126 
COLEOPTERA. 
found in the second volume of the “ New England Farmer,”* 
and in Fessenden’s “New American Gardener,”! under the 
article Cacamher. 
The cucumber flea-beetle above mentioned, a little, black, 
jumping insect, well known for the injury done by it, in the 
spring, to young cucumber plants, belongs to another family 
of the Chrysomelian tribe, called Halticad^. The following 
are the chief peculiarities of the beetles of this family. The 
body is oval and very convex above; the thorax is short, 
nearly or quite as wide as the Aving-covers behind, and nar- 
roAved before ; the head is pretty broad; the antennae are 
slender, about half the length of the body, and are implanted 
nearly on the middle of the forehead; the hindmost thighs 
are very thick, being formed for leaping; hence these insects 
liaA^e been called flea-beetles, and the scientific name Haltica^ 
derived from a Avord signifying to leap, has been applied to 
them. The surface of the body is smooth, generally polished, 
and often prettily or brilliantly colored. The claAA’^s are 
very thick at one end, are deeply notched toAvards the other, 
and terminate with a long curved and sharp point, Avhich 
enables the insect to lay hold firmly upon the leav’es of 
the plants on which they live. These beetles eat the leaves 
of vegetables, preferring especially plants of the cabbage, 
turnip, mustard, cress, radish, and horse-radish kind, or 
those Avhich, in botanical language, are called cruciferous 
plants, to Avhich they are often exceedingly injurious. The 
turnip-fly, or more properly turnip flea-beetle, is one of 
these Halticas^ Avhich lays Avaste the turnip-fields in Europe, 
devouring the seed-leaves of the plants as soon as they 
appear above the ground, and continuing their raA^ages upon 
neAV crops throughout the summer. Another small flea- 
beetle is often very injurious to the grape-vines in Europe, 
and a larger species attacks the same plant in this country. 
The flea-beetles conceal themselves during the Avinter, in dry 
places, under stones, in tufts of Avithered grass and moss, 
* Page 305. t Sixth edition, p. 91. 
