2j6 Rev* Mr, Kirby'j Hl/lory of 



is appointed to prevent it. It is fome fatisfaction to me to con- 

 firm your opinion* and do juftice to our little benefactor, and to 

 point out where the odium ought to fall. 



To fee our Httle Ichneumon depofit its egg in the caterpillar of 

 the wheat fly, is a very entertaining fight. In order to enjoy this 

 pleafure, I placed a number of the latter upon a fheet of white paper, 

 at no great diftance from each other, and then fet an Ichneumon 

 down in the midft of them* She began immediately to march 

 about, vibrating her antennae very briikly : — a larva was foon dif- 

 covered, upon which fhe fixed herfelf, the vibratory motion of her 

 antennae increafing to an intenfe degree ; then bending her body 

 obliquely under her breaft, (he applied her anus to the larva, and 

 during the infertion of her acukus, and the depofiting of the egg, 

 her antennae became perfectly {till and motionlefs. Whilft this 

 operation was performing, the larva appeared to feel a momentary 

 fenfation of pain, for it gave a violent wriggle. When all was 

 finilhed, the little Ichneumon marched off to feek for a fecond, 

 which was obliged to undergo the fame operation, and fo on to as 

 many as it could find in which no egg had been before depofited — 

 for it commits only a fingle egg to each larva. I have feen it fre- 

 quently mount one which had been pricked before, but it foon dis- 

 covered its miftake and left it. The fize of it is fo near that of the 

 Tipu/a, that I imagine the larva of the latter could not fupport more 

 than one of the former, and therefore inftinct directs it to depofit 

 only a fingle egg in each ; befides, by this means one Ichneumon will 

 deftroy an infinite number of larvae. 



The larva of the Tipula Tritlci (as Mr. Markwick, in his letter to 

 yon, dated July 17, 1797, has well conjectured) appears to feed upon 



* Tranf. Linn. Sec. vol, iii, p. 243. 



the 



