THE CEBAMBYCID^B AND LEPTURIDJE. 277 



at present, utterly impossible to say. The whole of 

 the LucanidcB and the Bostrichidce, no less than the 

 Prionidce, require a thorough analysis ; and until that is 

 done, individual opinion, founded only on conjecture, 

 can alone be offered. The nature of the food, and the 

 form of the larva, indeed, may materially assist us in 

 unravelling the confusion which now involves all these 

 groups. Details like these, however, belong not to our 

 present plan. We merely seek to establish the primary 

 groups, and to show they exhibit as strong relations of 

 analogy among themselves, as are found in other parts 

 of the animal kingdom. It can hardly be disputed, 

 for instance, that there is a strong relation between Pas- 

 salus and Trogosita, as well as between Cucujus and 

 Hister ; but these, we suspect, will eventually prove 

 merely analogical. 



(249.) In respect to the two typical families, the 

 Cerambycidce and the Lepturidce^ we feel much more 

 confident, not, indeed, as to their specific contents, but 

 as to the fundamental principles upon which we should 

 base them. As we prefer, upon all occasions, the retention 

 of Linnaean names, when they can be preserved with- 

 out injury to science, we call the first of these the Ceram- 

 bycidce, although, strictly speaking, the genus Lamia of 

 Fabricius is the pre-eminent type. The natural history 

 of the L. amputator, so beautifully illustrated by Guild- 

 ing, one of the most accomplished zoologists of the age, 

 completely establishes the fact, if such evidence were 

 wanting, that these insects are lignivorous, both in their 

 larva and perfect state : they feed, in fact, upon hard 

 wood ; and even amputate branches, without paying any 

 regard to the leaves ; and their thick, strong, and com- 

 pact structure are in unison with such habits. The 

 Lepturidce, on the other hand, although internal feeders 

 in their larva state, are yet totally incapable of gnawing 

 hard substances when arrived at maturity. Whether 

 they occasionally feed upon leaves, we know not, but their 

 common resort is flowers, upon which the most inexpe- 

 T 3 



