94 THE REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. No. 19 



It is from 6 to 8 lines in length of body, and it has remarkably long antennae and hind 

 limbs. 



There are other creatures that help to swell the concert that in the autumn evenings so 

 deeply impresses us with the sense of the abundance of insect life ; but those we have spokerb 

 of — with their violins, banjos, and tambours— are the strength of the musical company. 



Erratum. 



The Rev. Dr. Fyles drew attention to a printer's error on page 54 of the Thirty-first Annaal 

 Report, line 17 from the bottom, where the word " stainy " is printed in place of satiny. 



NATURE STUDY LESSONS ON MOSQUITOES. 

 By Prof. W. Lochhead, Ontario Agricultural College, Guelph. 



It is unnecessary to state that mosquitoes are interesting for more reasons than the purely 

 scientific. Perhaps no other insect is so well known throughout the wide world, for savage as- 

 well as civilized man suffers from its bites. It tortures the Eskimo as much as it does the Afri- 

 can or Venezuelan, and makes life almost unbearable at certain stages in the high Arctic regions. 



The object of these lessons, however, is more to learn about its habits and life-history 

 than to give information regarding the effects of its bite ; although this latter phase is be- 

 ing studied very closely by scientific men at the present time, for it has been proved that certain 

 species of mosquitoes are able to inoculate man with the organisms of malaria. 



The best time to study the life-history of the mosquito is in the summer when the " wrig- 

 glers " are abundant in stagnant bodies of water. If a large glass jar be nearly nlled with water 

 from pools in marshy places, from ditches where leaves have accumulated, or from exposed rain 

 barrels, a supply of mosquitoes in different stages of development can usually be obtained, aud 

 kept conveniently under observation. It would be well to cover the jar with a net of muslin to- 

 prevent the escape of the wirged mosquitoes as they emerge. 



The Eggs. Sometimes curious boat-shaped masses of eggs (Fig 52a) may be seen floating on 

 some stagnant water. These shijuld be secured, and put in the glas^ jar. An egg-mass consists 

 of yOO or 300 spindle-shaped eggs, glued together. It readily rises to the surface if pushed be- 

 low, and is none the worse of the ducking. It is probable that very few parsons have ever seen 

 the female in the act of laying her eggs, but it is supposed that the operation is performed in 

 the early morning hours just before sunrise. The eggs hatch in about twenty-four hours after 

 they are laid. The young " wrigglers," or larvae, make their escape from the underside of the 

 eggs, by the opening of a lid. 



The Wrigglers or Larvae. A careful watch over the inhabitants of the glass- jar will show 

 how the wrigglers act. If some of them can be found at rest at the surface, it will be seen that 

 they float with the heai downwards, and the end of the body at the surface. (Fig. 52c). 



At the mouth two tufts of bristles are in ceaseless vibration, and produce a continuous cur- 

 rent of water, in which minute creatures are brought within reach as food. 



The upper end apparently divides into two branches ; one branch rises to the surface, the 

 other branch, the true hind segment, and the larger branch, serves as a rudder. When a wrig- 

 gler is disturbed it wriggles away, using the rudder to direct its course. It will be noticed, 

 moreover, that the wrigglers make greater efforts in rising to the surface, than in sinking^ 

 through the water. This shows that their bodies are heavier than water, and they must have 

 some means of keeping themselves at the surface. 



The branch (Fig. 52c) which rises to the surface is in reality the breathing tube of the 

 wriggler. The upper end consists of a five-rayed rosette, which is spread out on the surface of 



