the Biology of some British Neuroptera. 539 



The life-history has already received attention else- 

 where (13). Eggs are laid mainly in two positions; either 

 a qnarter of an inch from the tip of a pine needle on its 

 inner flat face, or nnder the scaly wrapping at the base 

 of a pair of needles. They are laid singly, sometimes two 

 or three together. In form the egg is quite typical of 

 Hemerobiiis, oval, -7 mm. long x -3 mm. broad, with a 

 small micropylar knob and pitted chorion. At first the 

 colour is yellowish-Avhite, but later becomes brownish, 

 and signs of the developing embryo are visible from out- 

 side. Hatching takes place in nine days at 60° F., or 

 twenty-seven to thirty-six days at 45° F., in winter. 



The young larva is at first brownish-white in colour, 

 but next day dark markings on the head are visible. In 

 the second instar, the markings on the head and body are 

 the same as in the third instar, sometimes a little less 

 definite. 



Description of Third-instar Larva. (Plate XL, fig. 5.) 



Length when full fed about 7 mm. Colour creamy- to brownish- 

 white, with two latero-dorsal chocolate-coloured bands running the 

 length of the body. These vary in intensity. 



Head greyish-white, translucent. In the middle line is a wedge- 

 shaped, brown central mark, running from behind forward to the 

 anterior margin, where it is widest. Laterally the head is brown. 

 Eyes dark brown or black; antennae and palpi blackish. Jaws 

 greyish, becoming more brown at their apices. 



Body creamy-white sometimes tinged with brown or pink; in 

 winter, greyish. In the prothorax, just behind the head, the latero- 

 dorsal bands commence and run the length of the body. On all 

 the segments, except prothorax, these bands are formed by some- 

 what triangular dark-brown spots, which often become confluent. 

 In the prothorax the bands are narrower, and imbedded in them 

 are a pair of crescentic, greyish sclerites. Meso- and metathorax 

 have each, as usual, a pair of smaller sclerites. 



In the abdomen, the latero-dorsal bands continue, tapering to 

 the extremity. On each side of the body is a brown line, more or 

 less distinct. Ventrally the colour is uniformly greyish- or browTi- 

 ish-white. Legs smoky-white, with darker knees and tarsi. 



It will be seen from the description that there is very 

 little difference between this larva and that of other species 

 of Hemerobius. Since, however, //. stigma only occurs on 



