PUP^ OF LADY-BIRD. 285 



flies make reprisals upon them for their destruction of 

 the helpless aphides. Swammerdam observed eight 

 of these parasites issue from one pupa of a Syrphus.*" 



The lady-birds (Coccme^/zc?<^) glue their pupse to 

 leaves in much the same manner with the flies just 

 mentioned : but their skin, instead of becoming 

 smooth, wrinkles up by the shortening of the body of 

 the grub ; because it is not so soft and pliable, and 

 cannot, therefore, be compressed. The interior, how- 

 ever, is smooth.')- 



Those insects which live during their first stages 

 in the water, exhibit a very different economy when 

 they change from larvae into nymphs, as may be 

 exemplified in the May-flies (Ephemeridce) and the 

 dragon-flies (Libellulina). But as these will require 

 to be described in a future page, we shall content our- 

 selves at present with an account of an interesting 

 but minute species of tipulidan gnat {Corethra jUu- 

 micornis^ Meigen), of a straw colour, whose history 

 was first given by Reaumur and De Geer. The 

 latter was induced, from the beautiful transparency 

 of the larva, to name it Tipula cristaliina, — a qua- 

 lity which renders it, its size being also very minute, 

 rather difficult to discover : it is, however, a good 

 subject for microscopical observations. Taking ad- 

 vantage of the recent improvements in microscopes, 

 Dr. Goring has accordingly given coloured figures 

 both of the larva and pupa, as observed by him, in 

 which he has added a few minute details^ that are 

 not in the otherwise very accurate figures of Rt^au- 

 mur. 



The larva is rather less than a quarter of an inch 

 long, and somewhat resembles in form those of the 

 game family, particularly in the parts about the head, 



* Part ii. p. 99. f J. R. 



+ Goring and Pritchard's Nat. Hist., No. 1 ; and Reaumur^ 

 vol. v., mem. 1. 



