A. BEETLES (COLEOPTERA) 

 5. THE COCKCHAFEE (Meloloatha vulgaris) 



There is no British beetle which is at once common, large 

 enough for examination by the naked eye, and readily ob- 

 tained in all stages. Full-grown beetles of many species are 

 easily procured, but the larvae are usually buried in the ground, 

 or in the wood of trees, so that they rarely meet the eye, and 

 the pupse are even more carefully concealed. We shall select 

 the common cockchafer as a type for description. The beetle 

 is plentiful and of good size (about an inch long) ; the larva can 

 be procured in most parts of the country by digging, and the 

 pupa, though not often seen, is sometimes to be got in 

 quantity. 



Fresh beetles are to be preferred for examination. If they 

 require to be killed, it is well to know that there are ways of 

 killing insects which are as near as possible painless. A few 

 drops of chloroform or ether may be put, together with the insect, 

 into a wide-mouthed bottle. Entomologists who regularly 

 collect insects carry with them a killing bottle ; that is, a wide- 

 mouthed bottle, into which a few crushed laurel leaves have 

 been placed shortly before. Some prefer cyanide of potassium 

 to laurel leaves. The cyanide is mixed with plaster of Paris 

 and water, placed in the bottom of the bottle, and allowed to 

 set. A still better plan is to put into the bottle a few crystals 

 of cyanide wrapped in tissue paper, and also some loose shreds 

 of blotting-paper, which prevent the insects from knocking 

 about. The cyanide gives off a deadly vapour as long as any 

 remains. Insects are quickly killed by a moderate degree of 

 heat, and it is often convenient simply to place the insect in 

 a test-tube, and warm the outside of the tube by a flame 

 (see p. 6). 



If the beetle should be dry and rigid, it will require to be 

 relaxed. Any dried insect can be relaxed by placing it for a 



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