18(10.] 7 
OBSERVATIONS ON THE ECONOMY, MOULTING, AND PUPATION OF 
A LARVA OF NEPTlCULA AURELLA, TOGETHER WITH SOME 
REMARKS RESPECTING THE HABITS OF THE PARASITE OF 
THAT SPECIES. 
BY CHABLES IIBALT. 
Early in 1863, 1 spent some time in the pleasurable study of the 
economy, &c., of this little bramble miner, and I noticed that it was 
rarely that any two larvae agreed in their markings during the period 
of moulting, and in some few instances the differences were very great. 
On several occasions, after carefully following a larva through its 
moulting, &c., my studies were abruptly terminated, just as the larva 
was about to enter the pupa state, by the sudden appearance of the 
larva of a parasitic Hymenopterous insect. The parasitic larva 
emerges at the back of the head of the Nepticula larva, and then, ap- 
plying its mouth to the hole through which it emerged, it proceeds to 
absorb the juices of its victim, till there is nothing left of the unfortunate 
Ne2}ticula\?iYYdt. hut the dry empty skin. The parasitic larva is then 
full fed, fat and plump, there being just sufficient nourishment in the 
body of one larva of N. aurella to supply it with the proper amount 
of food. 
The aurella larva whose moulting, &c , T am about to describe, 
was collected in the last week of January, 1863. The day after I had 
it in my possession, it left off feeding, and remained perfectly quiescent 
in its mine, when all the colour and markings on the head disappeared, 
and on the anterior portion of the body of the larva were two reddish- 
brown lines, at an angle of about 60°, and ending with a dull red 
blotch ; the head and all the parts of the body situate between the two 
angular lines having a semi-transparent appearance ; the remainder of 
the body dull yellow, the dorsal vessel being invisible. 
In this position the larva remained for the space of ten days. At 
the end of the first week in February, the mouth of the larva became 
brown, and on the back of the second segment there appeared a square 
dull reddish patch. The next day the back of this segment became 
decorated with two faint brown triangular spots, margined with darker ; 
these two triangular spots were followed by a couple of longitudinal 
lines, having a dull reddish blotch at their bases (the dull red blotch at 
the ends of the two reddish-brown lines had then disappeared). Two 
days later a pair of reddish-brown spots became visible on the back of 
the second segment, and were immediately followed by a small i-eddish 
blotch. 
