AN INSECT TIGER 101 



bright green with whitish spots, the legs 

 being slender, and of a lovely rosy copper- 

 colour. When flying in the sun, as it loves 

 to do, the green wing-cases and metallic 

 limbs flash and glitter in a manner which 

 arrests the attention. The beetles emit a 

 powerful but not unpleasant scent when 

 captured. They may be found in dry, sandy 

 places old quarries, sand-pits, and the like. 



The Garden Ground-Beetle (Carabus 

 nemoralis), Plate VIII., Fig. 2, is a specimen 

 of a group of beetles, which is well known 

 to every one who possesses a garden. In 

 this instance the head and thorax are black, 

 margined with purple, and the wing-cases 

 brassy brown. The ground beetles have 

 become so debased by the chase of crawling 

 things, that they have lost their wings and 

 can themselves only crawl. Their bodies 

 contain a large amount of alkali, so that in 

 Senegal it is said that a kindred species is 

 used for making an efficient soap. 



There are many beetles which prefer an 

 aquatic home. The Plunger Beetle (Dytiscus 

 marginalis), Plate VIII. , Fig. 3, belongs to 

 this class. It is of a blackish-olive colour, 



