BEETLES. 25 



Prof. Heer has only obtained one small species (Ephemera cenin- 

 gensis, Heer) from (Eniiigen. 



Of the Phryganidse (caddice-flies) , which appear in great quan- 

 tities about the rivers and lakes of Switzerland, and which are 

 mentioned by Conrad Gessner as "Baden flies/' Prof. Heer 

 only knows two species from CEningen, and one from Locle. 

 Their larvae, like those now existing, constructed their dwellings 

 of small stones and fragments of plants ; one of these dwellings 

 has been found at (Eningen. 



C. Beetles (Coleopterd) . 



Of the Coleoptera all the higher groups and most of the 

 families are represented at CEningen, from which locality Prof. 

 Heer is acquainted with 518 species. From the rest of the 

 Swiss Miocene 26 species have been obtained. The average 

 number of species to each family is 10, and to each genus 3 spe- 

 cies ; in the existing beetle-fauna of Switzerland there are 45 

 species to the family and 5 to the genus ; in Europe generally 

 the genus possesses 7*9 species, it has 4*4 species in North 

 America, and 6'7 species in South America. 



Most of the species at CEningen are comprised in the tribe of 

 the Rhynchophora (weevils &c.) with 107 species ; then follow 

 the Sternoxi (66 species), Clavicornes (55), Carabidse (52), 

 Chrysomelina (50), Lamellicornes (50), Longicornes (28), and 

 Palpicornes (21). In the present Swiss fauna the order of the 

 tribes according to number of species is as follows Rhyncho- 

 phora, Brachelytra, Carabidse, Clavicornes, Chrysomelina, Ster- 

 noxi, Lamellicornes, and Longicornes; and the same order is 

 found with respect to the general fauna of Europe. 



Thus not only in the fauna of the Tertiary district of Swit- 

 zerland, but in that of Europe at the present day, the Rhyncho- 

 phora take the first place ; but while in the latter the Brache- 

 lytra hold the second or third place, in the Miocene fauna, as in 

 that of South America or Asia, these insects fall into the back- 

 ground, and do not appear among the dominant tribes. On the 

 other hand, the Sternoxi (gold-beetles and skipjacks) come up 

 into the second rank, and even the Palpicornes take their place 



