Sir.KA. M1LY III. MYK.MKCoriULIN^E. 661 



bles had closed, the cricket was far away, already nibbling at the abdomen 

 of some other ant. The cricket can get at only the legs and abdomen of 

 its host, since the spreading legs prevent it from reaching the thorax. It 

 often stands on its hind legs, and places its forelegs on the ant's leg. in or- 

 der to reach the femur or tibia. For very obvious reasons, it avoids nib- 

 bling at or even approaching the ant's head. It is always alert, as if per- 

 petually aware of clanger and ready to dodge at the slightest movement 

 made by the ant. 



"Occasionally in the narrow confines of an artificial nest the ants do 

 succeed in capturing and devouring one of their vigilant little guests, but 

 the fact that of the eleven sound crickets left after the above observation 

 was made, eight were still alive June 22d, when I had to discontinue my ob- 

 servations for the summer, shows that the crickets are extremely expert 

 in keeping out of danger. The attitude of the ants during all this time un- 

 derwent no change as far as I could observe, for they would still occa- 

 sionally make lunges at the crickets. 



"The crickets do not derive all their substance from cleansing their 

 hosts. In earthen nests they are often seen haunting even the galleries 

 that have been abandoned by the ants, scrutinizing the walls and nibbling 

 at them from time to time. There can be no doubt that they find here the 

 same substance which covers the ants, for the walls of the galleries of a 

 populous nest soon become greasy from the attrition of the constantly pass- 

 ing ants. Sometimes the crickets may be seen nibbling at dead ants that 

 have been temporarily abandoned in the galleries or placed on the kitchen- 

 midden of the nest. The intestine of a Myrmecophila which I dissected 

 was found to contain oil-globules and a granular whitish substance." 



Kirby (1906, 53) recognized 15 species of these little crickets. 

 Of these but one occurs in all Europe, where it is very widely dis- 

 tributed, while five nominal species have been described from the 

 United States. But one of these is known east of the Mississippi. 

 315. MYRMECOPHILA PERGANDEI Bruner, 1884, 42. 



Broad oval, depressed, nearly twice as long as broad; very thinly 

 clothed with exceedingly short, subprostrate yellowish bristles. Dark red- 

 dish-brown; front and hind margins of pronotum, hind margins of the 

 other dorsal segments and apex of ovipositor piceous-brown; legs, cerci 

 and base of antennae and ovipositor paler brown, extreme front margin of 

 pronotum yellowish. Pronotum about twice as long as either the meso- or 

 metanotum, the front margin about one-fourth narrower than hind one; 

 meso- and metanotum subequal, longer than the succeeding dorsal segments, 

 which are equal in length. Hind femora pyriform, more curved below 

 than above, less than twice as long as broad. Outer hind tibal spurs more 

 than half as long as tarsi. Cerci about as long as hind femora. Length 

 of body, $, 34.3, $, 45; of hind femora, $, 2.5, 9,3; of ovipositor, 

 2.5 mm. 



Southern half of Indiana, April 26 Sept. 6; Dunedin, Fla., 

 Dec. 3 March 24 (W. 8. B.}- 



This small ant-loving cricket was first taken in Indiana near 

 New Harmony, Posey County, on April 26, 1901. It was after- 



