270 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



subequal in length, the latter a little paler than the former, which is 

 slightly globose ; antennae with the third and fourth joints greyish at 

 base, basal joint not quite reaching apex of head, second joint twice as 

 long as first, third and fourth joints subequal in length, each shorter 

 than second joint ; rostrum shortly passing posterior coxae. Long. 3 J to 

 4 millim. 



Hah. Sierra Leone ; Moyamba (G. C. Dudgeon). 



Allied to 0. exitiosus, Dist., from South Africa, but to be dis- 

 tinguished by the much more elongate pronotum, and different 

 colour of the same, &c. 



ON A FEW TACHINID^ AND THEIR HOSTS. 



By Claude Moeley, F.E.S. 



It is well known to lepidopterists that this extensive family 

 of Diptera prey entomophagously upon many kinds of moths and 

 butterflies in almost exactly the same manner as do the Ichneu- 

 mons, and consequently many correspondents have been so good 

 as to send me from time to time specimens which have ap- 

 peared in their breeding-cages. Dr. Meade gives (Entom. 1881, 

 pp. 285-9) a very interesting account of twelve species of this 

 family with their hosts, and it may not be out of place " to add 

 my mite" — as he expresses it — in extension of his own paper, 

 although I hope that both combined will be but a fraction of that 

 which we shall, I trust, soon learn from the extensive researches 

 of Mr. Colbran J. Wainwright, to whom, together with Mr. 

 Albert Piifard, Dr. Meade, and Rev. E. N. Bloomfield, I owe the 

 determination of the species. 



Exorista jucunda, Mg. 



This species was bred in March by Mr. Edward Ransom, at 

 Sudbury, in Suffolk. He writes: — "I bred it from a larva of 

 Liparis salicis, but there is no sign, so far as I have observed, 

 that the larva has been attacked by a parasite until it is full-fed, 

 when it spins a cocoon in the usual way. In then dies, and the 

 larval skin breaks, revealing the pupa of its parasite. The para- 

 sitical larva does not seem to make its way out of the caterpillar 

 as do the parasites so common on Picris brassicce [the braconid, 

 Apanteles glomeratus, L.] , but changes to a pupa in the body of 

 its host, and 'its presence is not suspected until the caterpillar is 

 found to be dead. I think those caterpillars that are affected do 

 not grow so large as is usual. So far as I have observed, there 

 is only one parasite to each caterpillar. I do not think jucunda 

 can be very rare here, as I have often seen the cocoons of salicis 

 with the parasitical pupa in them. I assume they are all those 



