194 THE MOSQUITOES OF NEW JERSEY 



joint; on slight offset near apex two other spines, one very long and 

 one short. Few large, stout spines on basal half, and slender one, rep- 

 resenting tuft, issues from shaft one-fourth length of antenna from 

 apex. Eyes small, occupy part where head widest. Mouth brushes small, 

 brown, close tightly at sides of head when not in use. Composed of 

 stout hairs, comb-toothed at apical half. Fig. LXVI, shows one of these 

 hairs greatly enlarged. Mentum short, very broad, with seven to nine 

 teeth on each side of apex ; apical tooth large, as are two next to basal, 

 terminal and basal teeth smaller and uniform. Mandible triangular, 

 longest side rounded ; teeth very large ; single dorsal spine. Maxillary 

 palpus chunky, surface covered with short hairs and spines, apex with 

 short, thick spines, basal joint small, somewhat retracted. Epipharynx 

 and hypopharynx shown from above and below at Fig. LXVI. 



Thorax almost as long as broad, not angular, with three groups of 

 short hair tufts issuing from each lateral margin. 



Abdominal segments from one to seven very stout and robust, with 

 short tufts of hair set in small depressions at sides, each tuft of from 

 three to five hairs, larger number in anterior segments. Eighth seg- 

 ment has lateral patches of scales consisting each of large patch of 

 minute scales edged at anterior margin with single row of from ten to 

 sixteen large scales, individual scale with long, stout apical spine, one 

 or two smaller ones at sides. Anal siphon large, thickest near base, 

 narrowing considerably apically, about four times as long as its great- 

 est width. From twenty to thirty spines in each of lateral rows, single 

 spines very long and slender, with one or two teeth at extreme base. 

 Ninth segment slightly longer than broad, with very short double 

 dorsal tuft and ventral brush, latter not issuing from barred area, 

 tufts extending whole length of ventral border. Tracheal gills long, 

 about three and one-half to four times length of ninth segment. 



HABITS OF THE EARLY STAGES 



The eggs of this species are laid at the edge of a pool or, perhaps 

 more usually, in a moist depression, where they remain dormant until 

 they become water covered. They are of considerable size, coarsely 

 sculptured and hatch within a few hours after the pools become water 

 filled. Eggs have been obtained from females which have been allowed 

 to bite so as to obtain blood food, and the indications are that blood 

 food is essential to the insect for ovarian development. Eggs and very 

 young larvae, dipped from a pool at Monmouth Beach, were, appar- 

 ently, resting loosely on the layer of bottom mud and rose when the 

 dipping was in progress, so that quite a number were obtained. 



