170 INSECTS ABUOAD. 



1,liem feed upon the larva? of other insects, especially upon those 

 of the solitary bees. A very pretty species of this family, Clcrm 

 formicarius, is well known to English entomologists. It is a 

 very pretty little Beetle, red, yellow, and black in colour. Even 

 the larva is dark pink, spotted with black. Its larva is found 

 under bark, where it feeds on the larvae of other wood-boring 

 Beetles. 



The present insect, which is found spread over a considerable 

 portion of Asia and part of Europe, especially round the shores 

 of the Mediterranean, is in every way an admirable representa- 

 tive of the Cleridfe. In the larval or grub state it inhabits the 

 nests of wild bees, the larvse of which it devours. It is beauti- 

 fully coloured. The head and thorax arc of the richest blue, the 

 colour of which is, however, rather 

 obscured by the thick downy hairs 

 with which it is covered. The elytra 

 are warm dun, deeply punctated, and 

 across them are drawn two broad 

 '^-^"^■•''^^'^c-. bands of deep purple, a patch of the 



same hue occupying the tips of the 



Fig. 78. — Tricliodes crabroniforjiii.s. » i i 



(Yellow and purple.) elytra. Altogether, except that it 



is so nmch larger, it is wonderfully 

 like the British Clorus which has already been mentioned. 

 The legs are purple, just like the bands on the elytra. 

 There is a downy clothing on the elytra, but the hairs are 

 neither so thick nor so long as on the thorax and head. The 

 wings are large, and, as is the case with our own insecls, a 

 portion of them can mostly be seen towards the end of the body, 

 as the ends of the elytra slightly diverge. 



The generic name Trichodcs is Greek, and signifies " fine 

 hair;" and the specific name crabroniformis is Latin, signifying 

 " hornet-like," in allusion to the dark stripes on the yellow body, 

 which at a little distance really do give to the Beetle a very 

 liornet-like air. 



There are many species of tliese beautiful insects, nearly all 

 of which have a strong family likeness. Some are very small, 

 and some are very splendid in colour, the most striking of which 

 is a North African species, rather larger than our common Tiger 

 Beetle. It is very hairy, has a black thorax, and yellow elytra 

 banded and edged witli the deepest green. 



