4 I.AMELI.ICORNIA. [LuccmiJa. 



represented by one species, are found in Britain ; they are, us a rule, 

 very conspicuous insects, and are chiefly remarkable for the great 

 development of the mandibles in the male ; in spite, however, of their 

 formidable appearance, the mandibles of the male are not as strong or as 

 capable of inflicting a severe wound as the short and comparatively in- 

 significant-looking mandibles of the female. The following are the chief 

 characteristics of the family : Antennce with a pectinate club, usually 

 geniculate, 10-jointed ; labrum nearly always connate with the clypeus ; 

 mandibles often much developed ; maxillae with two lobes ; anterior 

 coxal cavities closed behind; mesostenium short, metasternum large, 

 epimera of mesosternum reaching the coxae ; elytra rounded at apex, 

 covering abdomen; abdomen composed of five, rarely six, free segments; 

 tarsi 5-jointed, the last joint very long. 



The insects belonging to this family are almost entirely wood-feeders, 

 but occasionally appear to be carnivorous; Professor Westwood (Classi- 

 fication, i. 157) refers to two cases, in one of which a Lucanus was 

 observed descending a tree with a caterpillar in its jaws, and in the 

 other a specimen of Dorcus parallelopipedus was found in the act of 

 biting a Helops caraboides for the purpose of sucking its fluid. 



The larva of Lucanus cervus has been described by several writers ; it is white with 

 ferruginous head, nearly cylindrical, and of a soft fleshy consistence ; the segments are 

 not raised in three folds as in so many of the larva' of the Scaraba?idae ; the antenna 

 are short, and the legs moderate ; the last segment of the abdomen is not so large as 

 the preceding ; with the help of its powerful mandibles it gnaws its way through the 

 wood upon which it feeds ; when full fed it forms a kind of cocoon out of the minute 

 chips or dust which it has gnawed, and in this undergoes its transformation to the 

 pupa and the perfect insect, the large horns in the former being folded upon the 

 breast and ventral face of the abdomen; the larva does not appear to come to 

 maturity for several (some authors say as runny as six) years ; occasionally it does 

 considerable damage by gnawing into the roots as well as into the solid wood (v. 

 Westwood, I.e. i. 188). 



The three British genera of the Lucanidae may bo distinguished as 

 follows : 



I. Eyes more or less divided; ligula and maxillae covered by 

 the mentum ; antenna! geniculate j posterior femora ex- 

 tending beyond margin of elytra. 



i. Eyes divided for scarcely half their diameter .... LI;CANUS, L. 



ii. Kyes divided for nearly the whole of their diameter . DOBCUS, McLeay. 



II. Kyes entire ; ligula and maxilla? not covered by mentum ; 

 antenna; straight ; posterior femora not extending beyond 



margin of elytra SINODENDHON, F. 



LUCANUS, Linnd 



This genus contains about twenty species, four of which are found in 

 Europe, and the rest occur in North America, India, China, Japan, &c.; 

 our single species is the largest member of the Coleoptera that is found 

 in Britain. 



