DRAGONFLIES IN 1896. 31 



considerably backwards : eyes large, pear-shaped, situated at anterior 

 corners of head, and each extending a third of the way across, in 

 colour dark : between the eyes are three whitish spots as well as some 

 dark markings : the occiput (for the shape of which see figure 1) bears 

 centrally a palish rectangle with dark boundary and crossed by two 

 small parallel lines : the posterior corners of the occiput bear con- 

 spicuous spines : antenna! 7-jointed, the third from the base darker 

 than the rest, and all joints darker anteriorly : mask spoon-like, tri- 

 angular, the base of the triangle, which is anterior, a convex curve, 

 and the apex truncated ; it extends to the insertion of the first pair of 

 legs; the two moveable portions bear a row of hairs along the margin, 

 and terminate in a pair of hooks, which interlace when the mask is 

 drawn back and at rest. The prothorax is small, rectangular with the 

 four corners removed, and bears some whitish markings, notably a 

 streak in the middle line of the animal. Wiug-cases long and straight. 

 The legs are long, paler than the general ground colour, and are 

 marked on the femora with two dark riugs, and on the tibiffi with one 

 rather faint one : the tarsal joints of all the legs are three in number, 

 the basal one being very small. The abdomen tapers posteriorly, the 

 segments being fairly equal : each except the tenth bears along its 

 posterior margin a row of small white dots, and there is a whitish 

 lateral line along each segment : in the mid-dorsal region is a pale 

 line, having on each side of it a black dot in each segment except the 

 tenth. The caudal lamellae are 5'5 mm. in length; they have a sharp 

 point at their extremity and a strong median vein : in colour they are 

 pale, much blotched with brown and spotted with still darker brown. 

 The end of the tenth segment of the abdomen is surrounded with 

 small points, and between the dorsal and each of the lateral lamellae 

 is a small conical projection. 



One specimen that could not find its way out of the water 

 developed the crimson colouring under the pupal skin before 

 being drowned. An imago, a great part of whose emergence 

 I watched about 9 a.m. on April 26th, got its immature — 

 yellowish— colouring during the day ; but I have never kept 

 one alive long enough for it to put on its full crimson dress. 



Nymph of Erythromma najas, Hans. (fig. 2). — In shape it is very long 

 and slender. Length, including the caudal lamellte, 30 mm., greatest 

 breadth about 3.75 mm. : general ground colour dark sepia-brown. 

 Head rectangular, very narrow from front to back, 4-75 mm. by 2 mm. : 

 eyes rather small, somewhat hemispherical, situated at anterior corners 

 of head, dark in colour ; between the eyes are a few dark dots and 

 markings : on the central part of the occiput, which is very narrow, 

 are also some dark markings, while its posterior corners bear con- 

 spicuous spines as in the last species ; antennte six-jointed, basal two 

 stout and dark, next long, slender and dark, with a pale ring round 

 centre, the rest short, pale and slender : the mask is scarcely to be dis- 

 tinguished from that of P. ininim)i. The prothorax is small and 

 pentagonal, the base being towards the head ; on it are one or two 

 dark lines. Compared with those of P. )niinum the wing-cases are 

 short. The legs are rather long, paler than the general ground colour, 

 and each carries two dark rings, one on each side of the junction of 



