Insects abroad : being a popular account of foreign insects, their structure, habits, and transformations . o numerous Beetles running about upon the shore,which, when captured, proved to be specimens of a largespecies of Brachinus. On being seized, they immediately beganto play Ill their artillery, burning and staining the flesh to sucha degree that only a lew specimens could be captured with the THE EXPLOSIVE LIQUID. 37 naked hand, leaving a mark winch remained for a considerabletime. Upon observing the whitish vapour with which the ex-plosions were accompanied, the negro exclaimed in his br
Insects abroad : being a popular account of foreign insects, their structure, habits, and transformations . o numerous Beetles running about upon the shore,which, when captured, proved to be specimens of a largespecies of Brachinus. On being seized, they immediately beganto play Ill their artillery, burning and staining the flesh to sucha degree that only a lew specimens could be captured with the THE EXPLOSIVE LIQUID. 37 naked hand, leaving a mark winch remained for a considerabletime. Upon observing the whitish vapour with which the ex-plosions were accompanied, the negro exclaimed in his brokenEnglish, with evident surprise, Ah! Massa, they make smoke. The explosive fluid is soluble both in water and alcohol, andafter repeated explosions deposits a sort of dust on the interior of the reservoir is coated with the same dustydeposit. The name Brachinidae is derived from a Greek word signify-ing short, and was given to these Beetles because most, thoughnot all, of them have their bodies shortened and almost squaredbehind, as if they had been cut off abruptly with a knife Fig. 12.—Pterosopluis complanatus. Brachinus Sinensis. (Dark blue with yellow marks.) (Brown with green gloss.) In the accompanying illustration the left-hand figure repre-sents the Ptcrosophus comjilanatus of India. It is a very prettycreature, and in its general outline and the arrangement of itscolours really exhibits a curious similitude to the well-knownAsparagus Beetle of this country. The ground colour of theelytra is dark, shining, violet-blue, and the patches upon themare yellow, as is the thorax. The shortened form of the elytrais shown very plainly in this insect. On the right hand of the same illustration is one of the largestof the true Brachini; namely, the Chinese Bombardier Beetle(Brachinus Sinensis). This insect really looks quite a giantamong its kinsfolk; and if it be able to eject a correspondingquantity of the volatile fluid, it must be rather a formidable
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectinsects, bookyear1883
