THE DENIZENS OF AN OLD CHERRY TREE. 9 



On April 15th, in an untouched larder of Crabro (a genus of 

 fossores allied to Pemphredon), we found two larvae of Sciaria 

 feeding on mouldy imagines of Rhingia rostrata — the snout fly. 

 These small thread-like worms turned to curious horned pupae by 

 May 7th, and the resulting flies appeared in about three weeks, 

 showing this small dipteron to be parasitic on other and much 

 larger diptera, and possibly on Aphides, etc., in other fossorial 

 larders. 



Continuing the list of Diptera from borings of Femphredon, 

 we find the family Chzronomidce represented by a species of Cera- 

 topogofi, whose pupae we found on June 2nd, and flies of both 

 sexes emerged a week later. We did not find the larva of this 

 tiny fly, but Mr. Theobald, in his British Flies, says of the larvae 

 of this genus, " that they inhabit manures, and others are found 

 under the bark of decaying trees," Some of the females of this 

 genus are blood suckers, and in early summer are a troublesome 

 pest to persons having tender skin, alighting on one's brow, neck, 

 or wrists, causing the most intense itching, and often severe inflam- 

 mation in the parts attacked. A gnat fly in comparison of size is 

 quite large to this minute, but terrible insect. 



The next species of Diptera are two female specimens of 

 Trichomyia, bred about the end of May, following which is a 

 dipteron new to the British list, Brachycoma erratica, Mgn., of 

 the family Tachinidce, kindly identified, with the other Diptera of 

 our cherry stump, by Dr. Meade, of Bradford, who has fully 

 described this new species on page 110 in the May number of 

 The Etitomologisfs Monthly Magazine, 1894. During May, 1893, 

 we bred two specimens (male and female) of this species from 

 pupae found in the burrows of Fetnphredon — the male appearing 

 on May loth. Roughly speaking, this fly is much darker, but 

 similar in general appearance to a small specimen of the house fly 

 {Musca doinestica). 



Of the large family AnthomyidcB our stump produced two 

 examples, viz., one female Hyetodesia errans on May 13th, and 

 several specimens of the well marked, striking species Hylemyia 

 /estiva, Zett. This last species is of rare occurrence in England. 

 It is described by Dr. Meade at page 222 Entomologisfs Monthly 

 Magazine, October, 1893, and on page 285 of the same magazine 



