COLEOPTERA. 



735 



Fam. 78. Bruchidae. Antennae serrated or pectinated. Elytra 

 leave the posterior end of abdomen exposed. Posterior coxae enlarged. 

 Prosternum short. A moderate-sized cosmopolitan family of small, plain 

 beetles which lay 



their eggs chiefly in ^\%^ MM*? 



leguminous seed- 

 oases e.g. pea -pods. 

 The larva, as a rule, 

 at first has legs, but 

 loses these when it 

 reaches the seed 

 which it devours. 

 Bruchus pisi and B. 

 /abac do much harm 

 to peas and beans. 



Fam. 79. Ceram- 

 byeidae. Antennae 

 very long and their 

 insertion embraced 

 by the eyes, which 

 become hollowed out 

 anteriorly. Body 

 elongate and straight. 

 Pronotum narrower 

 than elytra. The 

 longicorns form a 

 very varied, large, and widely distributed family of brightly ornamented 

 and fair sized beetles. The larvae are soft white grubs with stout 

 mandibles and often without legs ; they burrow in the stems of trees 

 and herbaceous plants. Saperda populnea in this way injures the Aspen 

 in England. 



Fam. 80. Chrysomelidae. Antennae short or moderate in length ; 

 their origin not as a rule indenting the eyes. An extremely large family 

 of smallish convex, oval, brightly coloured, often metallic beetles which 

 in both larval and imaginal state live on leaves. The larvae are usually 

 fat grubs with three pairs of legs. Haltica nemorum is the turnip-flea, Lema 

 melanopa eats corn leaves, Crioceris asparagi asparagus, and Doryphora 

 decemlineata is the well known Colorado beetle which devours potatoes. 



FIG. 468. Bruchus pisi or pea-weevil. A young larva ; B pro- 

 thoracic spinous process ; C post-embryonic leg, greatly 

 magnified ; D pea-pod, with tracks of entry ; E portion of 

 pod, with egg, and subsequently formed track, magnified ; 

 F imago (after Riley). 



Sub-order 6. RHYNCHOPHORA. 



Head produced into a snout or rostrum. Tarsi apparently four segmented, 

 the third segment usually bilobed and covered with hair beneath. A very 

 small additional joint is present at the base of the terminal joint, so that the 

 tarsi are really five-jointed. 



Fam. 81. Anthribidae. Labrum distinct. Antennae long and not 

 elbowed, slightly clubbed. Rostrum short. Maxillary palps flexible. 

 Third tarsal segment sunk in second. A moderate family of pretty 

 beetles widely distributed but most abundant in warm climates. They 

 probably eat decaying wood and fungi. Platyrhinus latirostris is British. 



Fam. 82. Brenthidae. Antennae straight, not elbowed. Rostrum 

 straight and sometimes as broad as the head. Body elongated. A 

 largish family of striking beetles found chiefly in the tropics, only two 



