79 



The joints of the antennae are always numbered from the head to- 

 ward the tips, the segments of the abdomen from the base or part 

 next the thorax toward the posterior extremity; the joints of the 

 tarsus from the one connected with the tibia toward the tip. 



Other terms which belong exclusively to certain orders, will be ex- 

 plained so far a^ necessary to understand the description in the report 

 when we reach those orders in our arrangement. 



In order to have uniformity as far as possible in naming these va- 

 rious divisions and sub-divisions of the class, and to know the nature 

 or rank of the division by its name alone, the following terminations 

 have been given these names : 



To the orders — ptera, as coleo-ptera, di-ptera, etc. 



To the families — idae, as buprest-idae, ichneumoni-dae, etc. 



To the sub-families — inae, as cerambyc-inae, balan-inae, etc 



To the groups — mi, as cerambyc-ini, etc. 



In giving the name of the species as heretofore stated, we use both 

 the name of the genus and that of the species', the generic names 

 standing first, and commencing with a capital letter. The specific 

 name should never commence with a capital unless derived from a 

 proper name, and I think it would be well to dispense with it even 

 in these cases. The abbreviation or name which follows (in Reman 

 letters) the name of a species, indicates the author of the specific 

 name, as oedipoda Carolina, Linn., where the abbreviation Linn, indi- 

 cates that Linnaeus, the celebrated Swedish naturalist was the au- 

 thor of the specific name Carolina. 



COLEOPTERA. 



This order, which includes the beetles only, is one of the most ex- 

 tensive of the entire class, and contains a very large unmber of injur- 

 ious species. The species belonging to it are easily distinguished, in 

 the perfect state, from all other insects, by hard horny and usually 

 smooth wing-cases, which, when closed, meet in a straight line along 

 the back and conceal the true wings. The term Elytra (singular 

 Elytron) is usually applied to these cases to distinguish them from the 

 "Wings," or true wings. The latter are thin and membranous and 

 mostly transparent, and when at rest are twice folded, once lengthwise 

 and once crosswise, so as to conceal them beneath the elytra or wing- 

 cases. In a few instances the under or true wings are wanting, but 

 the wing-cases are present in all the perfect insects, except one or two 

 species. All the species of this order undergo a complete transforma- 

 tion. The larvae are usually soft whitish grubs, naked or covered 

 with a few scattering hairs; the mouth is furnished with strong- 

 horny biting jaws, openi-ng sidewise, similar to those of the perfect 

 insect.; they are generally furnished with six short true feet, situated 

 on the first three segments behind the head; there is often a terminal 

 or anal pro-leg (this I omit in the arrangement by larval characters) ; 

 a large number are wholly footless. They are found in almost every 

 situation where vegetable or animal substances exist upon which 

 they can feed ; but they are most generally found in concealed posi- 

 tions, comparatively few exposing themselves to the light of day, as 

 do many of the Lepidopterous larvae. 



