116 BURMA, ITS PEOPLE A.VD PRODUCTIONS. 



Family Cyrripidae. 



The insects of this family by laying tlu-ir ej;ijs in tlio tissups of trees and plants 

 give rise to 'galls,' wherein the young arc nourished on the juices of the plant, and 

 •whence they issue on attaining maturity. 



Famihj Ichneumonidae. 

 These insects are parasitical to the extent of de-positing their eggs within the 

 bodies of catei'pillars, where the larva is hatched, and at once commences to consume 

 its host. Ey an extraordinary instinct it would seem as if it so managed its meal 

 as to avoid a vital part, and the caterpillar lives on (if he cannot be said to thrive), 

 and even passes into the chrysalis stage for the benefit, alas ! not of himself, but of 

 his hidden guest. Beyond this stcge, however, he does not survive, and in place of 

 a butterfly, one or more ' rascally little flies ' issue from the chrysalis, to the disgust 

 perhaps of some naturalist who has been carefully feeding and tending the caterpillar 

 in the hope of ascertaining the perfect insect. As a rule, however, a cateiijillar 

 ■which has been ' ichneumonhed ' can be readily detected by one accustomed to these 

 creatures, by a certain sluggish or sickly mood that seems to possess them. 



PlJIPLA, sp. 



Sub-order TUBULIFERA. 



Posterior segments of the abdomen retractile, and provided with a membranous 

 ovipositor composed of a single piece. They are solitary insects, which deposit their 

 eggs in the nests of other Ilymenoptera. 



Family Chrysididse. 



The Chrysides, or ' golden flies,' must be familiar to most people. They are 

 met with hovering about and alighting on the hottest and sunniest walls, and are 

 resplendent with green and azure tints. The under side of the abdomen is concave, 

 and when touched they roll themselves into a ball. Giving just grounds of oifence 

 as they do, to insects of a singularly irascible disposition, this habit is no doubt one 

 they are often called on to practise in self-defence, and adaptively cased as their 

 bodies are in an almost impenetrable coat of mail, they are in that position wholly 

 invulnerable by the stings of their enemies. 



Sub-order HETER G YNA . 



Social hymenoptera, consisting of males, females and neuters, the latter apterous 

 and sexually undeveloped. 



Family Formicidse. 



The marvellous economy of ants is too well known to need recapitulation, but 

 of Burmese species we know next to nothing, and the subject is a very inviting one 

 for some ' coming ' naturalist. Ants swarm ])criodically, much in tlie same lashion, 

 though not in the same numbers, as Termites, and the winged ants which then issue 

 forth are males and females, bent on founding new colonics. Among some species the 

 most enormous disparity of size obtains among the neuters, some of which, pvovi<led 

 with disproportionately large lieads, are called 'policemen,' and take upon tliemsclves 

 the care and defence of the ordinary work<a's. In one ant, common at llangoon, 

 I noticed three different sizes of neuters (?). The smallest was only TTo lines 

 in length of head and body, whereas the 'policeman' measured 12 lines or more, 

 and this disparity does not convey a proper idea of the vast diflei'cncc in bulk 

 between the two sorts, the policeman being a burly monster ca])able of walking 

 away though 100 of the lesser sort were to attach themselves to him. In addition 

 to these there were, mingled with the rest, many ants of an intermediate size, 

 twenty times or so bulkier than the small neuters, but not comparable with the 



