TL\Y BEETLES. 



169 



recognise the precise species when he discovers it, he 

 can at all events see that it is a Beetle, whereas, when 

 he finds the exceedingly minute creatures which have 

 just been mentioned, it is impossible for him to know, 

 without the aid of a lens, that the little black speck is 

 even an insect, much less whether it be a Beetle or 

 not. The best mode of capturing these Beetles is to 

 take some leaf-mould from under a heap, scatter it 

 thinly on a sheet of white paper, and then go over it 

 carefully with a tolerably powerful lens. 



Owing to the very minute dimensions of these 

 Beetles, the exact definition of the species is a very 

 difficult business, but it is evident that many species 

 are known in this country. 



PASSING by one family of this section, we come to 

 the Pselaphidae, of which remarkable family two 

 examples will be given, each 

 illustrating one of the sub- 

 families. 



In these Beetles the elytra 

 are very short, so short, indeed, 

 that for many years these in- 

 sects were classed among the 

 Brachelytra. The club of the 

 antennae is bold and well-de- 

 fined, the last joint being very 

 large. The head is narrowed 

 behind into a distinct neck. 



The first sub-family is 

 called the Pselaphina^, and in them the antennae have 

 eleven joints, and the eyes and parts of the mouth are 



Pselaphus Heisei. 



