122 PEAR. 



an inch) or a little more in length of body ; the general 

 appearance greyish or black. More in detail, when seen 

 much magnified, and as described by Mr. Meade from his 

 own very complete observations, the head is black, with a 

 patch of yellow hairs, on the top of which some come forward 

 over the eyes. Antennae (horns) yellowish brown, in the male 

 about one-fifth longer than the whole length of the insect, in 

 the female " about two lengths of the insect without the ovi- 

 duct." Thorax (body between the wings) black, and, like the 

 face, with grey reflections ; and seen "from before the hind 

 part looks ash-grey, while the front part appears divided into 

 three wide black stripes or patches, of which the middle one 

 is triangular in shape, with a broad base in front, and taper- 

 ing to a point behind where it joins the scutellum." On each 

 side between the central and side black patches is a row of 

 bright yellow hairs ; but " viewed from behind, the whole 

 thorax looks grey." A long tuft of 

 yellow hairs is placed above and in 

 front of the root of each of the wings, 

 and the front edge of the thorax is 

 covered with short yellowish hairs. 

 Wing of D. purivora, Abdomen dark brown clothed with 



magnitied. long whitish hairs. Halteres (poisers) 



with yellowish stalks and clear white 

 knobs. Wings dusky, clothed and deeply fringed on the hind 

 margins with black hair. Legs brown, clothed with white 

 hairs, more dense on the under surface.* 



I have never seen deposit of the eggs myself, but the method 

 of operation is stated to be when the Pear blossom-buds are 

 so far advanced as for a single petal to show itself, for the 

 Pear Midges to deposit their eggs within by piercing the petal 

 with the ovipositor, and laying their white longish eggs, up to 

 as many as ten or twelve in number, on the anthers within 

 the still unopened blossom-bud. They were also seen by 

 Schmidberger, the chief authority on method of egg-laying, to 

 pierce the outside of the blossom with the ovipositor. The 

 eggs are stated to be so quickly hatched in warm weather that 

 the little larvae from them may be found on the fourth day 

 after deposit. They bore into the core of the embryo Pear, 

 where they separate and devour in different directions. 



The maggots are about one-sixth of an inch in length, 

 narrow, legless, smallest at the head and tail, with a small 

 horny appendage, known as the breast-bone, or (from its form 



* For full and very clear descrij^tion of the imago or i^erfect Gnat Midge of 

 the D. pyrivora, from which I have, with many thanks, extracted the above few 

 points, see paper on " Dii}losis pijrivoni," by R. H. Meade, in the ' Entomologist,' 

 vol. xxi., previously referred to. 



