KI•;^■s 'I'o i'\Mii,i!:s oi' clavicokma. 243 



lid. i;i.vli-:i iisuiilly Idiii,', rnvcrinu I he .m-calcr p.-iii nf I he mIhIouhmi : w licii 

 slnirl the wiiius w.-iiiliim or, if |irrsciil. luit fdldtMl umlcr llic slmrt 

 (•l.\li-,i when III rcsl : ddi'sal |i;ili o\' the nlMldiniiKil si'.i,'iiu>iits iiarlly 



lllOllllll'IllKMlS. 



I>. 'I'iirsnl Joiiils on iit least (int.' imii- of t:irsi, live in iiuiubcr. 



Siibseries B. I'entamkua Ci.avkou.nia. \k 21)!. 

 bh. 'I'arsal joints on all the tarsi loss tlian five in nnuihcr. 



c. Tarsi rour-.jointod (front ones tlirct'-Joinlcd in tlic niak'S of some 

 ,Alyceloi(liai,dda' I . 



Sultsei'ics C Tktkamkka (Tavicoiinia. |i. lild. 

 cv. All the tarsi f hree-.i(.iiited. 



Subseries D. TuiiiKUA Ci^vvicouma. \>. -11. 



Siibserirs A. lUlACUKLYrHA CLAVICOHNIA. 



This li'roup <»f subs'ei'ies e'>iiij))'isfs 1)u1 two families, whose meiu- 

 bei's .subsist for the most i)ait ii])!)!) deca\ iu"' animal or vegetaWe 

 nintter, or occur benealli stones, in rottiMi wood or in the nests of 



(Ults. 



KEY TO FAMILIES OF BRACHELVTRA CEAVICORNIA. 



II. Alidoiiien not flexible : ventral segments T) or (>; form short, robnst ; max- 

 illary palpi usually greatly develniied and vai'iable in form: tarsi 

 with not more than three joints; len.^tli less tiian ;>.") mm. 



Family X. Pselaphid.e, p. 305. 



nil. Abdomen flexible or capable of being curled upward; seven or eight 



segments visible froni below; form usually narrowed and elongated. 



Family XI. Staphylinid.e. p. 3o4. 



Subseries B. PKXTAMERA CLAVICOh'XIA. 



This oi-oup is coniposeil, for the most part, of bind and water 

 scaA'eng'er beetles whose office it is to hasten the decomposition and 

 removal of dead organic matter. They occur upon dead animals, 

 under the bark of dead tre6s and on decaying fungi, fruit, etc^ Of 

 them Le Baron has written: "The only other insects which can 

 be compared with these in usefulness as scavengers, is the extensive 

 family of iMuscida?. in the two-winged tiies. It is interesting to ob- 

 serve the order in which these various tr-ibcs of scavetiger insects 

 perform their respective parts. Fii'st c(-)ue the ]\ruscidcP, which, in 

 the form of carrion flies, deposit their eggs or tly-blows upon dead 

 animal matter at the first moment of decay, and. in very hot weather 

 almost immediately after life has ceased. Soon after these come 

 the carrion beeth*s. the Silpha- and Xccrojjhdri, whose larvas, like 

 the maggots of tlx^ flesli Hies, are seen reveling in the putrescent 

 mattin- at Ihe most offensive stage of decomposition. AVhen the 

 s(d'tei' parts have been devoured and only the osseous and liga- 



