344 
COLEOPTEllA. 
The elytra neither meet accurately in the median line nor fit closely to 
the side of the abdomen and only loosely cover the upper surface of the 
body. The wings are ample and used in flight; Melee is wingless with 
abbreviated elytra. The legs are long, the tarsi long, the claws with a 
closely fitting appendage below, which resembles a duplicate claw. 
Males are similar to females but smaller ; size is often very variable in 
both sexes. An acrid oil is excreted from openings in the apices of the 
femora in Mylabris , Cantharis and Melee / this oil contains an active 
principle, Cantharidin, which has irritant properties rendering it com¬ 
mercially valuable. 
Almost nothing is known of the life-history of Indian species. 
Large masses of small yellow eggs are deposited on grass or soil, from 
which hatch small active larvae of the usual Coleopterous form. The 
further history of these larvae has not been traced. The student should 
consult the account of the life-history of the known species of Melee 
and Epicauta, details of which are given in Sharp’s Insects. These 
insects are parasitic upon the larvae of Aculeate Hymenoptera or upon 
the egg masses of Acridiidce. 
The beetles are diurnal, the winged species flying readily. They 
are herbivorous, feeding on leaves and flowers and, when abundant, form 
a conspicuous part of the diurnal fauna. Each species appears yearly 
and there is but one brood. They are often very abundant and occa¬ 
sionally appear in large numbers with great suddenness and in an appa¬ 
rently mysterious fashion. Owing to their herbivorous habits and 
frequent abundance, the beetles may be injurious to cultivated plants. 
The flower-eating species of Epicauta (Cantharis) destroy the anthers 
and pistils of cereals and thus cause serious damage to the crops. The 
latter form of damage is of frequent occurrence, Andropogon sorghum 
(juar, great millet) being specially affected. (Compare the habits of 
Chiloloba , the Cetoniid beetle.) Cantharis hirticornis , Haag., is destructive 
to Amaranthus and vegetables in Assam, the beetles being abundant 
in May and devouring the leaves. 
The family is a large one, found principally in the tropics. Over 
70 Indian species are described and less than ten are common in the 
plains, these being apparently widely spread over the Indian region. 
There are four principal genera, Cantharis (Epicauta), Mylabris , Zonitis, 
