54 LAMKLUCUUNIA. [Scciralaidtje Pleurotstid i . 



segments, forming rows which diverge strongly ; the last one or two 

 spiracles are usually visible, In-hind the elytra; the clypeus is often pro- 

 longed and margined in front, but is very rarely concave as in tho 

 Melolonthini, and tho mandibles occasionally project beyond the clypeus ; 

 the antennae arc 9 or 10-jointed, and tho club is 3-jointed ; the tarsi are 

 all complete. The group contains a very large number of genera and 

 species, many of them being amongst the most brilliant and conspicuous 

 of all the Coleoptera ; they are much more characteristic of tropical than 

 of temperate countries ; the groups may be divided into three tribes, 

 the Rutelina, Dynastina, and Cetoniina ; no representatives, however, of 

 the second tribe are found in the British fauna; the other two may be 

 divided as follows : 



I . Tarsal claws unequal RUTELINA. 



II. Tarsal claws equal CETONIINA. 



RUTELINA. 



Upwards of a hundred genera and a large number of species arc com- 

 prised in this tribe ; of these only three genera, represented by fifty 

 species, occur in Europe, and two genera, represented by only two species, 

 are found in Britain ; many of the species, especially those belonging to 

 the true Rutelae, arc exceedingly brilliant and conspicuous insects ; those, 

 however, that are found in Europe are comparatively obscure ; the true 

 Rutelae have the antennae 10-jointed and prominent mandibles, whereas 

 in the European species, which all belong to the Anomalae, the antennae 

 are 9-jointed and the mandibles do not project beyond the clypeus ; the 

 tarsal claws are unequal, the outer one being the largest ; in some 

 genera, however, e.g. Anomala, the difference of siy.o is not striking, 

 whereas in Plnjllopertha and others it is very evident. 



T. Base of tliorax bordered ; upper surface pilose . . . PHYLLOPKRTHA, Kirby. 

 II. Base of thorax not bordered ; upper surface not pilose AKOMALA, Sam. 



PHYLLOPERTHA, Kirby. 



About fifteen species arc contained in this genus, of which five occur 

 in Europe ; the others have been described from North and South 

 Africa, Japan, Hong Kong, Siberia, and Mexico ; our single species is 

 sometimes very destructive to pasture land, and does considerable, 

 damage to gardens; they are commoidy known as fieldchafers, May- 

 bugs, bracken clocks, fernshaw beetles, fernwebs, and in Norfolk as 

 " chovey." 



The larva is figured and described by Curtis (Farm Insects, p. 217, 32, fig. 5, and 

 p. 221), who also mentions the perfect insects as very destructive to rose trees and 

 fruit trees; these larvas arc very similar to that of Melolontha vulgaris, but are, of 

 course, much smaller ; like the rest of tho Lamellicornia larvae their bodies are curvet), 

 but they are comparatively active ; they arc ochreous white, with the head darker, 

 and the mandibles blackish at the tips; the body is clothed with a few brown hairs ; 

 when full grown they form cells a considerable distance below the surface of the 



