104 INSECTS INJURIOUS TO VEGETATION. 



guished by the want of a snout, by their short legs and broad 

 cushioned feet, and their antennsB of moderate length, often 

 thickened a little towards the end, or not distinctly tapering. 

 Some of them have an oblong body and a narrow^ or cylindrical 

 thorax, and resemble very much some of the Lepturians, with 

 which Linneeus included them. Others, and indeed the greater 

 number, have the body oval, broad, and often very convex. 



The oblong leaf-beetles, called Criocerians (Criocerididjs), 

 have some resemblance to the Capricorn-beetles. They are dis- 

 tinguished by the following characters. The eyes are promi- 

 nent and nearly round ; the antennae are of moderate length, 

 composed of short, nearly cylindrical or beaded joints, and are 

 implanted before the eyes ; the thorax is narrow and almost 

 cylindrical or square ; the wing-covers, taken together, form an 

 oblong square, rounded behind, and much wider than the tho- 

 rax ; and the thighs of the hind legs are often thickened in the 

 middle. 



The three-lined leaf-beetle, Crioceris trilineata of Olivier, 

 will serve to exemplify the habits of the greater part of the 

 insects of this family. This beetle is about one quarter of an 

 inch long, of a rusty buff or nankin-yellow color, with two 

 black dots on the thorax, and three black stripes on the back, 

 namely, one on the outer side of each wing-cover, and one in 

 the middle on the inner edges of the same ; the antennae 

 (except the first joint), the outside of the shins, and the feet 

 ai"e dusky. The thorax is abruptly narrowed or pinched in on 

 the middle of each side. When held between the fingers, 

 these insects make a creaking sound like the Capricorn-beetles. 

 They appear early in June on the leaves of the potato-vines, 

 having at that time recently come out of the ground, where 

 they pass the winter in the pupa state. Within a few years, 

 these insects have excited some attention, on account of their 

 prevalence in some parts of the country, and from a mistaken 

 notion that they were the cause of the potato-rot. They eat 

 the leaves of the potato, gnawing large and irregular holes 

 through them ; and, in the course of a few days, begin to lay 

 their oblong oval golden yellow eggs, which are glued to the 

 leaves, in parcels of six or eight together. The grubs, which 



