456 NEW AND RARE AUSTRALIAN AGRIONID^, 



AUSTROCNEMIS, n.g. 



Characters of Ar/riociiemis Selys, but with closer venation, 

 nari-ower wings, and remarkably long legs. 



T yp e : Agriocnemis s'plendida Martin. 



It is with M. Rene Martin's approval, that I propose this 

 new genus for his interesting species, which is clearly not 

 cono-eneric with the other members of the genus Agriocnemis 

 In emphasising the remarkable size of the legs for so small an 

 insect, I should like to point out that this little insect has 

 a great liking for sitting on the floating leaves of water-plants. 

 This liking is shared, to some extent, with many other small 

 Agrionidrp, but I remarked, when collecting this species at 

 Alexandra, Victoria, a distinct difference between the habits 

 of this species and others. Austroagrion cyane (and, in other 

 localities, other small species have similar habits) visited the 

 floating leaves only occasionally, during bright sunshine ; and 

 the females also occasionally oviposited along their edges, but 

 seemed to prefer a less flat surface ; as soon as the wind blew 

 much, or the sun became obscured by cloud, this species made 

 for the banks, and hid amongst the reeds or grass. But 

 Austrocnemis splendida, using its long legs to some purpose, 

 would remain sitting on the flat, floating surface, facing wind 

 and cloud, with its legs spread widely out, so that it was most 

 difficiilt to capture. The best way was to plunge the net into 

 the water under it, and so secure it at the cost of drenching 

 the net repeated ; wavings of the net above it, failed to 

 frighten it. Towards evening, when the other Agriovidce had 

 retired into the rushes, these little insects could still be seen, 

 with legs outstretched, holding on to their favourite floating 



leaves. 



The habit described above is, without doubt, the explana- 

 tion why the asthenogenetic process left this one archaic 

 character (viz., the long legs) untouched. Far away in the 

 dim past, some remote ancestor of this species acquired this 

 habit, and held to it ; while other A grionidce were developing 

 their habits of hiding away in the reeds ; and so the reduction 



