36 



Genus LII. RAPHIDIA. 



GENERIC CHARACTER. 



Antenna filiform, as long as the thorax, the an- 

 terior part of which is elongated and cylin- 

 drical. Mouth with two teeth. Palpi four. 

 Head depressed and horny. Stemmata three. 

 Wings deflected. Tail of the female with a 

 recurved lax bristle. 



General Observations. 

 The Raphidia is remarkable for the size of 

 its head, and its lengthened thorax, which, in 

 the example selected for our plate, gives it a 

 snake-like appearance. The genus is confined 

 to a very few species, the habits of which are 

 but little known. Of the larva we were quite 

 ignorant, till Latreille, in the Bulletin de la So- 

 ciete Philomathique, described it as being very 

 straight and long, of a mixed grey and black 

 colour, with a scaly head and six feet. It re- 

 sembles a small worm; is extremely vivacious, 

 runs very quickly, and turns on all sides to in- 

 sinuate itself the more readily into the crevices 



