COLEOPTERA. 157 



Fig. 96, is a common form. This beetle, like most of 

 the Carabidae, is carnivorous, although not exclusively 

 so, as it has been seen eating the 

 seeds and pollen of plants. The 

 legs are long, and the insect is a 

 good runner. 



The Cicindelidae, or tiger-beetles, 

 resemble the Carabidae, though the 

 family is not so large. They are 

 found in sandy places. The man- 

 dibles are strong and armed with 

 teeth, unlike those of the ground- 

 beedes. These insects are faster *^" ^ * 



runners and swifter fliers than most other beedes. 



PARASITIC COLEOPTERA. 



The two following families of Coleoptera show the 

 effects of specialization by reduction, resulting from 

 the parasitic habits of the larva or adult. 



MELOID.E. 



The Meloidae are often described as " oil " or 

 "blister" beetles, owing to the cantharidine contained 

 in their bodies, which formerly was largely used in the 

 preparation of blister plasters. The life- history of 

 these beetles is instructive, as many of their larvae are 

 parasitic and undergo important structural changes. 

 PI. VII., Figs. 97-113, p. 158, illustrating the life-his- 

 tory of Epicauta, are taken from the First Annual 

 Repoi't of the U. S. Entomological Conunission, 1877. 

 The beetle, Epicauta vittata, Fabr. (PI. VII., Fig. 113), 



