339 



box containing a partially decomposed watermelon. The juices of the 

 melon had passed through the cracks in the bottom of the box, com- 

 pletely saturating the earth beneath it, and in this moistened soil the 

 larva; were running riot. They were first observed December 10, and 

 two of them assumed the adult form on the 24th of the same month, 

 the date of pupation not having been noted. 



In Europe, Gerckehas bred this species from mushrooms, while other 

 members of this genus have been bred from decaying vegetable and 

 animal substances, including insects, from garden mold, mushrooms, 

 the nests of wild bees, etc. 



Fig. 32. — Cyrtoneura ccsin : a, larva; /, adult— irreatly enlarged; h, anal end of larva; e, head of 

 larva ; g, head of adult— st ill more enlarged ; c, anal spiracular orifice of larva ; d, thoracic spiracular 

 opening of same: //, antenna of adult — still more highly magnified (original). 



The question naturally arises. Did the larv.e observed by Professor 

 Gillette really cause the death of the squash-vines, or were they sim- 

 ply scavengers that had followed the workings of some other insect? 

 In England an allied species, the Cyrtoneura stahulajis, is reported to 

 have been bred from onions infested with larvae of Phorbia cepartmi, 

 but in this instance the last-named insect was the destructive one, 

 while the Cyrtoneura evidently acted as a scavenger. May not the 

 case recorded by Professor Gillette be of precisely the same nature as 

 this one? 



