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HUNGERFORD: AQUATIC HEMIPTERA. 121 
Lundbeck, 1914, in a most interesting paper, deals with the oviposition 
of these bugs. 
He studied the Steenstrup material. He gives a photograph of the 
tail of a bird, the Noddy (Anous stolidus), showing many eggs of Halo- 
bates on the feathers. He confirms Witlaczel’s observation that the 
embryos have the long middle and hind legs bending around the end 
of the abdomen, and then along the dorsal side up towards the head. 
He gives a summary that is quoted below: 
“The eggs of the Halobates are comparatively large, about 1 mm. 
long, elongated oval or cylindric with rounded ends. The ventral side 
is arched, the dorsal side flat or slightly arched, the front end somewhat 
broader than the posterior end. The color varies gradually from yellow- 
ish-white to red, as the development advances. Chorion is solid, thicker 
or thinner; it is simple, without sculpture, or with a more or less strongly 
marked sculpture after the species. The sculpture is most strongly 
marked on the ventral side and the anterior end, and decreases towards 
the dorsal side, where it almost or wholly disappears. Only one micro- 
pyle, situated in or very near to the front pole; it forms a canal, issuing 
from a funnel-shaped deepening in the surface; the canal runs some- 
what tangentially in the chorion, and is rectangularly bent. The female 
can bear a few eggs at end of abdomen, but probably only for a rather 
short time. The egg-laying takes place on all objects possible floating on 
the surface of the sea. One female produces about 25 eggs. In general, 
several or many females lay their eggs on the same object. It seems 
as if the eggs can also be laid without being attached to any under layer, 
so that they form a floating heap. The eggs are apparently laid without 
definite order, or this is at any rate only very insignificant; this seems, 
however, partly caused by the circumstances that many females lay 
their eggs together; when groups of eggs that may be supposed to pro- 
ceed from one female are examined, there often appears some arrange- 
ment in a few transverse rows, following each other, and consisting of 
parallel eggs, all with their front ends in the same direction. The eggs 
are always deposited with the dorsal side against the substratum, the 
ventral side upwards; they are fastened with a mass which in general 
entirely envelops them, and which no doubt is gelatinous. The opening 
of the egg shell occurs through its splitting in the front end, down the 
middle of the dorsal and ventral side, to a little beyond the middle, so 
that two lateral valves are formed. The larve probably moult very 
soon after their escape from the shell.” 
Family VELIIDA Am & Serv. 1843. 
A. TAXONOMY OF VELIIDZA. 
Family Characteristics. Surface dwellers which are usually plump 
bodied, and broadest at the shoulders. The antenne are 4-segmented, 
and the head is shorter than the thorax, including the scutellum. The 
middle legs are placed about equidistant from front and hind pairs 
(except in Rhagovelia). The hind femora do not extend much beyond 
the apex of the abdomen. The ocelli are obselete or absent. Beak 
3-segmented; tarsi 1- or 2-segmented in front, and 2- or 3-segmented in 
the others. Most of these bugs are small. We have, according to Van 
Duzee, 4 genera, Microvelia, Macrovelia, Rhagovelia and Velia, with 
_ 9 species, 1 species, 4 species and 4 species respectively. 
