they nearly nil luitch lofrolhor. nnd ;i1 ono miimto a wriggfliiii* 

 Tnass is seen obsonriTio- the o<xiX shells fi-om viow. whilo at the 

 next the Imndi-eds of niiniatnrc horseflies loosen their hold on 

 the leaf that sni)]M)rted thcni and <i'o tninblin<r down into Ihe 

 water, where tlu\v sei^.n-atc, and cjich heneeforth looks after its 

 own att'airs. Wluit goes on from this point is more or less 

 vague, hnt it mny h(> gnessed tlnit not all of the individnals from, 

 a single mass of eggs ovim' live to hccomc adults, for there are 

 pienty of animals, large jind small, in tho water that must find 

 i\ living, and the horsefly Irirvjic no doubt eonstitute a fair por- 

 tion of the food for some of these forms. 



THE LARVA K OF IIORSEFLTES. 



The larvae aftei- hatehing from the eggs, ns I'ef erred to 

 above, grow slowly, feeding on aninuil life of various kinds, 

 until at the end of several months they beeome full grown and 

 ready to enter the pupal stage. 



The lai'va' of the different members 

 of the family are very niueh alike in 

 appearance, but vary somewhat in eoloi- 

 and size, and it is often difficult to distinguish 

 the full-grown larva^ of small s|)eeies from 

 the Vi^ung larva- of the larger species. 



When first, hatched it appears to be the 

 feg|tf desire of the la)'va' to tuii'mw. consefpiently, 



T_Vl ' if thev are not i)ermitted to get to the mud. 



^^Pv I they crawl nito i)articles of decaying plants. 



'^^1 ' or anything that may lie at hand. The im- 



^^^ mature stages of many species probably re- 



maiii ill the water, or in the mud wry near 

 the ed^v of the watei'. during llieii' whole 

 existence as such. The ]>upa' come to the sur- 

 face of the gi'onnd a few inches fj'oiii th(^ 

 edge of the Avater just before the adults issue, 

 and around fresh water ])onds at the proper 

 the .biaciT horsefly Season one may see myriads of pupa-skins of 

 enSd' u f't'er Certain species with only their anterior <"ndR 

 i^ab.! v^iume^'Jv.)^^' Projecting above the surface of the ground. 



