104 



INSECTS ABROAD. 



Both names are appropriate. The generic name, Eurytrachelns, 

 is formed from two Greek words signifying " broad-necked," and, 

 as may be seen by reference to the illustration, one of the principal 

 characteristics of the insect is its thick, sturdy form, the neck being 

 as wide as any part of the body, and hardly any break of outline 

 denoting the distinction between head, thorax, and abdomen. 

 This peculiar form is the sure sign of a boring insect, and enables 

 the creature to pass easily through passages in which any differ- 

 ence in diameter would cause it to stick fast. The name Titan 

 is taken from that of the well-known mythological giant, the 



Fig. 48.— Eurytracheius Titan. 

 (Black.) 



eldest brother and rival of Saturn. This is indeed a very Titan 

 among the Dorcida^ though there is one of them, Dorms Antmis, 

 which does not fall very far short of the dimensions of the Titan, 

 It is scarcely necessary to remind the classical reader that 

 Antaeus was another of the race of giants, and that his name 

 is in consequence conferred upon a gigantic insect. 



When the enormous and powerful jaws of the insect are 

 closed, their armed points cross each other considerably, the 

 right jaw passing above the left. The formidable teeth which 

 spring from the centre of the jaw not only cross, but one passes 



