LIBRARY

140 COLLEGE ENTOMOLOGY
winged forms with a few apterous; the tegmina weakly attached, exposing the
scutellum when closed; abdomen cylindrical, more or less dilated.
Diplatys gers/;;:eckeri Dohrn (Dyscritina longisetosa Westwood) is perhaps the
most interesting member of this family and one of the most remarkable ear·
wigs. The immature forms have long, many-segmented cerci, resembling those
of certain thysanurans and varying with the size and age of the nymph. Very
young individuals 2.5 mm. long have cerci 2.5 mm. long, consisting of 14 segments.
Half-grown young, 4.5 mm. long, have cerci 10 mm. long and 43-
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3. ","MO' 3 etylrUm!
fegmina i
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FIG. 57. European earwig. 1, wing spread, 2, wing folded; 3, tegmina; 4, hind leg.
segmented. The last-instar nymphs, 7.75 mm. long, have cerci 13.5 mm. long
which are 45-segmented. In the adult, which may be 9 mm. long, the cerci are
replaced by a pair of true forceps 1 mm. long. Other closely related species have
a similar remarkable development. The adults are somewhat reddish in color.
It occurs in Ceylon.
Family LABIDURIDlE Verhoeff 1902 (Lab'i-dur'i-dre, from the Greek A.a.f3Ls,
A.a.{3L8o;, a holder or forceps, + OVpd., a tail).
Earwigs with normal or somewhat flattened bodies; antenme with 15-25
segments; winged and apterous; pygidium practically invisible from above but
from behind appearing as a vertical triangular plate with the apex pointing
downwards.