COLEOPTERA. 531 



from the preceding; in having the head more or less narrowed in front, the middle of its great margin having a 

 notch to receive the upper lip ; the antennae are always 11-jointed, and the thorax cordate-truncate. 



Eurychora, Thunberg (with the body oval, the edges acute and ciliated), and 



Adelostoma, Duponch. (with the body narrow and elongated), differ from all the foregoing in having the 

 front edge of the mentum slightly emarginate, (not divided into two lobes,) or concave, with the lateral angles 

 acute. 



We terminate the Pimeliaires with such as have the mentum square, without any notch or impression in the 

 front edge; the body is always oblong, the antennae have always eleven distinct joints, the anterior femora are 

 often thickened, and sometimes toothed. 



Tagenia, Latr. (having the third joint of the antennae scarcely longer than the following, and the eleventh very 

 small), and 



Psammetichus, Latr. (with the third joint of the antennse much longer than the following, and the last joint as 

 large as the preceding), have the thorax narrow, and the sides of the head dilated. 



Scaunts, Fabr., with the thorax nearly isometrical, or square, composed of Old World species. 



tScotobim, Germar, has the thorax broader than long, with the sides rounded ; composed of South American 

 species. 



Sepidium, Fabr., has the sides of the thorax angular, or with a strong tooth, and the middle of the back is chan- 

 nelled; the sides of the head are but slightly dilated. The species are found in the South of Europe and Africa. 



The two last genera have the antennae composed of nearly cylindrical joints, the three or four terminal joints 

 alone being rounded or ovoid ; the species are inhabitants of the Cape of Good Hope. 



Trachynotus, Latr., has the eyes round or oval, and the thorax depressed. 



Moluris, Latr., and Psammodes, K., have the eyes narrow and long, and the thorax convex. 



The second tribe of the Melasoma, that of the Blapsides, is named from the genus Blaps, Fabricius, 

 in which the maxillary palpi are terminated by a joint evidently dilated like a hatchet or triangle. 

 This tribe is formed of a single genus, — 



Blaps. 

 Those species which have the body generally oblong, with the sides of the abdomen embraced by the elytra, 

 which are mostly narrowed behind, and the tarsi alike in both sexes, form a first division, some of which have the 

 mentum small, occupying not more than a third part of the under-side of the head. 



The four following subgenera have the tibiae slender, without strong teeth, and the thorax is not dilated in 

 front. 

 Oxura, Kirby, has the body long and narrow, and the thorax longer than broad. 

 Acanthomera, Latr., has the thorax nearly orbicular and transverse, and the abdomen nearly globular. 

 Misolampus, Latr., has the thorax nearly globose, and the abdomen nearly ovoid. [These three groups do not 

 occur in England.] 



Blaps, Fabr., has the thorax nearly square, flat, or but slightly convex ; the abdomen oval, transversely truncate 

 at its base ; the elytra in many are narrowed into a point, especially in the males, and the third joint of the an- 

 tennae is longer than the following. 



Blaps mortisaga, Linn., is black, but little shining, and the tip of the elytra forms 

 a short obtuse point. It is found in dark and dirty places about houses. [A very 

 common British insect.] 



Fabricius states that the Turkish women which inhabit Egypt, where Bl. sulcataia 

 common, eat that species cooked with butter in order to make themselves fat. It is 

 also said that it serves as an antidote against the ear-ache, and the sting of the 

 Scorpion. 



Gonopus, Latr., has all the tibia angular, the two anterior broad, and strongly 

 toothed on the outside, and the thorax is dilated in front. [Exotic species.] 



The other insects of this tribe, which have the feet alike in both sexes, differ in the 

 large size of the mentum, which occupies the greater part of the under-side of the 

 head in the form of a heart truncate behind. 

 Heteroscelis, Latr., has the outer edge of the four fore feet armed with two strong 

 Fig. 73.-Biaps nmrti»;igH. teeth. One in the middle and the other at the tip, and the body oval, rounded at each 

 end. 

 MaMa, Herbst., has the antenna terminated by a small club, formed of the last three joints, and lodged in canals 

 on the under-side of the thorax. 



Scoliniis, Kirby, has the antenna terminated in a small club, but the last two joints are nearly united, and not 

 lodged in canals. [These three subgenera consist of exotic insects.] 



Asida, Latr., differs from the last three subgenera in having the thorax nearly trapezoid, and the mentum 

 covers the base of the maxillae. 



In the remainder of the Blapsides, the body is oval and but little elongated, the lateral fold of the elytra is narrow 



and extends but slightly beneath, and the feet are unlike in the sexes, the two fore anterior tarsi being dilated in 



the males, the under-side being generally silky, or furnished with a brush. These insects inhabit sandy districts, 



the two fore tibia; being generally broad and dilated triangularly, so as to be fitted for burrowing. 



Pedinus, Latr., has the fore margin of the head always notched ; the two anterior tarsi of the males are alone 



