THE LAMELLICORNES, OR " CHAFERS." 121 



Several genera have been founded by French entomo- 

 logists at the expense of Aphodius ; but they are gene- 

 rally abandoned, as being dependent more upon facies 

 than any structural differences. 



The TROGID^E have five ventral segments to the ab- 

 domen (except in some species of Trax, where there 

 is an indication of a sixth), but slightly moveable; the 

 anterior legs are not fossorial, the tibise not being en- 

 larged, or strongly toothed ; the antennae ten-jointed ; 

 scutellum small; the coxae contiguous, those of the 

 front and intermediate legs being very short (the latter 

 almost globose, and scarcely at all oblique) ; the elytra 

 entirely cover the abdomen; and the mandibles and 

 labrum are uncovered by the clypeus. 



We possess but one genus, Trooc ; of which the species 

 are rather rare. They are dull black, moderately large, 

 oblong, of strong integuments, and usually with inter- 

 rupted rows of short pencils of bristles on the elytra. 

 When seized they make a squeaking noise by rubbing 

 the abdomen against the elytra, and contract their limbs. 

 They are found in sandy places, in half dry carcases, of 

 which they consume the harder portions ; in rams' horns, 

 etc. Some of them have imperfectly developed wings, 

 the others appearing to fly only in the evening; and 

 certain exotic species possess the faculty of contracting 

 themselves into a ball, after the manner of Agathidium. 



The LUCANID^E have the club of the antennae com- 

 posed of lamellae or plates, which assume a pectinated 

 form, and are not capable of being closed up together, 

 or widely separated, as in the other families. 



For this reason, added to the above-mentioned differ- 

 ences of the nervous system and structure of the larvae, 

 and the strong sexual characters afforded by the develop- 



