12 CLAViCORNIA. [Si/^'hiiia. 



I. Aiitc'mut3 appaiuiitly lU-joiattd, the second joint being 



very small, with an abrupt capitate 4-jointecl club . NecrOPHOKUS, F. 



II. Antennic distinctly 11-joiuted, with a giadual club," 



or simply thickened towards apex, 

 i. Thorax suborbicular ; eyes very large ; general shape 



like Necrophorus NeceodeS, iVUkin. 



ii. 'i'horax more or less semicircular ; eyes small or 



moderate; form ovate Silpha, L. 



NECROPHORUS, Fabricius. 



This genu.s is distiiiguislied from the other members of the Silphina 

 by having the antennae apparently lO-jointed, and terminated by a very 

 abrupt round club made up of four joints : the antennge are, however, 

 really 11 jointed, the second joint being very small ; the Necwphori are 

 large insects, sometimes black, but more often blaiik with the elytra 

 traversed by broad orange bands ; the genus contains a considerable 

 number of species, which are chiefly found in Europe, Northern Asia and 

 Ntirth America ; very few have hitherto been discovered in tropical 

 countries : as the well-known " burying beetles " they are familiar to all 

 observers of nature ; in the larger carcases, which they frequent in 

 considerable numbers, and in the birds, small quadrupeds, frogs, &c., 

 which they bury bodily they lay their eggs, which hatch and grow into 

 thick fleshy larvcB, sustained by the food thus provided for them ; these 

 laiva^ in shape somewhat reseml)le those of Cen-yon, but are provided 

 A\ith short legs ; wlien full-grown they attain a considerable size : those 

 of N. v'spiJlo and N. mortuonmi are figured by 8chiodte I., viii. figs. 1, 

 11, and 15 ; the head is small, and is furnished with short antennae ; the 

 prothorax is narrower, but considerably longer, than the meso- and meta- 

 thorax ; the abdominal segments are furnished with rather small corneous 

 plates, each of which is furnished with four teeth pointing backwards ; 

 the ninth segment bears two short cerei, which are more elongate in N. 

 mortuonmi than in N. vespillo. The colour of these larv?e is dirty-Avhitu 

 or yellowish, with the corneous paits of a deeper dirty-yellow colour ; the 

 pupa does not present any striking peculiarity ; it is considerably narrowed 

 behind, and is terminated by two small cerci ; when the larva has 

 reached maturity, it forms for itself a cell underground, in Avhich it 

 untlergoes its transformation to the perfect insect. 



The Necrophori resemble each other very closely in structure, so that 

 a separate description is not necessary in each case : tlu^ head varies 

 somewhat in size, but is strongly narrowed at some little distance behind 

 eyes ; the antennae vary chiefly as regards the colour of the club ; the 

 thorax is trapezoidal, with the angles rounded, slightly narrowed behind, 

 with large explanate borders, which are much more strongly punctured 

 than disc; in the middle there is a central furrow, and the anterior pait 

 of the disc is uneven, the central part being rather raised ; the elytra are 

 dilated behind, or subparallel, truncate, and leaving part of the abdomen 



