Ixxxiii 



Cecidomyid. The main interest at the time was in the fact 

 that the larvae grouped themselves in star -shaped clusters of 

 from six to forty individuals (photograph exhibited) with 

 their anterior extremities directed inwards to a point. In 

 this way they were evidently feeding. About one hundred 

 clusters were seen along two feet of the birch trunk, after 

 stripping. A few clusters were secured, and these emerged 

 as flies late in June. 



" Mr. F. W. Edwards of the British Museum (Natural 

 History) has very kindly identified the insect for me and 

 reports as follows : — ' The Cecidomyid is apparently Miastor 

 hastatus Kiefier, which was reared from larvae found under 

 hornbeam bark in Lorraine. This species differs from M. 

 melroloas Meinert, as figured by Kahle (Zoologica, Heft 55, 

 1908), in having larger eyes and a much more curved radial 

 sector. M. hastatus is quite possibly identical with the 

 earlier but insufficiently described M. hospes Winn.' 



" Mr. Edwards informs me that adults of the genus Miastor 

 have not previously been recorded as British, although larvae, 

 possibly of this genus, are recorded by Bagnall (Lanes. & 

 Ches. Nat., 1918). 



" Miastor is, of course, the classical example of paedo- 

 genesis in insects, several larvae being produced in the interior 

 of a single parent larva by internal budding. These then 

 escajDe by rupture of the parent body wall and commence 

 independent existence. It would be interesting to know 

 whether each star-shaped colony is the produce of a single 

 paedogenetic larva." 



This exhibit gave rise to a discussion on the phenomenon 

 of paedogenesis in which Messrs. Collin and Blair and 

 Dr. Imms took part. 



The shrew-like appearance of a Lasiocampid moth 

 FROM Java.^ — Prof. PouLTON exhibited a photograph just 

 received from Dr. Th. Mortensen, of the moth Suana concolor 

 Wlk., in the attitude of rest. In this position the resemblance, 

 both in size and shape, to a shrew was very striking, but 

 inasmuch as Dr. Mortensen proposed to figure and describe 

 this example himself the discussion of detail was postponed 

 until after the appearance of his paper. 



