Vol. IV. February, 1903. No. 



BIOLOGICAL BULLETIN. 



NOTES ON THE STRUCTURE AND DEVELOPMENT 



OF EMBIA TEXANA. 



AXEL LEONARD MELANDER. 



Delays in the spring rains of 1902 made Pease Park at Austin, 

 Texas, an unusually good collecting ground for the entomologist 

 during the early summer. Numbers of rare and interesting in- 

 sects were flying about the Sapindus and Eisenhardtia, plants 

 which grow profusely there. The now-running Shoal Creek had 

 its share of swarming Ephydridse. On the open ground in the 

 cedar brakes several ants and a number of Microhymenoptera be- 

 longing to genera new to this country were obtained. In the 

 midst of this profusion of insect life we were not greatly surprised 

 on turning over a chance stone to discover the male of Embia 

 texana on May 10. This was soon followed by the other forms 

 of the species, so that now we are able to throw some light, at 

 least, on the transformations of these insects. 



The question of the sexes of these insects has long been an 

 enigma. Owing to the fact that many of the species were taken 

 in abnormal situations, as on exotic plants imported by nursery- 

 men, but little has been brought to light regarding their habits. 

 Winged, half-winged and wingless specimens of the different 

 species have been taken. Even after dissection the winged ones 

 were affirmed to be females in some species and males in the 

 others. The nymphs were once supposed to be micropterous 

 adults, corresponding with the neoteinic royal forms of the Ter- 

 mites. Of the wingless casts, some had the symmetrical abdo- 

 men of the female (larvae and adult females) and some the asym- 

 metrical genitalia of the male. Inasmuch as a complete series of 

 practically but one of the species has been obtained, and this 

 form has not been altogether correctly interpreted, it is not sur- 

 prising that this disagreement existed. 



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