502 Mr. C. L. Witliycombe's Notes on 



desirable. They are selected from a large number of 

 similar examples. 



At the commencement of the account of each species, 

 a short summary of salient features is given. This is not 

 intended to be a description of the species, but merely an 

 enumeration of certain characters which appear to me to be 

 typical and useful. 



I am indebted to several gentlemen for their kind assist- 

 ance, and would now express my sincere thanks to Prof. 

 H. M. Lefroy for ha^dng afforded me every facility for the 

 carrying out of this work, and for help in many ways; 

 to Dr. J. Waterston and Dr. A. Roman for the identifi- 

 cation of all parasitic Hymenoptera ; to Mr. F. Laing, who 

 has named for me a large number of apliids, psyliids and 

 coccids, on which Neuropterous larvae have been found 

 preying — unfortunately the complete list cannot be in- 

 cluded; to Mr. W. E. China, without whose help in 

 obtaining the necessary material, the life-histories of 

 Syni'pherohius pjjgmaeus and Micromus ixtganus v/ould not 

 have appeared. 



General Features and Life-cycle of Neuroptera. 



The egg is of oval shape, sometimes flattened. It is 

 laid on its side or stalked at the anti-micropylar pole. The 

 chorion may be smooth or pitted from the impressions of 

 the follicle cells previous to laying. Ornamentation cannot 

 always be ascribed simply to this cause, e. g. the projections 

 on the chorion of the egg of Boriomyia concinna, which 

 occur in the place of pits. The micropylar apparatus often 

 takes the form of a knob. This may be slightly stalked or 

 flattened and inconspicuous. 



The embryology will not be described here, but the 

 hatching is of particular importance (Plate XXXIX, figs. 

 2-4). There is always a saw-like egg-breaker, and a com- 

 plete skin, sheathing all the appendages, is cast before 

 leaving the eggshell. While referring to this skin as 

 the amnion, I do so believing it to be the correct desig- 

 nation, although I have as yet not definitely proved this to 

 be the case. The embryo, then, when about to hatch is 

 enveloped in the amnion, and, as part of this amnion, lying 

 with its anterior third over the labrum-clypeus of the future 

 larva, is the saw-like egg-breaker. This saw lies in the 

 middle line, mainly over the mouth-parts, but, as stated, 



