to wear gauze over their faces during the summer months, to 

 protect them in their fishing excursions from the venomous 

 attacks of these tormenting Insects; in the collection, also, made 

 by Capt. P. P. King in his survey of the Straits of Magellan 

 I find specimens of a Mosquito, and others I have received 

 from New Holland. I have long entertained an opinion that, 

 like the Tabanidas, it is the females only that bite, and this 

 opinion is almost confirmed by a careful dissection of the tro- 

 phi, since I could not discover either a tongue or mandibles 

 in the males ; it may therefore become a question, what does 

 this sex live upon? I rather suspect on flowers, and it is re- 

 markable that in out-houses and places where these insects 

 abound, the sexes are not often found together ; I remember 

 in the month of June to have seen the males of C. annulatus 

 repeatedly, widiout observing one female, and last May I met 

 with the males of C. nemorosus flying in a large swarm in the 

 afternoon in Coomb-wood, in a dark shady hollow, and not 

 one female was amongst them ; but on sitting down a few came 

 out of the grass and lit upon my hand. I do not remember 

 ever to have been bitten by C. pipiens in Sept. ; although I 

 have seen great numbers of the females in my sleeping-room 

 at that period of the year, but in July I have suffered very 

 much from the bites of this and other species, and on the shores 

 of the Mediterranean their piping note was the most terrific 

 noise that could have assailed my ears at night, for to sleep it 

 was impossible, until they were either satiated or destroyed. 



It may be useful to observe, that the Pnpse are frequently 

 conveyed into the sleeping-room in the ewer, especially when 

 it is filled from butts of rain-water ; in such cases the Gnats 

 escape from the Pupae in the evening, and as soon as they 

 can take wing, they are prepared with a keen appetite, having 

 fasted during their imprisonment in the pupa, to attack the 

 inmates of the apartment. 



There are near 20 species found in this country, a list of 

 which is given in the Guide : I have only seen 2 specimens 

 of the species figured ; both of them were taken at Cobham 

 in Surrey. 

 C. guttatus Meg. '^—Ciirt. Brit. Ent. pi. 537 ^ . 



Pubescent, reddish-brown; antennae pale; hinder margin 

 of eyes white : thorax black ? the sides griseous with at 

 least 6 white spots on the pleurae: margins of abdominal 

 segments ciliated with ochreous hairs, each banded with 

 pure white scales beneath at the base, and appearing like 

 12 trigonate spots on the sides : wings fuscous, transparent 

 and beautifully iridescent at the interior margin: halteres 

 pale lurid : legs with a cupreous lilac tinge ; coxae white ; 

 thighs beneath whitish, the posterior brown only towards 

 the extremity, all tipped with white. 



The Plant is Ajuga Chamcepitys^ (Ground Pine). 



