BEETLES 307 



ground beetles I saw little on the islands, but two species 

 of Cicindelidue (Tiger beetles) were found, which were 

 very acceptable to the British Museum. One, a pretty- 

 green species, not unlike the English G. campestris, but 

 larger, was found abundantly running over termite hills 

 on Nsadzi Island. The other was a mottled grey species, 

 found, but very difficult to see, on a stretch of sand on 

 Bugalla that had at one time obviously been the lake 

 shore. The huge black Cardbidae,^ common in Africa, 

 were never seen on the islands ; though I do not assert 

 that they were not there, it seems curious that they 

 should never have been met with. 



Carnivorous water beetles {Dytiscidae, Gyrinidae, etc.) 

 were of course abundant in the weedy shallow waters. 

 The readiness with which they take to the wing is well 

 known ; but it was quite amusing to note how, during 

 a storm of rain, several Gyrinidae appeared in the trench 

 which led away the rainfall from the roof and solemnly 

 executed their well known whirligig manoeuvres so long 

 as the water lasted, and when the storm was over they 

 vanished. Large Dytiscidae several times dropped on 

 to a shiny patch of wet ground during heavy rains, 

 evidently misled into thinking it was a pool. 



The beautiful Longicorn beetles were often met with, 

 and one very abundant green species of medium size ^ 

 had a very rank aromatic odour, and my pet monkey 

 would not eat it. 



The most interesting Longicorns are the mimetic 

 species, and a very fine one ^ was abundant on the 

 flowering shrub Haronga, where it was associated with 

 the large Lycidae which it so much resembled. Other 

 Longicorns mimic the parasitic Hymenoptera of the family 

 Braconidae, many of which are typically aposematic in 

 appearance, and have a powerful, rank odour. 



^ Genus Anthia. ^ Phrosyne brevicornis. 



' Amphidesmus analis. 



