42 OUR HOUSEHOLD INSECTS 



the utter dulness and dinginess which characterise its 

 relative, T. obscurus. Down the elytra run the inevitable 

 parallel furrows, sixteen in number, not deep, but dis- 

 tinct enough to form a little " set-off " to the otherwise 

 uninteresting appearance. The front of the head forms 

 a ridge, which, as in some other species previously re- 

 ferred to, encroaches considerably on the eyes. The legs 

 are rather short, and the antennae are inelegant, thick, 

 and stumpy. Unlike Slaps it is furnished with wings, 

 and therefore, of course, the elytra are not soldered 

 together. 



T. obscurus is a trifle larger than T. molitor, perfectly 

 dull black above, without a trace of the red-brown tint, 

 which, however, appears again on the under side ; in 

 other respects it is almost the exact counterpart of its 

 slightly less inelegant congener. 



Such are the parents of our meal worms. The "worms" 

 themselves (Fig. 17, B) are as different as can well be 

 imagined long, narrow, cylindrical, caterpillar-like 

 creatures, consisting of a head and twelve similar and 

 perfectly distinct segments. 



The colour is pale yellow, shading off into yellowish- 

 brown towards the head and tail. Each segment at its 

 hinder edge carries a rather broad band, and at its front 

 edge an exceedingly narrow one, of the darker colour, 

 so that the body is adorned with a series of double 

 rings encircling it at intervals along its length. The last 

 segment is rounded behind, and terminates on its upper 

 surface in either one or two small black curved hooks. 



The head is furnished with a pair of not very large, 

 but nevertheless strong, dark brown jaws, which, in 

 repose, close in between the upper and lower lips, so 

 that only their outer edges are seen. There is also a 

 pair of tiny antennae. 



