66 , THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



Doubleday, under date of Epping, 31st Dec, 1865, wrote as 

 follows : — " I cannot speak positively about the Atropos, but 

 I am strongly inclined to believe that it is the insect which 

 produces the continuous faint ticking sound so frequently 

 heard in the spring. It seems almost impossible that such a 

 delicate little creature should be able to produce any sound 

 whatever, but I have always found it in places from which 

 the ticking sound appeared to proceed. 1 have often thought 

 it very wonderful that the pied woodpecker can, by striking 

 the branch -of a tree with its beak, produce a sound which 

 may be heard for half a mile ; we could not produce a similar 

 sound by striking the tree with a stick or anything else. I 

 can speak positively with regard to the Anobium, and I 

 assure you that this little beetle produces the loud ticking 

 sound, by raising itself upon its legs as high as it can, and 

 then striking the head and under part of the thorax against 

 the substance upon which it is standing, generally about five 

 or six times in rapid succession ; and it always chooses a 

 substance which produces the most sound. It is evidently a 

 call-note from one individual to another, as you very rarely 

 hear one rap without its being immediately answered by 

 another. I have repeatedly kept one -in a card pill-box, and 

 if I imitated the sound, by tapping anything with a pointed 

 pencil or something of that kind, the Anobium would in- 

 stantly answer me. This insect is common in our house, 

 but it is not very easy to obtain them, as, when you have 

 found out by their rapping where they are, they drop the 

 instant you move anything near them. If all is well 1 will 

 endeavour to obtain you some bye-aud-bye, and send them 

 to you alive." 



Psocus hredfrom Atropos pulsatorius. — I am reminded by 

 the preceding reference to the death-watch that last October 

 1 bred a great number of a minute Psocus from the insect 

 usually known as Atropos pulsatorius. These mischievous 

 creatures having been ejected Irom insect-boxes by the abun- 

 dant application of benzole, apokatharticon, and other odori- 

 ferous fluids, took refuge amongst my ferns, and, having re- 

 duced them to skeletons, stuck theuiselves up as high as 

 possible on their legs, and splitting open longitudinally down 

 the thorax and upper segments of the abdomen, emerged as 

 Psocus pulicarius or some allied species. Forty years have 



