244 ROMANCE OF LOW LIFE AMONGST PLANTS. 



from the upper end of each hyphal body. These 

 projections soon meet midway between the hyphal 

 bodies, after which a bud begins to arise directly 

 above the point of union. The contents of both bodies 

 pass into this bud, forming the mother-cell of the 

 zygospore. After the spore is mature the remains of 

 the two hyphal bodies are usually persistent for a 

 long time as bladder-like appendages. It has been 

 affirmed that resting spores produced in the autumn 

 germinate in the following spring, but probably the 

 period of rest is very variable. This portion of the 

 life-history requires further elucidation. 



These fly-moulds are now known to inhabit various 

 insects, especially two-winged flies ; indeed, all orders 

 of insects have been favoured by their parasitism, 

 but especially we may mention the Aphides, or plant- 

 lice. To what extent artificial inoculation may be 

 possible seems to us at present problematical, since 

 hitherto the infection of fresh hosts artificially has 

 not always been successful and always seems subject 

 to some difficulty. In a state of nature certain of 

 the species appear to be epidemical. Thaxter has 

 observed numerous epidemics of the grasshopper 

 form in the United States.^ Two he has observed 

 amongst small flies and leaf-hoppers ; and something 

 very like it amongst Aphides. In relation to these 

 latter insects it has been observed that the introduc- 

 tion of the parasite may prove a great check, and 

 consequently of enormous benefit in reducing the 

 number of plant-lice so destructive to the hop and 

 greenhouse plants. 



\ "On the Entomophthorex of the United States," p. 159. 



