112 
BRITISH BEETLES. 
Lebiina in the Geodephaga ; and one of the former 
genus, A. alpinus, has the head of the male (which 
sex is very rare) enlarged, with a spine on each side 
in front, and strong, curved, prominent mandibles. 
Acidota, found under pine-bark and in moss, has 
very stoutly built legs, and spiny tibiae; the species, 
also, are somewhat larger, linear and shining. Olo- 
phrum and Lathrimceum, on the contrary, are convex 
and short; and the little black Micralymma brevi- 
penne, with very short elytra, is noteworthy from 
living far below high-water mark on the coast in all 
its stages. Eupshalerum and Anthobium sometimes 
abound in flowers, the latter occurring on Umbelliferai 
in woods, and the former in primroses. 
The species of Homalium, in which the four basal 
joints of the tarsi are equal, and scarcely so long as 
the apical joint alone, are varied in habits ; many are 
found under bark, others in flowers, some at sap, or 
in marshy places, and one or two in profusion under 
decaying seaweed. IT. planum (Plate V., Fig. 3) is, 
perhaps, as good a type of a subcortical insect as could 
be seen. 
The Proteinin/E are closely allied to the Homaliinai, 
but differ in having no ocelli on the vertex of the 
head ; the anterior coxae are transverse, subl inear, and 
scarcely prominent (somewhat like those of the Nitidu- 
lidas), and the posterior are large and transverse ; 
the antennae are eleven-jointed, and all the tarsi 
five-jointed ; the paraglossae are distinct, and in Megar- 
thrus longer than the ligula. 
The species of Proteinus, which are very small, 
flattish-oval, and black, are found in rotten fungi, &c., 
often in great numbers ; they may be distinguished 
