COLEOPTEEA OE BEETLES. 149 



be roughly identified by their hard convex elytra, long thin legs 

 and antennae, and their extremely active habits. The majority 

 are carnivorous, and do immense good 

 by devouring noxious iasects, moUuscs, 

 and animal matter. The mouth is 

 armed with a large scissor-shaped pair 

 of mandibles, with which they cause fj^. 66.-Grod™- beetle 

 great havoc amongst insect life. Some ''Sl^. '^^°^^' ^' 

 species have wings, others have none. 



The larvae of Carabidae are elongated and flat, slightly fleshy, 

 with a hard chitinous head and first segment : there are three 

 pairs of legs on the first three segments, and two horn-like ap- 

 pendages on the dorsum of the tail segment, sometimes an 

 elongated process below : like the adult, the larvae have power- 

 ful scissor-like jaws. These larvae are also carnivorous, and 

 have a similar diet to the adult. The two most commonly 

 met with are the Garden Ground-beetle {Carabus molaceus) 

 (fig. 66) and C. nemcrralis. The former is a large purple beetle, 

 often seen actively running about fields and gardens ; the latter 

 is golden-bronze in colour. Both are predaceous, and so are the 

 majority of this family ; but some have developed decidedly 

 injurious vegetarian habits, attacking corn and strawberries to a 

 disastrous extent. 



The Corn Groimd-beetle {ZabriLS gibhtts) injures the roots of 

 corn in the larval state ; the adult destroys the barley in the ear, 

 and lives during the day in tunnels in the ground. They are 

 black - coloured beetles, about an inch in length, with broad 

 heads and strong biting jaws. Another species, Steropus mandi- 

 dus, somewhat smaller, has been recorded as devouring mangel- 

 wurzel, attacking the young roots, often gnawing them T)ff at 

 the level of the ground. This beetle is also carnivorous. The 

 same species and two others — Harpalits rujixiornis and CaJathus 

 cisteloides — have iu recent years been working among straw- 

 berries, numerous inquiries during the past two years reaching 

 the author. H. ruficornis, the most abundant, is about two- 



