. M E 1, O E. 
68 
larvae of the larger beetles, worms, See. Sec. This fpecies 
Inhabits England, Malta, France, and Germany. The 
female is reprefented at fig. 2. 
z. Meloe cicatricofus : black ; head and thorax punc¬ 
tated ; elytra rough. The male is an inch in length, 
(fee fig. 3.) the female an inch and feven lines; lee fig. 
4 ; and one of the antennas at c. Difcovered near Mar¬ 
gate, by Mr. Milne, of Surrey-place. 
3. Meloe variegatus ; dull green; thorax and fegments 
of the abdomen edged with red ; fhells punctured. The 
antennae are purple; the fhells are Ihort, and rough. 
Body large, above variegated with red, green, and cop¬ 
per, beneath and legs purple. The male is from eight 
lines to an inch and a half long, the female an inch to an 
inch and nine lines. Inhabits England, France, and 
Germany ; feeding on herbs. This infect, which is cer¬ 
tainly the molt beautiful of the genus, has been con¬ 
founded by all the continental writers who have noticed 
it, with the M. majalis of Linnaeus, with which they 
feem, from their filence, to be unacquainted. It was firlt 
taken in England by Mr. Crowe, of Feverlham, near that 
place ; and lince by Mr. Milne, near Margate, in great 
plenty. Mr. Marlham in his Entom. Britan, has deferibed 
it under the name of M. fcabrofus, although it had before 
been deferibed and figured by Mr. Donovan, in his Britilh 
InfeCts, under its prefent name. It is highly prized in 
Germany as a medicine, being confidered as a lpecific in 
hydrophobia. The late king of Pruflia (Frederic the 
Great) purchafed the noftrum from the difeoverer for 
a valuable confideration, as a lpecific againft the bite of a 
mad dog; and in 1781 it was inferted in feft. ii. p. 25, 
of the Dil'p. Borufl'. Brand. According to this pub¬ 
lication, twenty-five of thefe animals that have been 
preferved in honey, are, with two drams of powdered 
black ebony, one dram of Virginian fnake-root, one 
ditto of lead-filings, and twenty grains of fungus forbi, 
to be reduced to a very fine fubftance; the whole, with 
two ounces of theriaca of Venice (and, if neceflary, wdth a 
little elder-root), to be formed into an eleCtuary. Meyer 
alfo, in his Monograph on this genus, mentions its vir¬ 
tues as a diuretic, and in curing hydrophobia. The 
male infeft is lhown at fig. 5. the female at fig. 6. 
4. Meloe majalis: black; the dorfal fegments of the 
abdomen margined w'ith red. Inhabits the fouth of Eu¬ 
rope, as Portugal. Length : male, (fig. 7.) 1 inch 3§ 
lines ; female, (fig. 8.) 1 inch lines. 
5. Meloe autumnalis: black ; head and thorax punc¬ 
tured ; a few confluent indentions on the elytra. Length 
of the body, from eight to nine lines; the male is lhown 
at fig. 9. the female at fig. 10. This fpecies inhabits Eu¬ 
rope : it was firft taken in England by the celebrated 
ornithologift Dr. Latham, from whofe cabinet Mr. Mar¬ 
lham, conceiving it to be a new fpecies, deferibed it under 
the name of M. rugofus. It had however been figured 
and deferibed in the invaluable work of Olivier fome 
years before : but probably that book had not reached 
England when Mr. Marlham wrote his Entomologia 
Britannica; which w'ill account for his not quoting it. 
It has been taken in great plenty, near Margate in Kent, 
by that alliduous eiitomologift Mr. George Milne, who 
has communicated the following remarks on its economy; 
ct Having laft year brought from Margate feveral of that 
fpecies of Meloe which you fuppole to be M. autumnalis 
of Olivier, I put a pair by themlelves into a box, fur- 
nilhing them frequently with frelh food. They copu¬ 
lated ; and, when the time came for depoliting her eggs, 
the female not only palled through fome earth which 
had adhered pretty firmly to the bottom of the box and 
to the roots of the plants on which flie fed, but alfo tore 
up the paper which lined the box. From this it may be 
inferred that they depofit their eggs at a confiderable 
depth in the earth ; and there of courfe, when the larva 
breaks the egg, it can find no other food than the roots 
a f grafs.” 
6. Meloe brevjcollis; black; thorax Ihort and broad. 
Total length, of the male 7 lines, of the female (fig. 11.> 
Si lines. It appears to be a pretty general inhabitant of 
the continent of Europe ; as in Germany, Hungary, and 
Sweden ; two fpecimens only, however, have hitherto 
been taken in England; one in a fandy meadow, about 
fix miles below Taviftock, on the banks of the river Tavy, 
in Devonlhire, in the year 1806, by Mr. Leach ; the other, 
in the fpring of 1810, near Shaugh Bridge in the fame 
county, in a fimilar fituation. 
7. Meloe-pundtata: black ; head and thorax with deep 
pumftures. Fabricius deferibed this infect from a fpeci- 
men in the Britilh Muleum ; and he fays it inhabits 
England ; this, however, is doubtful; it is known to in¬ 
habit Malta, Italy, and Portugal. Length one inch. 
See fig. i2. 
8. Meloe uralenfis: black, fmooth, with very fmall 
punCtures. Difcovered by Pallas; but has been con¬ 
founded by others with the preceding. Inhabits the 
Ural mountains. A fpecimen of this is in the colle&iom 
of the Linnsean Society ; and is reprefented on our plate 
at fig. 13. 
9. Meloe excavatus: body black, fides rufl-colour; 
head triangular, fmooth ; thorax excavated on each fide'; 
elytra excavated with deep punftures. This is a curious 
fpecies ; (fee fig. 14.) but its habitat is not known. 
10. Meloe lievis : very black ; fmooth ; fmall fcattered 
punftures on the head and thorax ; elytra nearly fmooth. 
Inhabits St. Domingo. See fig. 15. 
11. Meloe teffa: blue, elytra nearly as long as the 
abdomen. Length from fix lines to an inch and thrcelines. 
This is the violaceus (a very proper name for it) of Mr. 
Leach ; he enumerates five varieties; all which inhabit 
this country, and are common in the month of May 
feeding upon various herbs. Our figure (16) is from 
Barbut. 
12. Meloe glabrata: black; head, thorax, and elytra, 
fmooth, fubpunftated. Mr. Leach has deferibed four 
varieties of this, but all females. Their length from 5 to 
y\ lines. It inhabits Europe, but is a rare fpecies. The 
Rev. William Kirby firft found this infeft in England 
about the latter end of September; and from his mufeuni 
Mr. Marlham deferibed it under the name of M.punMatus ; 
but that name (though very appropriate) having been 
given by Fabricius to a very different fpecies, prior to the' 
publication of Entoinologia Britannica, Mr. Leach has 
named it M. glabratus. Fig. 17. is from the identical 
fpecimen from which Mr. Marlham drew his defeription, 
and is about five lines long; fig. 18 is from the var. /3, 
and is about feven lines and a half long. This fpecies, 
like the preceding, has the elytra, or (hells, nearly as long 
as the abdomen; thus forming a connecting link with 
the next feftion. 
II. Winged; but the elytra, or (hells, as long as the 
abdomen, by which the wings are wholly covered. 
a. Jaw horny, bifid. Mylabris of fabricius. 
13. Meloe fafeiata: black ; (hells with a yellow band in 
the middle. Head black ; eyes teftaceous ; thorax black, 
with a ferruginous fpot on each fide; wings hyaline, with 
ferruginous ribs and veins. Inhabits India. 
14. Meloe cichorei: black; the elytra yellow, marked- 
with three black bands. It is a native of Alia and the 
eaftern parts of Europe. It is ufed among the Chinefe for 
railing blifters. The antennae are fometimes yellow at the 
tips. Found on the cichoreum or luccory, and varies 
much in the colour of the (hells and dilpolition of the 
bands. 
15. Meloe praeufta: black; tip of the (hells teftaceous, 
w'ith a black fpot. Inhabits B'arbary, among corn. 
16. Meloe marginalis: black; (hells with a ferruginous 
margin. Inhabits Barbary, like the preceding, among corn. 
17. Meloe algirica: black; (hells teftaceous, immacu¬ 
late. It is found in various parts of India. 
18. Meloe capeniis : black; (hells with fix yellow (pots* 
the firft curved. Inhabits the Cape of Good Hope. 
19. Meloe 
