xlvi 



two to the HijdrophiUd(e, nine to three families of the Heteromera, 

 and the remaining twelve to as many different families. This 

 circumstance of insects (and I may add plants) where few in 

 number belonging to many different families, is, I believe, very 

 general." 



Mr. Waterhouse, who described these insects from the Gala- 

 pagos Islands in the ' Annals and Magazine of Nat. Hist.,' 1845, 

 vol. xvi., pp. 19 — 41, remarks : — " The insects here described are 

 nearly all of small size, and none of them display any brilliant 

 colouring. Some of the species are referable to a little group 

 found in Chili and Peru, — the genus Ammophorus, — a genus 

 hitherto only found in those parts ; others appertain to a genus 

 (Anchonns) which is almost confined to the West Indian Islands 

 and the northern parts of South America. Again, in the 

 collection under consideration are species of genera which are 

 found all over the world, or nearly so, such as Feronia, NotapJnis, 

 and Orijctes ; and lastl}^, there are species which cannot be 

 located in any known genus, but which appertain to families 

 having representatives in most parts of the world, such as the 



Pedinidce, Tenttjriidce, AntJirohidce, and Halticidce Some 



of the insects of the collection have labels attached, from which 

 may be ascertained the particular island of the Galapagos Group 

 from which they were procured, and where this was the case I 

 have not found any species which is common to two or more of 

 the islands." 



On the 19th January, 1836, Mr. Darwin, then in New South 

 Wales, was approaching Bathurst : — " I was interested by finding 

 here the hollow conical pit-fall of the ant-lion, or some other 

 insect : first a fly fell down the treacherous slope and immediately 

 disappeared ; then came a large but unwary ant, its struggles to 

 escape being very violent ; those curious little jets of sand, 

 described by Kirby and Spence as being flirted by the insect's 

 tail, were promptly directed against the expected victim. But 

 the ant enjoyed a better fate than the fly, and escaped the fatal 

 jaws which lay concealed at the base of the conical hollow. The 

 Australian pit-fall was only about half the size of that made by 

 the European ant-lion." 



April 1st to 12th, 1836, was spent at the Keeling or Cocos 



