" Pediculus MeUttce " of Kirhi/. 115 



of their cells " (Linn. Trans., I. c, p. 315). The young 

 hexapod larvae of Sitaris, according to Fabre, remain 

 fasting for a considerable period — " sept on huit mois 

 d'abstinence absolue " (Ann. Sc. Nat., loc. cit., p. 326) — 

 before they can obtain access to the cells of the forth- 

 coming brood ; and, considering the opportunity which 

 is afforded to the incarcerated larvse of Melo'e of obtain- 

 ing some nutriment when thus unable to effect their 

 primary metamorphosis, there would seem to be nothing 

 unreasonable that they should be enabled to survive 

 until the newly-developed bees emerge with them early 

 in the ensuing spring, when (as Smith has observed) 

 they would be met with before the usual period for the 

 appearance of the ordinary Melo'e larvas, and ready to 

 avail themselves of another opportunity of finding a 

 suitable domicile. 



That such hybernating larvae, in their more mature 

 condition, should be of larger size and darker hue is by 

 no means incompatible with such preliminaries ; for 

 Newport comes " to the conclusion, in opposition (as he 

 says) to the opinion often advanced by others, that the 

 larvae grow slightly while on the bodies of the bees, 

 before they are conveyed to their nests " {loc. cit., 

 p. 325). So also with respect to colour, Newport has 

 observed that these larvae " become a little darker after 

 they have been several days from the egg" (L c, p. 311), 

 which a longer period would be likely to intensify ; so 

 that it would seem to be a natural consequence of such 

 protracted seclusion in a state of torpor within a closed 

 subterranean cell, that their aspect should be further 

 affected thereby in merging to pitchy black, as we find 

 them. 



It has been clearly determined that these are not the 

 newly-hatched larrce of any of the species of Meloe fre- 

 quenting Hampstead, all of which have been reared 

 from the egg by Newport as well as by Smith, while 

 perfectly coinciding therewith in all the minutiae of 

 structural details : nor can they be referred to any other 

 MeldidcB met with there ; neither can we hesitate to 

 recognise that in functional propensities they must in 

 like manner be closely allied to the aforesaid ; for it can- 

 not be entertained that these insects, endowed with all 

 the appliances so essential to the existence of the young 

 larvae of Meloe, should controvert all recognised doctrines 

 of analogy and affinity by riding steeple-chases at ran- 

 dom from place to place in mere idleness of sport. 



