THE NUDIROSTRIA. 401 



far inferior in this respect to many other species of 

 the group, some of which have the hemelytra and the 

 dilated portions of the prothorax quite transparent 

 and divided into comparatively large cells by a net- 

 work of veins, whilst the disc of the hemelytra, in- 

 stead of being nearly flat, is raised in the form of a little 

 roof, and the anterior portion of the prothorax is 

 often swelled out into a sort of hood over the head. 

 One species of this form, the Tingis Pyri, is found 

 upon pear-trees, the young leaves of which it sucks, 

 and although it does not appear to be common in 

 this country, in the southern parts of the Continent it 

 appears in such numbers as frequently to be very 

 injurious. 



From these delicate and generally harmless crea- 

 tures, we pass to a group the members of which are 

 undoubtedly the most active and predaceous of the 

 Geocores, or Land-bugs. These, forming the great 

 group of theNuDiROSTRiA, are distinguished from the 

 insects of the preceding group by the absence of the 

 pectoral canal for the reception of the rostrum, which 

 here also consists only of three joints. The antennae, 

 which are usually long, are composed of four joints, 

 of which the last two are not unfrequently more 

 slender than the preceding ones. 



Of the more typical species of this group we have 

 but few in this country, the majority being confined 

 to the tropical regions of the earth, where many of 

 them attain a considerable size. These are found 

 upon trees and amongst herbage, where they run with 

 great activity in pursuit of other insects upon which 

 they feed. The largest British species is the Reclu- 

 vius personatuSj which measures about three-quarters 



