36o AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 



gills. A transverse plate with small teeth directed anteriorly is 

 also on each side, and the tracheal gills are about half the length 

 of the anal seernent. 



Habits of the Barly Stages. 



The first record of this larva was March 28th, 1903, when 

 Mr. Brakeley found two examples in the reservoir at Lahaway, 

 with Culex melanunis and C. canadensis. He noted at that time 

 that they are neither bottom nor top feeders but remain horizon- 

 tally suspended in the water. From their actions he suspected 

 them of being predatory. Close collecting during the balance of 

 March and early April gave a very few more examples and on 

 April 26th he actually saw a specimen make a dart for a Culex 

 larva one-third grown and catch it by the tail. It shook the 

 Culex as a dog does a rat and then the wriggler seemed to dis- 

 appear into " the Corethra alive. In a few minutes everything 

 w^as gone except the head and the alimentary canal of the car- 

 nivore could be seen filling up through the transparent body wall. 

 On other occasions it was positively determined that they fed 

 on small Culex larvse. Pupation began April 30th and May ist 

 and the first and only adult of this lot was obtained May 6th. 

 Observation also determined the fact that a full meal made at 

 2 p. m., on one day was completely digested at 7 a. m. the day 

 following"; no trace of the food remaining visi1)le in the alimen- 

 tary canal. 



May 3rd, 1903, a small larva of this species was collected by 

 Mr. Van Duersen at Dayton in company with canadensis. iVIay 

 24th, Mr. Grossbeck collected eighteen examples at Livingston 

 Park and left them without food for twenty hours. At the end 

 of that time one was gone, another was half eaten and some of 

 the others beg*an to die. The last collection for the season was 

 at Lake Hopatcong, July 22nd, a single full grown larva being 

 taken by ]Mr. Grossbeck. 



In the latter part of April, 1904, Mr. Brakeley collected on 

 the water covered bogs full grown larvse and pupae of this species 

 in some numbers and on the 29th adults began to emerge. Ad- 

 ditional collections made during the early days of May broug'ht 

 quite a number of other specimens and all stages except the egg 

 were well represented. The pupa, like that of Sayomyia, is sus- 

 pended in the water and readily recognizable by the broad anal 

 gills having a distinct dark stripe through the center. 



It is not definitely known how the insects hibernate. The 

 water in wdiich most of them were found in early spring at 



