ARTICULATA. 155 



plants. The families, according to Westvvoocl, are : 1, Scapkidiid^je ; 2, Sil- 

 phidiB {pi. Sl,Jig. 104) ; 3, NltiduUdcB {fig. 102) ; 4, Engidae; 5, Paussidce; 

 6, Mycetopliag'id(£ ; Y, Dennestldie. Stephens places Wiq Erotylidce here 

 also, but witli the exception of the tarsi, their affinities are with the Trimera. 

 In rare cases in the MycetopJiagidce.^ the tarsi are tetramerons and 

 heteromerons. 



In the Silphidce the body is depressed, the antennas clavate, with eleven 

 articulations of which the terminal four or five form the head. The genus 

 JVecrophonis {jyl. 81, figs. 105, 106) is remarkable for finding the carcases 

 of small animals soon after death, burying them by working the earth from 

 beneath them, and afterwards covering them. The female deposits her 

 eggs in these buried carcases. 



The larvae of the Dermestidce destroy animal matter, especially dried 

 skins. Dermestes lardarius is well known, from its attacks ujjon stores of 

 beef and pork ; and AntJirenus is very destructive to the various animal 

 objects preserved in museums. In their perfect state, the AniJireni are 

 found upon flowers. 



The Brachelytra {pi. 81, figs. 1-6) form the third stirps of the sub-tril)e 

 Rypopliaga., and are distinguished by the elongated form of the body and 

 the shortness of the elytra (which seldom cover half the abdomen), and 

 beneath wdiich the wings are closely folded. The antenna are generally 

 slightly thickened towards the apex, the mandibles are robust and seldom 

 exserted, and the abdomem is flexible, and often raised over the back in 

 running. They run and fly with great facility, and in their habits are 

 allied both to the Carabidce and to the other RypopJiaga. They live about 

 dead animal and vegetable matter, or in damp localities, and some of them 

 eat larvte and other living food. The habits of the adult and larvae are the 

 same, and they do not differ much from each other, which indicates a low 

 position in the living scale. According to Westwood, this group should be 

 considered a family under the name of Stapliylinidc^., although it is usually 

 divided into a number of so-called families. Most of the species are small, 

 and require a good microscope and a good manipulation to study them 

 pro])erly. "Westwood states the sub-families to be the six following : 1, 

 Stapjliyllmdes j 2, Stenides j 3, Oxytelides ^ 4, Omaliides ; 5, Tachyporides j 

 6, fselapJiides. In the last group there are only three articulations to the 

 tarsi, one of which is so small as to have been at first overlooked, so that 

 they were considered dimerous, and formed into a primary section named 

 DimeTa. They are from two to four millimetres long, and are found under 

 stones, in meadows, and in ants' nests. Dr. J. L. Le Conte has published 

 an interesting memoir on the Xorth American species. 



The Cordylocerata of Westwood constitute the third sub-tribe of the 

 Pentamera., and include the stirpes Clavieornia and LamelUcornia. The 

 stirps Helocera., the name of which is adopted from Dumeril by Stephens, is 

 named Clavieornia by Westwood, a term under which Latreille included 

 the NecTopliaga. 



The Clavieornia have the body short, sub-globular or sub-cpiadrate, 

 the antennse clubbed, the basal articulation often forming half the entire 

 • 359 



