BEARINGS AND DISSECTIONS OF TACHINID^. 107 



more such caterj^illars were collected for rearing. In repeated in- 

 stances the newly liatched maggot was observed as it escaped from 

 the eggshell, and in none of the observed cases was the young maggot 

 able to penetrate the tough skin of these large dispai' caterpillars; 

 the maggots were watched repeatedly through a binocular in their 

 vain efforts to do so. This sjDecies, being a native, has not yet adapted 

 itself to dispar. It has been reared from it to a considerable extent, 

 but it is quite certain that in most of the cases the ^g'g was deposited 

 upon the smaller and younger caterpillars, whose skins are not so 

 tough as are those of the large ones. A very few puparia were se- 

 cured this season from many thousands of dispar caterpillars col- 

 lected, showing that hardly any of the deposited eggs of the species 

 took hold, for these eggs were common and numerously deposited. 

 When the species does become adapted to dispar as a host, w^hich it 

 undoubtedly will eventually, it will prove a most efficient help in 

 checking the increase of the latter. 



It is very interesting to note that the Japanese Tachinas greatly 

 resemble clisioeampcv^ the American form. Both differ from tlie 

 European larvanim in having a very decided, general golden tinge 

 to the body bloom, especially that of the head and thorax. This 

 bloom is quite distinctly silvery in larranim. 



JAPANESE REPRESENTATIVES OF EUROPEAN SPECIES. 



Several representatives in Japan of European species have been 

 recognized in tlie puparia secured from Japanese specimens of Por- 

 theti'ia dispar^ a consideral)le quantity of such puparia having been 

 imported from Japan the jd resent season. The Japanese Tachinas 

 have been mentioned above. Crossoeosmia sp. has been plentifully 

 received from Japan, where it represents the European Blepharipa 

 seutellata and has the same leaf-oviposition habit. The fly has been 

 reared of a Japanese Pales near jxirida, which greatly resembles the 

 European form and has the same habit. A Japanese species corre- 

 sponding to that doubtfully referred (p. 106) to Hem/imasicera has 

 issued from the puparium, and differs from the European form in its 

 darker coloring and golden instead of silvery bloom. Species repre- 

 senting Compsiliira concinnata^ Zygohothria gili'u^ and Carcelia 

 gnava have also been found in the Japanese pujoaria. 



IMPORTANCE OF STUDYING THE UTERINE EGGS OF TACHINIDJE. 



It has developed during the progress of the work that a study of 

 the uterine eggs of tachinids is of primary importance in the inves- 

 tigation of the various species. Certain very positive deductions may 

 be drawn from them as to habit of reproduction. Before securing 



