SYSTEM OF INSECTS. 399 
Botanists, MM. Decandolle, Agardh, and Fries, with 
regard to some groups of the Vegetable Kingdom*; and 
more recently Mr. Vigors has discovered the same qui- 
nary arrangement in various groups of birds>. ‘This is a 
most remarkable coincidence, and proves that the distri- 
bution of objects into fives is very general in nature. I 
should observe, however, that according to Mr. Mac- 
Leay’s system, as stated in his Hore Entomologice, if 
the osculant or transition groups are included, the total 
number is seven*:—these are groups small in number 
both of genera and species, that intervene between and 
connect the larger ones. Each of these osculant groups 
may be regarded as divided into two parts, the one be- 
longing to the wpper circle and the other to the lower ; 
so that each circle or larger group is resolvable into five 
interior and two exterior ones, thus making up the num- 
ber seven. Though Mr. MacLeay regards this quinary 
arrangement of natural objects as very general, it does 
not appear that he looks upon it as absolutely universal, 
—since he states organized matter to begin in a dicho- 
tomy‘: and he does not resolve its ultimate groups into 
five species; nor am I certain that he regards the penul- 
timate groups as invariably consisting of five ultimate 
ones. In Copris M‘L. I seem in my own cabinet to 
possess ten or twelve distinct types*; and in Phaneus, 
the fifth type, which Mr. MacLeay regards as contain- 
@ Linn. Trans. ubi supr. Mr. W. S. MacLeay informs me that 
M. Agardh has found that the distribution of Fuci is regulated by 
the same law. > Zool. Journ. iii. 312—. 
* Vor. ILI. p. 15. note *. 4 Hor. Entomolog. 199. 
© Viz. 1. Copris Hesperus ; 2. C. refleca; 8. C. Sabeus; 4. C. lu- 
naris; 5. C. Carolina; 6. C. Gidipus; 7. C. Midas; 8. C. capu- 
cina; 9. C. Bucephalus; 10. C. Molossus; 11? C. Eridanus ; 12, 
C. sexdentata K. 
