384 OYIPOSITION AND HABITS OF CERTAIN BATRACHIANS, 



in tlie liquid mud of a pond which was in the last stage of drying 

 up; a week later several of them completed their metamorphoses 

 crawling out of the water up the side of the jar ; two of these 

 now in spirit are about 12 mm. from snout to vent. 



18. Hyla krefftiIj Gthr. 



Not very common about Sydney; have taken specimens on 

 Zamia at Randwick early in March ; also numerous specimens 

 under logs at Burrawang in July, some of them females distended 

 with ova. Hence this species probably breeds in spring or early 

 summer, but I have not yet been able to obtain any details about 

 the oviposition. On a Zamia at Randwick when collecting speci- 

 mens of this frog with Mr. Masters, pellets of excreta were noticed 

 consisting largely of fragments of the elytra &c. of beetles, where- 

 upon Mr. Masters pointed out to me that two Curculios (Tranes 

 intern/itus and Einzeuxis lyterioides) frequent the Zamias, so that 

 it seems likely that the Hylas haunt the Zamias to feed on these 

 beetles. 



19. Hyla aurea. Less., sp. 



This species breeds from about the middle of spring through the 

 summer. In three successive years in the same pond about the 

 end of September numbers of this species were noticed in a con- 

 siderable state of excitement, the males darting at and seizing the 

 females ; but little or no spawn was deposited. Early on the 

 morning of October 20th, 1886, in the pits in a disused tan-yard I 

 found a number of couples in coitu, as well as a good deal of 

 spawn ; the female of a couple which I caught and took home 

 commenced to spawn during the day in a dish of water, and com- 

 pleted the operation some time during the succeeding night, the 

 male never relaxing his hold. In the first week of December of 

 this same year I also found breeding couples. I have noted find- 

 ing young frogs, which had just about completed their metamor- 

 phosis, common about the margin of swamps in December, March 

 and April ; and tadpoles at the beginning of April in a pond in 

 which there were also tadpoles of two other species of Byla, one 



