BRITISH ODONATA IN 1916. 203 



stream, which in most cases consisted of hare gravel-stones. 

 The ovii)ositor must be strong and tough to stand the repeated 

 blows. The strokes took place pretty regularly, about two a 

 second, and on the first occasion the insect struck some 

 hundreds of times before being disturbed. The second time 

 she was soon discovered and taken away by a male. If but one 

 egg was iaid at each stroke of the abdomen, the total number 

 laid must have been considerable. Females of G. annulatus 

 thus employed, make a considerable amount of noise with their 

 wings, and in this way can usually be detected. 



On August 7th I paid a visit to Crockford Pond to see if 

 Sympetrum fonscolomhii by chance was present, but could see 

 no Sympetra except S. scoticuui. 0. ccerulescens was very common, 

 and I watched for a long time a male A. impcrator hawking over 

 and around the pond. It settled at last, and though I was near 

 enough to see its brilliant colours, I could not make a capture. 

 It once tried to catch a butterfly (apparently a white), but with- 

 out success. E. cyatliigeruni and P. tenellum were also present 

 at the pond. At Marlborough Deeps, on August 11th, although 

 most of the pools were nearly or quite dry, there were many 

 dragonflies — A. puella, P. nyvvphula, P. tenellum, L. sponsa, 

 JE. cyaneu, JE. jimcea, S. striolatum, and 0. ccBvulexcens. Al- 

 though A . merciiriale had been common at the beginning of 

 the month, from August 16th onwards it could not be found. 

 By September many species of dragonflies were becoming scarce, 

 though C. anniLlatiiA and S. striolatiiin, and one female, C. virgo, 

 were noted on September 1st and 0. ccerulescens on Sei)tember 

 9th; but S. striolatum, the .Esclinas, and a few other species 

 still had some weeks of life before them. 



On October 1st S. striolatum was seen at the Long Water in 

 the Home Park at Hampton Court, while the same species and 

 its congener, S. scoticum, were in evidence at the Black Pond, 

 Surrey, on October IStli. This was my last experience with the 

 Odonata in 1916. 



On August 14th Mr. R. South took a female, .Esciina juncea, 

 at Stanhope, co. Durham ; and Mr. K. J. Morton had given to 

 him an Jbscliua mixta, Latr., taken during the summer near the 

 Test, in Hampshire. 



Mr. H. J. Burkill reports that on August 16th S. striolatum 

 settled on a bush of Prunus spinosa about 5.45 p.m., on the 

 edge of the low cliffs at Beachley Point, Gloucestershire. It 

 was sluggish, and allowed him ahnost to bottle it without 

 employing the net, only flying off a few yards after he attempted 

 a capture; but eventually it got so near the cliff that he was 

 forced to use the net to secure it. On August 21st about eight 

 .E. cyanea were seen at a pond in " The Park," Tiddenham 

 Chase, South-west Gloucestershire. They were in cop., or ovi- 

 positing. Mr. Burkill tells me further that on October 1st, a 



