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X. A Contribution to the Knowledge of South African Mutillidce 

 (Order Hymen opt era}. By L. PEBINGUEY, Assistant Director. 



(Plate VIII.) 



I HAD barely completed my Description of some New or Little Known 

 South African Mutillidte, when the number of these insects in the 

 cabinet was increased by 26 hitherto undescribed species ; sexes of 

 seven species were ascertained, and the number of South African 

 Mutillidce described is now 169, w r hile that of which both sexes are 

 known with certainty is 16. 



The Museum is indebted for that considerable increase mainly to 

 the generosity of Mr. G. A. K. Marshall, who collected in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Salisbury, Mashonaland, Mr. C. N. Barker, of Durban, 

 Natal, Eev. J. A. O'Neil, whose captures were made in the Uiten- 

 hage district, and to Dr. H. Brauns, late of Port Elizabeth, Cape 

 Colony. To the latter I am indebted for the communication of the 

 $ of M. tauriceps, Kohl., which, in my opinion, is probably identical 

 with H. deform is, Sm. 



The Eev. J. A. O'Neil has hit upon a very interesting mode of capture 

 of both sexes by the so-called " sembling " method. He finds that by 

 seizing hold of the female in such a way as to induce her to produce 

 her well-known stridulating noise, the males immediately appear and 

 swarm round, and even settle on the hand of the captor, and are 

 easily secured. In that way he obtained both sexes of M. cloantha 

 and M. liecuba, and the identity of the last-named species has been 

 verified by the capture in coittl made quite independently by Dr. 

 Brauns. 



I have received from Mr. Marshall and Mr. Barker both sexes 

 of two species caught in copula. The grasp of the $ was not 

 relaxed in death. The pairing takes place in the air, the male grasp- 



