ORDER I. COLEOPTERA. 79 



Scarabaeus, bearing a globe upon the head,* is neither 

 more nor less than this animal with the ball of dung 

 -which it is its habit to form and roll before it. 



The chafers, like the dung-beetles, have leaf-like 

 horns, but differ from them in their habits, the perfect 

 insects feeding on leaves and flowers, while the larvae 

 also are usually vegetarians ; some are, however, to be 

 found among the dung-eaters. The common Cock- 

 chafer, or May-bug (PL II., fig. 3), a large beetle, 

 with the forepart of the head curved downwards, with 

 brown wing- cases and sides marked with an angular 

 pattern of black and white, is known to every one ; and 

 the antennae of the male are a most beautiful example of 

 the lamellate form. The appearance of white dust 

 scattered over the wing-cases of this insect, and the 

 triangular white patches on the sides of the abdomen, 

 are produced by the growth of snowy white scale-like 

 hairs, thinly distributed over the wing-cases, but lying 

 closely together on the sides. 



The cockchafer and dung-beetles are fond of flying 

 late in the evening, but seldom fly by daylight. 



The June-bug (Phylloperiha horticola) is a pretty 

 little chafer, with green thorax and brown wing-cases. 

 Like the cockchafer, it is extremely abundant, and more 

 conspicuously so, as it flies by day, while the cockchafer 

 prefers the evening. The June-bug feeds upon flowers, 

 especially delighting in roses. The common white 

 Scotch rose, which flowers so abundantly, may some- 

 times be found with scarcely a blossom which does not 

 contain one, two, or three of these beetles. 



The Rose- chafer (Cetonia aurea), a large and beauti- 



* See the vignette at the head of this chapter. 



