CLUB-HORN BEETLES 31 



believe this last charge to be unsubstantiated, consider- 

 ing the real damage to have been done by other insects 

 found in the cellars, in which case Mycetcea has got into 

 ill repute through association with evil companions. 

 Its larva is a whitish fleshy grub, with six small legs in 

 front. 



In its cellar experiences, this insect is often accom- 

 panied by other minute beetles, especially certain tiny 

 yellowish-brown ones of the genus Cryptophagus, a word 

 derived from the Greek, and signifying an "eater in 

 concealment." This is a large genus, and a very 

 puzzling one, on account of the great similarity of the 

 species. They may easily be distinguished from other 

 small, similarly coloured beetles by the fact that the 

 lateral edges of the thorax are produced into tooth-like 

 projections, which differ in shape and position in the 

 different species, but are almost characteristic of the 

 genus as a whole. 



