THE DERMESTID M. 
293 
to do this several times, and especially when the adult insects 
have just undergone their metamorphosis, so as to prevent eggs 
being laid. 
The engraving shows on the right hand the black beetle of 
Dermestes vulpinus and its larvae, and on the left hand Dennestes 
lardarius is represented, the beetle having paler elytra. A Der- 
mestes which has an oval shape and antennae of eleven joints 
is readily known by its black colour, and by a white spot on 
each elytra. It also destroys furs, and is frequently found in 
houses. Megatoma pellio , as it is called, has a reddish-brown 
larva, which is covered with long and brilliant hairs, and which 
has on its end a brush of them looking like a tail, eats all kinds 
of furs, and even feathers. Some very small kinds, which have 
short, thick-set, and almost globular bodies, frequent flowers in 
fine weather. One of them ( Anthrenus museorum) is a beetle 
about the tenth of an inch long, and is the terror of all collectors 
of insects. The larvae do not hesitate to demolish any collection 
of insects amongst which they may be born, and they commit 
an infinity of damage in a short time. They get into the interior 
of the insects, which they eat, and are hardly to be seen except 
when they undergo their metamorphosis. The nymph is pro- 
tected by the skin of the larva, underneath which it lives. 
Another large family of small insects, allied to those we have 
just described, are known as Mushroom Eaters. These little 
beetles have a broad body, and their elytra are often decorated 
with yellow or red points. Their larvae resemble those of Der- 
mestes, but they have not so many hairs. 
The HydrophilidcE are for the most part leaf-eating or herbi- 
vorous insects, and they are developed so as to be able to swim 
and even to live in water. They have short antennae, which are 
inserted under the sides of the head, and they have very long 
palps, which are thread-shaped and pendent. The remarkable 
size of these appendages to the mouth formerly gave to these 
beetles the name of Palpicorncs. One of the most notable 
peculiarities of the structures of these beetles is observed in the 
females, which have some glands in the abdomen which produce 
a silky substance that covers their eggs with an impervious 
cocoon. This is quite unique amongst the Coleoptera ; and the 
