OF THE GLOWWORM (lAM^TEIS NOCTILTJCA). 41 



paper on Meloe read to the Linnean Society on the 18th of No- 

 vember 1845, seems to me now to afford a correct explanation of 

 the origin and nature of the light of the Glowworm, and to eluci- 

 date facts in the natural history of this and other insects, which do 

 not seem to be reconcilable in any other way. Added to this, I 

 am at length enabled, through more perfect means of microscopic 

 investigation, to supply, from recent examination, facts respecting 

 the anatomy of the light-giving organs and the other structures, 

 which had escaped me in my former inquiries. 



I propose, therefore, in this paper to give a full account of the 

 natural history and anatomy of the Glowworm. 



NATURAL HISTORY OF THE INSECT. 



The Imago. 



The Glowworm is an insect which has attracted the attention of 

 our earliest naturalists : it was well known both in this country 

 and on the continent. Although very limited in its geographical 

 distribution, it is usually common in those parts in which it is 

 located. 



The period at which the Lampyris noctiluca common to the 

 north of Europe usually makes its first appearance in this country 

 is about the middle of June, after it has undergone its metamor- 

 phosis. Prom that time to the end of June or the middle of July 

 it is found in abundance on grassy banks, in sheltered spots in 

 lanes, and at the sides of hedges, especially on calm dewy evenings. 

 It is most abundant in Kent at the end of June, but in Glouces- 

 tershire in the middle of July, and shines most vividly at those 

 times on perfectly calm evenings. Very few are observed to shine 

 on cold rainy nights, and scarcely one is seen to glimmer on a 

 perfectly dry night when there is a brisk cold wind. At a tem- 

 perature of the air below 58° Fahr., the perfect female is said not 

 to shine, but with that statement my own observations do not en- 

 tirely agree. It has been thought, also, that the glowworm ceases 

 to be luminous before midnight ; but, although the light is given 

 out most intensely and by the greater number of individuals before 

 that hour, yet this is not invariably the case with all, as I have 

 witnessed light emitted by some as late as two o'clock in the 

 morning, and by others until after dawn. The light given out 

 during the first few evenings of the glowworm's appearance is of 

 a faint yellow colour, but after several evenings, if the creature 

 continues to shine, it becomes of a greenish-yellow, and is less 

 intense : this faintness is very marked if the insect has been kept 



