Page:The Book of the Aquarium and Water Cabinet.djvu/146

134 with facility, and have two fleshy appendages at the tail, by means of which they suspend themselves at the surface with their heads downwards, when they have occasion to respire (Cuvier). The beetle differs greatly in habit from the grub; it is by no means carnivorous, but quite harmless, docile, playful, and tameable. It is a noble creature for the cabinet, and may even be kept in the Aquarium safely. In its complete form it is as interesting

for its gentleness as it is in the larva state for its rapacity and destructiveness. The female spins an elegant and waterproof cocoon for the reception of its eggs, and when they are deposited she watches them with a maternal solicitude not frequently exhibited by creatures of this family.