66 OUT OF DOORS. 



bent back for the next stroke, they are drawn through 

 the water from their roots to their points, and so offer 

 the least possible resistance. 



The first pair of legs of a male Dyticus are worthy 

 the closest possible examination. On the feet of each 

 of them is a round disc, which, when magnified, is seen 

 to be made of three joints, flattened and dilated. 

 Their under surface is covered with a vast array of 

 suckers, one of which is very large, two of moderate 

 size, and all the rest very small, and set on foot-stalks. 

 With these suckers they can hold so tightly that they 

 can crawl up a pane of glass by their aid, and hold so 

 firmly that a rather sharp pull is required before they 

 can be detached. A few days ago I noticed that one 

 of these water-beetles had remained at the bottom of 

 the vessel for a long time, and, on closer examination, 

 found that it was dead. I took hold of it to remove 

 it, when, to my astonishment, the body came away in 

 my hand, the two fore-legs still clinging to the glass. 

 The beetle had evidently been dead for some time, and 

 was semi-putrid, but yet the suckers held on as firmly 

 as during life. 



Owing to the great length and peculiar jointing of 

 the swimming-legs, the beetle is a bad walker, though 

 it is a good flyer and a better swimmer. If placed 

 upon the ground it crawls awkwardly about, and seems 

 to have little power of directing its course. Should it 

 fall on its back on a smooth surface it gives a series of 

 wild kicks with its long hind legs, the action being 



