PREDACEOUS BEETLES. 109 



CALOSOMA CALIDUM (Fab.). 



On the 23d of May a male and female were placed under 

 observation in a breeding jar, and were noted to pair on each 

 of the three succeeding days. The first eggs were laid May 

 31 ; the female died July 24, after having deposited eighty- 

 eio-ht eofo-g. The larvas hatched in about a week from the 



* ' ^ * ! 



date of oviposition, and were isolated in jars and carefully 

 fed daily. A large proportion reached the third larval stage 

 in a health}- condition. At this time the same difficulty was 

 experienced as last year, viz., the dying of the lame with- 

 out any apparent cause. 



Quite a number of the larvae pupated, however, but on 

 examining the jars a few days later the pupre were found to 

 be dead, having been attacked by mites.* A full-grown 

 larva of C. calidum, which was found July 4, fed a few days 

 and pupated in one of the breeding jars, but shared the 

 same fate as the others. 



PTEKOSTICHUS LUCUBLANDUS (Say). 

 This is one of our most common around beetles, and is 



O 



often found under stones or running about in the grass dur- 

 ing the summer. While the members of this genus are con- 

 sidered to be predaceous on other insects, certain species 

 have been charged with doing some damage by feeding on 

 vegetation. This is probably true to some extent, but when 

 these insects are abundant they doubtless do considerable 

 good by feeding on noxious species. 



A pair of lucublandus were taken in coitu under a large 

 rock, June 2, 1897. They were placed in a breeding jar 

 and fed with gypsy moth caterpillars. The smaller ones 

 were devoured greedily, the larger ones, as a rule, being 

 rejected. On July 4, however, I observed the male beetle 

 attack a fourth molt larva of this species. The caterpillar 

 was grasped just behind the head, and, after a fierce struggle, 

 the beetle succeeded in cutting a hole through the integu- 

 ment and began to feed upon the internal portions with great 



* Identified by Mr. Banks as " the nymph of some Oribatid, probably of the genus 

 Oribata." 



