372 THE ATHERICERA. 



foot {Tmsilago Farfara), and the Deadly Nightshade 

 {Atropa Belladonna). 



The two or three species of Stomowys which we 

 possess are^ however, an exception to the general rule 

 in this tribe, the majority of the insects belonging to 

 which confine themselves to the sweet juices of flowers, 

 although the Scatophagy, of which the common 

 yellowish fly [S. stercoraria) , that may be found so 

 abundantly upon the droppings of horses and cows 

 almost throughout the year, is an example, are said 

 to be predaceous in their perfect state. But what- 

 ever may be the sameness of their habits in this con- 

 dition, there is sufiicient diversity in their preparatory 

 states, for their larvse feed upon almost every variety 

 of matter. Many, as already stated, live in dung, 

 others in decaying vegetables, or in the ground, feed- 

 ing on the roots of plants. Amongst the latter, two 

 are often very destructive in gardens : the larv^a of 

 Ant homy ia Ceparum sometimes does great injury to 

 onions, and that of A. Brassicce, to cruciferous plants. 

 Other species, also living on vegetable food, prefer 

 this in a fresh state, and either reside in galls upon 

 various parts of plants, or mine their way into the 

 parenchyma of leaves. Of our ordinary garden plants, 

 the Holly and Columbine may be constantly seen 

 with a greater or less number of their leaves dis- 

 figured in this way by the larvae of two species of 

 Phytomyza. The Chlorops lineata, a minute yellow 

 fly with five little black bands on the back of the 

 thorax, and a spot of the same colour on the disc of 

 the abdomen, which is excessively abundant in many 

 parts of the country during the spring, deposits its 

 eggs in the stems of wheat, and sometimes does enor- 

 mous injury to the crops, whilst other species of the 



