ENTOMOLOGICAL CABINET. 



MELOE VARIEGATUS. Leach. 

 Meloe scrabosus. Stephens' Catalogue. 



Head coppery black— the sides tinted with purple- 

 violet with more or less confluent punctures : thorax 

 transverse, brassy or coppery black, punctured, the 

 punctures frequently confluent, the margins elevated 

 and violaceus : elytra brassy black, with elevated 

 confluent shining points, the interstices obscure : 

 abdomen of the male entirely scabrous, with the 

 dorsal segments anteriorly golden-green and poste- 

 riorly violaceous red copper, beneath variegated with 

 purple and gold ; of the female black, with a large 

 scabrous patch on each segment, anteriorly golden- 

 green, posteriorly rufous-violet, beneath variegated 

 with purple, gold and green : legs black, obscurely 

 violaceous, femora shining purple-violet : antennae 

 dull brassy-violet. 



Abundant in the Isle of Thanet in the spring, 

 especially in the vicinity of Ramsgate and Broad- 

 stairs, where it was taken in profusion some years 

 since by G. Milne, Esq. 



There appears to be either some strange miscon- 

 ception amongst entomologists of note respecting the 

 larvae of these insects, or otherwise their economy is 

 very anamalous. They seem to be produced from a 

 mass of clear yellowish eggs, and almost immediately 

 to attach themselves to bees, flies, &c. but others 

 doubt the fact : the Imago feeds upon chickweed, 

 21-4 



