CERAMBYCIDAE. 285 



"It is one of those groups of insects in which nature, in 

 striving after strong individuality in the species, seems to have 

 changed or adapted those parts of structure upon which we rely 

 for characters of genera and groups of genera. The family, too, 

 is found throughout all parts of the world where woody vegeta- 

 tion exists, and has endured, probably, under the same laws of 

 modification, throughout long geological periods. The diversity 

 of specific forms seems endless, running into infinite varieties of 

 grotesque, ornamented, and extraordinary shapes ; and nearly 

 every species has structural peculiarities for its specific charac- 

 ters ; so that in no family can genera be made so easily and 

 numerously as here. Analysis is too easy, and has already been 

 pushed, perhaps, to too great an extent." 



This family comprises three sub-families, as follows : 



Prothorax margined ; labrum connate. PKIONIDAE. 

 Prothorax not margined ; labrum free. 



Front tibiae not grooved. CERAMBYCIDAE. 



Front tibiae obliquely grooved on the inner side. LAMIIDAE. 



Sub-Family I. PRIONIDAE. 



The insects of this sub-family are generally of large size, con- 

 taining in fact the longest Coleoptera known ; the color is 

 brown or black, and the elytra usually coriaceous in appearance, 

 becoming metallic and of firmer consistence in some of the 

 genera, with finely granulated eyes. The labrum is connate 

 with the epistoma. The ligula is always entirely corneous, 

 without distinct paraglossae ; the supports of the labial palpi 

 are connate with the ligula. The mandibles are strong, fre- 

 quently elongated in the males, and are destitute of membrane 

 or molar tooth. The lobes of the maxilla? are small, the inner 

 one obsolete, and the last joint of the palpi is triangular. The 

 antennas are furnished with poriferous spaces, varying according 

 to the genus and tribe. The prothorax is always distinctly 

 margined, the front coxa? are transverse, with distinct trochantin. 



The mesonotum never has stridulating surfaces, such as are 

 seen in most other Cerambycida? ; some of the species, however, 

 have the epipleur covered with fine transverse lines, and a noise 

 is produced by rubbing the hind femora against the edge of the 



