GROUP LAMELLICORNES. fiS 



of the large beetles, ami tluy l>el<>iig to temperate eliinates : the legs are i)laee(l at equal 

 distances apart ; the seufellum is ilistiuet ; the eljpeus is entire, and the antenn.'c ar«» 

 nine-jointed. The UkIv is more elongated than in the former family. 



The fourth family is small, or of a moderate extent : it is the Trogid.v. of M.ulkav 

 Tlie insects are of a medium size, ovate or gihlHius, and the elytra are inllexed at their 

 sides. The scutelhuu is distinct, and the anterior tibia? are imperfectly toothetf. The head 

 is deflexed ; thorax short, posteriorly situated, and the anterior angles are advanced : the 

 elytra are rugose. (Plate xxiv, figs. 1 & 3.) 



The fifth family is the Dvnastid.k of Macle.w. The insects of the family are gigantic, 

 and the males are very str<)ngly identified iiy prominences an<l horns upon their heads or 

 thoraces. The jaws are powerful, horny and prominent, and furnished with two teeth ; the 

 scuteliura is distinct ; the antenna? aix? ten-jointed, and the elytra are shortened behind, 

 leaving tlie abdomen exposed : the color is a rich chestnut-brown. The insects reside in 

 rich vegetable matter and in putriil ofifal, and the family l>elongs to tropical regions. 



The Rutilida: constitute the sixth family, which, for the most part, are brilliantly 

 colored. The males are destitute of horns, in which respect they difl'er from the preceding 

 family. The antennte are ten-jointed, club three-jointed : the mandililes are short, but 

 project more or less from beneath the coriaceous lal>runi ; they are also notched on the 

 outside near the tip. The elytra do not cover the abdomen. 



The seventh family is allied to the preceding : it has received the name of ANorio- 

 CNATMin.K, and is composed, like the Dvsastidvi:, of foreign species. 



The eighth family, the Melqlonthidje, constitute a well-known group, which contairs 

 numerous indigenous species, with forms as delineated on Plate x, figs. 4 - 6, 9. They are 

 ovate thin beetles, sometimes scarcely thicker behind than before. The labrum is divided 

 into two lobes transversely ; the mandibles are strong and horny, the internal margin acute 

 at the apex. The clypeus is separated by a transvei-se suture, which runs just before the 

 eyes : antennae 9 - lO-jointed, terminated by a knob composed of a variable luunber of 

 laminae (from 3-7), variable also in form. The anterior margin of the mentum is notched 

 or emarginate. Some of the species are large ; but the colors are n<)t brilliant, the surface 

 being often pubescent and dull. The common horn beitle,0T the goldsmith beetle, which 

 fly about in the evening in the months of June and July, may well represent this family : 

 they feed upon flowers or leaves, and are sometimes injurious in this way. 



Passing the nLAPiivRin.v., the ninth family, which are all foreign to us, we reach the 

 tenth and last family, the Cf.tonid.i:, a group which holds about the san)e place in the 

 scale of importance as the Mki.oi.ontiiid.*:. The antenna^ are ten-jointed : the lalirnm is 

 concealed beneath an emarginate clypeus ; the mandibles are comparatively slender, lan- 

 ceolate ; the mentum is pitch(T-«hai)ed, and conceals the labium ; the scutellum distinct ; 

 the elytra do not cover all the abdomen. The insects feed upon flowers, and hence do 

 considerable mischief : their forms are delineated on Plate xii, figs. 1 - 6. 

 [ Agkicultural Heport — Vol. v.] 9 



