220 THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



rendered necessary by subsequent papers. But I fully believe that 

 American coleopterology has now advanced so far that even tables and 

 diagnoses of the species can be given ; in short, that it is possible now, if 

 the preparation of the work is entrusted to the able hand of Dr. Horn, 

 to produce a compendium fully equal in completeness, value and useful- 

 ness to Ludwig Redtenbacher's well-known Compendium which deservedly 

 obtained a success unparalleled in the history of descriptive entomology. 

 It bears the modest title "Fauna Austriaca [Austrian Fauna]. — The 

 Beetles ", but is practically a full synopsis of the Coleoptera of North and 

 Middle Europe, with tables of all European genera, and numerous refer- 

 ences to the species of Southern Europe. Its influence on the progress 

 of coleopterology cannot be overestimated, and is best illustrated by the 

 fact that the work, although quite a bulky volume, quite expensive, and 

 consisting exclusively of dry scientific descriptive matter, went through 

 three editions during the life time of the author, each edition being fully 

 brought up to date. The third edition, although now almost twenty 

 years old, is still in the hands of every working coleopterist all over the 

 globe. Its success as a scientific work, and as a business enterprise, has 

 rendered possible the publication of a similar work on the Diptera of 

 Europe, an order which at that time was perhaps more neglected in Europe 

 than it is now in North America. I refer to Schiener's well-known " Fauna 

 Austriaca. — I'he Diptera " which is modelled after Redtenbacher's work. 



What is practically a fourth edition of Redtenbacher's work is now 

 being published by Prof. M. Ganglbauer, of Vienna, and embodies, of 

 course, the more recent progress in classification, and also enlarges the 

 geographical scope of the work ; but, what is by far more important, it 

 promises to give due and full regard to the biology of Coleoptera. This 

 leads me to indulge in a little speculation as to what role the biology of 

 North American Coleoptera would play in the proposed compendium. I 

 regret to say that I cannot draw here a very roseate picture. 



Biology of Coleoptera is a slow science, and has by no means kept equal 

 pace with the progress in the classification of the imago. The cause of 

 this deficiency is to be found not so much in the lack of interest on the part 

 of our coleopterists, but to the many difficulties that surround the subject 

 on all sides, even in the elementary branches of the science. If we except 

 a portion of the Chrysomelidje, a portion of the Coccinellidse, a portion of 

 the Dermestidre, and a few other genera or species, the mere finding of 

 Coleopterous larvae is a difticult thing, the rearing of the same still more 



