iSgi.] THE BRITISH NATURALIST. 



are both rather local in their distribution, from what I have noted of 

 their habits I should have expected them to take the place of our 

 more dainty Limax agrestis. H. avbustonun is the greatest eater for its 

 size of any Helix I have kept, and it takes a greater variety of food, 

 yet this is among our local species ; here I only find it on alluvial soil, 

 generally confined to a small area, though like the Amalice, extremely 

 abundant where it does occur. 



I have at present a number of foreign species in confinement, one 

 Helix has travelled by parcel post from Australia. Some of the contin- 

 ental species behave rather differently from their British relatives, 

 H. ai)erta for example creeps below the surface, leaving a portion of 

 the shell above covered neatly with earth, so that they look like little 

 lumps of soil. These spend so much time, in this country at least, hy- 

 bernating and estivating in this manner that they have little time to 

 feed, H. candidissima is fond of burrowing rather deeply if the soil 

 will allow it, and remaining several days below ground. 



H. ttndata, from Madeira, appears very much at home and breeds 

 freely, it is rather rapid in its movements. I intend shortly, with the 

 Editor's permission, to give a few extracts from my note book, of facts 

 concerning my molluscan friends. 



TuxFORD, Newark, 21st Aug., 1891. 



Insecta.— Coleoptera. 



GOSSIPING NOTES ON BRITISH COLEOPTERA. 



BY G. A. LEWCOCK. 



( Continued from page 115.) 



Metabletus, Schmidt-goebebel. — Appears to be derived from two 

 Greek words, meta, behind, and bletos, struck, and may refer to the 

 truncated apex of elytra. The insects in this and the preceeding 

 genus are classed under one name by some authors, who consider the 

 different points as specific rather than generic. Three species of 

 Metabletus occur in Britain, all of which are not uncommon. 



M. obscuro-guttatus, Duft. — This species has a light spot at shoulder 

 of each elytron. It occurs in several localities round London, and 



