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IX, 0)1 Eucnemis capucina, A]ir., and its larva. 

 By David Sharp, M.B., F.Z.S. 



[Bead July 7th, 1886.] 



Eucnemis capucina, Ahr., is a species of Northern and 

 Central Europe that has not hitherto been found in our 

 own islands, but was detected by my friends Mr. G. C. 

 Champion and the Kev. H. S. Gorham and by myself in 

 an old beech tree near Brockenhurst on the 13th June 

 last. Although it appears somewhat remarkable that 

 the beetle should not have been hitherto captured in 

 this country, living as it does in a locality that has been 

 so much collected on, yet there is no doubt that it is 

 truly indigenous, for we captured a series of examples, 

 and found both the larvaB and pupae ; while the condition 

 of the tree and the numerous fragments of the skeleton 

 of the insect we found in it were sufficient to convince 

 us that this tree has probably been the home of numerous 

 generations of the insect. Until recently E. capucina 

 has been the only species of the genus, but Dr. Horn 

 has during the present year described from a single 

 example a North American species that apparently 

 difters from its European congener only by some slight 

 structural details. 



Although it has been frequently stated that the 

 Eucncmidce differ from the Elatcridce by the absence of 

 the peculiar leaping faculty that is so well known in the 

 latter family as to have procured for them the popular 

 name of skipjacks, yet such statement is erroneous ; 

 Eucnemis capucina, when placed on its back, regains its 

 feet by a sudden leap like the Elatcridce, and does this 

 so well that I have not seen it fail to regain its natural 

 position on the first attempt. Ahrens stated seventy 

 years ago that this insect possessed this faculty. 



My attention was attracted by the very peculiar larva 

 that we found in company with this insect, so that I 

 took some specimens home with a view to study them ; 



TKANS. KNT. SOU. LOND. 18SG. PART III. (oCT.) 



