MISCELLANEOUS NOTICES AND OBSERVATIONS. 89 
blance to which was heightened by little hillocks of sand at the 
opening where the Bledius had entered. All the specimens taken, 
except one, had the usual pale elytra, whilst a long series of the 
same insect taken by myself at Tain in Rossshire, have their 
elytra, without exception, dark coloured, with only the margins 
pale. In the Entomological Magazine, Vol. 2. p. 180, is an 
interesting notice by the Rev. G. T. Rudd, of his having found 
the same insect in immense profusion on the Yorkshire side of | 
the estuary of the Tees. He observed them to burrow in the 
sand, in situations where they were covered by the sea, and after 
the turn of the tide he dug them out unharmed by their sub- 
mersion. He also noticed a large Dyschirius in their burrows, 
whose object there seemed to be to prey upon the owners, which 
it seized, shook as a terrier does a rat, and then devoured. | 
At Tain, also, the Bledius was found within tide marks, so that 
the locality at Whitley would appear to be a departure from its 
usual habit.—Jiid, May. 20, 1863. 
Note on Fleas at the sea-side.—It is rather curious to find fleas 
on such unlikely places as the sands, nevertheless they are far 
from scarce amongst the dry sand at the foot of the sea banks. 
I saw them dancing about quite merrily, between Hartley and 
Whitley, and at other times they have been noticed quite fre- 
quently from South Shields to Marsden. What they can find 
to feed upon in such places is rather difficult to say, perhaps 
mice, and other small mammalia may share their attention; at: 
any rate they are well fed, for all that I have caught were fat 
and active.—Jbid, May 20, 1868. 
Capture of Mycetoporus nanus, a beetle new to the British fauna, 
near Hartley.—Truly “itis an ill wind that blows nobody good.” 
The terrific gales which we had in April, although they prevented 
me collecting elsewhere, still yielded a harvest after their own 
fashion, for they carried everything of insect kind along with 
them, depositing them in sheltered nooks, or in depressions on 
the sand; and out of such places near Hartley, I took, amongst 
many other things not commonly met with, four specimens of 
Mycetoporus nanus, Gray., a very desirable addition to the British © 
fauna.—Jbid, May 26, 1863. 
