Jan. 1, 1869.] 



HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



23 



Red Daddy. — This insect, described by I. 

 Elphick, belongs to the order Hymenoptera,i&\a\\y 

 Ichueumonida, but, as there are so many in this 

 family, I cannot say exactly what its name is, from 

 the description given. The "long, whip-shaped 

 objects " that he mentions are antenna, as the sting 

 which the creature possesses is nothing more than a 

 sharp instrument or bore, placed between two 

 sheaths. Their use is to place the eggs in holes ; 

 they are very strong, and can hurt a person very 

 much for the time. I do not understand what he 

 means by saying that it is an " English insect, rare 

 in its visits to this country" By this statement he 

 makes it both indigenous and exotic at the same 

 time. — A. B. 



[Will Mr. Elphick send us specimens next year ? 

 —Ed. S. £.] 



Culture of Mistletoe. — Is it in the power of 

 any of your readers to tell me how to grow the 

 Mistletoe in Yorkshire ? I have planted the berries, 

 but quite without success. — Edward Wood. 



[A late friend of ours some years since exhibited 

 to us in his orchard numerous successful experi- 

 ments of his own in cultivating the mistletoe_ on 

 apple and other trees. He explained at the time 

 that he took a ripe berry between his fingers, and, 

 crushing it, rubbed it with the seeds into a crack of 

 the bark on the under side of a branch. He laid 

 particular emphasis upon rubbing in the seeds on 

 the under side, so that they would not be washed 

 out by the rain, or be so exposed to the birds. He 

 had numbers of thriving plants in his orchard on 

 different trees, all introduced by himself in this 

 manner. — Ed. S. G.] 



Eolk-lore. — In North York it is a popular 

 saying that • when acorns are plentiful there is 

 always a large quantity of bad bacon. Our fore- 

 fathers fed their swine largely on acorns and mast. 

 I have rarely seen more acorns than there are this 

 year. — John Ranson, Linton-on-Ouse, York. 



_ Hawthorn Errata. — In my paper on " Varia- 

 tion in the Hawthorn," by some mistake, either of 

 mine or the printer's, the figs. 250 and 251 are 

 wrongly placed. Eig. 250 belongs to Crategus 

 monogyna, and fig. 251 to C. kyrtostyla. If you 

 would kindly point out the error in your next im- 

 pression, you would greatly oblige me. — /. Hep- 

 worth. 



What are the Eossils? — My offer to send 

 fossils from the coal-measures free of charge, to any 

 of your readers who forwarded me an addressed lug- 

 gage label bearing two postage stamps, has been re- 

 sponded to by hundreds of ladies and gentlemen in 

 various parts of the United Kingdom, and, in 

 addition to requests to forward fossils, several have 

 asked me to name the specimens that were sent. 

 As my time is very much occupied, and leisure isa 

 novelty to me, I have been compelled to refrain 

 from answering the queries individually, but with 

 your permission I shall answer them generally 

 through your pages, by describing the more ordinary 

 fossils that have been distributed. They have been 

 principally of three kinds, vertebra?, scales, and 

 teeth. The vertebrae are of two kinds : large strong 

 rings, about the size of a plain finger-ring, are ver- 

 tebrse of llegalichthys ; smaller rings, about a 

 quarter or three-eighths of an inch in diameter, are 

 the vertebras of Rhizodopsis. The scales are prin- 

 cipally of two kinds: flat, highly pleated, rhom- 



boidal scales about the size of a thumb-nail, and 

 not much unlike it, minutely punctured, are the 

 body scales of Megalichthys ; ovoid scales, with a 

 central depression and radiating and circular strias, 

 are scales of Rhizodopsis. The teeth are of four 

 kinds : large laniary piercing teeth from half an inch 

 to one inch in length, dark, bright, and gently 

 curved, are the teeth of Megalichthys ; similar teeth, 

 about one quarter of an inch long, are the laniary 

 teeth of Rhizodopsis ; teeth with two long blunt 

 crowns, and a small and sharp elevation between 

 them, are the teeth or tubercles of Diplodus ; and 

 the thin teeth, with from eight to twelve ridges or 

 denticulations on the upper edge, the teeth being 

 about one quarter of an inch square, and having the 

 form of a diadem, are the teeth or dermal tubercles 

 of Ctenopty chius. I feel confident that your nume- 

 rous readers and my numerous correspondents will 

 excuse me for addressing them generally through 

 your pages instead of writing to each as individuals. 

 — T. P. Barlcas, Netccastle-on-Tyne. 



The Red Daddy. — The insect referred to in 

 your last number under the title of " Red Daddy," 

 from the nature of the tail, is probably Panama 

 communis, the male of which, from its formidable- 

 looking caudal appendage, is commonly called the 

 " Scorpion-fly." The rest of the description is too 

 vague to be any help to identification : the " whip- 

 shaped " organs on the head for instance are doubt- 

 less the antennae, which in some shape or other are 

 common to all insects. The Panorpa is of frequent 

 occurrence among damp herbage, but if it is the 

 insect in question, the stinging powers of the " Red 

 Daddy " are imaginary, as, like the rest of its order, 

 the scorpion-fly is quite harmless, although popular 

 prejudice has bestowed the name of " Horse- 

 stingers " on some members of the same order. 

 None of the great tribe either sting from the tail, 

 though the females of many of the species have a 

 formidable blood-sucking apparatus, of which our 

 skins can often testify the efficiency ; they are never 

 furnished with more; than two wings, but Panorpa 

 rejoices in the possession of four, prettily spotted 

 with brown. It may be observed that an " English 

 insect" cannot be "rare in its visits to this 

 country," as an English insect is not a visitor at all. 

 — George Guy on. 



Gold-eish Fins.— Whilst watching some Gold- 

 fish in an aqua-vivarium a few days ago, I noticed 

 that one of the fish had exactly the same peculiarity 

 in its caudal fin as mentioned in last month's 

 Science- Gossip by S. Morris. In another the ab- 

 normity was reversed, being situated on the upper 

 portion of the tail. There was likewise a protu- 

 berance on the back of the latter, and a malforma- 

 tion in the anal fins of both, similar to that in last 

 number's sketch. — H. C. Sargent. 



Variable larva of N. Ziczac. — Most of your 

 readers will be familiar with the peculiar shape and 

 rich colouring of the larva of N. ziczac. Last year 

 I was so fortunate as to find two larvae of a rich 

 cream-colour, one of them larger than the usual size ; 

 but, as I was "green," I fed them up with other 

 larvae, so that I was not able to notice if the moth 

 was unusually marked. This summer I found three 

 of the larvae of a bright golden colour. I have kept 

 them separate, and as they have turned into the 

 pupae state all right, I shall be able to notice the 

 difference (if anf) when they hatch. Are the larvae 

 frequently found so very differently coloured ? — 

 A. P. 



