92 COLEOPTERA. 



quest of rotten prey ; others prefer the land, where they seek out 

 with unremitting diligence whatever from decay begins to taint 

 the air ; while some, the very sextons of creation, bury whole the 

 carcases they meet with, and thus vigorously assist in carrying 

 out the sanitary laws of Nature. To these scavengers belong 



The Brachelytrous* Pentamerans. These have only one pal- 

 pus on each maxilla ; their wing-cases are much shorter than their 

 bodies, which are generally narrow and elongated. They include 



The Rova Beetles (Staphilinus), well known to every schoolboy by their 

 turned-up tails and threatening jaws, with which they menace their assailants. 

 They generally take up their abode in the earth, in the vicinity of dunghills, 

 or of rotten trees, or anywhere in the neighbourhood of rottenness and decay ; 

 they are all exceedingly voracious, run very quickly, and take flight upon the 

 least alarm. Their bodies are generally jet black, and they diffuse an intoler- 

 able odour. The larvae have the same habits as the perfect insects, from which, 

 except from the circumstance that they have no wings, they are scarcely dis- 

 tinguishable. 



The third tribe of Coleopterous Pentamerans are named Serri- 

 COrnes.t They are distinguished by the shape of their antennae, 

 which are very long and generally toothed like a saw. Among 

 these are 



The Gold Beaters (Bttprcstis) J, conspicuous from their size and the magni- 

 ficence of their colours, which sometimes resemble polished gold upon a field 

 of emerald, or blaze with every tint of blue and green, purple and scarlet, mixed 

 with metallic gleams of gorgeous brilliance. These beetles are all vegetable 

 feeders ; they walk slowly, but their flight is rapid, especially in hot and dry 

 weather. When any one attempts to seize them, they fall to the earth. A few 

 small species may be met with on flowers, but they generally frequent forests 

 and the vicinity of trees. The females lay their eggs in dead dry wood, in 

 which the larvae excavate long winding passages, wherein they undergo their 

 metamorphoses. 



The Spring Beetles (Elater} are remarkable from their faculty of spring- 

 ing into the air when laid upon their backs, in which position, owing to the 

 shortness of their legs, they would otherwise be completely unable to rise. 

 The most celebrated among them is 



The CuCUJO (Elater noctilitcns}, which has upon each side of the back of its thorax 

 a smooth convex round spot, from which at night there issues a light so brilliant that 

 by its assistance it is easy to read the smallest print, more especially if several of these 

 insects are put together in a glass vessel. By the light thus afforded, the Brazilian 

 iadies are able to embroider ; and not unfrequently they twine these living lamps among 

 their hair to light them in their evening promenade. The Indians fasten them to their 

 mocassins, and thus illuminate their path. A merchant ship once accidentally brought 

 one to Paris in some wood, wherein it had passed its larva state, and astonished the 

 inhabitants of the Faubourg St. Antoine by a display of its brilliant light an exhibition 

 for which they were but little prepared. Nearly allied to these are 



Bpaxfa, brachus, short; 2\vrpov, elutron, win^-coi'cr. f Serra, a saw; cornu, a 



horn; i.e., antenna. 

 % 8ofarp-r)<TTis, bouprestis, an insect said to poison cq/tic. eXarrip, elater, a leaper. 



