﻿Dragonflies 
  and 
  tJieir 
  Preij. 
  497 
  

  

  far 
  more 
  numerous 
  than 
  the 
  females, 
  it 
  is 
  wortliy 
  of 
  remark 
  

   that, 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  twenty-two 
  individuals 
  taken 
  with 
  prey 
  in 
  

   Tropical 
  Africa 
  by 
  Dr. 
  G. 
  D. 
  H. 
  Carpenter, 
  Mr. 
  S. 
  A. 
  Neave, 
  

   and 
  Dr. 
  Jas. 
  J. 
  Simpson, 
  only 
  six 
  belong 
  to 
  the 
  numerically 
  

   superior 
  sex. 
  Indeed, 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  one 
  or 
  two 
  of 
  the 
  less 
  

   common 
  species, 
  tlie 
  present 
  females 
  are 
  the 
  first 
  representa- 
  

   tives 
  of 
  their 
  sex 
  which 
  have 
  been 
  yet 
  received 
  either 
  by 
  the 
  

   Imperial 
  Bureau 
  or 
  by 
  the 
  British 
  Museum. 
  

  

  It 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  tije 
  fact 
  that 
  Dragonflies 
  usually 
  disable 
  

   their 
  victims 
  by 
  crushing 
  or 
  biting 
  off 
  tiie 
  head, 
  and 
  this 
  

   mode 
  of 
  attack 
  is 
  very 
  well 
  illustrated 
  by 
  F. 
  Smith's 
  speci- 
  

   mens 
  oi.jEschna 
  cyanea 
  and 
  Apis 
  mellifera 
  (No. 
  21). 
  They 
  

   may 
  also 
  adopt 
  an 
  additional 
  safeguard 
  against 
  escape 
  by 
  

   cutting 
  off 
  the 
  wings 
  of 
  an 
  insect 
  which 
  is 
  particularly 
  active 
  

   or 
  restless, 
  and 
  this 
  removal 
  of 
  the 
  wings 
  has 
  been 
  the 
  

   subject 
  of 
  actual 
  observation. 
  It 
  is 
  not 
  quite 
  clear, 
  however, 
  

   whether 
  they 
  habitually 
  reject 
  the 
  wings 
  or 
  whether 
  tliey 
  

   sometimes 
  make 
  use 
  of 
  them 
  as 
  articles 
  of 
  food. 
  From 
  the 
  

   following 
  Tables 
  we 
  may 
  see 
  that 
  detached 
  wings 
  of 
  

   ]\[ycahsis 
  and 
  Danaida 
  butterflies 
  have 
  been 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  

   clutches 
  of 
  Dragonflies 
  (Nos. 
  18 
  and 
  25). 
  It 
  has 
  been 
  

   suggested 
  to 
  me 
  that 
  what 
  may 
  actually 
  happen 
  in 
  such 
  cases 
  

   is 
  this 
  — 
  that 
  the 
  Dragonfly 
  seizes 
  its 
  prey 
  by 
  one 
  wing 
  alone, 
  

   and 
  that 
  the 
  prey 
  subsequently 
  escapes 
  from 
  such 
  an 
  insecure 
  

   hold, 
  leaving 
  behiiid 
  it 
  a 
  wing 
  or 
  portion 
  of 
  a 
  wing. 
  But 
  I 
  

   am 
  inclined 
  to 
  think 
  that 
  wings 
  are 
  sometimes 
  actually 
  con- 
  

   sumed, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  the 
  abdomen, 
  and 
  this 
  view 
  flnds 
  some 
  

   support 
  from 
  the 
  position 
  in 
  the 
  Dragonfly's 
  jaws 
  of 
  the 
  

   butterfly 
  fragment 
  referred 
  to 
  in 
  case 
  No. 
  25. 
  This 
  frag- 
  

   ment, 
  which 
  is 
  still 
  in 
  situ, 
  consists 
  of 
  a 
  very 
  small 
  but 
  

   perfectly 
  recagnizable 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  right 
  fore 
  wing 
  of 
  

   Danaida 
  chrysippus. 
  One 
  of 
  its 
  edges 
  represents 
  the 
  outer 
  

   margin 
  of 
  the 
  wing, 
  but 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  this 
  edge 
  which 
  is 
  being 
  

   grasped 
  by 
  the 
  Dragonfly. 
  Upon 
  the 
  assumption 
  that 
  the 
  

   Dragonfly 
  had 
  torn 
  this 
  piece 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  butterfly^s 
  wing 
  in 
  

   an 
  unsuccessful 
  attempt 
  at 
  capture, 
  we 
  should 
  have 
  expected 
  

   to 
  find 
  the 
  Dragonfly 
  holding 
  it 
  by 
  the 
  natural 
  margin. 
  As 
  

   it 
  is, 
  it 
  seems 
  fairly 
  safe 
  to 
  conclude 
  that 
  the 
  Orthetrum 
  

   ■^vas 
  taken 
  in 
  the 
  act 
  of 
  making 
  a 
  meal 
  off 
  the 
  wing 
  of 
  the 
  

   Dayiaida. 
  

  

  The 
  habits 
  of 
  the 
  two 
  suborders 
  into 
  which 
  Dragonflies 
  

   e 
  divided 
  are 
  widely 
  different 
  in 
  character. 
  The 
  larger 
  and 
  

   v 
  conger 
  species 
  forming 
  the 
  bulk 
  of 
  the 
  Auisoptera 
  are 
  

   y 
  nilt 
  for 
  vigorous 
  and 
  sustained 
  flight, 
  and 
  they 
  may 
  be 
  seen 
  

   : 
  . 
  wking 
  to 
  and 
  fro 
  in 
  the 
  summer 
  sunshine, 
  much 
  as 
  

   - 
  , 
  allows 
  do. 
  The 
  feebler 
  Zygoptera, 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  hand, 
  

  

  Ann, 
  & 
  Mag. 
  N. 
  Hist. 
  Ser. 
  8. 
  Vol. 
  xiii. 
  34 
  

  

  