Drilus. | SERRICORNIA. 175 
large in proportion to the males. The larva of the female Drilus 
flavescens is large and broad, 16 to 18 mm. in length and 8 to 10 mm. in 
breadth, with short 2-jointed antenne; the body is composed of 
twelve segments, of which the three first bear the legs, and the re- 
mainder, except the last, are furnished on the under surface with two 
conical fleshy tubercles, and on the upper with fascicules of hairs; the 
last segment is bifurcate, and furnished with a tuft of hair-on each side; 
the larva is very voracious, and feeds on molluscs, especially Helix 
nemoralis ; it remains in the larval state all the winter, and then trans- 
forms itself into a pupa, in which state it remains about twenty days ; 
to the imago that came forth from this pupa Desmarest gave the name 
of Cochleoctonus vorax, but he afterwards succeeded in rearing the male 
from larve of the same character, as well as in taking the sexes in 
copuld; a full account of these facts will be found in Westwood’s 
Classification, i. p. 253. 
D. flavescens, Rossi. Male black with the elytra luteous, clothed 
with long and coarse yellowish pubescence ; head rather large, about as 
broad as thorax, deeply impressed between eyes, thickly punetured ; 
antenne fuscous black, strongly pectinate, or even somewhat flabellate 
from the fourth joint inclusive, second joint small; thorax transverse, 
shining, uneven, rather strongly and closely punctured at base and pos- 
terior angles, which are raised ; scutellum black ; elytra comparatively 
short and broad, with fine and indistinct rugose punctuation and traces 
of strie ; under-side finely punctured, sparingly pubescent ; legs fuscous, 
with tarsi lighter. L. 5-6 mm. 
Female larviform, apterous, fleshy, of a fulvous colour, hairy, com- 
posed of twelve segments, of which the last is terminated by two hairy 
processes and a cylindrical appendage; the antenne are very short, 
filiform, ard 10-jointed, and the legs moderately long, with short tarsi ; 
the body is narrowed in front and widened behind. L. 18 mm. 
The male is found locally in chalky districts in open places on grasses or low 
shrubs, and is sometimes not uncommon where it occurs; it appears, however, to be 
limited to the London, south-western, and southern counties; Caterham, Darenth 
Wood, Ashford, Gravesend, Chatham; Dover; Folkestone; Portsmouth district ; 
Winchester; Isle of Wight. The female occurs under stones, fallen leaves, or in 
snail shells, and is extremely rare; it has been taken on the Sussex Downs and at 
Folkestone. 
In Dr. Power’s collection there is a specimen referred to the female of 
this insect labelled “ West Cliff, Sandgate Roid, Folkestone, Sept. ’72. 
W. P. W.;”’ it may be, and apparently is, much shrunk, but is entirely 
different in shape to the figure given by Westwood (Classification, i. 
247, fig. 26, 13), being almost balloon-shaped, very wide and round in 
front, and much narrowed behind ; in other respects it agrees with the 
description. 
In De Marseul’s ‘“ Nouvelles et faits divers,” No. 14, May 1870 
