tlic Cijg-cascs and early stages of some Gassididie. 9 



so as to entirely conceal it. This small structure is there- 

 fore like those of the genus Cassida, though the insect, 

 having pectinated claws, is considered to be allied to 



Aspidomo7'2^ha. 



METAMORPHOSES. 



Much attention has been attracted to the extraordiuary 

 nature and habits of Cassididm larva?, and yet information 

 on the subject is extremely limited. The observations 

 here given add therefore considerably to our knowledge. 

 The following brief descriptions are supplemented by the 

 figures on Plates III — V. 



1. Asiyidomorpha punciicosta. 



PL III, figs. 20ft— 20/. 



The larva is about 7 mm. long when hatched out and 

 undergoes four moults at intervals of four or five days with 

 very slight alteration except in size ; at the fifth moult it 

 becomes a pupa, and remains in that condition for a week 

 or ten days before the imago comes forth. 



The pronotum is well developed, and the head can be 

 entirely retracted beneath it. It has four pairs of fleshy 

 spikes, two pointing cephalad and two laterad. The meso- 

 and metathorax are both well developed and each bear 

 two pairs of lateral spikes similar to those on the prothorax. 



The abdomen consists of ten visible segments. The 

 first nine each bear a pair of spikes similar to those of the 

 thorax. The eighth pair is slightly more ventrad than the 

 others, and the ninth pair greatly enlarged and much 

 more dorsad. When the larva is first hatched out the 

 ninth abdominal spikes are 15 mm, long, nearly twice the 

 length of the larva. These long spikes are carried over 

 the back by the last two segments being turned upwards. 

 When annoyed or alarmed several sharp flicks are given 

 with them. 



At each ecdysis the old skin is not cast entirely away, 

 but is retained on the ninth abdominal spikes and carried 

 over the back, thus a full-grown larva will have four old 

 skins of varying sizes to carry over its back and flick about 

 when annoyed. 



The tenth segment bears a pair of small beadlike pro- 

 tuberances, homologous to the spikes on the other segments, 



