CHERMES ABIETIS. 31 



occurrence of germinal matter in these imagos, there- 

 fore, need cause no particular surprise. 



Here it may be mentioned that a splendid magenta- 

 coloured dye is produced by the action of dilute 

 potash. The reaction is marked under the microscope. 

 An excess of potash injures the colour. The ovoid 

 masses in the abdomen become, under the same 

 reagent, differently tinted ; one half changes to a 

 deep purple, whilst the other half remains yellow or 

 green. 



Circumstances unfortunately prevented a minute 

 examination as to the sexes of the insects bred from 

 under the bodies of these winged females. As before 

 hinted, they might have proved to be males and true 

 females ; but, assuming this, their birth would seem 

 to occur both externally and internally, as to the 

 pseudo-cones. But there is yet another supposition, 

 founded on analogy with Ghermes laricis, in which the 

 commencers of the next year's colonies undoubtedly 

 hybernate. Here, under the idea that the progeny 

 of the winged Chermes is non-sexual, the male influence 

 would be deferred until the end of the cycle, and 

 the true ova might not be produced at every autumn. 



I have depicted at fig. 6, Plate CXVTII, one of these 

 small winged insects, with her progeny. 



I cannot certainly say that they always and exclu- 

 sively breed outside of the cones. I am in the greater 

 doubt, since my discovery, within the cones, of the 

 wingless male, as if it had been bred there. 



Apterous Male. 



Through the kindness of Miss Ormerod, late in July 

 I had the opportunity of searching the contents of a 

 number of pseudo-cones, and, after a long trial, I 

 detected, just under a scale, a single minute apterous 

 insect, which proved to be the sex long missing. This 

 specimen measured only 0'030x 0*015 of a millimetre. 



Exceedingly minute, yellow, blind, apterous. An- 



