Proceedings of Scientific Societies. 4$ 7 
:ions that surround the 
res in the production of 
the present larval forms* some other force has been at work 
in producing, or rather in retaining them. For we find a 
great variety of larvae at the present time with almost iden- 
tical habits. This other force is undoubtedly heredity, which 
has frequently proved stronger than the modifying effect of 
the environment. 
9. Beetle larvae cannot be classified by the same character- 
istics used in classifying adults. The shape of the antennae 
has no significance in the classification of larvae, since it is al- 
most uniform throughout the order. The shape of the legs, 
the number of tarsi, the shape of the coxal cavities, are of not 
much more value. The mouth parts seem to be of a little 
more value, and are of far less value in classification than they 
10. The mouth parts of beetle larvae, even in the typical 
Campodeoid form, are not Campodeoid in type, but approxi- 
mate rather closely to those of the adult beetles. No trace- 
able similarity can be found between the mouth parts of any 
particular family of larvae and those of the adults of the same 
family, beyond the general similarity sometimes produced by 
like habits. It is true, however, that the mouth parts of all 
beetle larvae are more like those of adult beetles than they 
are like those of any other order of insects. This is probably 
an example of what Hyatt and Cope call concentration of de- 
velopment, and which is elsewhere called precocious inherit- 
ance. It is an instance where the characters of the adult 
have been impressed on the larval stages. 
11. In beetle larv^ we have quite a number of cases in 
which a similar larval type has been acquired independently 
in two or more families. 
The above conclusions apply only to the group of Coleop- 
tera, and while some of them will doubtless be found equally 
true of other orders of insects, some of them are probably pe- 
culiar to beetles. 
This paper was discussed by Professors Hya 
PROCEEDINGS OF SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES. 
Natural Science Association of Staten Island, 
^ov. 10, 1888.— This being the annual meeting, officers for the 
nsuing year were elected as follows : President, L. P. Grata- 
