132 COMMON BRITISH INSECTS. 



ally small, and hidden under the lobes of the third 

 joint. The three basal joints of the tarsus are always 

 furnished with a thick pad beneath, and may be seen 

 by examining the feet of any of our common Weevils 

 with a pocket-lens. 



The antennas are always set well in front on the 

 ' rostrum,' or beak, and in most, though not in all, 

 species are furnished with a very long basal joint, so 

 that they are elbowed, or ' geniculated,' according to 

 the scientific term. 



According to the system which is at present in 

 vogue, the Weevils are divided into two sections 

 namely, those in which the antennae are not elbowed, 

 and those in which they are. The former are called 

 Orthoceri, or ' straight-horned/ and the latter Gonato- 

 ceri, or ' knee-horned.' We begin with the former, 

 and take for our first example of 

 these Beetles the RED-FOOTED 

 WEEVIL (Bruchns rufimanus), a 

 figure of which accompanies this 

 description. This insect belongs to 

 the family Bruchidae, which have 

 antennae rather serrated, and becom- 

 ing gradually thicker towards the 



Bruchusrufimanus. apex The e l ytra ^Q HOt reach tO 



the end of the abdomen, and the basal joint of the 

 tarsus is long and curved. In the genus Bruchus the 

 antennae are rather delicate, and the elytra are oblong 

 and squared. 



The Red-footed Weevil is rather variable both in 

 size and colour, but is usually as follows : The 

 general hue is black. Upon the thorax, which has its 



