XIX 



peculiar form of the palpi, which were specially adapted for collecting the 

 pollen, which it transferred to the stigmatic surface as the insect passed 

 from flower to flower. He pointed out the great importance of the insect 

 in the economy of nature, as it appeared to be the only agent by which the 

 plant was rendered fertile. He directed attention to a description of the 

 insect and its habits by Mr. Riley, in his ' Sixth Annual Report of the 

 Insects of Missouri.' 



Professor Westwood also exhibited some bees which had been sent to 

 him from Dublin, having been found attacking the hives of the honey bees. 

 They were smaller than the honey bee, and black, and he considered them 

 to be merely a degenerated variety of Apis mellifica. He suggested the 

 probability of their being identical with the "black bees" mentioned by 

 Hiiber. Also Hiiber had spoken of bees which he called " Captains," 

 which were furnished with "coronets" on their heads ; but he susjDected 

 that these coronets might have been merely the pollen which the insects 

 had collected. 



Mr. Champion exhibited Amara alpiua and other beetles taken at Avie- 

 more, in Inverness-shire. 



The Secretary exhibited larvae, pupae and imago of a Dipterous insect 

 which had been found, in the larva state, in an old Turkey carpet. The 

 larva was very long, slender and serpentiform, white and shining, and had 

 somewhat the appearance of a wireworm, only much longer and without 

 feet. Professor Westwood thought it might belong to the genus Sceuo- 

 pinus. 



Mr. Bond exhibited some minute parasites from a bat, probably identical 



with Argas pipistrelkie ; and also some Acari from a small species of fly : 



both were from the Isle of Wight. 



Mr. W. C. Boyd exhibited two specimens of Thecla Rubi from St. 



Leonard's Forest, differing from the ordinary type in having a pale spot 



in each fore wing. 



Mr. Wormald exhibited a collection of butterflies sent from Japan by 



Mr. H. S. Pryer. 



Mr. W. Cole exhibited leaves of ash affected by some small dipterous 



larvffi (probably Cecidomyia), which caused the two edges of the leaflets to 



turn upwards and meet above, thus assuming a pod-like form. They were 



from West Wickham Wood. 



Mr. F. Smith exhibited some earthen cocoons found in a salt marsh at 



Weymouth by Mr. Joshua Brown. They proved to belong to a dipterous 



insect (Mach^rium maritiraum), one of the Dolichopidoe. They were 



found lying on the wet, salt sand or mud, and mostly fell to pieces when 



touched. , , 



Mr. S. Stevens exhibited specimens of Agrotera nemorahs and other 



Lepidopterous insects from Abbot's Wood, Lewes. 



