MISCELLANEA ENTOMOLOGICA : OR 

 ()T)[) NOTES ON THE HISTORY AND TRANSFORMA- 

 TIONS OF VARIOUS INSECTS. 



By R. ILLIDGE. 



[tteiuJ before the Roijal Societij of Queendand, December 16.^ 



A FEW years ago I wrote a short paper for the 

 Natural History Society of Queensland (now defunct), on 

 " Insects, whose food plant is the Native Fig ; " but, as this 

 paper was lost, I now propose to reproduce some of the matter, 

 together with facts concerning other insects under the above 

 title. 



The figs, Ficus Australis, macrophylla, etc., appear to be 

 subject to the attacks of quite a number of insects, chief amongst 

 which are certain species of moths of the genus Hypsa, and 

 some pretty pyrale moths of the genus Glyphodes ; also, a 

 noctuid Ophyx ochroptera, together with others whose depre- 

 dations are not, however, confined to these trees. 



Of Hypsa, there are three species found on the fig ; they are 

 H. chloropyga, H. nesophora (?), and H, plagiata. The first-named 

 has a rather pretty caterpillar, brownish, marked with brick red 

 and ochreous yellow ; the other two have larvce which bear 

 considerable resemble to birds' droppings. None of these 

 insects, however, are sufficiently common to do any appreciable 

 damage to the trees, in fact, chloropyga is a rare moth round 

 Brisbane, nesophora is never common, and plagiata, though 

 usually readily obtained, does not occur in numbers. 



The noctuid moth, Ophyx ochroptera, in the larval form, is 

 brilliant green with a broad lateral band of bright yellow ; it 

 also is a rare species. 



