48 Psyche [April 



Myersville, Md. Living Meracantha larvae were found though, 

 from the cast larval skins and dead larvae, they must have been 

 much more numerous earlier in the season. In four distinct cases 

 I found the empty skins of the Tenebrionid larva with one or two 

 Tachinid puparia close by. In every case, however, the parasites 

 had emerged. A number of these puparia were collected and 

 later observations proved them to be of a Neopales sp. n.^ 



On November 21 I made my last trip to the mountains for that 

 season. At the same spot, where I collected the Neopales puparia 

 in August, I collected several larvae of Meracantha. The larvae 

 were placed in rearing cages and passed the winter in this stage. 

 On May 23, 1914, the cage was examined and one of these larvae 

 was found to have pupated, the adult emerging six days later. 

 Another larva pupated between May 25 and May 27, and from 

 this pupa the adult emerged on June 5. From our observations 

 we conclude that the pupal stage of this beetle endures from ten 

 to fourteen days. 



Two larvae from the same material were killed by Neopales 

 and, on May 23, a parasite larva emerged from each host larva 

 and pupated. The adult Tachinid emerged on June 4, which 

 limits the puparium stage to twelve days. This Tachinid must 

 pass the winter within its host. 



EXPLANATION OF PLATE 4. 



Meracantha contractu (Beauv.), larva and details. 



Fig. a, Dorsal aspect. 



b, Hypopharyngial chitinization. 



c, Antennae. 



d, Left mandible, inner face, 1, molar area. 



e, Labium and maxillus. 1, labium; 2, mentum; 3, submentum; 4, 



articular membrane between submentum and cardo; 5, cardo; 

 6, maxillary stipes; 7, lacinea; 8, maxillary palpus; 9, labial palpus; 

 10, labial stipes; 11, gula; \'l, ligula. 



f, Left mandible, dorsal face. 



g, Left mandible, outer face. 



h, Seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth abdominal segments, ventral aspect, 

 i, Left mesothoracic leg. 

 j. Ninth abdominal segment, lateral aspect. 



' Determined by Mr. W. R. Walton. 



