SHEATH -WINGED INSECTS 
289 
and scientific titles to its powerful odour, which perhaps resembles that of sweetbriar rather 
than musk, and can often be detected at a distance of twenty or thirty yards. The beetle, 
which is rich metallic green in colour, with long, slender antennae, may be found in July 
sunning itself on the trunks or foliage of willow-trees. It varies considerably in size. 
Still more plentiful is the Wasp-BEETLE, with its black wing-cases banded with bright 
yellow. While flying, it may easily be mistaken for the insect whose name it bears. The 
grub lives in old posts, rails, hop-poles, etc., feeding upon the solid wood. 
The TmBERM.\N is remarkable for the extreme length of the antennae, which, in the male 
insect, are three or four times as long as the body, and trail out far behind it during flight. It 
is found, not uncommonly, in fir woods in Scotland. 
The beautiful H.A.RLEQUIN Beetle of tropical America is one of the largest members of 
the group, and is remarkable for the great length of the front legs as well as for the singular 
colouring of the wing-cases. It lives almost entirely in the 
trees, swinging itself from branch to branch somewhat after the 
manner of a spider-monkey. When it ventures into the air, 
it is greatly incommoded by the size of its limbs and the 
length of its antenna, and seems to have but little power of 
directing its course. 
Another great group of beetles is that of the Plant-eaters, 
many of which are exceedingly beautiful. The Reed-BEETLES, 
for example, are resplendent in crimson and green and purple 
and blue, while the metallic radiance of others has gained for them 
the title of GOLDEN Apples. 
The notorious COLORADO Beetle or Pot.apo Bug is a 
member of this group. It may be recognised at once by the five 
black streaks running down each of the yellow wing-cases. On 
the havoc which it causes among potato-plants in North America 
it is unnecessary to dilate. On a smaller scale, the Turnip-FLEA 
is very mischievous in Britain, perforating the leaves of turnip- 
plants, or — worse still — eating off the seed-leaves as soon as they 
appear above the surface of the ground. Of only too many of 
these exquisite beetles, in fact, it must be said that their beauty is 
only equalled by their destructiveness. 
The L.\dybirds include a very large number of species. 
Some of these, such as the common Two-SPOT L.adybird, are 
e.xceedingly variable, a long series being easily obtained in 
which no two specimens resemble one another. Both as grubs 
and as perfect Insects they feed upon the “Green Fly” of the 
farmer, combining with the grubs of the Lace-wing and Hoverer 
Flies to keep its numbers within due limits. 
Almost equally common is the Seven-SPOT L.\DYBIRD, a considerably larger insect, with 
seven round black spots on its scarlet wing-cases, which may be seen on almost any grassy 
bank in spring. Both this and the preceding species sometimes visit the Kentish coast in vast 
swarms, the beach being reddened by their bodies for miles. The last immigration of this 
description took place in 1886, in the summer of which year the hops in East Kent were 
almost destroyed by blight, and the ladybirds made their way at once to the hop-fields and 
cleared them of the pest in a wonderfully short space of time. A much smaller species, 
known as the Twentv-TWO Spot, is yellow in colour and has eleven black spots on each wing- 
case. It is generally found crawling about on nettle-leaves in the early part of the summer. 
Allied to the Ladybirds are the very curious Tortoise-BEETLES. In these insects the 
wing-cases project to a considerable distance beyond the sides of the body, and the legs are 
so short that only the feet can be seen from above, so that the appearance is very much like 
Photo hr J, Edwards\ {^CoUshorne 
REED-BEETLE 
Among the group to ivkich this insect belongs 
are many of the most brilliantly 
coloured British beetles 
