COLEOPTERA. 497 



toothed on the outside nor bidigitate at the tips, and tne second joint of the antennae is evidently shorter than the 

 following. They nearly approach, in the organs of the mouth, the two last subgenera; and have been confounded, 

 by some w riters, with Scarites, of which they have the appearance. 



Morio, Latr. (with the antennae of equal length throughout, thighs oval, and tibiae triangular, Harpulus monili- 

 cornis, Latr. &c.), and Oziciia, Oliv. (with the antenniE thickened at the tips, and the femora and tibiae narrow and 

 elongated, Ozcena dentipes, Oliv. &c.), have the body narrow, elongated, nearly parallelepiped, the thorax nearly 

 square, and the last joint of the external palpi nearly cylindric. All the species are exotic. 



Those which have the body oval or oblong, with the thorax nearly cup or heart-shaped, or orbicular, the last 

 joint of the outer palpi nearly oval or fusiform, and the labrum notched, compose the remaining genera. 



Ditomits, Bonelli, have the palpi shorter than the head, the thorax cup or heart-shaped, and the tarsi short. 

 Some species, to which Zeigler restricts the generic name, have the body more elongated, the head separated at 

 the sides from the thorax by an angular space, and often armed in the males with horns ; whilst the others, which 

 form the genus Aristus, Zeigl., have the body shorter, broader in front, and the head and thorax nearly continuous. 



Apotomus, Hoffm., have the anterior palpi very long, the thorax orbicular, and the tarsi tiliform and elongated. 

 Type, Scarites rufus, Oliv. [South of Europe.] 



[The typical insects of this section, from the observations of M. Lefebvre de Cerisy, appear to be 

 nocturnal in their habits ; and hence their colours are, for the most part, black or obscure. The larger 

 species are chiefly inhabitants of the Old World. They burrow in the earth, or sand of the sea-shore, 

 for which their palmated fore-legs well fit them. They are insects of prey, lurking by day in holes 

 and under stones, and feeding at night upon Melolonthidae, or other soft-bodied insects. No generic 

 additions of importance have been made to this group.] 



3. Our third section of the Carabici — that of the Quadrimani, or H arpaliens of Dejean — comprises 

 those which, in other respects similar to the last in the elytra terminated posteriorly in a point, have 

 the four anterior tarsi dilated in the males, the tliree or four basal joints being in the shape of a heart 

 reversed, or triangular, and nearly all of them terminated by acute angles. Their under-side is generally 

 (except in Ophonus) furnished with two rows of papillae or scales, with a broad space between. The 

 body is always winged, generally oval, and arched or convex above, with the thorax broader than long, 

 or at most nearly isometrical; the head is never suddenly narrowed behind; the antenna; are of equal 

 thickness throughout, or but very slightly thickened towards the tips ; the mandibles are not very 

 strong ; the tooth in the notch of the mentum is always entire, but it is wanting in some species ; the 

 tonguelet is truncated at the tip, and accompanied by two ear-like membranous paraslossa3 ; the legs 

 are robust, and the ungues of the tarsi simple ; the intermediate tarsi, as in the females, are short, and, 

 with the exception of the dilatation, are similarly formed to the anterior pair. 



These Carabici frequent sandy situations exposed to the sun. This section is composed of the genus 

 Harjjalus, as restricted by Bonelli. New groups have since still further diminished its extent. They 

 consist of the three following divisions : — 



The first of these divisions has for its characters, — notch of the mentuin with a single tooth, labrum 

 notched, and the head and fore part of the thorax as broad as, or broader than, the abdomen. 



Acinopus, Zeigl., with filiform antennae, the joints short but cylindrical, the thorax narrowed gradually from 

 the front to the back, and the hinder angles very obtuse. Type, Harpalus megacephalus, Latr. [South of Europe.] 



Daptus, Fischer, with the antennae moniliform after the fifth joint, and the thorax narrowed suddeidy towards 

 the posterior angles, which are pointed. Type, D. pictus, Fischer : Russia. Paiigus, Megerle {P. pemsylvanicus), 

 does not appear to me to dilfer essentially from Daptus. 



The second of these divisions is composed of Harpaliens having also the notch of the mentum one- 

 toothed, but of which the body is more or less ovoid or oval, and narrowed in front, with the labrum 

 entire, or slightly concave. These are the true Harpalus, Dejean, of which one of the most common 

 species is the Harpalus aneus, Fabr., about one-third of an inch long, of a shining black colour, with 

 the antennae and legs yellowish, the upper surface generally green or coppery, and very brilliant. It has 

 also been called Proteus, from the numberless changes in its colours. [The genus, even in its restricted 

 state, is very numerous, and requires revision. There appear to be several British species still unde- 

 scribed, in addition to the great number recorded by Stephens, Curtis, &c.] 



The third of these divisions is distinguished by the absence of a tooth in the notch of the mentum. 

 In other respects, however, it agrees with the preceding division. 



Ophonus, Zeigl., has the four anterior tarsi of the males strongly dilated, or evidently larger, and generally fur- 

 nished beneath with namerous hairs, forming a continuous brush. The penultimate joint is not bilobed, and the 

 uuucr surface of the body is finely punctured. ['I'here are numerous British species (including the Harpalus 

 obscurus, Fubr.), chielly found on the sea-coast.] 



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