THE MALACODERMT. 151 



tremity and distinctly toothed, the second joint of the 

 antennae much longer than the third, the head toothed 

 in the middle, and the last joint of the maxillary palpi 

 more oblong. In Ennearthron there are (as its name 

 imports) nine joints to the antennae, and in the equally 

 suggestive Octotemnus but eight : the latter has no 

 tubercles on the head or thorax in the male, and the 

 tibiae are slightly toothed outside. 



The largest and commonest of the family is Cis boleti, 

 in which the thorax has several irregular depressions; 

 it is found in damp fungoid wood, or the small greenish 

 laminated boleti on the bark of rotten trees. As in all 

 the rest, individuals of different degrees of maturity are 

 often found associated. They are all difficult to set, 

 owing to their small size, and the shortness, retractile 

 structure, and weak articulation of their limbs, and 

 must not be kept long in laurel, otherwise their mem- 

 bers part company. 



