BEETLES. 41 



discovered at Locle and (Eningen, is most closely related to a 

 South- African form (C. costalis, Oliv.), and a third (C. atavus, 

 Heer) to a species which is distributed from Sicily to the Cape 

 of Good Hope (C. africanus, Lap.). The genera Hydaticus, 

 Acilius, Colymbetes, and Hydroporus (fig. 282) include smaller 

 insects, chiefly representing European forms. 



The Carabidae (Geodephaga) are carnivorous beetles., and are 

 very active predaceous creatures, living in constant warfare with 

 other insects, as well as with Mollusca and worms. At (Eningen 

 they occupy the fourth place with fifty-four species, in the exist- 

 ing Swiss fauna the third place, in Europe generally the second, 

 and in North America even the first place, whilst in South 

 America and in India they only come fifth in order. Of the 

 true Carabi none have been found fossil ; but these insects are 

 now very abundant in the cold and temperate zones, and are 

 among the commonest predaceous beetles of Switzerland. Their 

 representatives in the warm and torrid zones are the nearly allied 

 Calosomata. At (Eningen five species of Calosoma have been 

 found, and two have been obtained from Locle, making in all 

 seven Miocene species. 



The Calosomata probably took the place of the Carabi in 

 Miocene times, as their relatives now do in southern countries. 

 They often live together in troops, and pursue caterpillars on 

 trees, whence they have received the name of caterpillar-hunters. 

 The most abundant species (Calosoma Nauckianum, Heer, fig. 

 283) , which also occurs in the lignites of Bonn, is very nearly 

 related to a species distributed over Southern Europe and the 

 Atlantic islands (C. Maderce, Fab.) : this is the case also with a 

 second species, whilst two others (C. catenulatum, Heer, and C. 

 caraboides, Heer) have as their nearest allies North -American 

 species (C. Sayi and longipenne, Dej.), and two others, again, 

 are related to South- American forms, and only one (C. Jaccardi, 

 Heer, from Locle) can be assimilated to a species of the existing 

 Swiss fauna (C. inquisitor, Fab.). Thus during the Miocene 

 epoch Switzerland possessed a number of Calosomata, the de- 

 scendants of which are now scattered over both hemispheres. 

 The genus was already developed into its extreme forms, as one 

 species (C. Jaccardi) with its broad and short elytra constitutes 

 a transition towards the Asiatic Callisthenes, whilst another (C. 



