DEVELOPMENT OF THE TARSUS. 175 



Ouii first example of the Hetevomera belongs to the family of 

 the Anisosiiclae, and is called Anisosis caudatus. 



This little Beetle is very simple in colour, being dull blaclc, 

 with a finely punctated surface. Its chief peculiarity lies in the 

 tarsus of the hind legs. The reader will remember that in the 

 Beetles of this division the tarsus of the hind legs only contains 

 four perfectly developed joints. We should naturally therefore 

 expect this member to be shorter than those of the first and 

 middle pairs of legs. It is therefore very remarkable to find 

 that in spite of this small number of joints this tarsus should be 

 of any great length. Yet, in looking at this insect, we are at 

 once struck with the extraordinary 

 development of the tarsus of the 

 hind legs. They are necessarily 

 very slender, and almost look like 

 little black hairs rather than joints. 

 The magnifying glass, however, 

 reveals that the four joints of the 

 tarsus are each drawn out to a very 

 great length, the basal or first joint p^^ so— Am 



being, as usual, the longest : indeed, (Bia.k.) 



the tarsus alone is nearly as long- 

 as the entire body. At the end of the tibia there is a very long 

 and very slender spine, projecting inwards, so that the appear- 

 ance of the limb is really remarkable. 



The generic name Anisosis is Greek, signifying " unequal," 

 and is given on account of the inequality in length of the legs. 

 The Latin specific name caudatus signifies " tailed," and alludes 

 to the shape of the body, which is narrowed at tlie end into a 

 sort of tail. This species comes from Cape Negro. 



The family of the Adesmiidas is represented by an insect 

 called Adesmia variolaris, which may be taken as the typical 

 form of the family. 



Although in its hues this insect is notliing remarkable, its 

 colour being only soft brown, it is really a handsome Beetle, on 

 account of the l)old sculpturing witli which the elytra are 

 adorned. The whole body is very convex, and comes to a 

 tolerably sharp point at the end. The elytra are very wide, 

 folding over the sides of the abdomen so as to cover a full half 



