Art. VI. — On the Struct ure of the Alimentary System 

 of Gryllotalpa aiistralis (Erichs.), ivith some 

 Physiological Notes. 



By O. a. SAYCE. 



(With Plates IX. and X.) 

 [Eead 14.tb July, 1898.] 



I desire to acknowledge my indebtedness to Professor W. 

 Baldwin Spencer for kindly interest and help during my investi- 

 gations ; also, I am under obligation to Mr. T. S. Hall, M.A., 

 who has supplied me with references and books ; to Mr. T. E. 

 Edwards for helpful literature ; and to Mr. J. A. Kershaw of the 

 National Museum, for the identification of the species.^ 



The common Victorian species of mole-cricket Gryllotalpa 

 australis, Erichs., difiers in the alimentary system, in no marked 

 degree, from G. vulgaris., Ltr. The size of the insect is, however, 

 smaller; the usual length of G. australis being 32 mm., and 

 that of G. vulgaris 52 mm. 



G. australis abounds very plentifully in gardens and meadow 

 lands for some miles around Melbourne and other parts of 

 Victoria, and may readily be traced to their burrows at sunset, 

 in summer and autumn, by the strong shrill noise of the males. 

 Only the females can fly. 



Other localities recorded for this species, Mr. Kershaw informs 

 me, are New South Wales, Queensland, and the Islands of 

 Ceram, and New Caledonia. He has no record of their being 

 found in Tasmania. Further, I hear from him that there are at 

 least three species of the genus found in Australia. 



As is well known, Gryllotalpa is omnivorous, but as far as our 

 species is concerned, Mr. Charles French, Government Entomolo- 

 gist of Victoria, tells me that he has only had two reports of its 

 destruction of root crops. I have kept them alive for months 



1. During the passag-e through the press of this paper I have had the opportunity of con- 

 sulting Professor A. S. Packard's Text Book of Entomology (Macmillan, 189S). Wherever 

 I have adopted his terminology. 



1 



