550 WILLIAM PATTEN. 



ovipositing in this manner, although I have watched them a 

 great many times as they flew over the surface of the water in 

 the neighbourhood of the place where the eggs were found in 

 the greatest abundance. 



The eggs are probably dropped by the insect as it alights on 

 any of the numerous twigs projecting above the surface, and 

 since they readily sink there is no necessity of the females 

 going beneath the water to oviposit, as is the case with those 

 Phryganids which fasten their eggs to the under side of various 

 water plants. 



Rathke, Zaddach, and McLachlan state that Phryganids lay 

 their eggs, arranged in a single layer and enveloped in a 

 transparent, gelatinous substance, on the under side of various 

 water plants, such as Hydrocharis morsus ranee, Potamogeton, 

 and Nymphse. It will be observed that Neophalax deposits its 

 eggs in an entirely diflFerent manner, and in localities where 

 such water plants are not to be found. 



As far as could be observed, the only substance of a vege- 

 table nature available to the larvse for food was the mass of 

 decaying twigs covering the bottom, which had fallen from 

 the thickly overhanging trees. Unfortunately the stomachs of 

 the larvse were not examined, so I cannot say with certainty 

 what the exact nature of the food is. It is very probable that 

 the more developed larvae feed principally upon dead vegetable 

 matter, since I have found such twigs fairly bristling with the 

 larvse, and at the same time showing many traces of having 

 been gnawed by some insect. The young larvse, however, 

 devour Vorticellse and various other Infusoria with avidity.^ 



The eggs have a strong odour of " musk," which is still 

 perceptible after they had been hardened by heat and preserved 

 in alcohol for several months, and even more so after they have 

 been softened a half hour or more in water. 



The seat of this odour is in the gelatinous envelope since it 

 was not noticeable in the eggs, but, on the other hand, was very 

 strong in the gelatine which had been separated from the eggs. 



1 It lias long been known that Phryganid larvse are in general carnivorous ; 

 Neophalax is thus an apparent exception to this general rule. 



