188 
NATURAL HISTORY OR 
lobe, which is dilated considerably at the tip, and 
bent inwards. The terminal joint of the labial pal- 
pi is longer than the others, and nearly cylindric, 
but slightly thickened in the middle. The external 
margin of the elytra is straight without any sinuosity, 
a character which distinguishes the true Ateuchi from 
the species that constitute the genus Gymnopleurus. 
There is no perceptible scutellum, nor any opening 
at the base of the sutural line indicating its place. 
The four hinder legs are slender, elongate, and 
fringed with long hairs ; the tibiae are scarcely thick- 
ened at the tip, where they are truncated obliquely, 
and armed with a strong acute spine. The dilated 
anterior part of the head is divided into six teeth, 
and an elevated process of the cheek (strictly the 
canthus) runs nearly across the eye, dividing the 
upper portion from the lower. 
The genus, as above defined, contains about 
twenty-six species. They are confined to the old 
world, in which however they have an extensive 
range of distribution. 
ATEUCHUS SACER.— SACRED EGYPTIAN 
BEETLE. 
PLATE X. Fig. 1. 
Searabseus sacer, Linn. — Falricius — Olivier , Entom. pi. 8, 
fig. 59, a, l. 
The colour is entirely black, and the- surface ra- 
