PREFACE. 



Coleoptera of America north of Mexico, 1874), be placed ia 

 tiio Clavicorn series, those and allied families being placed iu 

 the following succession : Dermestidm^ Endomychidm, Cioidca^ 

 J£rotylidw, Atomariidce, Cucigidw, Colydikla=, RJdzopharfidm^ 

 IVogositidof, Nitidulida\ CoccinelUdm, Cistelida', etc. At the 

 end of the series the succession of families is as follows . 

 Cerambycidm^ ^ruchidce, Chrysomelldce, Tenebrionidde, ^fCgia 



litidae^ Allecididce^ Pyrochroldce, Anthieida^^ 



Melandryidm^ Mordellidm, Stylopidce, Meloidcp, Gephaloidoi^ 

 (Edemeridcp, Mycterida\ Pythldce, Curcidionido', Scolytidcey 

 and Anth7'ihidce, Brenthidm being the last. 



Since the publication of the last edition of this woi-k, our 

 knowledge of American fossil insects has been much extended. 

 Mr. Scudder has described ten more species from tlie carboni- 

 ferous strata of Nova Scotia and Pennsylvania, some of them 

 of peculiar interest, thus increasing the number of known 

 j)al3eozoic forms to thirty-two. The carboniferous insect- 

 fauna of America is now so well known that Ave may note a 

 close affinity between it and that of Europe at the same 

 epoch. Tertiary localities exceedingly rich iu fossil insects 

 have been discovered in new parts of the West ; more than 

 one hundred species have already been described by Mr. 

 Scudder from Eastern and Western Colorado, Wyoming, and 

 IJritish Columbia, but these are a mere fragment of what liave 

 been found. Among those described are many of an interest- 

 ing character, especially a wonderfully preserved butterfly 

 {IVodryuft JWsep/iont') and egg masses of a huge Neuropteron 

 allied to Corydalus, together with others which indicate a 

 partially tropical fauna at that time. Of post-tertiary insects, 

 ])r. Horn has described ten beetles from a bone cave in 

 Pennsylvania, and Mr. Scudder two from the interglacial 

 clays of Ontario. 



A. S. PACKAPvD, .Te. 



Providence, K. I., December, 188::^. 



