerus is one of the most elegant, contain- ing species of a metallic colour, with beautifully pectinated antenne, whence Dr. Leach first gave them the name of Cleniocerus ; Latreille, however, first characterised it under the name of Ctenicerus, which name I have retained in preference also to his more recent name of Corymbites, given to the same group. The largest British species is the Ludius t ferrugineus. It is of a dirty red colour, with the scutellum and base of the thorax black, and is scarcely an inch in length. Most of the species to which the generic name of Elater has been restricted by Latreille and Stephens, are distinguished by the scarlet colour of their elytra. Dejean has, however, entirely dropped the generic name of Elater, employing for these insects the name of Ampedus of Megerle, whilst Mr. Kirby, on the other hand, regards the phosphorescent species as pre-eminently the types of the family (Faun. Bor. Am. 149.). The typical species of Campylis, distinguished by its large eyes, is extremely variable in its colours, the varieties having been considered as distinct species by various authors. * There is very considerable variety in the nature and extent of the clothing of the underside of the tarsi. Many species have these parts simple, others have a single sucker on the fourth joint. In E. obseurus Z.? the 2d and 3d joints have a cushion edged with hairs. A West Indian species, mentioned by Mr. Kirby, has three transverse reniform suckers on the 2d 3d and 4th joints. In E. niger the Ist 2d and 3d joints have a brush at the tips. In E. ligneus, &c. there are three large suckers on these joints; in E. flabellicornis there is a naked cushion on the four first joints, and in E, noctilucus the same joints are furnished with a brush (Kirby, Faun. Amer. Bor, p. 144.). + Both in the Régne Animal and Annales Soc. Ent. France, Latreille gave the E. ferrugineus as the type of his genus Ludius. Mr. Curtis has, however, given it as the type of Eschscholtz’s MS, genus Steatoderus, and misapplied the name Ludius for El. pectinicornis. 4 | q | . COLEOPTERA. — ELATERID&. 241 A remarkable monstrosity occurring ina specimen of Agrypnus murinus is described in the Mag. Nat. Hist. No. xxi. in which one of the antennz consists of two 9-jointed divisions, arising from a 2-jointed base. Amongst the exotic genera, Pachyderes Gwer. is distinguished by the great size of the thorax, which is twice as broad as the elytra, with the posterior angles acute. Tetralobus and Hemirhipus are composed of species of a large size, with the antennz short and strongly pectinated in the males. The Semioti Esch. (Eucamptus Chevr. Pericallus Serv. and Sé. #.) are handsome species, chiefly from Brazil, with the elytra spined at the tips; and the species composing the genus Alaus are distinguished by a pair of large black eyelike spots upon the thorax ; but the most remarkable species in the family are some recently received from the Swan River by the Rev. F. W. Hope, who has published a description and figure of them in the Trans. Entomol. Soc. vol. i., under the generic name of Macromalo- cera, and in which the antenne are as long as the entire body. He has more recently received the female of this genus, in which the antennz are exceedingly short. In the second volume of the same Transactions he has figured two interesting species found in gum anime, which seem to be identical with two species figured by Dr. Klug, from Madagascar, and the same remark may also be made respecting a species of Tillus. The genus Pyrophorus J/liger, receives its name from the luminous powers of the insects of which it is com- posed, and of which this author has described sixteen (in the first volume of Der Gesellschaft Naturf. Freunde Berlin Mag. 1807); Dejean, however, enumerates twenty-eight, chiefly from South America, including the type El. noctilucus Zinn. This species is upwards of an inch long, of an obscure brown colour, with an oval spot of a dull yellow colour near each posterior angle of the thorax. These spots emit so strong a light during the night (that being the period when they are in motion, reposing by day, when they are but seldom observed), that it is easy to read the smallest writing by placing several under a glass, or by moving a single insect along the lines. They are termed by the natives Cucuyos or Coyouyou, and by the Spaniards Cucujo, and, according to Bondaroy, Marechal. When the insect is on the wing two additional luminous patches are observed beneath the elytra; the light, indeed, shining out from beneath the abdominal segments when stretched out. It is said, that they are R 242 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. attracted by the light of a flambeau, which they follow like moths, a circumstance which also occurs in the glowworms. According to D. Spix the light proceeds from a phosphorescent substance, con- tained in a small bag in the thorax, filled with unctuous matter like melted phosphorus, over which the trachee are spread. An interest- ing memoir by Dr. Bondaroy is contained in the Wém. Acad. Science. de Paris, 1766, upon one of these insects, probably brought to Paris in wood, which caused much alarm amongst the inhabitants of the Faubourg St. Antoine, where it had been seen flying about. Speci- mens have also been kept alive in the perfect state during the voyage from South America to England; and in the eleventh Number of the Zoological Journal is contained an account by Curtis of one which was brought alive to London. It fed upon wood during the passage, and it was requisite to moisten the woodwork of its cage daily to preserve it alive. Consult further upon these luminous species Spix and Martius, Reise. ii.; Perty in Delect. Anim. Art. Bras. Pref. p.'7.; Kirby and Spence,vol. ii. chap. xxv., Entomol. Mag. No. 11. and 12.; and Sells in Trans. Ent. Soc. vol, 1. p. 46., in which the author opposes the statement of M. Laporte, that the splendidly luminous spectacle exhibited in tropical climates by fire-flies is caused by Lampyride, as well as the Pyrophori; and asserts that in Jamaica it is exclusively the latter which produce it. The division AprosternI (MALAcopERMI Lafr.) is distinguished from the Macrosterni(Sternoxi Laér.) by having the prosternum neither produced in front over the mouth, nor forming a point behind, except in a few species (Cebrio) which evidently form the point of connection between the two divisions. The body is generally of a soft or flexible consistence, with the head much deflexed; the antennae of moderate length and filiform, serrated or pectinated, and the legs moderately long and slender. The insects are very active, flying with considerable rapidity over flowers, particularly those of the whitethorn and umbelliferee. In their habits, the larvee of the typical species are carnivorous, feeding upon other insects or worms, whilst others feed only upon wood. The structure of these insects is considerably different from that of the Macrosterni, but the affinities of such families, as the carnivorous- COLEOPTERA. —CEBRIONIDE. 243 feeding Telephoridz, and Lampyrid, with the Elateride, is satis- factorily established by means of Cebrio, Atopa, and Cyphon. Adopting the arrangement of Latreille’s earlier works, instead of uniting the Cebrionidz with the Macrosterni, the Aprosterni may be divigled into the following families :—Cebrionide (including the Rhi- piceride), Cyphonide, Lampyride, Telephoride, Melyride, Cleride, and Ptinide. Latreille established a third division in the Serricornes, under the name of Xylotrogi, composed of the family Lymexylonide, which family Dejean united with the Ptinide under the name of Teredyles. I shall, however, provisionally regard the Lymexylonidz as a family referable to the Aprosterni, to which division the families of Bostrichidee and Scydmenide, from their apparent connection with the Ptinidz, may also be provisionally assigned. The first family, CeBrionip# *, is of small extent, but comprises several striking peculiarities of structure. The body is of an oblong or oblong-oval form (fig. 25. 1. Cebrio gigas 3, France), of a firm consistence like the Elateride, arched above and deflexed in front; * Brstiocr. Rerer. To roe CeBRIONIDA. Latreille. Ann. Soe. Ent. France, 1834. Leach. Zool. Journal, vol. i. Laporte. Ann. Soc. Ent. France, 1834. S. S. Saunders, in Trans. Ent. Soc. London, vol. 1. ‘irby. Linn, Trans. vol. xii. (Rhipicera. ) Dalman. Anal. Ent. (ditto, Polytomus.) Rez 244. MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. the mandibles strong, curved, entire at the tip, and exposed beyond the upper lip, which is short, and the palpi are slender at the tips (fig. 25.6. head of ¢ in front, 25. 2. maxilla, 25.3. labium ¢); the thorax is broadest behind, with the posterior angles acute. The an- tenne are generally longer than the head and thorax, and serrated. or pectinated in the males; the legs are not contractile, nor formed for leaping ( fig. 25. 5. posterior tarsus). These insects are of moderate size: they are for the most part inhabitants of the South of Eurepe, and the North of Africa; their colours are generally dull and obscure. But little is known of their habits, especially in their early stages. This family forms a very natural transition from such of the Elateride as Campylus, &c., to the soft-winged Telephori, &c.; some species being allied to the former in having the prosternum advanced behind into a point, but not produced under the head. This family may be divided thus: 1. Those with the prosternum ter- minating in an acute point (fig. 25. 4.) (typical genus Cebrio); 2. Those without a prosternal mucro (Rhipicera, Callirhipis), having branched antenna (fig. 25. 7. antenna 3 , fig. 8. antenna 9 Rhipicera), and tarsal pulvilli (fig. 9. 10.), and Atopa, &c., having simple antennee and want- ing the pulvilli of the typical genus. Olivier observed that the Cebrio gigas (an inhabitant of the southern parts of Europe) is generally found during the evening, and especially after heavy falls of rain, and that its flight is very strong. M. Farines has, however, published a Memoir upon the C. xanthomerus Hoff. ( Trans. Linn. Soc. Bordeaux, vol iv. and Ferussac Bull, 1830, p.477.), from which it appears that this species appears only during the early autumnal showers ; at which Guérin. Teon. R. An. and Mag. d’Ent. Fischer. Lettre sur le Physodactyle, Nouv. Genre de Coléopt. Elateroid. Moscow, 1824. 8vo. (Drepanius Perty) and Annal. Se. Nat. vol. iii. Knoch. Neue Beytrage. Erste Theil, tab. 5. (Sandalus. ) Griffith. An. Kingdom, Insects. Westwood. (New Edit. of Drury, vol. iii.) — Ditto in Jard. Mag. Zool, and Bot. vol. i. (G. Cladotoma. ) Palisot Beauvois, Ins. d’Afr., &e. Germar. Sp. Nov. Insect. Eschscholtz. Zool. Atlas, t. iy. (Epiphanis. ) Charpentier, Hore Ent. t. i. (Dima. ) Guérin and Perchéron. Genera des Insectes. Noy. Act. Soc. Roy. Upsal, 1827. — Mem. Soe, Nat. Moscow, vol. vi. COLEOPTERA.— CEBRIONID&. Q45 period, if the weather be fine, few only are to be found; but if very wet, great numbers of males are observed creeping about the ground (from which they have recently emerged) and eagerly searching for the females. M. V. Audouin has also more recently described (Ann. Soc. Ent. France, vol.ii.) the coupling of C. gigas, the female of which had previously been very rare in collections, which arose from the peculiarity of the habits of this sex, which is seldom seen out of the ground, its ordinary situation being beneath the surface; above which, at the period of coupling, it protrudes a long horny tube, the extremity containing the organs of generation ; this organ being also employed to introduce the eggs to a proper depth under ground. M. Graells of Barcelona has published a series of observations to the like effect in the same work, 1837, p. 93. Dr. Leach published a Memoir upon Cebrio in the Zoological Journal, No. 1., in which several subgenera were separated from that genus, and in which the tarsi were erroneously stated to be hetero- merous. Dejean, however (Bull. Sc. Nat., Sept. 1824), considered that some of Leach’s groups were formed upon the females of various species of Cebrio; and which, indeed, differ remarkably from the other sex, the female of C. gigas, for instance, being much more robust, with short rounded elytra and antenne scarcely longer than the head, and clavate. (jig. 25.6.) The exotic genus Callirhipis is remarkable for having its long cleven- jointed antennz very strongly pectinated in the males. Rhipicera Latr. is similarly characterised ; but the antennz have from twenty to forty joints. M. Laporte has recently published a valuable Mo- nograph upon this and other allied genera.* (Ann. Soc. Ent. Fr, vol. iii.) Latreille also, in the same volume, gave a sketch of the family, including descriptions of the genera; and M. Lacordaire has published some observations on the habits of Rh. marginata, stating that it appears during, and towards the conclusion of, the rainy season. It is found in the forests upon low plants, gnawing the leaves and * M. Laporte has introduced the extraordinary genus Sandalus (having but slightly pectinated antenne) amongst his Rhipicerites, notwithstanding its evident affinity with Atopa, as pointed out by Knoch, whilst he has placed Ptilodactyla, having very remote antenne, amongst his Atopites. The genus Cladotoma Westw. (Meg. Zool. and Bot. vol. i.), although having beautifully flabellate antenna, is most closely allied to Atopa. (J%g. 25. 14. labrum; 15, mandibles; 16. maxilla; and 17. labium of Cladotoma, the latter organs beautifully penicillated. ) R 3 246 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. under-stems, but is never observed upon flowers. This author con- siders that it undergoes its transformations in decaying trees, as he once observed a newly disclosed specimen sitting near the entrance of aburrow. They fly and walk but slowly, appearing very inactive in the perfect state. The only British genus (but which is placed by Curtis in the family Telephorid) is Atopa, comprising but a single species, A. cervina (fig. 25. 11., fig. 12. tarsus, fig. 13. underside of the thorax of the same), which is not uncommon in hedges, appearing to be attached to chalky districts. The maxille and labium are terminated by long and slender hirsute lobes. Mr. Curtis has made some interesting obser- vations upon the economy of this insect in his British Entomology. The second family, CypHonip#, is a group of beetles detached from the foregoing, on account of their small size, hemispheric, depressed, or ovate, and rather soft bodies (fig. 25. 18. Eubria palustris, lately captured in Scotland by the Rev. Mr. Little), and furcate labial palpi (fig. 25. 19. labium of Cyphon melanurus): the mandibles are but slightly exposed: they are of dull colours, and are attached to plants in damp situations, and they fly and run with considerable agility. I have met with many individuals of Cyphon pallidus in the middle of winter, secreted in the stems of reeds, growing at Ham- mersmith. In some species, the hind legs are saltatorial, with the thighs dilated (fig. 25. 21. hind leg of Scyrtes); in the others they are simple (fig. 25. 20. hind leg of Cyphon). The third family Lampyrin#}, or the glowworms, having for its type the genus Lampyris Zinn., is distinguished by having the body * Bistiocr. Rerer. TO THE CyPHONID&. Germar. Mag. der Entomol. vols. iii. and iv. Ahrens. Fauna Ins. Eur. Fase, 5. Guérin. Icon. R. An. Stephens, Gyllenhall, &e. + Bisutiocr. Rerer. ro tHe Lampyrips®. Laporte, in Ann. Soc. Ent. de France, 1833. (Revision of Lampyris. ) Bassi, in Guérin, Mag. Zool. vol. iii. pl. 99. (G. Malacogaster. ) COLEOPTERA. — LAMPYRID®. 24.7 elongate and depressed, of a soft consistence ( fig. 26. 1. Lampyris noc- tiluca, theglowworm ¢ ; fig.26. 2. ditto female); the head small, and con- cealed by the front of the thorax, with the eyes of the males very large ( fig. 26.3.). In some species the head is produced into a rostrum ( fig. 27.7.); the thorax is semicircular, or quadrate, forming a flattened hood over the head; the antennz are filiform, and closely approximated at the base, and often pectinated or serrated, with compressed joints ; the penultimate joint of the tarsi is bilobed ( fig. 26.6. g ) ; the parts of the mouth are small; the palpi thickened at the tips ( fig. 26. 4. max- illa, 5. labium ¢ ); the mandibles small, acute, and curved. Insome species the females are apterous ( fig. 26. 2.), and in others furnished only with short elytra. They are voracious in their habits ; preying, in the larva state, upon the bodies of snails, and not, as asserted by some authors, upon plants. The species are, for the most part, ex- Griffith. Anim. Kingdom, Insects. Thunberg. Dissert. Entomol. Upsal, 1784.— Ditto, in Act. Soc. Roy. Upsal, vol. ix. virby. Century. Linn. Trans. vol. xii. Guérin. Icon. R. An. Insects. —Ditto, Magasinde Zool. — And ditto, Voyage de la Coquille. Schonherr. Syn. Ins. vol. iii. App. Germar. Mag. der Entomol. and Insect. Spec. Noy. Perty. Delect. An. Art. Brasiliz. Lamarck, Journ. d’Hist. Nat. vol. i. Wulfen. Description of Insects, Cape of Good Hope, 4to. Say. American Entomology, vol. iii. Svo. Newman, in Entom. Mag. No. 24. Westwood, in Zool. Journ. No. 17. (on Amydetes. ) Hope, in Gray’s Zool. Mise. No. i. — Ditto in Royle’s Himalaya (G. Anisotelus), Miiller, in Iliger, Mag. vol. iv. (Nat. Hist. L. hemiptera. )- R 4 248 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. otic, and are often ornamented with red or yellow and black colours. None, or but very few, of the species exceed an inch in length. When alarmed they fold their antenne and legs against the body, and re- main motionless, as though dead; many, also, at such times, bend their abdomen downwards. This family comprises three types of form, of each of which we possess a single English example ; thus forming the types of as many genera, Several other species have been introduced into the British lists, but incorrectly. The female of the English Lampyris is known by the ordinary name of the glowworm ( fig. 26. 2.); its body is long, flat, and soft; the head small, and concealed by the thorax ; and the antenne and legs short (having much the appearance of its larva (fig. 26. 7.); from which, however, it is easily distinguished by the greater number of antennal and tarsal joints). The males (fig. 26. 1.), on the contrary, are furnished with perfect wings and wing-covers, and very large eyes (fig. 26. 3.). The light emitted by this insect from the extremity of the underside of the abdomen (several of the terminal segments of which are of a pale colour, indicating the extent of the luminous pro- perty) is too well known to require description. It is a sluggish noc- turnal creature, often observed during the summer months*, in meadows, at the sides of roads, under hedges, &c. ‘The males, which may occasionally be observed hovering over the females in the twi- light, are also attracted by the light of candles or lamps; whence it has been supposed by most naturalists that this luminosity is given to the female, ** To captivate her favourite fly, And tempt the rover through the dark.” MonrcoMery. As however, the males, as well as the pup, larvee, and even the eggs, are slightly luminous, some authors have rejected this suppo- sition ; but, as Latreille well observes, “ on doit conclure que la sub- stance phosphorique se développe des le prémier age.” The glow- worm possesses the curious property of causing its light to cease at will, On this subject there are some interesting observations in the chapter on luminous insects, in the second volume of the Introduction * Mr. Bree (Mag. Nat. Hist. No. 25.) also states, in October and November ; but the light observed by him at such times most probably proceeded from larvae produced from eggs deposited during the preceding summer. COLEOPTERA. — LAMPYRIDE. 249 to Entomology ; and Dr. Burmeister mentions the curious 1.ct, that while catching some of the flying species in his hat, they have so suddenly and entirely ceased to shine, that he has fancied thatthey must have escaped. In the L. noctiluca, the males are but very slightly luminous; but in most of the large exotic species, the females of which are winged, both sexes emit a very strong light. When disturbed, these insects emit a bright but frequently interrupted light ; and when laid upon their backs, they shine without intermission, in consequence of the continual motion of the abdomen, in the endeavours of the in- sect to regain its position. These glowworms have attracted the no- tice of the observers of nature from the earliest periods; they were termed by the old authors Lampyris, Cicindela, Lucio, Noctiluca, Incendula, Lucernuta, Lucciola, &c. And as they (as well as the luminous Elaterida, with which they are generally confounded) abound in foreign climes, there is scarcely a book of travels published in which their splendid appearance in equatorial regions * is not dwelt upon; whilst their internal anatomy, and the phosphorescent nature of the luminous matter, has occupied the attention of Trevi- ranus, Carradori, Forster, Beckerheim, Carus, Miller, &c. Mr. Mur- ray, also, in his Experimental Researches in Natural History, has made the luminosity of the glowworm one of his subjects; and Mr. Todd, in the forty-second number of the Journal of Science and Art, and Messrs. Macaire and Macartney, in Gilbert’s Azmn., vols. 61. and 70., have published some observations upon the same subject. From these researches the luminous matter is found to be of a phospho- rescent nature ; although the light is not augmented when placed either * Tn some countries fire-flies in general appear to be named Cucuis by the natives, a name which we have seen is given to the luminous Elaterida, although in some accounts it is evident that the insects thus designated, must be Lampyride, the light being only visible when the insects are on the wing, the situation of the luminous spots being on the back of the thorax in the former. This general employment of the term seems to be proved by the statement of P. Martire, quoted by Mouffet, that the Cucuji are caught for the purpose of feeding upon the gnats, where these abound, a circumstance so different from the habits of the Elateridz, that it should evidently be applied to the Lampyride, which probably, like their allies the Tele- phoridz, feed upon other insects. Dr. Burmeister, indeed, conjectures that the light emitted by the Cucuji (which he considers to be Elateride) may have the effect of keeping the gnats away ; but which is totally at variance with the habits of the gnat in flying to lights. Mouffet, by whom the account of the Cucujos was quoted, described both the Elateridw and Lampyride under the name of Cicindela. 250 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. in oxygen or hydrogen gas. It has also been ascertained that the animal is able to live a long time in vacuo. The female glowworm deposits her eggs shortly after coupling, being thus occupied a day or two; these eggs are of a large size, and of a yellowish colour, and are placed in the earth, or upon moss and plants, to which they are affixed by means of a viscid fluid. The larva ( fig. 26. 7.) is long, narrow, flattened, and composed of twelve broad transverse segments (exclusive of the head), to each of the first three of which a pair of short legs are attached; the anterior, (not the centre thoracic segment, as stated by Stephens,) is semicircular, and gradually narrowed in front. This segment, which represents the hood-like prothorax of the perfect insect, is similarly employed as a shield to the head, which is entirely retractile within the thoracic cavity, at the will of the animal (jig. 26.8. the tips only of the mandibles being exposed.) The last abdominal segment is the narrowest, and its posterior angles are slightly produced. This larva is of an obscure black colour, with a pale spot at the hinder angles of each segment. The antenne, palpi, and legs are short; the latter being strong, and terminated by a small claw. The mandibles are strong, acute, and curved. It may often be ob- served crawling slowly about footpaths, near hedges, and when dis- turbed it withdraws its head, and becomes immovable. It feeds (as does also the perfect insect) upon small molluscous animals, especially those of the genus Zonites, and not upon leaves or grass, as Latreille and others have generally supposed. De Geer, indeed, was led to believe, from the structure of its mandibles, that it was carnivorous; but it is only recently that his supposition has been proved to be cor- rect. It is not difficult to rear this larva; but it is necessary to pro- vide it, from time to time, with moistened earth and fresh food. An anonymous author * (Bulletin Soe. Phil. Feb. 1826) has published an account of the habits of this larva; in which it is stated that they will devour snails even in a putrefying state; and a peculiar apparatus is described, for the first time, consisting of a kind of “ houppe ner- veuse,” composed of seven or eight white radii, capable of being pro- truded from the anal aperture, beneath the last abdominal segment, and which is employed, not only as a point of support, assisting in lo- * This memoir is also given in the Annales des Sciences Naturelles, vol. vil. p.353.3 and is attributed to M. Maille. (Perchéron, Bibl. Ent. i. 267.) COLEOPTERA. — LAMPYRIDZ&. 251 comotion (as, indeed, De Geer had long previously observed), but also as an instrument to cleanse the head and fore parts of the body from the slime left upon them by the snails, whilst engaged in their repast.* The larva is stated by this author to attain its full size in April, when it prepares to assume the pupa state; from the com- mencement of which period, until it assumes the perfect state, fif- teen days only are consumed, eight of which are passed in the pupa state. The shortness of the duration of this state may, perhaps, be accounted for, from the great similarity existing between the larva and female insect ; whence there is but little change required to be effected in the constitution of the insect in these states. When the larva is ready to assume the pupa state, instead of slitting the skin in a line down the back, a slit on each side of the three thoracic segments is made, separating the upper from the lower surfaces ; the insect then draws its head from out of the skin which had covered it, and the whole body is extricated through the aperture thus made ; the insect immediately assumes a bent position, and becomes a pupa; but it has the power of moving its antennz, legs, and head, as well as of twisting its body about, and pushing itself along by the alternate extension and contraction of the terminal segments of the body. The female pupa ( fig. 26. 9.) is especially interesting; being, in fact, a perfectly ap- terous coleopterous pupa. In this state it has been figured by De Geer. The pupa of the male exhibits the ordinary rudiments of the elytra and wings. I have represented at fig. 26. 10. a large flattened larva of this family, nearly allied to that of the glowworm, from the collection of the Rev. F. W. Hope, having long and very acute curved mandibles (fig. 26. 11.; head partly immersed in the prothoracic cavity), It is from Valparaiso, and is of a black colour, with two yellow spots in the front of the pronotum. In addition to the various memoirs above referred to, De Geer’s Mémoire sur le Ver Luisant, in the Mémoires de 0 Académie des Sciences de Paris, vol. 2.; Mr. Wilson’s Entomologia Edinensis, and the Magazine of Natural History tor November, 1835, may be re- * (See also Bulletin des Sciences Naturelles, June 1826, vol. viii. p. 296.) In the first number of Brande’s Journal of Science is contained a paper by Mr. Rennie upon the cleanliness of animals, in which this anal apparatus (without acknowledgment) is magnified into a thick pencil of hairs, not unlike a shaving brush, employed by the insect in the manner aboye mentioned. Q52 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. ferred to, containing excellent memoirs upon this insect; as well as a memoir by Miiller, upon L. hemiptera, in the fourth volume of SJlliger’s Magazine, and another memoir by M. De Loche, upon L. italica ( Transact. Acad. Roy. Turin, vol. 6.). In the elytra of this insect, as well as in L. noctiluca, Dr. Carus has observed the circula- tion of the blood. The figure given by Panzer (Faun. Ins. Germ. 41.t.7. c,d) as the female glowworm is that of the larva of one of the Silphide. The great number of exotic species, amounting to between two and three hundred, has rendered it necessary to separate them into various groups, of which the majority have perfect elytra and wings in both sexes. Hoffmansegg accordingly detached those South American species which have the male antennz composed of nearly forty joints, and strongly feathered on one side ( fig.27.9.), under the name of Amydetes. In the fifth volume of the Zoological Journal, I have published a memoir upon this curious genus, accompanied by descrip- tions and figures of two species. In the G. Phengodes Hoffm., the antenne are biplumose, and the elytra very short and narrowed to the tip, covering only a small portion of the wings. The type, P. plumosa /. inhabits North America, and is stated by Mr. Say to be not uncommon fora short period in the autumn. Attracted by the candle, it enters the house in the evening, and flies repeatedly against the ceiling in its endeavours to escape (Boston Journ. Nat. Hist. 1835, p.157.). Other striking variations exist in the structure of the antenne in the exotic subgenus Calyptocephalus G. R. Gray, and in that to which I would apply the name of Eucladisus ( jig. 27. 10.), being the Cladophorus of Gray, but not of Guérin, which latter belongs to the genus Lycus, or the Ethra of Laporte, which latter name must also be rejected, being long previously employed in the Crustacea. More recently M. Laporte has published a revision of the genus Lampyris, in which fifteen subgenera are proposed. (Ann. Soc. Entomol. France, 1833.) The genus Drilus is not luminous ; but the disparity of the sexes is even greater than in the preceding genus (fig. 26, 12. Drilus fla- vescens g — fig. 13.2?) The females were not cescribed* until * Tt is evident, however, that the short notice given by Reaumur, vol. iv. p. 30., referred to this insect, the sexes of which were compared by him to a hare or a sheep by the side of a cow; the male having wings and elytra, but the female having no vestige of either. COLEOPTERA. —— LAMPYRIDZ. 253 Meilzinsky published (Ann. Se. Nat. vol. i.) a memoir upon an insect, the larva of which he found feeding voraciously upon snails (Helix nemoralis). This larva (jig. 26.18. larva of the @ ) is of a yellowish colour, eight or nine lines long, and four or five broad; its head is armed with a pair of strong bifid jaws, and two short 2-jointed antenne ; the body is 12-jointed, each of the three first segments bearing a strong pair cf articulated legs, and each of the eight follow- ing segments furnished at the sides on the lower surface with two conical fleshy tubercles, or false legs, and on the upper with two raised bundles of hairs, forming a double series; the last segment is furcate, and bears the anus and two larger bundles of hairs ; the former organ is deflexed, and employed as an extra leg, and is of much service to the insect when it endeavours to effect an entrance into the shell of the snail. After attaining the full size, and remaining all the winter in that state, the insect subsequently passes about twenty days in the pupa state (as ascertained by Desmarest, Bull. Soc. Phil. 1824.), from which issues forth a fulvous-coloured fleshy and apterous imago, three quarters of an inch long, to which Meilzinsky gave the name of Coch- leoctonus vorax. Desmarest, however, succeeded in rearing the males of Drilus flavescens (about a quarter of an inch long) from the same kind of larvee, thereby proving that the Cochleoctonus was the female of this genus ; which fact was further confirmed by the discovery of the sexes united together, as well as by an admirable memoir upon their internal anatomy, by M. Audouin (Ann. Se. Nat. vol. ii.), by whom it was also noticed that the exuvie of the larve exactly close the aperture of the snail shell. The female exhibits the remark- able circumstance of having the thorax composed of three segments, similar to those of the rest of the body, thus resembling the structure of the larve. There is also a note, by Latreille, upon Meilzinsky’s Memoir in the Annales des Sciences Naturelles, vol. i. (My fig. 26. 14. represents the mandibles ; fig. 15. the male antenne ; fig. 16. the female antenne ; and fig. 17. the tarsus of the male.) The genus Lycus comprises numerous singularly formed, and chiefly exotic, species, not materially differing in the sexes, both of which are winged; and none of the species have been ascertained to be luminous. The head is produced into a deflexed rostrum (jig. 27. 7. and 8.), a structure serviceable, on account of the insects being generally found upon flowers, particularly those of the Um- belliferee: they also inhabit the decaying trunks of trees. In some of the exotic species (Lyc. latissimus, &c.), the elytra are 954 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. dilated at the sides, so as nearly to form a circle (fig. 27.6. Lycus premorsus, Africa). Their colours are gay, being generally fulvous or scarlet, variegated with black; the only British species is the Lycus minutus /’., belonging to the subgenus Dictyopterus, (fig. 27- 3.; fig. 4. the head; and fig. 5. one of the tarsi of the same): it is very®are, but has been found upon the oak, in the neighbourhood of London ; it is black, with scarlet elytra, and is a quarter of an inch long. The larva of D. sanguineus Z., a reputed British species, re- sides, according to Latreille, under the bark of the oak; it is linear, flat, and of a black colour, except the last segment, which is red, forming a flat plate, having its extremity furnished with two kinds of cylindrical horns, apparently annulated and bent inwardly. Schonherr (Synonymia Ins. vol. iii. App.) has described and figured numerous species of Lycus. I possess a very remarkable larva from Java (fig. 27. 1. under side), which I have no hesitation in referring to this family, from the manner in which the head is entirely immersed in the cavity of the first tho- racic segment, the form of the legs, and terminal segment; when alive, it would be at least two inches long ; I know net what insect it would produce, but it must evidently be a gigantic species in the group. As it exhibits no traces of luminous patches on the under side of the body, I should think it would probably belong to some species of Lycus; it is scarcely thicker than a doubled card. Dr. Perty has published a figure of this larva in his observations upon the Coleoptera of India, in which he doubtingly considers that it ought rather to be ascribed to a Necrophagous than a Malacodermatous insect. The body is nearly flat, and the first three segments very much larger and broader than the rest, which are armed at the sides with curved obtuse tubercles; the anterior segment is notched in COLEOPTERA, — LAMPYRIDZ. 955 front, and its centre is formed beneath into a longitudinal tube, within which the head is capable of being entirely withdrawn ; the anterior angles of the latter (fig. 27. 2., the head extracted from its tube) are formed into two rounded pilose lobes, which Dr. Perty has supposed serve as organs of taste; but as they are in no wise connected with the mouth, this opinion cannot be maintained. The same author has represented the head extracted from its prothoracic sheath, having a pair of large lateral ocelli, and a pair of thick jointless organs, which, in two specimens which I have dissected, were entirely immersed in a cavity at the anterior angles of the head. These organs, which Perty calls tentacula, are rudimental antennz, and call to mind the sunk antennz of the Hippobosce. The mouth, which Perty has entirely overlooked, is, indeed, very minute, but consists, as usual, of a pair of mandibles, ‘very acute and small; a pair of maxille, of which the terminal lobe and 4-jointed palpi are capable of being withdrawn into the extremity ; a broad mentum and lip; and a pair of minute 3-jointed labial palpi ; the mentum and maxillz are soldered together, forming a large flat membranous plate, covering the under side of the head in the centre. The mesothoracic, metathoracic, and eight following seg- ments, have each a pair of spiracles. I have also figured, from the collection of the Rev. F. W. Hope, another remarkable larva (fig. 28. 1.), nearly allied to the preceding, but of a narrow form, and of a black colour, with four longitudinal series of bright orange-coloured tubercles. ‘The under side of the prothorax is formed as in the preceding, and the parts of the mouth are very weak. As the latter, and especially the mandibles, are very long and acute in the larve of the Lampyres, the supposition that these larva belong rather to some species of Lycus is strengthened. The fourth family, TeELEPHoRIDsz *, is so named from the typical genus Telephorus of De Geer and Schaeffer, corresponding with the * Bistiocr. Rerer. TO THE TELEPHORID&. Fallen, Dissert. Monographia Cantharidum et Malachiorum Suecie. Lunde, 1807. Charpentier. or Entomologice, p. 194. Nov. Act. Soe. Roy. Upsal, vol. iv. v. and ix. — Nov. Act. Soc. Roy. Denmark, vol. ii. Bull. Soc. Nat. Mose. vol. vi. 256 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. major part of the Linnean genus Cantharis, which name is still em- ployed for these insects by some foreign naturalists, who give to the medicinal Cantharides the generic name of Lytta. These insects are of a soft consistence, and of a long and narrow form (fig. 27. 11. Telephorus rusticus ? ); they have perfect wings and elytra, and the eyes are of moderate size in both sexes. Tie head is broad and not concealed under the thorax ; the mandibles are acute and curved (fig. 27. 12.); and the antennz are simple, moderately long, and inserted close together ; occasionally theyare only 10-jointed; the labial palpi (fig. 27.14.) are nearly as long as the maxillary (fig. 27. 13.), and they are all terminated by a securiferm joint ; the penultimate joint of the tarsi is bilobed (fig. 27.15.). These insects, which are known by the common name of Soldiers and Sailors, are found in the spring in considerable numbers upon flowers, especially those of the umbelliferze and whitethorns. They are very voracious, feeding upon other insects, and devouring such of their own species as they can subdue, the females not even sparing their mates. These circumstances were, indeed, doubted by Olivier, but they have been well authenticated, and I have, myself, been often a witness of their voracious dispositions; their flight is heavy, and they walk awkwardly. De Geer has traced the history of Teleph. fuscus Zinn., and has figured it in its different states; the larva (fig. 27. 16.) is long and fleshy, depressed, and of a velvety black colour, with an exposed scaly flat head ( fig. 27. 18., upper side of the head transversely divided by a ridge into two parts, at the lateral extremity of which are the eyes; fig. 27.17. the under side of the head), furnished with stout mandibles, two short antenne (fig. 27.19), and four palpi, with a single ocellus behind each antenna. Each of the first three segments is furnished with a pair of scaly legs, terminated by a curved hook, and the under side of the terminal segment, which is entire and rounded, is furnished with a fleshy tubercle, answering the purpose of aleg. The other segments are rounded at the sides. These larvae Belanger. Voyage de Duperrey. Boisduval. Voyage d’Urville. Perty. Del. An. Art. Brasilia. Brullé. Exped. Scient. de Morée. Guérin, Icon. R. An. Insectes. —Ditto, Voyage de la Coquille. —Ditto in Ann. Soe. Ent. de France, vol. ii. COLEOPTERA.— TELEPHORID. 257 reside in moist earth, and are carnivorous in their habits, feeding oc- casionally, according to De Geer, upon their own species as well as upon earth worms. I have repeatedly found them creeping about footpaths, in moss, &c., in the winter and spring months. Mr. G. R. Waterhouse has given a very correct figure of the larva of Tel. rufus, with the details of the mouth, &c. (Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond., No. 1. pl. 3. f. 3.): the second joint of the antenne is remarkable for emit- ting two conical processes, the larger of which represents the terminal joint, and the smaller an additional spine (fig. 27.19.). This larva agrees with that figured by De Geer. Like the Drilus, these insects pass the winter in the full grown larva state, changing to pupe in April and May without previously forming any cocoon. The pupa presents no peculiar feature, except two small points at the extremity of the body. The perfect insect appears in two or three weeks. M. E. Blanchard has also figured the larvee and pupz of Telephorus fuscus and T. lividus, which closely resemble each other and T. rufus in structure (Guérin, Mag. Zool. pl. 168.). In certain seasons, the snow in Sweden and in the mountainous districts of France has been ebserved by De Geer and others to be covered for a considerable extent with an immense number of the larve of these insects, together with a multitude of other living insects, and which have been supposed to have fallen with the snow, or been deposited in such situations by gusts of wind after violent tempests which have defoliated the firs and pine-trees, The larve, thus found, are supposed by Latreille to belong to species which would make their appearance in the perfect state at an early period of the year. M. E. Blanchard has, however, suggested that they had pre- viously resided in the ground covered at the time by snow, through which they had crept for the purpose of obtaining a fresh supply of air. (See also Bulletin des Sciences Naturelles, August, 1829.) Dr. Hammerschmidt of Vienna read an account of the Jarva of Mal- thinus biguttatus at the Breslaw meeting of German naturalists ; but I believe the description has not yet been published. There are upwards of fifty British species of this family, none of which exceed three quarters of an inch in length: their colours are generally dull. The genus Malthinus comprises the smallest species in the family, seldom exceeding one-sixth ofan inch in length, and having the elytra generally tipped with yellow. 258 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. In the Transactions American Philosoph. Soc. (New Series, vol. iii.) is contained an interesting Memoir by Mr. Hentz upon the use of the maxillz in the Coleoptera*, and which comprises some interesting details upon two North American species of this family (Canth. mar- ginata and 2-maculata /ad.), forming the genus Chauliognathus Hentz, from the peculiar structure of the maxille (fig. 28. 2. head, and 28. 3. maxilla of Ch. marginatus), the extremities of which are capable of being protruded in the form of elongated, fleshy, and pilose seta, those found in the latter species being described as twice the entire length of the maxille: the abdomen in these species is longer than the elytra; and the former species at least has a pair of vesicles at- tached to the second abdominal segment, as in Malachius. Neither of tlrese species are predaceous, but are found upon flowers. The former lives long, and, when about to die, generally grasps the petal of a flower with its mandibles, in which position it may often be found dead and dry; the latter species appears later in the year, remaining until the first frost destroys the blossoms of thistles upon which it feeds, where Mr. Hentz had an opportunity of seeing it protrade its maxillary sete in the same manner as the tongue of the Lepidop- tera. I have received specimens of the former species from Dr. T. W. Harris of Cambridge (Massachusetts ), in which the maxillary lobes are exserted to twice the length of the head, having been displayed by Mr. Hentz himself. The fifth family Metyripa* is composed of insects belonging to the Linnean genera Cantharis and Dermestes, having the body soft, * Mr. Hentz regards the maxill2 merely as appendages of the tongue or labium, except in the Melolonthide and some other groups, in which their organisation evi- dently indicates some other use. * Bistiogr. Rerer. To THE MELyrRip®, Fallen. (See Telephoride. ) Noy. Act. Soc. Se. Upsal, vol. viii. and ix. Mem. Acad. Se. Stockh. 1799. Germar. Insect. Sp. Nov. Perty. Del. An. Art. Brasil. — Ditto, Coleopt. Ind. Orient. (Thesis, 1831.) Brullé. Exped. Scient. de Morée. Boisduval. Voyage de l’ Astrolabe. COLEOPTERA. — MELYRID#, 259 Fig: 28. SH ‘ All — NN oblong, or ovate, and but slightly convex (fig. 28. 4. Malachius zeneus) ; the palpi are short, filiform, and pointed at the tip; the upper lip is distinct and exserted (fig. 28. 5. front of the head, fig. 6. the mandible seen laterally, fig. 7. the maxille, and fig. 8. the labium of Malach. eneus); the head exposed; the thorax slightly convex; the antenne moderately long, serrated, nodose, or pectinated in the males of some of the species (fig. 27.10. antenna ¢, 11. ditto ?, Mal. zeneus ; Jig. 27. 12. extremity of tarsus of ditto.) These insects are generally of small size, and very active, being ordinarily found upon flowers for the sake of the insects which they find there and upon which they feed, the females not even sparing their partners if confined together. They are gaily coloured, green and red being their most conspicuous tints. Some of the species of the British genus Malachius have the an- terior angles of the thorax and the base of the abdomen (as in Jig. 28. 4.) furnished with several red bladder-like appendages (jig. 28. 9.), which the insect is able to contract or dilate at will, the precise use of which is not known. Mr. Curtis thinks they may enable the insect to increase or decrease its gravity during flight ; but Messrs. Kirby and Spence regard them as being employed for the purpose of alarming their enemies and showing their rage, as they are retracted as soon as the cause of alarm is removed, I should rather consider them as a portion of an apparatus for emitting an offensive effuvium for the like purpose. Guérin. Voyage Duperrey. — Ditto, Iconogr. Régne Animal. — Ditto, Voyage de la Coquille. Bull. Soc. Nat. Moscow, vol. vi. Fabricius, Olivier, Gyllenhall, Stephens, &c. s 2 260 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. The males of M. marginellus /. (bispinosus Curt. ¢) and some others have a hook-like tubercular process at the extremity of the elytra, which Latreille states is seized by the mandibles of the other sex in order to prevent its escape. As, however, it is the male which is thus armed, and as Mr. Stephens has ascertained that both sexes of another species (M. bituberculatus) and also M. binotatus Bab. exhibit this structure, I should think that Latreille’s statement is scarcely correct. I have published some further observations on this subject (Mag. Nat. Hist., vol. vil., and see Ent. Mag. vol. iv. p. 365.). The larva of Malachius zneus has been observed by Dr. Hammer- schmidt ; but his description of it has not yet been published. Mr. George Waterhouse has published a description and figure of the larva of Dasytes serricornis K. (fig. 28. 22., fig. 23. head of ditto, fig. 21. Dasytes «ratus), which is of an elongate form, soft, pubescent, and gradually swelling towards the apex, which is furnished with a pair of acute spines. Its colour is whitish, variegated with markings of a dull green hue, and it is found early in March in decayed blackthorn and pear trees, in company with the pupa. The imago appeared in April (Entomol. Mag., vol. ii. pl. 10. f. 1.). M. Audouin has informed me that he has reared Dasytes plumbeus from the larva, which is of a brownish colour, with dark spots, and which is found in the wood of lime trees. Latreille considers that the larve of this genus are car- nivorous. The males of some of the species of Dasytes (genus Enicopius Steph.) have the hind leg singularly contorted (fig. 28. 24.): the penul- timate segment of the abdomen is also notched in the males of all the species, and the terminal segment often armed with particular append- ages. The species of the genus Aplocnemus Steph. (Elicopis Besser) ap- pear to recede from the others in their habits, the typical species A. impressus Marsh ( fig. 28. 14., fig. 15. maxilla, fig. 16. labial palpus, jig: 17. tarsus of ditto), being found under the bark of trees, in which situation (in elm trees) the larva (jig. 28. 18.) has been found by Mr. G. R. Waterhouse during the winter. It is nearly half an inch long, of an elongate, depressed form, and fleshy consistence, and clothed with hairs ; the head (fig. 28. 20., fig. 19. one of the mandibles), prothorax, and terminal segment being coriaceous ; the meso- and meta-thorax having also a pair of lateral black coriaceous patches; the last seg- ment is armed with a pair of obtuse corneous points. Its colour varies from white to purple ( Zrans. Ent. Soc., vol. . pl. 6.). COLEOPTERA. — CLERID. 961 The family comprises several distinct typey of which the G. Mala- chius most nearly approaches the Telephoridz in habits and general appearances, whilst Dasytes is evidently closely allied to the Cleride in the structure of its larva. The exotic genera are few, and exhibit no remarkable features, with the exception of that which I have proposed for the reception of the Paussus flavicornis Fab. (Megadeuterus Westw.), which has the second joint of the antennz immensely swollen (fig. 28. 13.), and a singular species of Dasytes from Colombia of large size, for which I am in- debted to M. Gory, in which the elytra of the male are distended into a spherical balloon. In some of the large Brasilian exotic species, which Dejean still retains under the generic name of Dasytes, the tarsal ungues are deeply notched at the tips (fig. 28. 25.), but as the genus was originally proposed for the small European species it will be necessary to form these exotic species into a new genus. The sixth family, CLerip m * Westw., is of small extent, and composed of various insects placed by Linnzeus in his genera Attelabus, Chryso- * Breviocr. Rerer. ro THE CLERID-. Kirby. Trans. Soe. Linn. Lond. vol. xii.k— Ditto, in Zool. Journ. vol. 11, Guérin. Iconograph. Régne Animal. Ins. pl. 15. Klug, in Deser. Ins. Madagascar. Griffith, Animal K. Insects, pl. 48. Fischer and Steven, in Bull. Mose. 1829. Sturm. Catalog. Meiner Ins. Samm]. — Ditto, Deutchslands Fauna, vol. xi. Germar. Ins. Spee. Nov. Perty. Delect. An. Art. Brasiliz. Dalman. Anal. Ent. Brullé. Exped. Scientif. de Morée. Say. Amer. Entomol. Noy. Act. Soe. Roy. Upsal. — Mem. of the Nat. Hist. Soc. Berlin, vol. vy. — Act. Holm. 1825. Charpentier. Hore Ent. t. vi. Hope, in Trans. Zool. Soc. Lond. vol. i. —Ditto in Trans. Ent. London, vol. ii, — Ditto in Pettigrew’s Work on Mummies. s 3 262 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. mela and Dermestes, having for its type that of Clerus*, of Geoffroy, a name proposed long before Olivier employed that of Tillus for the same insects, although the latter name has been adopted by Leach and others for the family name of the group ; indeed, Dejean, by over- looking the fact that the Attel. apiarius Zinn., was Geoffroy’s typical species, and by employing for an allied group the name of Notoxus, has introduced great confusion in the names of the groups, which may be corrected by adopting the nomenclature given in my synopsis. The family is distinguished from the preceding by the greater firmness of the body, which is long and often cylindric, with the head Fig. 29. lft / We rim | tt ae. and thorax narrower than the elytra (fig. 29. 1. Clerus alvearius), FE P serene and by the short antennz, which are sometimes filiform and serrated, and sometimes gradually, or abruptly clavate (fig. 29. 6.). The palpi, or at least one pair of them, are terminated by a large hatchet-shaped joint (fig. 29. 4. maxilla, 29. 5. labium of Clerus, 29.19. maxilla of Opilus) ; the mandibles -have several teeth (fig. 29. 3.) ; the upper lip is distinct (fig. 29. 2.); the tarsi are short, broad, and often spongy beneath, with at least one of the joints, often the penultimate, bilobed ; the basal joint is occasionally scarcely distinct (fig. 29. 7. tarsus of Clerus, 29. 8. ditto, seen laterally, 29.18. tarsus of Necrobia); the head is retractile in the thorax as far as the eyes, which are generally lunate. * This name was indeed very aptly selected for these insects, since, although Geoffroy does not appear to have been aware of it, it was employed by ancients (as recorded by Aristotle) for a worm, which was found in bees-hives, probably how- ever, as suggested both by MacLeay (Hore Ent. p. 436.), and Latreille ( Cours d’ Ent. p. 63), itmight have been that of Galleria Cereana, indeed Latreille considers that the larva of the Clerus was the Pyraustes of the Greek naturalist, which pro- duced the Prasocuris. a COLEOPTERA. — CLERID&. 263 These insects which seldom exceed an inch in length, and are generally handsomely variegated in their colours, frequent flowers ; others, however, are found upon and under the bark of old trees, stumps, dry wood, &c., where they have passed the larva state, during which period, as far as has been hitherto observed, they are carnivorous. The species of the genus Clerus are amongst the largest of the fa- mily ; having the elytra generally of a bright red colour, ornamented with purple spots or fascia. They frequent flowers, the honey of which they extract by means of their beautifully ciliated maxilla ; but in the larva state they are very destructive to bees and wasps, in the nests of which the females deposit their eggs, during the absence of those insects, upon whose grubs the larvee of the Clerus, when hatched, prey; the C. apiarius selecting the hive bee, and the C. alvearius ( fig. 29.1.) the mason bees (Osmia and Megachile). The larve (fig. 29.9.) are of a beautiful red colour. Mr. Stephens describes those of C. alvearius as having a bluish spot on the scutellum; Latreille, however, from whom this description is derived, alludes to the spot near the scutellum of the imago (Regne An., first edition, 3. 256.). The upper lip is distinct and emarginate, and the antenne 4-jointed (fig. 29. 10.) They are furnished with six scaly legs, and two cor- neous points at the extremity cf the last segment of the abdomen, which has alsoa fleshy retractile proleg on the underside ( fig. 29. 11.). Schrank was of opinion that the Clerus deposits its eggs in the flowers frequented by bees, which conveyed them into the nest with the pollen ; but such a mode of oviposition is inconsistent with the great care shown by female insects in selecting the most proper places for the reception of their eggs. The larva, when hatched, first devours the grub of the bee in the cell in which it is born, and then proceeds from cell to cell, preying upon the inhabitant of each until arrived at maturity. It is in this situation, also, that it undergoes its changes in a small cocoon, which it has previously constructed, making its escape from the nest in the beetle state, when the hardness of its co- vering sufficiently defends it from the stings of the bees. Swammer- dam was the first author who described the habits of these beetles, having found the larva, or, as he calls it, a red worm, in the nest of a mason bee. ‘This worm, figured by him (tab. 26. f.3. a.), changed into anymph (4). “ But this nymph, after (in) the space of a whole year, did not change into a bee, but into a very beautiful beetle ; nor s 4 264 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. could I, in the mean time, observe that this worm (pupa) in all this time took any considerable food, unless, perhaps, the stony and clayey particles of its nest served it for food.” (P.226.) Réaumur (Mém. 3. vol.6.) has given an account of the ravages of this insect, and Schaeffer has also described it, and given magnified figures of the larvee and its details, and which resembles the larva of Opilus (Aé- handlungen von Insecten, vol. 2. t. 5.). During a visit, in company with Messrs. Audouin and Brullé, to the Pare de Belle Vue, in the month of July, 1837, we discovered a num- ber of the nests of Megachile muraria (a large black mason bee) upon a stone wall, with a south aspect. With the greatest difficulty, owing to their hard stony composition, we detached some of them, and in the interior of several we found the larva of a Clerus (fig. 29. 9.), de- vouring the larvee of the bees, passing from cell tocell. One of these larve, which I am now endeavouring to rear to the imago state, has exhibited similar habits to those described by Swammerdam; but the other, for want of its natural food, has burrowed into a piece of cork, upon which it feeds. M. Al. Lefebvre has published an account of a small species be- longing to this family, which he names Clerus Buquet, found by him, in its different states, in the pith-like roots of Eschinomena paludosa, which are used to line insect-cases coming from India. He has de- scribed and figured the larva and pupa; the latter of which (jig. 29. 14.) was enclosed ina cocoon. The former ( fig. 29. 13.) varies very considerably in its structure, as represented by M. Lefebvre, from the larva of Clerus apiarius ; but the specimen was dried and shrivelled up, as well as much damaged. He has had the kindness to present me with his specimens of the insect in its various states. Upon examina- tion it appears to me that this species belongs to a distinct genus, inter- mediate between Thanasimus and Necrobia. The parts described as the eyes of the larva are evidently the basal joint of the antenne, the remainder of which is broken off; the true eyes are very minute and granular, inserted behind the antenne, there being several on each side of the head, which is oblong and flat ; the legs appear to be all injured, one anterior femur alone remaining; the thoracic segments are much contracted, with several transverse channels, the specimen being probably on the point of assuming the pupa state. The extre- mity of the body is obliquely truncate at the eighth abdominal segment, which is covered by a black horny plate. I could not ascertain whether COLEOPTERA. — CLERID&. 265 the extremity of the body was not injured, or merely shrivelled up. The body of the pupa is terminated by two points. Several smal! beetles, with their larve and pupz, were found in company with this Clerus, upon which it probably subsisted (Annales Soc. Ent. France, 1835, plate xvi. p. 584.) Mr. G. R.Waterhouse found several larve in rotten whitethorn wood, in Kensington Gardens, during the winter months, in company with those of Anobium tesselatum, agreeing in structure, although some were of a yellowish white colour, spotted with pink ; whilst others were entirely pale pink above and pale yellow beneath. ‘The former he considered to be those of Thanasimus formicarius, and the latter of Opilus mollis. As these larva (for one of which I am indebted to Mr. Waterhouse ) did not appear to bore into the wood, it seems probable that they fed upon the larva of the Anobium. Subsequently he has published a description of the pink larvee, which remained two years in the larva state (although it appeared to be full-grown when captured), previous to assuming the pupa state, from which, however, it soon emerged as Opilus mollis, as he had surmised. This larva (jig. 29. 12.) is about half an inch long, of a scft consistence, and covered with long ru- fescent hairs. The legs are short, and the extremity of the body termi« nated by two corneous diverging protuberances. The mandibles are short, stout, and unidentate ( Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond. No.1. pl. 5. fig. 1.) These larve are also found in dry and rotten willows, beneath the bark of which the perfect insects are also found. Latreille states that they are also found in houses, feeding upon the larve of other insects. Mr. Dale has recorded (Mag. Nat. Hist. No. 19.) the capture of the larva of Tillus ambulans in rotten oak, on the 8th of May, and * which was bred on the. 11th,” from which it would appear, that it required only three days to undergo its change in the pupa state. I think, however, that some error must have crept into this state- ment. Latreille mentions a curious instance of tenacity, in a spe- cimen of Tillus elongatus Lizz. which had seized his finger with its jaws, and which suffered its head to be pulled off rather than quit its hold. The Thanasimus formicarius (so named from its resemblance to an ant) is found upon rotten or newly felled trees, especially those of fir, under the bark of which the larva, according to Linneus, resides, devouring the larvee of the timber-boring Anobium. Dr. Ratzeburg has more recently published an account of the 266 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. habits and a description of the preparatory states of Thanasimus formi- carius, in his “ Forst. Insecten,” pl. 1. f.17. The larva (fig. 29. 15.) is of a dark pink colour, with a pitchy head and prothorax, and two pitchy spots on the meso- and meta-thorax. In its form, it closely resembles Clerus; it feeds upon lignivorous larvee, having been de- tected by Saxesen and Hartig, in the cocoons of Hylobius notatus and Hercyniz : its pupa is represented at fig. 29. 16. The species of the genus Necrobia, as the name implies, depart from the typical habit of the family, by feeding upon carrion and dead animal matter, such as dried skins, old bones, &c., both in the perfect and larva state; the latter, according to Geoffroy, re- sembles that of Clerus apiarius, having the body elongated, soft, with six scaly legs, and two hooks at the tail. To one of the species of this genus (N.ruficollis), entomologists are indebted for the preserv- ation of the life of Latreille. Scarcely needed this celebrated man, who, by his numerous and highly valuable works, has raised the science to the high rank which it now holds, to apologise for the introduction of the statement of this fact, which, from its singu- larity and the interest which must attach to it, I doubt not will be acceptably received in his own words: “A Vépoque de ces jours affreux que firent éclore en France et l’ambition de quelques hommes et le fanatisme révolutionnaire, je trouvai l’insecte que je viens de décrire a Bordeaux, sur les murs de la prison ou j‘étois detenu. Renfermé dans un bouchon de liege cacheté, et envoyé a Bory de Saint Vincent, cet insecte devint l’occasion de ma _ délivrance,”’ (Hist. Nat., Se., vol. ix. p.157.). M. Brullé has given a full narrative of this interesting event in his Hist. Nat. des Insectes Col. vol. iii. S. S. Saunders, Esq., M. E. 8. also found the same insect in profusion upon the walls of the Penitentiary, Westminster. I observed specimens of the same insect both in the larva and imago state, in company with a great quantity of Dermestes vulpinus, which had destroyed a cargo of cork (communicated by Mr. Bower- bank to the Entomological Society). It is impossible, however, to decide whether the Necrobia had fed upon the cork, or whether its larva had attacked those of the Dermestes. The larva (fig. 29. 17.) is of a much more elongated and anteriorly attenuated form than the other larve of the family yet observed. In the 14th volume of the Linnean Transactions, an account is given of some insects found on opening a mummy, amongst which were specimens of COLEOPTERA. — CLERIDZ®. 267 Necrobia violacea; and the Rev. F. W. Hope has described a species of this genus of a reddish colour, under the name of Necr. mumiarum, in Mr. Pettigrew’s work upon mummies. He is of opinion, that the medicaments used in the process of embalmment might partially have discharged the colour of the beetles, some having a purple tinge. M.Champollion Figueac has also published a note respecting the same or a closely allied species found in a mummy, and described by Jurine under the name of Corynetes glaber (inter- mediate between rufipes and abdominalis), Magasin. Eneycloped., Paris, May, 1814. The genus Corynetes Fab. is very nearly allied to Necrobia, with which it is often confounded ; the species are found upon flowers and in hedges as well as in houses. The following observations upon Cor. violaceus, made by the late General Hardwicke, have been pub: lished byMr. Curtis: —“ When at Wisbeach, in October last, my attention was drawn to the depredations going on in the plank of a deal box, in which I found the larvee of a small Coleopterous insect (Cor. violaceus) embedded in dust, which their little jaws had pro- duced between the upper and lower surfaces of the plank; I found, also, in the same dust, the cocoon of the pupa of some of the larvee, of a soft, silky, leathery texture, not unlike what are formed by the clothes-eating moths when the larva assumes the pupa state. In this cocoon there appeared to be three cells, two of them unoccupied, the third closed and full; I therefore enclosed the cocoon with the bit of plank in a box, to secure the insect, when it might become an imago, which occurred about six days after.” (Brit. Entomol. fol. 351.). As however we have already seen that the larve of some of these insects prey upon the wood-boring Anobia, and as no species has been ascertained to feed naturally upon (although found in) wood, I fee! inclined to regard this communication as relating to two distinct insects, the previous part to an Anobium, and the latter to a Cory- netes, which had destroyed the other, and the account of the two empty cells seems to confirm such an opinion. Amongst the characters given by Mr. Curtis, separating Necrobia from Corynetes, are especially mentioned the 4-jointed tarsi, and the posteriorly angulated thorax in the former, but in N. Mumiarum (which I carefully examined, and figured in Mr. Pettigrew’s work), I observed five joints in the tarsi, the fourth being small, and the thorax posteriorly rounded at the angles. 268 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. The exotic genera scarcely present any material characters for ob- servation ; the Brazilian genus Stigmatium cicindeloides Hope ( Grif- Jith, An. K.) having the aspect of a Cicindela, with very slender antennze and prominent eyes, and Enoplium (Chariessa Perty, placed by that author amongst the Chrysomelide), and having the antenne terminated by three large internally produced joints, being the most interesting. The splendid Brazilian Opilus auripennis Hope (Zool. Trans. i. pl. 13. f. 5.), appears to form a distinct subgenus *, having the antenne similar to Enoplium ; but the thorax is very different, and the tarsi are completely tetramerous, whilst some species (genus Stilpnonotus Gray, An. K.) are as perfectly heteromerous, the four anterior tarsi being 5-jointed, and the posterior pair 4-jointed. The seventh family, Printp#+, corresponds with the Linnean genus Ptinus, and comprises a rather extensive group of insects of small size but of very destructive habits. ‘The body is of a firm consist- * The Enoplium viridipenne Kirby appears congenerous. + Brstiogr. Rerer. To THE PrinipZ&. Muller. (Naturforscher St. 20.) Carpenter, in Gill’s Technological Repository. Dufour, in Annales Se. Nat, 1828, (internal Anatomy of Anobium Striatum). Entomologische Hefte. (Monograph of Dorcatoma.) Ratzeburg. Die Forst-Insecten, pl. 2. Germar, in Neu. Schrift. Naturf. Gesellsch. Halle, 1811, vol. 1. -— Ditto, Mag. der Entomol. vol. iii. and iy. — Ditto, Insect. Spec. Novy. Noy. Act. Curios. vol. xvi. Bulletin Soc. Nat. Moscow, vol. vi. Falderman, in Nouv. Mem. Soc. Moscow, vol. iv. Sturm. Catal. Meiner Ins. Samml. Latreille. Mem. on Anobium Striatum in Rapport de Trav. Soe. Philomat. 1799-1800. Schneider. Neustes Magazin. 5 Hefte. 8vo. Stralsund, 1791-1794. (Kugellan on Serrocerus. ) Guérin. Icon. Régne Animal—Mag. de Zoologie, pt. i. (Chevrolat on Dryophilus. ) Illiger. Mag. der Entomol. vol. vi. Thunberg, in Act. Upsal, vol. iv. and v. Charpentier. Horz Entomol. Sturm. Deutchslands Fauna, vol. xi. Stephens, Fabricius, Olivier, Gyllenhall, §c. COLEOPTERA. — PTINIDZ. 269 K DN y 3 15 | SS 14) {)/ 2) ence, and of an oval or subcylindric form, but generally short and obtuse at each end (fig. 30. 1. Ptinus imperialis). The head is small, and immersed into the thorax as far as the eyes; the antennz mo- derately long, filiform, serrated, or pectinated, (fig. 30.9. antenna of Ptilinus ¢.) or rather short, with the last three joints large and compressed (fig. 30. 8. antenna of Anobium). The thorax is broad in front, serving as a hood for the head over which it is produced (fig. 30. 2.); the upper lip is transverse and entire (fig. 30. 4.); the mandibles are small and dentate at the tip (jig. 30. 5. mandibles of Anobium tesselatum) ; and the palpi are short, and terminated by a rather incrassated joint ( fig. 30.6. maxilla, 30. 7. labium of Anobium). The tarsi are 5-jointed, and occasionally very broad (fig. 50. 3. tarsus of Ptinus imperialis). The colours of these insects are obscure, or but little variegated; when touched, they counterfeit death by with- drawing their head and antenne, and contracting their legs; and so pertinacious are they, that they will suffer themselves to be pulled in pieces, or even, as has been asserted, roasted before the fire, rather than offer any signs of life. Their movements are slow, and it is not often that they make use of their wings ; they are found in old houses, in furniture, and in rotten palings, stumps of trees, &c., which they and their larva perforate with round holes, in every direction, which are filled with a very fine powder, formed of gnawed wood and excrements. Some species (as Anobium paniceum, pertinax, &c.), feed upon col- lections of dried plants, skins of insects, &c.; whilst others (An. striatum) bore into our chairs, tables, and other wood-work, books, &c., in the larva state, from which they escape on arriving at the perfect state, sometimes in such numbers, as to render the furniture attacked completely rotten ; of which an instance is recorded by me 270 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. in the Transactions of the Entomological Society, p.viii., concerning Pti- linus pectinicornis, myriads of which completely destroyed a new bed-- post in the short space of three years. Mr. Spence has also given an account of the great injury produced in the timbers of houses, at Brus- sels, by Anobium tesselatum (Hié. Trans. vol.ii. p.xi.). In the third volume of Jiliger’s Magazin., there is a memoir by Von Malinousky, on the destruction of these beetles. Some species, including A. pani- ceum, &c., feed upon almost every substance, devouring ginger, rhu- barb, cayenne pepper, black wafers, &c., even perforating tinfoil in the larva state, and rendering ship biscuit unfit for use by feeding and breeding in it in great profusion. The last-named insect has also been known to devour even Cantharides ; I have also often found it in the bodies of old specimens of insects; it is also very troublesome where quantities of wafers are kept, feeding upon them and fastening them together in masses of three or four, within which it undergoes its transformations. Ptinus fur will also feed upon old woollen clothes; it also feeds upon wheat deposited in granaries, committing great devastation, as we learn from some observations of M. Audouin, published in the Ann. de la Soc. Ent. de France, 1836. p. \xii. Some of these insects (Anobium striatum, tesselatum, &c.) are also the cause of occasional alarm to ignorant persons, from the noise which they make during the season of pairing, by striking their jaws upon the object upon which they are stationed, by way of signal, and which is replied to in the same manner by the other sex. Hence these insects have acquired the vulgar name of the Death Watch; the noise somewhat resembling the ticking of a watch, and being regarded as a superstitious omen. « The solemn death-watch click’d the hour she died.” Gay. Mr. Dillwyn, in his Swansea Coleoptera, states, that the same opinion also prevails in Wales ; the insect being termed by the Welsh «“ Mawr orearw;” but he thinks the name is also given to the Termes pulsatorius. From a lengthened series of observations which I have made upon this subject (see Mag. Nat. Hist. Sept. 1834), Iam inclined to believe that the same noise is also produced by the larvae, whilst gnawing the wood upon which it feeds. Olivier thought it was also produced by the larvee, but that it was occasioned by the blows which they made, in order to ascertain the thickness of the wood which still remained unbored, before they could reach the surface. COLEOPTERA. — PTINIDE. 971 These larve very much resemble those of the Lamellicorn beetles in miniature, being soft, cylindric, fleshy, and slightly pilose, with a scaly head, and six legs, and with the last segment large, not furnished with any appendage, and curved beneath the body (fig. 30. 10. larva of Anobium, natural size, 30. 11. ditto magnified), so that the insect cannot walk upon a flat surface. The jaws (jig. 30. 12.) are robust, and armed with four obtuse teeth ; the other parts of the mouth are short ; the maxilla are terminated by a rounded and strongly ciliated lobe ; the maxillary palpi are short and 3-jointed ( fig. 30. 13.); the lower lip is thick, with short, apparently inarticulated palpi (7g. 30. 14., 15. ditto seen laterally); and the antennz are obsolete. The larva of Anobium paniceum, communicated to me by Mr. Stephens, is white and curved, and similar to those of the Ptini, and other Anobia. When full-fed, they construct a cocoon of soft silky matter, mixed with the substances upon which they have been feeding, within which they are transformed to pupz. It would appear that the larva has the instinct to continue the boring of its burrow until it has nearly reached the surface, so that a slight barrier only remains, which the perfect insect can pierce without difficulty. Linnzus informs us that these mischievous grubs may be destroyed by means of arsenic and ‘alum. The perfect insects generally appear in the hottest parts of the sum- mer. - De Geer (Mém. vol. 4. pl. 9.) has given an account and figures of the larva of Ptinus fur. Bouché (Naturg. der Ins. p. 187.) has de- scribed those of Ptinus imperialis and Anobium tesselatum. Goeze (Naturforscher. St. 8.) has given a long account of two larvee belong- ing to this family. The larva of another species is described in the new Transactions of the Swedish Academy (1783. 8. 239.); and Mieneken has published an account of that of Ptinus fur in the Wa- turforscher. St. 3. The species of the genus Ptinus are found upon old and decaying timber; and Latreille states that he has frequently found Ptinus ger- manus upon excrement. The sexes in this genus vary so materially in form, that they have often been described as distinct. The males are long and narrow, and the females short and thickened. The Ptinus imperialis Linn. (fig. 30.1.), one of the largest and most elegant British species, is referred by Latreille to the genus Hedobia De., as it recedes in habit from the rest of the species; having the antennz O72 MODERN CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS. wide apart at the base, and the tarsi broad and cordate (fig. 30. 3.). I have always found it in whitethorn hedges. Ptinus latro and P. crenatus have been observed to attack collections of insects. (Ann. Soc. Ent. F'r., 1836, p. iv.) The curious genera Mezium and Gibbium might almost be mistaken for drops of blood. I once found a considerable number of the Me- zium sulcatum in an old opera-hat. The following observations upon the same insect were communicated to me by Mr. Davis, by whom it was found in the dead bodies of decayed insects. One was observed in the pupa state between the abdomen and elytra of a beetle, the in- terior of the body of which had been partially consumed by the larva, which resembles those of the other species of the family ; and the pupa is inclosed in a cocoon formed of silky matter, mixed with the excrements of the larva. M. V. Audouin (Ann. Soe. Ent. France, 1835, p.v.) recently dis- covered an innumerable quantity of the Gibbcum scotias in a small antique vase, dug up at Thebes, in which a small quantity of semifluid resinous matter was also contained. He is inclined to believe that the insects (for one of which I am indebted to him) had been attracted to this matter at a subsequent period, rather than that they had been embalmed in it by the Egyptians. Mr. Wilkinson, the distinguished Egyptian traveller, has also informed me of a similar discovery made by himself. The species of Péilinus reside in dry rotten wood, piercing it in every direction with their cylindrical burrows: it is in this situation, also, that the union of the sexes takes place ; the male remaining on the outside, and suspended in the air. The only British species of Ochina is found upon ivy, in which the larva resides. I have received it from Germany, under the name of Ochina Hederze Germar. i Sees y 9 A i eee 4 “, A 4 yy P| S E % si il ki Uy vey i & Sy Mo et i SONIAN INSTITUTION LIBRARIES E = aR Sie tty ae