Ch. X.] ANIMAL EPIDEMICS. 181 



had been much, injured by a longicorn (Tceniotes scalaris) 

 in 1870 and 1871, but was not touched in 1872. 



Butterflies were also scarce, but it was the second 

 season that they had been so. Some ants were affected ; 

 in others, such as the leaf-cutter, I noted no percep- 

 tible diminution in number. A little ant (Pheidole sp.) 

 that used to swarm on a passion flower which grew over 

 the house, attending on the honey glands, and scale 

 insects, disappeared altogether; and another species 

 (Hypoclinea sp.) that it used to drive away, took its 

 place. A small stinging black ant (Soknopsis sp.), that 

 was a great plague in the houses, was also fortunately 

 scarce. In the beginning of June nearly all the white 

 ants or termites (" Comiens " of the Nicaraguans) died. 

 In some parts of my house they lay in little heaps, just 

 as they dropped from the nests above in the roof, and 

 most of the nests were entirely depopulated. I 

 examined some of the dead termites with a magnifier, 

 but could detect no difference in them, excepting that 

 they seemed a little swollen. 



That some epidemic prevailed amongst the insects 

 there can be no doubt ; and it is curious that it should 

 have attacked so many different species and classes. I 

 am not sure that it was confined to the insects, for 

 there was also a great mortality amongst the fowls, a 

 great number dying from inflammation of the crop, and 

 two large parrots fell victims to the same disease. This 

 disease amongst the birds may not, however, have been 

 connected in any way with that amongst the insects. I 

 recollect that in 1865 there was a somewhat similar 

 mortality amongst the wasps in North Wales. In the 

 autumn of the preceding year they had been exceed- 



