MINERS 55 



but when they grow a little bigger and stronger 

 they devote their energies to the destruction of 

 roots of grass and other plants. For three years 

 they continue to feed, and then, being full-grown, 

 they burrow to a depth of about three feet from 

 the surface and change to the chrysalis condition. 

 The grubs are whitish, clumsy-looking creatures, 

 their hinder parts being so swollen that they have 

 to lie on their sides whilst they feed. 



The Tiger Beetles (Cicindela), of which one 

 species (C. camfestris) is among the most brilliant 

 of our beetles as it flies in the sunshine, are miners 

 in the grub state. The female beetle is provided 

 with a strong ovipositor with which she bores into 

 the ground and deposits her eggs. The grub, 

 which is more active than the larvae of many beetles, 

 digs a straight vertical shaft and enlarges it to fit 

 as he grows. His head and the adjoining part of 

 his body are broad and flat, forming a sort of 

 shovel with which he carries up the excavated soil 

 and deposits it around the mouth of his deep 

 burrow. 



In addition to his six legs he has a couple of 

 hooks on his back which help him materially in 

 climbing to the mouth of his tube and in supporting 

 him whilst there. This is an important point, for 

 he spends much time in this position, his flat head 

 acting as a stopper to the shaft. Here he waits 

 until some unlucky insect walks across. Then the 

 head is jerked back suddenly and returned with the 

 jaws open. The insect is seized and taken to the 



