74 THE EARLY STAGES OF TABANID^ 



These species of Hmnatopota would then fall under the heading 

 of those larvae which, according to Patton and Cragg, have no air 

 sacs and, consequently, perish when falling into deep water. Like 

 the other small species, these Hcematopota '^ spread out their eggs in 

 one or more layers on blades of grass." The eggs of one species of 

 Hcemalopota are dark gray when deposited, according to the same 

 authors. No descriptions or figures are given. The eggs are said 

 to be torpedo-shaped (not cylindric) in all the smaller tabanids in 

 Madras, which should hold good for Hcematopota. 



Hexatoma pellucens Linne. — A European species, according to 

 Schiner common in Austria, attacking man as well as animals. 



In the middle of June, 1868, in a garden in Breitensee, Austria, 

 Ernst Marno found in a reservoir 8 feet deep, filled with rain water 

 and dung fluid, together with larvae of Eristalis and Culex, some dip- 

 terous larvae of about 25 mm. in length, which were on the dorsal 

 side beautifully mottled with black. Some of them kept in this 

 water had died the following morning and were preserved in alcohol. 

 Brauer, who was consulted, pronounced them to be tabanid larvae 

 of an unknown species. 



Early in July, after a heavy rain, larvae were again found, which 

 in color and appearance seemed to be the same species, and of which 

 in the middle of July when they apparently were full grown, a consid- 

 erable number were collected from the mud of their habitation. 



Of these, however, many perished which were continually replaced 

 by new captures. On this occasion also empty pupal cases and some 

 full ones were found; the latter had already made some progress 

 in the transformation to the perfect insect, but had fallen into the 

 water and had soon died and decayed. 



Brauer determined the contents of these pupte, as well as a dead 

 fly which was found in the water, as belonging to Hexatoma. However, 

 a search for the pupse in the soil surrounding the reservoir was in 

 vain, and there remained some doubt as to the identity of the larvae 

 and pupae. 



The larvae captured by Marno were kept by him in a shallow 

 flower pot, which was filled half with moist earth and half with 

 moist decaying foliage, as it had been observed that the larvae ap- 



