SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



357 



own weight. This is in the same proportion as if 

 a man of eleven stone were to support thirty-seven 

 and a-half tons, a fact that shows clearly the 

 enormous strength not only of the jaws, but also 

 of the neck and other muscles of the beetle" ("En- 

 tomologists' Monthly Magazine," vol. xviii., p. 18). 

 In all but one of our British tiger-beetles, the 

 thorax is broader than long, the elytra in every 



The head, which is rather flat, is armed, as in the 

 perfect insect, with strong sharp jaws. The dorsal 

 surface of the eighth segment is much raised, and 

 provided with two hooks, which give the grubs a 

 very peculiar appearance. These larvae bore 

 holes in the ground from ten to twenty inches in 

 depth, and of rather greater diameter than 

 themselves. The tunnels are, as a rule, sunk 



\ \ 



\ 



British Tiger-Beetles. 



Fig. 1, Cicindela campestris. Fig. 2, C. sylvatica. Fig. 3, C. hybrida. Fig. 4, C. germaniea. 

 Fig. 6, Antenna enlarged. Fig. 7, Jaws, open and closed. 



case entirely covering the abdomen. The wings 

 can be folded and unfolded with greater celerity 

 in this than in any other genus of Coleoptera and 

 the Cicindela exhibit more the quickness of flies 

 than of beetles in this respect. The legs are long 

 and well fitted for speed, and whether on the 

 ground or in the air, the actions of the tiger-beetle 

 are characterized by extreme rapidity of movement. 

 The larvae are of a dirty white or yellowish 

 hue, with the head and legs of a darker shade. 



vertically throughout their greater length, and 

 are then curved at the bottom so as to form a 

 kind of horizontal chamber. The manner in 

 which they are constructed is described by 

 Westwood in his notes on the larva of C. 

 campestris. With its powerful jaws, and by the 

 help of its legs, the grub detaches the pieces of 

 sand or earth, which are then carried to the top 

 of the burrow on its broad head and ejected. 

 Having completed its habitation, the larva next 



