THE APHODIUS. 121 



mrtles the horns are comparatively small, and little better de- 

 veloped than those of the female. The colour also slightly 

 varies, a warm-chestnut tint underlying the black, so that the 

 entomologist ought to procure a series of specimens, in order 

 to show the usual varieties of form and colour. It varies in 

 size as well as in colour, some specimens being five-sixths of 

 an inch in length, while others are barely half an inch long. 

 This extreme difierence in size is common among the Lamel- 

 licornes. 



Considering that the Typhoeus is a very common insect, 

 it is surprisingly little known, and I have often found that 

 entomologists who restricted themselves to the Lepidoptera 

 alone have been totally ignorant of its existence, and expressed 

 much surprise when I showed them a fine male Typhoeus. 

 This insect is in one sense an extremely interesting one, inas- 

 much as it is one of our few British examples of the strange 

 and almost grotesque forms assumed by male Lamellicornes, 

 but which are seldom seen except in exotic Beetles. 



This insect may be found in all parts of England : some of 

 those in my own collection were taken near Oxford, and the 

 others in Wiltshire, on the Downs. The end of May and be- 

 ginning of August are the times when it is in best condi- 

 tion, and at the latter season it may often be seen lying dead 

 in roads or pathways. Like the Dor Beetle, it is a burrower, 

 and has been taken while making its tunnel in sand. 



There is a large family of small Beetles which must not be 

 passed over without a brief notice. This is known by the name 

 of Aphodiidse, a name formed from two Greek words which 

 refer to the habits of the different species, which are always to 

 be foimd in cowdung. They are rather oblong and cylindrical 

 in shape, and the elytra cover nearly the whole of the body. 

 Many species are among the commonest of our British insects, 

 and they must be sought in their accustomed haunts if the 

 beetle-hunter wishes to obtain a good series of specimens. A 

 stick will generally suffice to eject them from their hiding- 

 places, but tne • digger ' which has been already described is a 

 more effective instrument, as the insects can be dug out of their 

 shelter beneath the surface of the earth. Forty species of 

 Aphodius are known to entomologists. 



