The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-08-22

hVhBicOIn IhacellOcera batesn mimics 1
one of the hard Anthribidae of the genus
Ptychoderos, having long slender autenne.
In the Moluccas we find Cacia anthriboides,
small LongicOrn which might be easily
mistaken for very common species of
Anthnbide found in the same districts
ana the very rare Capnolymmr stygium
closely initiates the common Mecocerus
gazella, which abounded where it was
taken Doliops curculionides aud other
allied Longicorns from the Philippine
Islands most curiously resemble, both in
iorm ana ooloring, the brilliant Papyrhyn-
chl-C l-CurcuIonida, which are almost peculiar
to that group of islands. The remaining family
OF Coleoptera most frequently initiated is the
Clclndellde. The rare and curious Longicorn,
Collyrodes lacordairei, has exactly the form
and coloring of the genus Collyris, while an
undescrbed species of Heteromera is exactly
like Therates, and was taken running on the
trunks of trees, as is the habit of that group.
There is one curious example of a Longcorn
mimicking LongicOrn, like the Papilios and
Helconide, which mimic their own allies. Agnia
fasciata, belonging to the sub-family Hypselo-
min@, and NemOphas grayi, belonging to the
Lamiin@, were taken in AmbOyna on the same
fallen tree at the same time, and were sup
posed TO be the same species till they were more
carefully examined, and found to be struc-
turally quite different. The coloring of these
insects is very remarkable, being rich steel
blue black, crossed by broad hairy bands of
orange buff and out of the many thousands of
known species of Longicorns they are proba-
bly, the only two which are so colored. The
Nemophas grayi is the larger, stronger, and
better armed insect, and belongs to a more
widely spread and dominant group, very rich
in species and individuals, and is therefore
most probably the subject of mimicry by the
other species.
We will now adduce few cases in which
beetles initiate other insects, and insects of
other orders initiate beetles.
Charts melipona, South American
Longicorn of the family Necydalide, has
been so named from its resemblance to
small bee of the genus Melipona. 1t is one
of the most remarkable cases of mimicry,
since the beetle has the thorax and body
densely hairy like the bee, and the legs are
tufted in manner most unusual in the order
Coleoptera. Another Longicorn Odontocera
Odyneroides, has the abdomen banded with
yellow, and CONSTRUCTED at the base, and is
altogether so exactly like a small common
wasp of the genus Odynerus that Mr.. Bates
informs us he was afraid to take it out
of his net with his fingers for fear of
being stung. Had Mr.. Bates taste for
insects been less omnivorous than it was,
the beetles disguise might have saved it
from his pin, as it had no doubt often done
from the beak of hungry birds. A larger
insect, Sphecomorpha chalybea is exactly
like one of the large metallic blue wasps,
and like them has the abdomen connected
with the thorax by a pedicel, rendering
the deception most complete and strik-
ing. Many eastern species of Longi-
corns of the genus Oberea, when on the wing
exactly resemble Tenthredinide, and many of
the small species of Hesthess run about on
timber, and cannot be distinguished from ants.
There is one genus of South American Longi-
corns that appears TO mimic the shielded bugs
of the genus Scutellera. The Gymnocerus
capucinus is one of these, and is very like
Pachyotris fabricii, one of the Scutelleride.
The beautiful Gymnocerus dulcissmus is also
very like the same group of insects, though
there is no known species that exactly CORES
spends to it; but this is not to be wondered at,
as the tropical Hemiptera have been compare
lively so little cared for by collectors.
The most remarkable case of an insect of
another order mimicking beetle is that of
the Condylodera tricOndylOides, one of the
cricket family from the Philippine Islands,
whichis so exactly like TricOndyla Gone of the
tiger beetles), that such an experienced ento-
mologist as Professor Westwood placed it
among them in his cabinet, and retained it
there long time before he discovered his mis-
take Both insects run along the trunks of
trees, and whereas TricOndylas are very plen-
tiful, the insect that mimics it is, as in all
other cases, very rare. Mr.. Bates also informs
us that he found at Santarem on the Amazon
a species of locust that mimicked one of the
tiger beetles OF the genus OdOntocheila, and
was found ON the same trees which they fire.
quented.
[OOnclusion IonoOrTOtC.l