134: 



EVENINGS AT THE MIOEOSCOPE. 



level and form a velvety surface. Now these points are 

 the "vvhitish bulbous extremities exactly answerable to 

 those of the palms of the fly, and doubtless they answer 

 the very same purpose. Only here they are set in far 

 closer aiTay and are a hundred times more numerous ; 

 whence we may reasonably presume a higher power of 

 adhesion to be possessed by the beetle. The structure 

 is best seen in the male, which may be distinguished 

 by its smaller dimensions, and by its broader feet. 



A still better example of a sucking foot is this of the 



FOOT OF TTATEE-BEETLE. 



a. Large sucker, hh. Two smaller suckers, 

 c. Small crowded suckers. 



2. Ono of the last more eularged. 



Dyticus marginalis. It is the great flat oval beetle, 

 which is fond of coming up to the surface of ponds, and 

 hanging there by the tail with its pair of hind legs 



