COLEOPTEROUS IKSECTS. 
205 
The extensive and very remarkable genus Sca- 
babjeus is distinguished by having ten joints in the 
antennae, the three last forming a foliaceous mass, 
of which the middle joint is never entirely concealed 
by the two others — by possessing a distinct scutel- 
lutn — by the legs being inserted at equal distances 
— by the upper lip being almost entirely concealed 
— and by having the mandibles of a hard or horny 
consistence, and sinuated or dentated on their outer 
side. The body is usually thick and convex, and 
often of large size. None of these insects are na- 
tives of Britain, and only two appear to inhabit Eu- 
rope. By far the largest proportion occur in Ame- 
rica, particularly in the southern division of that 
continent, and in the adjacent islands ; indeed so nu- 
merous are they in these countries, and so remark- 
able for their size and appearance, that they may be 
regarded as constituting one of the most distinctive 
and characteristic features in the entomology of the 
new continent. The largest kinds are found chiefly 
in Guiana and the Antilles ; a considerable number 
occur in the vicinity of Rio Janeiro ; and they ex- 
tend in some plenty as far as the 28° of south lati- 
tude. Those found in the neighbourhood of Mon- 
te-Video, Buenos-Ayres, and Tucuman, are gene- 
rally of inferior size. 
According to M. Lacordaire, who has had many op- 
portunities of observing these insects in their native 
haunts, the habits of all the species are very much 
alike. During the day they conceal themselves in 
