(Page 11) 

 Othlus et al., belong to the most ancient forms of beetles. 



The larvae, like the beetles are most often agile and active animals, 

 of same mode of living as these. They shun the light and apparently are pre- 

 dominantly nocturnal animals, which, as far as known, seemingly develope 

 rather ^iuickly, most often during a few sujmner and autumn monthSj likewise 

 the pupa stage is not long. The larvae and still more the pupae are without 

 rearing difficult to determine specifically. 



The family Staphylinidae is divided according to the consistency of the 

 prothorax: membranous or chitinized (see preceding) and consequently either 

 visible or covered prothoracic spiracula, into two large principal parts (cf . 

 Erichson Gen. et Spec. Staph, and Kraatz Ins. Deutschl. II), Further accord- 

 ing to the insertion and structure of the antennae, the form etc. of the fore 

 and hind coxae (see following key), these two principal parts are, in our 

 fauna, divided into 11 (3 - 8) groups, of which the external and natural char- 

 acteristics are conspicuous and as a rule easily recognized in the appearan- 

 ce of the species (cf . appearance of Stenus . Fig ll<.8j Tachinus, Fig. 101; 

 Oxytelus , ^ig. 160 et al.). It is seldom that within the natural group, les- 

 ser deviations from the main characters of the group occur, and when e.g. 

 Platystethus as an exception has membranous prothorax and only partly covered 



(Page 12) 

 spiracula, the entire appearance of the genus however assigns its place among 

 the Oxytelines (Fig. 158). The last i^roup, Micropeplini , differ in several 

 respects rather peculiarly from the rest, without however having lost the 



-18- 



