Quail. — On Vanessa gonerilla. 153 



Art. XIII. — Hymenopterous Parasite of Ovum of Vanessa 



gonerilla. 



By Ambrose Quail, F.E.S. 

 {Read before the Wellington Philosophical Society, loth January, 1901.] 



Plate VIII. (in Part). 



Vanessa gonerilla deposits ova singly on the upper surface 

 of leaves of Urtica ferox, &c. Nine ova were collected on the 

 '9th November, 1900. At the same time I noted in close proxi- 

 mity, if not actually on one of these ova, a small black fly, 

 which was so inconspicuous that only its movement attracted 

 my attention, and it escaped capture. One larva of V. gone- 

 rilla hatched out within a fortnight, and on the 1st December 

 I bred also from another ovum a small hymenopterous para- 

 site. Some three weeks later each of the remaining ova 

 produced a parasite. Meanwhile I frequently examined the 

 •ova under the microscope, and each contained something black 

 {V. gonerilla larva appears pale-bi'own within the egg-shell). 

 I confidently believe the entire metamorphosis of this insect 

 takes place within the ovum of Vanessa gonerilla. At the 

 time of emergence of this parasite in its fully matured state 

 V. gonerilla have hatched, and are then mostly in the larval 

 stage. I doubt whether the parasite attacks the larvae. It 

 is also unlikely that it lives in the imago stage until the next 

 deposition of ova by V. gonerilla twelve months later. It is 

 probably parasitic on the ova of other insects. 



Description. 



Head, thorax, and abdomen are very dark-brown, black 

 to the naked eye ; antennas dark-brown ; legs dark-brown ex- 

 cept near the joints and the tarsal segments, which are semi- 

 transparent yellowish-brown. Head flat in front and behind ; 

 antennae are almost exact length of fore wings, and placed low 

 on front of head near the mouth ; antennae have ten joints 

 (one specimen has eleven) ; the scape is long ; clavola basal 

 segments elongate ; terminal segments short and broader ; 

 antennae elbowed at scape and middle. Thorax broad dorsally 

 and laterally. Abdomen dorsally broad elongate-oval, laterally 

 -slender. Legs comparatively "uniform, with five tarsal joints 

 and terminal claw. The wings are especially interesting : at 

 rest they overlap flat on dorsum of abdomen ; fore wings are 

 battledore-shape, with inner marginal curve near base ; hind 

 wings are elongate to a blunt tip, and have a sharp upper 

 marginal curve near base. All the wings have a serrated 



