482 MEDICAL ENTOMOLOGY 



then termed the cuneus. The second or hind pair of wings are 

 entirely membraneous. 



The legs are well developed and consist of coxae, femora, tibiae and 

 tarsi. In many of the species of Heteroptera the hind tibiae are furnished 

 with peculiar leaf-like expansions. The tarsus is usually three-jointed 

 and armed with a pair of claws. 



CLASSIFICATION 



Up to a certain point the grouping of the Rhynchota into families and 

 subfamilies is agreed upon by most authorities, but the arrangement 

 of the numerous genera and species, and their relations to each other, 

 are still matters of dispute. The following classification is taken 

 from Distant's work on the Indian Rhynchota in The Fauna of British 

 India, Vols. I to V. 



Distant divides the Rhynchota into two suborders as follows : 



Front of head not touching the coxae .... Suborder Heteroptera 

 Front of head much inflexed so as to be in contact 



with the coxae Suborder Homoptera 



The Heteroptera are divided into two series as follows : 



Bugs with conspicuous antennae, capable of being moved freely in 

 front of the head Series Gymnocerata 



Bugs with their antennae concealed, either situated on the under- 

 side of the head, to which they are closely pressed, or in foveae under 

 the head (aquatic) . . Series Cryptocerata 



The series Gymnocerata contains all the terrestrial Heteroptera, and a 

 few families which live on the surface of water or in damp mud ; the 

 Cryptocerata includes all those forms which live under water. 



Distant gives the following Key to the families of the Gymnocerata: 



1. Abdomen not clothed with a silvery velvety pubescence (spe- 



cies not aquatic) . ........... 2 



Abdomen clothed beneath with a silvery velvety pubescence 



(species aquatic or sub-aquatic) . . . ... . . .16 



2. Scutellum reaching at least to the base of the membrane, or 



at least half as long as the abdomen, sometimes covering 

 the whole of the abdomen above and the anal appendages . Pentatomidae. 

 Scutellum not reaching to the base of the membrane, nor to 



the middle of the abdomen .3 



3. Mesopleurae and metapleurae composed of one piece only ; 



hemielytron without a cuneus . . . . . .'"'.'. . '4 



Mesopleurae and metapleurae composed of several pieces ; 



hemielytron with a cuneus . . . . . V . ". " , . 13 



4. Tarsi three-jointed 5 



Tarsi two- jointed ..... II 



5. Rostrum not bent at base, lying in repose against the under 



surface of the head : 6 



