1910. 19:^ 



partially curled lono-itudinally ))y Aphis pruni, De G-., and also contained a 

 Coccinellid larva (probably Coccinella bipunctata) and an Anthocoris larva. The 

 fly investio^ated the surrounding* leaves of varioiis shrubs, bvit after several 

 fleeting- visits eventually settled down to oviposit, and actually placed several 

 Avhite eo-gs upon the under-side of the curled leaf, so close to the larval Apliidids 

 as to touch them ; I then captured her. Although Verrall gives Baccha as an 

 Aphidivorous genus (Brit. Flies, viii, 674), his statement there appears to rest 

 on his earlier one {lib. cit., 456), that " the larvae feed on Aphides or Coccidas," 

 which is a little vague. BratUey thought (Ent. Mo. Mag., 1896, p. 256) that 

 B. elongata could not have been parasitic upon Mamestra persicarite — but cf. 

 I. c, 1909, p. 244 — and it is satisfactory to have ascei'tained the actual species 

 of Apihis attacked by it. — Claude Morley, Monks Soham House, Suffolk : 

 July Srd, 1910. 



A further note on Melangyna quadrimaculata, Verr. — In order to follow up 

 my observations of last year on this species, I visited, on March 29th (Easter 

 Monday), a suitably situated bush of Salix capric on the outskirts of one of the 

 numerous woods, which so thickly clothe this part of Nottinghamshire. The 

 day was brilliantly hot and sunny, and even at some yards' distance it was easy 

 to see that the newly opened catkins were proving attractive to Diptera. A 

 closer inspection revealed a most interesting sight. The shrub, which was 10 

 or 12 feet high, was absokitely alive with Melangyna quadrimaculata, each catkin 

 being furnished with its pollen-seeking giiests, jostling one another in their 

 eager enjoyment of the sweets. No net was nee<le<l, so I threw it down and 

 stood watching for some time, boxing as many specimens as I wanted at my 

 leisiu'e. So intent were the insects on feeding that I had no difficulty in making 

 a selection amongst them, and frequently found I had got two or three together 

 in one box. Curiously enough nearly all were 9 +' • I could not see the top of 

 the bush above my head, but boxed all the males I saw on the lower branches, 

 and found when I got home that I had only 6 J t? to 33 ? $ , of which sex I 

 could have taken many hundreds. My experience of this insect has generally 

 gone to prove that it is a shy species on the wing, but a stroke with the net on 

 this occasion only scared them off with a ))uzz for a few yards, all returning 

 immediately to recommence feeding. I did not observe any other species of 

 Diptera on the tree, only a brightly coloured, hibernated Vanessa iirticse, whicli, 

 in conjunction with the deep blue sky and bright golden catkins of the sallow, 

 made iip a lovely coloured pictvire. It would be interesting to know what is the 

 special attraction of sallow blossom to M. quadrimaculata ; if it is the pollen 

 that is eaten, or if there are some hidden honey glands amongst the golden 

 anthers of the catkins. I noticed that a shrub growing close by with female 

 flowers was also attractive, but in a much lesser degree. I kept four pairs of 

 the M. quadrimaculata alive for a few days in a glass jar, hoping for ova, as I 

 have always wished to breed this species, but in this I was disajipointed, as all 

 the females died without ovipositing. — E. Maude Aldebson, Park Hovise, 

 Worksop : June 22nd, 1910. 



Porphyrops nasuta. Fall., and P. elegantula, Mg., in Perthshire. — While 



