aff'ectiiit/ the Turnips, Cur)i- crops, S\c. 
225 
several black beetles of the family Carai>idce, which he detected 
in the same field, and on opening it a short time after, he saw 
one of the lieetles with a VVireworm in its mouth. Profiting by 
this accidental discovery, I placed two of the beetles under a glass 
with a VVnevvorm ; the beetles appeared to whet their mandibles, 
ready for the attack, and in an instant each had seized the Wire- 
worm, the writhings of which threw the beetles upon their backs ; 
they quickly recovered their legs, and the worm was soon divided, 
each taking his share, and entirely sucking out the milky contents, 
leaving only small fragments of the horny skin, I then introduced 
several more worms under the glass, and they as speedily disap- 
peared. I repeated the experiment several times with the same 
results; I therefore think I may fairly conclude that this beetle 
is a natural enemy of the VVireworm." 
Figure 4G represents a dead shrivelled Wireworm, of Elater 
lineatus, I believe, which was infested with parasitic larvae, one of 
which had become a pupa (fig. p), so greatly advanced that in a 
few days the perfect fly would have been hatched. By some 
accident this pupa was forced through the skin, and it is evident 
that it was some species of Ichneum(m ; for the head (fig. 47, /) is 
distinct enough, and shows the two eyes ; the antennae (fig. m) 
are enclosed, as the whole animal is, in a transparent shroud. 
Fig. n exhibits the thorax, and fig. o the legs and jointed feet. 1 
had hoped to breed this insect, but it died, and it must therefore 
be left lor future inquirers to determine the species of this useful 
little being, which was not unknown to Berkander, and is very 
probably far from uncommon. The specimen was sent to me the 
1st August, 1841, having been just discovered Avith other VVi re- 
forms in Surrey. 
The click-beetles themselves are not free from the assaults of 
minor enemies, which may not actually destroy them, but I ima- 
gine they must exhaust and weaken the individuals they attack so 
as to render them incapable of fulfilling their functions with 
energy. Of these animals two very different species have come 
under my observation, which I will now describe ; but it will not 
be irrelevant to observe that the class Insecta, as it stood in the last 
century, included crabs, lobsters, spiders, centipedes, &c. La- 
treille, however, and modern philosophers have very properly 
divided them into three classes the 1st is called Crustacea, 
the '2nd Arachnides, the 3rd Insecta. With the 1st we shall 
have nothing to do in these reports ; the 3rd is distinguished bv its 
pair of genuine antennae, six thoracic legs, &c., comprising all the 
insects whose histories we have recorded ; and the 2nd will include 
most of the few remaining animals, which will complete this com- 
munication. 
* Dr. Leach formed the insects of Linnaeus into five classes, namely 
Crustacea, Arachniiida, Acari, Myriapoda, and Insecta. 
VOL. V. P 
