The Simulation of Death 



Buprestis tenebrionis, for example, ex- 

 hibits a persistent inertia. Will it be the 

 same, because of similarity of structure, with 

 other members of the same group? Not at 

 all. My chance finds provide me with the 

 Brilliant Buprestis (B. rutilans, FAB.), and 

 the Nine-spotted Buprestis (Ptosima novem- 

 maculata, FAB.). The first resists all my 

 attempts. The splendid creature grips my 

 fingers, grips my tweezers and insists on get- 

 ting up the moment that I lay it on its back. 

 The second readily becomes immobile; but 

 how brief is its attitude of death! Four 

 or five minutes at most. 



A Melasoma-beetle, Omocrates abbrevi- 

 atus, OLIV., whom I frequently discover un- 

 der the broken stones on the neighbouring 

 hills, continues motionless for over an hour. 

 He rivals the Scarites. We must not forget 

 to add that very often the awakening takes 

 place within a few minutes. 



Can he owe his long period of inertia to 

 the fact that he is one of the Tenebrionidae, 

 or Darkling Beetles? By no means, for here 

 in the same group is Pimelia bipunctuata, who 

 turns a somersault on his round back and 

 finds his feet the moment he has turned 

 over; here is a Cellar-beetle (Blaps similis, 

 LATR.), who, unable to turn with his flat 

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