274 



THE YOUNG NATUEALIST. 



birds fight desperately in defence of their 

 home, hissing and biting if the hand be 

 introduced, or the place in any way invaded. 

 A case is reported {Science Gossip, Feb- 

 ruary, 1879), of a pair of Blue Tits lining a 

 Blackbird's nest with soft material and lay- 

 ing seven eggs in it. Two cases are also 

 reported (S.G., March 1879), of the Blue 

 Tit building in old bee hives. 



Eggs.— The number of eggs vary from 

 six to ten, but sometimes as many as twelve 

 or fifteen, and even up to eighteen have 

 been found in one nest. Probably when 

 so many are laid in one nest they are by more 

 than one female bird. They are pinkish 

 white, (the pink tint leaving them when 

 blown), spotted, generally most at the large 

 end, and forming a zone, with brick red 

 spots of largish size. They are not unlike 

 some varieties of the Willow Warbler, but 

 are generally rather larger and more dumpy 

 looking. 



Varieties. — Occasionally white. 



NOTES ON COLEOPTERA, 



FOR BEGINNERS. 



By Dr. J. W. Ellis and Mr. Smedley, 

 Liverpool. 



Family BEMBIDIID^. 



The family Bembidiid^ is distinguished 

 from all the other British Geodephaga by 

 having the last joint of the palpi sharp and 

 needle-shaped, while the last but one is 

 thickened. The British species comprised 

 in five genera, lAmnceum, Cillemmi, Tacliys, 

 Bemlidium, and TacTiypus, are all of small 

 size, usually from ij to 2^ lines in length, 

 and with the exception of the genus Bembi- 

 ditm, the genera do not contain many 

 species. 



One of these genera (Tachy^us) is dis- 

 tinguished by the two species possessing a 



great general resemblance to a small Ela^h- 

 rus, having very prominent eyes, and the 

 elytra have patches of pubescence which 

 give them a variegated appearance. 



The two genera LimncBum and Tachys are 

 distinguished by having no scutillary stria ; 

 the species of the genus Tachys are very 

 small, I to 1 1 lines, while the single species 

 of the genus Limnceum measures 2 lines in 

 length. 



Of the remaining two genera the single 

 species of Cillenum is distinguished from all 

 the species of the genus Bemdidium by the 

 elytra being yellowish brown in colour, 

 much elongate, and with the sides perfectly 

 parallel. None of the genus Benibidium 

 have the sides of the elytra quite parallel. 

 LIMNiEUM. 



L. nigrapiceum, not a very common species, 

 is pitchy in colour ; the antennae, palpi and 

 legs are dirty red ; the elytra are nearly 

 square, and have the striae near the suture 

 very deep. Length, 2 lines. 



CILLENUM. 



C. laterale. Head and thorax bronze- 

 green, the thorax much narrowed behind, 

 with the posterior angles sharp. Length, 

 2 lines. This species, which seems to be 

 not very widely distributed, occurs in our 

 district in clayey places on the shore, near 

 the mouth of fresh water streams. Its 

 colour so resembles the tenacious clay 

 among which it is found that it is with 

 difificulty recognised. 



TACHYS. 



Upper side reddish yellow ; thorax with 

 sharp posterior angles. Elytra with four 

 distinct striae. Length i\ lines. . . T. FocU. 



Upper side pitchy ; thorax without sharp 

 posterior angles. Elytra with two distinct 

 striae. Length | lines T. histriatus. 



Head and thorax pitchy; elytra light 

 yellow, with a dark spot at the scutellum, 

 and another on the suture near the apex ; 

 thorax without sharp posterior angles..., 



T, scutellaris. 



