116 The Irish Naturalist. ..Oct., 



by the antennae, commences to work at the proper place. 

 WTien its whole length has been thrust into the wood, 

 it is withdrawn and put into the sheath, and the whole 

 apparatus is then inserted into the hole already bored, 

 being guided and directed thereto by the hind pair of 

 legs which press on either side. Mr. Da vies saw the 

 fly bore into the solid wood till its terebra was up to the 

 hilt and then withdraw it, place it in the sheath, and 

 insert the whole. The process occupied twenty minutes, a 

 period which agrees with Mr. Pentland's observation. 



Sir Charles Langham has also curiously enough come 

 across Rhyssa persuasoria at Tempo Manor. His cowman, 

 who seems to be a very observant old man, told him that 

 there were very large flies with long tails flying round a 

 tree (a Silver Fir) . Sir Charles went to the tree and a large 

 ichneumon flew oft" and was duly captured. He kept the 

 tree under constant observation for a week and took ten 

 females but no male Rhyssa. He then had the tree cut 

 down and carried into his workshop, where he obtained a 

 male as. well as another female besides man}/ Sircx gigas 

 of both sexes. 



Sir C. Langham's observations as to the use of terebra 

 and ovipositor agree with those of Mr. Davies, though he 

 had not so good an opportunity of observation as the 

 Rhyssa kept some ten or twelve feet up the tree. He says 

 that it used its antennae like an ant, laying down first one 

 and then the other on the bark of the tree when searching 

 for a place to attack. I quote his description : — " She 

 evidently knew there was a grub near, and wandered about 

 in a small circle with her tail cocked, and then found the 

 place and began to bore." 



Another he found with its terebra firmly fixed deep in 

 the wood. Having got it out with a good deal of trouble 

 he proceeded to investigate, and found three galleries of 

 Sirex larvae beneath the place she was working at, showing 

 the sure knowledge obtained by the antennae of the proper 

 place to bore into. 



The old cowman told Sir C. Langham that he had been 

 watching Rhyssa at the tree for two years and that in the 

 evenings about six p.m. (by the sun) he saw some go into 

 the large holes, i.e., those of Sirex, head first " to roost," 



