668 ON SOME EXPERIMENTS WITH DRAGONFLY LAKV/E, 



not appear likely to emerge for a long time. As I was then 

 leaving for Tasmania, I covered the jar with a muslin top, put 

 in a good supply of food, and left it. 



I returned on January 25th, 1909. I found the water in the 

 jar almost evaporated, the water-weed growing rather thickly 

 on the damp sand, and the larva still in the same position on the 

 stick, but with its head partly buried in the damp sand. It was 

 evident that it could withstand these semi-drought conditions; 

 so I allowed them to continue for nine weeks, viz., up to the end 

 of March. During that time, T sprinkled water on to the sand 

 with my fingers about once a week, so that the sand did not get 

 absolutely dry, nor did the weed completely die away. No food 

 of any kind was supplied to the larva, which evinced no desire 

 even to move, much less to feed. On April 2nd, fearing that a 

 continuance of these conditions might prove too much for the 

 larva, which I did not wish to lose, I filled up the jar with tap 

 water. As the larva still remained in its old position, T did not 

 put any food in, l)ut left it to itself throughout the winter. 

 Though I watched it very often, both night and day, it never 

 once changed its position, nor showed an}'^ sign of life. 



It remained thus until the end of September, 1909. By this 

 time the water-weed was growing again, and a good crop of duck- 

 weed covered the surface of the water. The temperature of the 

 water was now considerably higher than during the winter. On 

 September 29th the larva awoke from its long period of hiberna- 

 tion, and began wandering round the jar. I put in a number of 

 mosquito-larvpe, but the dragonfly larva seemed frightened at 

 them, and kept continually backing away from them. However, 

 when at last I managed with a stick to drive one wriggling 

 straight to its head, it snapped at it and swallowed it whole. 

 I succeeded in getting it to eat two more. At night I noticed 

 it to be on the look-out for food, and I have no doubt it secured 

 a good meal. During the next few weeks it usually occupied a 

 position on the stick, sometimes head downwards and sometimes 

 head upwards; occasionally half-way up, hnt usually at the base 

 of the stick. 



