THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 275 



honey-corab. It was soon after the introduction of this to 

 my list of curiosities that the strange ticking sound (which at 

 the time sorely puzzled me) commenced, and that led me 

 eventually to the investigation of the cause. I soon found 

 that the noise proceeded from the comb, and on closer exa- 

 mination I saw a number of woodlice travelling about from 

 one cell to another, and appearing very busy in their ex- 

 plorations. After awhile the ticking commenced, which I 

 quickly traced to a particular cell, and by the aid of a com- 

 mon convex lens I could perceive Atropos beating with its 

 head against the side of the cell, the noise produced being 

 quite as loud as the tick of an ordinary watch, thus confirm- 

 ing Mr. Derham's observations, ' and viewing them with a 

 convex lens, I soon perceived some of them to beat or make 

 a noise with a sudden shake of their body,' &c. From this 

 lime the honey-corab, which perhaps from its peculiar sono- 

 rous nature suited them so well, became the head-quarters of 

 Atropos, and night after night, and sometimes by day, might 

 be heard the tick, tick, tick, by the hour together ; some- 

 times one, sometimes two or more, licking away with all 

 their might, as if to out-tick each other. At any time, by 

 carefully approaching the comb and waiting a second or two 

 quietly, they might with the aid of a lens be seen at their 

 peculiar pastime. Since then I have lived in my present 

 house, a comparatively new one, for about twelve years, and 

 during that time have constantly heard the familiar tick from 

 time to time, twice during the last week, October 8th and 

 lOlh. Atropos is very numerous here, seeming to prefer the 

 mantel -piece, upon which are several vases filled with arti- 

 ficial flowers, and any night they may be seen by the dozen 

 prying into any little crevice, or minutely surveying petal 

 after petal of their floral habitation." 



Fehruarij 18, 1867.— Sir John Lubbock, Bart., President, 

 in the chair. 



Mr. F. Moore exhibited specimens of Tomicus mono 

 graphus, with portions of the staves of a cask destroyed by 

 this beetle. He added that T. raonographus was figured 

 in Ratzeburg, but had not hitherto been found in Britain. 

 The casks in question were made of oak, but probably not of 

 British growth. 



AJr. Newman exhibited a stem of Salix capraea, to show 



