XVIU PROCEEDINGS OF THE 



found it eating decayed fish, and Mr. Ingpen had taken it both on 

 the sea shore and inhind. 



Mr. Westwood exhibited specimens and drawings of a minute 

 but very remarkable Hymenopterous parasite belonging to the 

 family Clialcididce, reared by the late M. Victor Audouin in the 

 nests of mason bees, near Paris, in which the antennte of the 

 males are singularly distorted, and the wings almost rudimental ; 

 thus offering a strikingly opposite analogy to other bee parasites, 

 such as Stylops, Meloe, and Sitaris. Mr. Westwood proposed for 

 this insect the name of Meliltohia Audoumii. 



A paper by Mr. F. Smith on the habits of Trypoxylon and 

 various other fossorial HtjmcnojAera was read. He also exhibited 

 various rare British CoJeoplera recently captured. 



Professor van der Hoeven (who was present as a visitor) ex- 

 hibited the larva of an CEstnis, which had been extracted from 

 the body of a female patient. Professor Essmark stated that an 

 analogous case had been communicated to the meeting of Natu- 

 ralists in Christiania in 1845 ; and Mr. Edward Doubleday gave 

 some particulars of two cases which had happened to himself 

 ■whilst in North America. He had heard of several similar cases, 

 amongst which was a child which had had three taken from its 

 neck. Mr. Newport remarked on the case which he had described 

 in the Transactions with reference to the question as to there 

 being a distinct CEslrus hominis. 



Mr. Westwood exhibited specimens of Phytocoris pabuUnus, a 

 Cimicideous insect, which had been sent to him by various corre- 

 spondents as the real cause of the potatoe disease. He had him- 

 self also observed it, as well as another closely allied species, on 

 potatoes at Hammersmith, but in such small numbers as to be 

 incapable of doing any material mischief to the plant. He also 

 read an extract from the Bristol Journal, in which an article had 

 appeared by Mr. Biggs, who described the disease as produced 

 by the attacks of insects, which, from the description, appeared to 

 be identical with Pliytocoris j^xthuUnus,* The operations of Aphides 

 on the hop had been cited by this and other writers as a proof of 

 the destructive powers of these insects ; but even in the worst 

 cases the vitality of the hop plant was never destroyed as in the 

 potatoe. He also stated, on the authority of Mr. J. E. Gray, 

 that thi'ee distinct species of Aphis had been obtained from Mr. 

 Topping, the referee of Mr. A. Smee, as the real Aphis vastator 

 of the latter. Mr. E. Doubleday confirmed this statement, and 



* P.S. The iasect proves to be a species of Pcdura. 



