Melittomma insiclare, and Dascillus cervinus. 279 



remarkable and peculiar characters of the 9th segment 

 of the abdomen. 



The larva is of a pale yellowish-white colour, with the mandibles, 

 the fore margin of the head, and the greater part of the terminal 

 (ninth) abdominal segment blackish-brown. In general structure it 

 agrees very well with the larva of Lymexylon navale, the head being 

 rather small, strongly convex or almost rounded, turned downwards, 

 and well exserted from the prothorax ; the latter large, considerably 

 raised and obtusely protuberant in front ; the legs rather widely 

 separated by the sternal plates, the coxse exserted and rather long, 

 and the legs in other respects resembling those of Lymexylon, It 

 differs considerably however in the form of the 9th segment of the 

 abdomen. This segment is strongly chitinissd and has the form of 

 a short cylinder, gradually widened out behind, obliquely truncated 

 at the apex, and there hollowed out in the form of a deep concave 

 depression, the surface of which is sti'ongly chitinised, and marked 

 by a number (18 or 19) of large pits, each with a raised circular rim 

 and with a flat round tubercle in the middle. Twelve of these pits 

 form an outer ring, and five an inner ring within which are placed 

 the remaining one or two pits. The depression is sharply edged all 

 round, and dorsally and laterally the edge is somewhat serrated ; 

 while, corresponding with the serrations, the outer surface of the 

 segment is marked near the apical edge with short longitudinal 

 striae. It is only however in the larger larv.ne that the pits in 

 the apical depression have the character just described ; in smaller 

 larva3, they are smaller in size, less approximated to each other, and 

 without the raised rim. At the base of the 9tli segment on the 

 ventral side, the 10th or anal segment protrudes to form a sort of 

 pseudopod ; the surface of this segment on the jiarts bordering on 

 the anal opening, are somewhat granulose or shagreened. 



In a larva measuring 25 mm. in length, the head has a transverse 

 diameter of 2i mm., the pronotum is 4} mm. Ijroad, and 3 mm. long, 

 and the 9th segment of the abdomen is slightly more than 3 mm. 

 in diameter each way. The head is marked with a median sutural 

 line extending forwards from the occiput for some distance and then 

 dividing to be continued as two oblique lines ; the epistome is rather 

 long, gradually narrowed to the end, where it gives attachment to a 

 short narrow labrum ; the mandibles are short and robust, somewhat 

 triangular in form ; the maxilhe are provided with a single obtuse 

 setigerous lobe, and 4-jointed palpi ; the labial palpi 3-jointed, the 

 ligula narrow, rounded at the end ; antenna) short, 3-jointed. The 

 raised anterior part of the pronotum has a somewhat roughened or 

 shagreened surface, and in large s])ecimens is partly chitinised and of 



