260 STUDIFS IN THE LIFE-HISTORIES OF AUSTRALIAN ODONATA, 



the evil-smelling mass with the liands, so that I had to be content 

 with the exuviae, some specimens of which are quite perfect and 

 quite as satisfactory as the living larva itself would have been. 



Later on, in December, I took upwaids of two dozen of the 

 perfect insect in and about this swamp; in fact, they might be 

 described as being fairly common in a restricted area of only a 

 few acres. Outside of that, only a stray male was occasionally 

 to be seen. I was able to determine many interesting points in 

 their habits, though there are still one or two points requiring 

 further elucidation. The following are the results of my study 

 of this species in its native haunts : — 



Method of Pairing. —Bea^nng in mind the unique form of the 

 male appendages, I whs most anxious to secure a pair in cop., 

 to see how the male managed to hold the female firmly. During 

 two visits I failed even to observe a pair together. On the next 

 occasion I flushed a pair that had settled on a low bush. They 

 dashed off at a terrific speed, crossed the creek, and settled on a 

 branch of a large Eucaij^ptus. After approaching carefully, I 

 was able to get underneath them and watch them, but they were 

 too far above me for me to be certain of anything. A week 

 later I came again to the same spot expressly to look out for 

 pairs. Once a pair passed me flying swiftly, with the male 

 apparently holding the female by the underside of the head; but 

 this pair separated after executing several gyrations in the air, 

 so that I could not be certain that the male had got a proper 

 hold. Later on I captured another pair settled in some teatree, 

 but unfortunately they separated imniediately in the net. 

 Finally, good fortune came my way, in the shape of a pair flying 

 rapidly with the wind straight towards me. I held up my net and 

 they flew straight in, and remained clinging to it. Not until I 

 actually took hold of him did the male release his hold, so that 

 I saw clearly the position he was in. The wide inferior appen- 

 dage, pointed on each side, was pressed down tightly on the 

 occiput of the female, on which a very slight eminence appeared 

 to give a remarkable good hold. By this means the head of the 

 female was pressed well back. The two large leaf-like appendages 



