outline of the Life History of Lycaena arion. 309 



and a second specimen was identical. The double pellets 

 easily resolved themselves into two single ones when 

 handled, and about two dozen of these single pellets were 

 retrieved. 



The glass had been put into the nest clean on September 

 6th. 



A specimen contained jaws of ant larvae. 



September 9th. — The ant midden was found this morn- 

 ing to contain nine of the rounded pellets of arion' s dejecta ; 

 they contained several jaws, etc. ; in one case the two jaws 

 were still connected together by portions of the head. In 

 all the examples mounted the hairs are often, perhaps 

 u^Sually, connected, a few together, by portions of the 

 larval skin of the ant, as was not the case with the 

 specimens from the spring (wild) larva. 



I have never succeeded in seeing the larva eating, but 

 the form of the rooms of the nest, with the Lycaenid habit 

 of carrying the head withdrawn under the prothorax, 

 make such an observation dijBEicult, if indeed possible. 

 The larva very usually has a position, with the head against 

 the little mass of brood, and itself amongst the ants sur- 

 rounding it. I say little mass of brood because there are 

 not a great many larvae and pupae, the nest not being 

 strong and the arion largely depleting them, of course. 

 At other times the arion larva is, say, anywhere, owing 

 probably to the ants not unfrequently changing the posi- 

 tion of the brood nest, in accordance, I imagine, with the 

 failure of my efforts to maintain for them a uniform damp- 

 ness, and with my so frequently disturbing them for 

 observation. 



September 13th. — The larva has not been so well for a 

 few days, has more lines of dirt (?) on it, and to-day only 

 one small (supposed) faecal deposit is found. 



September 14th. — Larva lies this morning on its side, 

 dead, very little shrunk, no cause of death obvious except 

 the black lines suggesting fungus disease. No deposits 

 this morning. 



After this date nothing at all resembling the arion 

 excreta have been found in either nest. It occurred to 

 me that it might be suggested that the ants, perchance, 

 tore up the larval skins when they were cast, on change to 

 pupa, and carried them out mixed with some soft material 

 to the midden, and that the arion excreta were really 

 ordinary ant products. Both before and after the death 



