30 lyXRODUCTION. 



Oxythyrea, three genera common to India and Europe, whose 

 manner of life seems almost the same. All of these feed within 

 accumulations of decaying leaves and vegetable refuse, the female 

 burrowing into the mass and depositing her eggs there. It is a 

 remarkable fact, observed by M. Fabre, that this does not take 

 place, at least in Europe, until long after maturity has been 

 reached. The first summer and autumn of adult life are entirely 

 devoted to the consumption of nectar, exuding sap or the juices 

 of ripe fruit, and no eggs are laid nntil the following year. 



Protcetia cuprea, P., an abundant species which ranges from 

 Southern Europe to Northern India, prefers to de])osit its eggs in 

 ants' nests, and apparently only selects other situations when 

 suitable nests are not to be found. The larvaj are often found in 

 numbers feeding upon the woody material composing the nests 

 of Formica rufa and F. pratensis, and seemingly not interfered 

 with by the ovi^ners of the nest. 



Although provided with well-developed legs the larva moves 

 solely by contractions of the body and generally upon its back. 

 The legs seem to serve chiefly for the construction of the cocoon, 

 which, after two or three years of larval life, is formed in situ from 

 fragments of the food-material cemented together into a cell about 

 the size of a pigeon's egg and plastered and smoothed inside with 

 matter furnished by the intestine. One to three months are 

 passed in the pupal stage and then the perfect insect breaks open 

 the cocoon and makes its way above ground, soon beginning to 

 feed voraciously. 



In Protatia ciiprea and other species known to breed in ants' 

 nests there is no special adaptation of structui-e to this habit, but 

 in others, in which perhaps this mode of life is of more ancient 

 date and more firmly established, the female shows certain 

 adaptations, apparently enabling her better to resist the ants while 

 depositing her eggs in the nest ; while the whole of the Cremasto- 

 CHiLiNi have acquired in both sexes peculiar characteristics which 

 must indicate the adoption of the habit at a very remote period. 

 In this group the greater part of the life both before and after 

 maturity seems to be spent in the dark recesses of ants' or termites' 

 nests, and adults as well as larvae seem to feed upon the nest- 

 substance. The bright colouring of the generally light-loving 

 Cetoniin.'E has given place to uniform black or brown, the body 

 has acquired an extremely hard and compact exterior, and the 

 mouth IS adapted for dealing with solid food instead of liquids. 

 The mandibles are strong and sharp and the mentum completely 

 shuts in all the mouth appendages, so that the whole body presents 

 no vulnerable part. In many the basal joint of the antenna forms 

 a stopper by which the succeeding joints can be shut up between 

 the head and the front legs, and in the genus Callinomes the tarsi 

 are reduced to only three visible joints, which are so closely fitted 

 together as to be capable of very little movement. 



In one genus of Ckemastochilixi {Macvoma) bright colours 

 prevail and the form is less aberrant than in the rest, and, as 

 would be expected, the species are diurnal and frequent flowers, 



