NATURAL HISTORY. 149 
The ufe of their porrected maxille, or at is to 
loofen the bark to which =, affix themfelves,: while 
they duck the juices eezing from the tree. bid 
‘ 
KETENE 
~ 
GENUS III. 
: DERMESTIDES. 
‘Tue antenne, or horns, end ina head of an oval 
form ; the thorax, or breaft, is of a convex form; 
and the head is fo bent as to lie almoft concealed uns 
CHARACTERISTICS. 
ger the thorax. 
PORE TSAI of — 
“DERMESTIS VIOLACEUS:-—-VIOLET 
BEETLE. . 
"Tins infect is exceedingly beautiful, and is much 
fmaller than, though nearly refembling, the ftag 
beetle. The elytra are of a deep violet ; the thorax, 
or breaft, is covered with green hairs, and the legs are 
black. ‘The whole creature, glittering with its bril- 
hancy, charms its obferver. The larva and the per- 
fect infect being found in dead bodies, evince that 
es N 
