Insects, 5005 



particularly to test another season. On being disturbed, H. latus immediately crawls 

 down amongst the stones, not rising in the water as H. Davisii, H. septentrionalis, and 

 others invariably do : hence an ordinary net is of no use whatever, as it will not go in 

 amongst the stones, and dredging them up is quite impossible. The dozen that 

 I caught were taken by hand, an uncomfortable and very slow process. Another sea- 

 son I must manufacture a net for the especial benefit of this broad-backed fellow, 

 whose powerful frame and robust legs are so well adapted for clinging to the stones of 

 a mountain torrent. — Id. 



Synonymic List of the British Species of Philhydrida, with Notices 

 of Localities, fyc. By the Rev. Hamlet Clark, M.A. 



In a complete systematic arrangement of Coleoptera, the group of 

 water-beetles, Philhydrida of Stephens, are evidently more closely 

 allied to the Lamellicornes than to the Hydrocantharidae ; they occupy 

 the same place with regard to the former that the Hydrocantharidae do 

 with reference to the Geodephaga; they are subfamilies of two distinct 

 families : this is abundantly evident from their structure and habits, 

 and this position has been assigned to them by our principal writers. 

 Practically, however, to a field naturalist the two groups are insepa- 

 rable ; no one can pay any attention to one without constantly meeting 

 with species of the other : in the examination of pools and ditches 

 Hydrobii and Berosi are found in the same net with Hydropori; 

 while in streams Elmidae and Hydraenae occur with Hydroporus 

 rivalis, H. latus and H. septentrionalis. I propose, therefore, as an 

 addendum to my previous paper on Hydrocantharidae, to point out, 

 so far as I am able, the British species of Philhydrida ; noticing, when 

 necessary, their localities, or any peculiarities of structure or nomen- 

 clature. 



A few hints as to the best modes of collecting these insects may be 

 of interest to the younger readers of the ' Zoologist.' Hydrocantharidae 

 are water rovers ; they affect certainly the shelter of aquatic plants, 

 but love to wander from end to end of their pool or ditch ; the Kypo- 

 phaga, on the contrary, are more stationary : some of them, as Hele- 

 phorns, Hydrochus, Philhydrus, are found on the leaves and stems 

 of water-plants; Heterocerus, Parnus, Georyssus, Octhebius and, I 

 believe, Sperchaeus, live in or on the surface of mud ; El mis, Hydraena 

 and Limnebius are found in greatest abundance in mossy rivulets ; 



