154 TRANSACTIONS, NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF GLASGOW. 



To prevent the following notes being of an uninteresting and 

 formal nature, I purpose to give them as nearly as possible in 

 accordance with the time of the insect's appearance, and not with 

 the order of its sequence in the list of species. 



The insects are to be found during the whole year, and in 

 almost all situations, but in this as in other genera, some species 

 have their particular habits. Where any particular species is 

 found, in general it occurs commonly. The food of the species is 

 very varied, and though the great majority of the species are 

 unknown in the larva stage, from those that are known it may be 

 inferred that they mostly feed upon carrion, putrid matter, fungi, 

 snails (P. maculata), <kc, while one or two are met with in the 

 nests of ants and bees. 



Early in the year a search in rotten fir stumps, especially 

 where the coleopteron Rhagium bifasciatum has burrowed, pro- 

 duces several small species, one of which, P. incequalis, Wood, is 

 very common. It is allied to but quite distinct from P. minor, 

 Ztt. Several times I have found quite a large number in a small 

 tree stump. Later in the spring they may be found almost 

 everywhere, so that I believe they merely hibernate in the trees. 



Phora spinicincta, Collin, may be beaten out of furze early in 

 the year, along with P. albicolella, Wood. One of the best species 

 that occur in April is P. opaca, Mg., which I have taken not 

 uncommonly at Murroch Glen. I have always swept it off grass 

 or furze. Along with it occurs the very similar P. lugubris, 

 Mg. This species occurs till late in June, and is almost every- 

 where met with, but is most common in old pastures. May 

 brings with it a large number of species, which may be met with 

 in various situations. Phora projecta, Beck., occurs on the hill- 

 side ; and at weasel-traps, on the carrion used as bait, may be 

 found P. curvinervis, Beck., and P. abdominalis, Fin. The 

 former of these two species is most abundant, and I am quite 

 sure I must have seen several hundreds of it in these traps 

 P. abdominalis is one of our most beautiful species, with its 

 bright orange-red abdomen in the female, and is much scarcer. 

 I have found both these species in an undeveloped or immature 

 condition in the traps, which seems to point to the fact that they 

 had fed as larvae on the carrion of the previous year. The 

 common P. incequalis, Wood, is also frequent in the traps. One 



