120 SERRICORNIA, [ Helodes. 
in marshy or damp places; common and generally distributed throughout the 
kingdom, 
H. marginata, F. (¢rilineata, Chevr.). Oval, clothed with silky 
pubescence ; allied to the preceding, but easily recognized by its colour, 
the head being black or pitchy brown, and the thorax black with the 
margins more or less broadly yellow ; antenne black with base yellow, 
first or first and second joints black, or spotted with black ; elytra 
varying from black or pitchy black to a greyish-yellow testaceous colour 
with suture, apex, and sides dark, thickly punctured, with traces of 
raised lines; legs dark, with knees, and sometimes tarsi and tibia, 
obscurely yellowish. L. 33-4 mm. 
Male with the antenne clothed with short and thick whitish 
pubescence, abdomen with the last segment slightly emarginate at 
apex. 
By sweeping in moist places; rather local in England; Hastings; Southampton ; 
Glanvilles Wootton; Devon; Bath; Swansea; Midland districts, generally dis- 
tributed, Birmingham district, Burton, Dove Dale, &c.; Hale, Cheshire; North- 
umberland and Durham district ; Scotland, common on herbage near burns, Solway, 
Forth, Clyde, Tay, Dee, and Moray districts; Ireland, Armagh, common, 
Besides the difference in colour, this species may be distinguished 
from the preceding by its shorter form, more closely punctured elytra, 
the more acute posterior angles of the thorax, and the shorter posterior 
tarsi. 
MICROCARA, Thomson. 
The species belonging to this genus have been by most authors 
included under Helodes ; they may, however, be distinguished by having 
the third joint of the antenne larger and not transverse, the thorax 
shorter, the eyes smaller and less prominent, and the intermediate cox 
separated by a small interval; we possess as British two out of the 
three European species, but one of these, M. Bohemanni, appears to be 
merely a variety of M. livida. 
M. livida, F. (testacea, L.). Oblong-oval, subeonvex, somewhat de- 
pressed on dise, rather dull, clothed with pale pubescence of a livid or 
brownish-testaceous colour; head small, eyes black, prominent, antennze 
fuscous with base lighter; thorax very transverse, more than double as 
broad as long, thickly and finely punctured, posterior angles very blunt, 
hind margin strongly sinuate ; scutellum large, finely punctured ; elytra 
rather broad, subparallel, sometimes a little darker at suture and towards 
apex, thickly and distinctly punctured, with traces of raised lines ; legs 
reddish-testaceous. L. 33-45 mm.- 
Male with the fourth and fifth segments of the abdomen furnished 
with a setigerous pore. 
By sweeping herbage in damp places, also by beating hedges ; common and gene- 
rally distributed throughout the greater part of the kingdom. 
