COLEOPTEROUS INSECTS. 
151 
disk ; the abdomen shining red, with the two last 
segments black. The legs and four lowest joints of 
the antennae are pale red, the six following joints of 
the latter black, and the terminal one pale red. 
The only other genus of this family now to be 
illustrated has been named Zirophorus. Its dis- 
tinctive characters are, the depressed body, the teeth 
on the outer edge of the anterior tibiae, the trans- 
verse head (i. e. wider than long), square thorax, 
attached to the abdomen by a kind of narrow pe- 
duncle, and the size of the mandibles, which rather 
exceed the length of the head, and are deeply den- 
tate at the extremity. All the species, not exceed- 
ing seven in number, are natives of America and 
the great islands on the east of Asia. They inva- 
riably live under bark in a state of decomposition, a 
process which they greatly hasten by perforating it 
with numerous holes, and making it pervious to air 
and moisture. The most common species is Z. sco - 
riaceus ;* that which we have represented bears con- 
siderable resemblance to it, and is named 
* Figured in Griffith’s Translation of Cuvier’s R£gne 
Animal, iv. pi. 32. 
