254 [NoTember, 



THE LIFE-HISTORY OF CONWENTZIA rSOCIFORMIS Curt. 

 BY GILBERT J. AREOW, F.E.S. 



Extremely little lias been recorded as to the early stages of the 

 Goniopterygidae and, so far as I am aware, no representation of the larva 

 of any species has ever been published. All that is known of this inte- 

 resting family of Neuroptera has been collected together by Dr. Endei-lein 

 in his "Monographic der Coniopterygiden " (Zoolog. Jahrb. Syst. 190G, 

 xxiii), but as to the life-history this contains little more than the state- 

 ments that all the species are rare, that they appear to be restricted to a 

 single generation in the j^ear, and that the larva forms a cocoon like 



Conn'entzin j^sociformig Cxn-t., X 17. 



a spider's-nest, in which it passes the winter. The first two of these 

 statements are incorrect and the third is only partially correct. 



It is probable that our scanty knowledge of these insects is really 

 due, not to their rarity, but simply to their small size having caused them 

 to escape observation. During the past summer 1 have found the species, 

 of which the larva is here represented, in great abundance at Putney, 

 Ilarnes, Streatham, and Ashtead, and have also seen an unidentified 

 species of another genus in my own garden at Putney. Conioentzia 

 inociformis was also sent to me from Henley-on-Thames a few years ago 

 by the llev. J. F. Perry, who found it in some abundance. 



In all the localities in which I found this species it occurred upon 

 the leaves of oaks mfested with Fht/lloxera, upon which its larvae were 



