318 Sir S. S. Saunders on the habits and affinities 



end of October the new brood appears. When the figs 

 ripen in November, the young and active females gnaw a 

 series of small holes round the original aperture, and issue 

 therefrom ; but eventually the entire tuft of stamens falls 

 in, and affords a readier means of egress. The Arabs 

 are accustomed to make an incision in each fig at an 

 earlier period, apparently for a similar purpose, in lieu 

 of caprification ;* and in such slit figs, when ripe, no 

 winged females are met with, which avail themselves of 

 such opening to evade, leaving the males only, which are 

 found dead within. Few of these have escaped mutila- 

 tion in their legs or caudal appendages from the potent 

 mandibles of their blind comrades. They are apt to 

 assume at times a crouching attitude by doubling their 

 abdomen beneath the thorax (like the Blastophagce) ; their 

 com]3ressed segments being entirely concealed thereby, the 

 caudal appendages widely projecting on either side, and 

 the posterior legs extended backwards ; thus appearing as 

 if cut in half. 



SrcorHAGA CRASSiPES, Westw., Mas. 



Flavo-testacea, elongata, aptera, coeca. 



•Long. Corp. 2^ — 3i mill. 



(Abdominis segmentis laxis nonnunquam usque ad 4| 

 mill, productis.) 



Caput elougatum, compressum, latum, pone mandibulas 

 transverse depressum, angulatum, postice emarginatum ; 

 disco stiiis rufis 5, niaculaque irregulari prope antennarum 

 basin nigra. Antennoi albidaB, carnosfe, 3-articulata3, an- 

 tice utrinque porrectas ; articulo basali valde dilatato, 

 compresso; 2''° brevi, subtrigono; apicali duplo longiore, 

 ovato-conico. Mandibula robustaa, tridentatfB, dentibus 

 crassis. 3Iaxillce nulla?. Palpi obsoleti. Oculi desunt. 



Thorax capite dimidio longior, gibbus ; protlwrace capi- 

 tis fere magnitudine, subtiis abbreviato, lateribus oblique 

 fissis, rufo-striatis; mesotltorace parvo, scutiformi; meta- 

 thorace vix majore, postice latiore, rotundato. Alee nullc\3. 



* While this paper is passing through the press, the followiug account 

 of the operation ]3crfornied by the Arabs on these figs has been received: — 

 "An incision, not very deep, and about half an inch long, is made with a 

 small knife across the centre of the fig, so that a little of the milky juices 

 may exude ; this causes them to ripen very rapidly, makes the fruit much 

 better, and allows the insects to escape from within. This cutting process 

 is effected when the fruit is very small and green. Figs which have not 

 undergone this operation would be quite unfit to eat." — E. Haselden. 



