50 



NORTH AMERICAN INSECTS. 



hind body, and ending in a point which is inclosed in a 

 sheath while the animal is erect. When, therefore, this 

 insect is laid upon its back, it bends its thorax and head, 

 and, at the other extremity, its hind body backward toward 

 the surface upon which it is laid, which motion causes its 

 spring to fly out of its sheath, like the spring of a watch, 

 and throws the Beetle perpendicularly up in the air a dis- 

 tance of several inches. If they do not succeed the first 

 time in recovering their standing posture, they repeat the 

 operation perseveringly until they do, oftentimes to the 

 great amusement of the children, who catch them and lay 

 them on their backs in their hands. 



These insects generally deposit their eggs in the crevices 

 of the bark of decaying trees, where their larvse live several 

 years before they become perfect Beetles. A few of the 

 smaller species, whose larvje live in the ground and feed on 

 roots, may become somewhat injurious to vegetation. 



There are many species of Spring Beetles on this conti- 

 nent, which may be distinguished by their size, color, and 

 antenniB. The largest and hand- 

 '""'^^ ■ somest in the United States is 



The Velvet-spotted Spring 

 Beetle {Elater occulatus). — This 

 insect is about one and a half 

 inches long, and slender: some 

 species are longer, and others 



shorter than this. Its head, like 

 that of all its kindred species, is 

 very small, and looks as if it were 

 sunken in the thorax, which is 

 large, and composes about one- 

 third of its whole body. It is of 

 a light brownish color, sprinkled 

 here and there with white spots. 

 It is called in Latin occulatus, or 



Velvet-spotted Spring Bi 



