52 
COLEOPTERA. 
a corresponding cavity behind it. When the insect, by any 
accident, falls upon its back, its legs are so short, and its 
back is so convex, that it is unable to turn itself over. It 
then folds its legs close to its body, bends back the head and 
thorax, and thus unsheathes its breast-spine ; then, by suddenly 
straightening its body, the point of the spine is made to strike 
with force upon the edge of the sheath, which gives it the 
power of a spring, and reacts on the body of the insect, so 
as to throw it perpendicularly into the air. When it again 
falls, if it does not come down upon its feet, it repeats its ex¬ 
ertions until its object is effected. In these beetles the body 
is of a hard consistence, and is usually rather narrow and 
tapering behind. The head is sunk to the eyes in the fore 
part of the thorax; th6 antennae are of moderate length, and 
more or less notched on the inside like a saw. The thorax 
is as broad at the base as the wing-covers ; it is usually 
rounded before, and the hinder angles are sharp and promi¬ 
nent. The scutel is of moderate size. The legs are rather 
short and slender, and the feet are five-jointed. 
The larvae or grubs of the Elaters live upon wood and 
roots, and are often very injurious to vegetation. Some 
are confined to old or decaying trees, others devour the 
roots of herbaceous plants. In England they are called 
wire-worms, from their slenderness and uncommon hard¬ 
ness. Thev are not to be confounded with the American 
wire-worm, a species of lulus, which is not a true insect, 
but belongs to the class Myriapod a, a name derived from 
the sPeat number of feet with which most of the animals 
included in it are furnished; whereas the English wire-worm 
has only six feet. The European wire-worm is said to live, 
in its feeding or larva state, not less than five years ; during 
the greater part of which time it is supported by devouring 
the roots of wheat, rye, oats, and grass, annually causing a 
large diminution of the produce, and sometimes destroying 
whole crops. It is said to be particularly injurious in gar¬ 
dens recently converted from pasture lands. We have 
