1S65.] 251 



earliest notice of the luminosity of Fulgora occurs in Merian's Insects 

 of Surinam. As far as I know, the earliest notice occurs in an English 

 work published iu 1685, by Nehemiah Grew, M.D., entitled, "Museum 

 regal is societatis : or a catalogue and description of the natural and 

 artificial varieties belonging to the Eoyal Society, and preserved at 

 Gresham College." The notice will be found at p. 158, and a recognisa- 

 ble figure of the lanthorn-fly from Peru, at pi. 13. Prom what source 

 Grew obtained the information that the Indians tied two or three of 

 these insects to a stick, and thus obtain sufficient light to work or to 

 travel, I cannot discover. Tet probably there is here some confusion 

 with Elater noctilucus, since Mouffet (1634), in Theatrum Insectorum, 

 p. 112,— Jonston,( 1653), in Hist. Nat. de Insectis, p. 112, and Nier- 

 emberg, (1635), in Historife Naturae, give precisely the same account 

 of the use made of the Elater, which Grew and Merian apply to the 

 Fulgora. 



Probably all these accounts have their origin in some notice in the 

 travels of Peter Martyr, or some other voyages published by Hakluyt, 

 and have been copied from thence. 



Since Aldrovand, whose work is otherwise very complete, makes 

 no mention of the circumstance, the earliest notice of the luminosity of 

 these insects must have appeared in some work published between 

 1602, and 1632, and I should feel extremely obliged to any one who 

 would give me the reference to the work in which it occurs. 



Konigsberg. 



AN ESSAY TOWARDS A KNOWLEDGE OF BRITISH HOMOPTERA. 

 BT THE EEV. T. A. MAESHALL, M.A., F.L.S. 



(Continued from itage 229). 



ttt Frontis carina 1 media, longe supra antennas et prope 

 verticem bifurcata. 



^ Hemelytra in clavi angulo posteriore nigro lineolata. 



10. — Belphax striatellus, Tall. 



J.— Forma Iracliyptera, ^. Niger; carinse frontales, pronotum, 



scutellum vel totum vel apice, testacea. Pronotum utrinque post 



oculos nigro lituratum. Hemelytra abdomine parum longiora, fusco 



hyalina, nervis vix impresso-punctatis ; costa vel tota concolor, vel 



pone medium et circa membranse apiceni nigricans ; clavi angulua 



posterior nigro striatellus. Pedes testacei ; femora et coxa) ssepe fusca. 



$ Differt scutelli angulis anticis ssepius nigro unimaculatis. 



Yar. (J. Pronotum nigrum, postice pallido marginatum. 



