4 Sir S. S. Saunders' descriptions 



of the eyes, small trigonate biclentate mandibles, and 

 short fleshy four-jointed antennae, porrected in front ; the 

 1st joint small and trigonate, recurved at the base ; the 

 2nd larger and subovate ; the 3rd shorter, its basal 

 moiety contracted and curved ; and the terminal joint 

 oblong, tumid and setose at the apex. It may be 

 readily distinguished from all others by its elongate, 

 straight, anterior femora, as long as the prothorax,. and 

 closely pressed against its sides, with very diminutive 

 broad crenated tibiae, compressed five-jointed tarsi, and 

 stout claws. The pronotum is very large and scudiform, 

 the mesonotum short and transverse, and the metanotum 

 narrower and rounded behind. The middle pair of legs 

 (which are very long and slender in Blastophaga) are 

 rather shorter than the others, with the femora sub- 

 globose, the hind tibiae short and straight, and their 

 tarsi, like those of the posterior pair, having five well- 

 developed joints nearly ecpual in length, with moderate 

 claws and long pulvilli. The coxae and femora of the 

 hind legs are very robust ; the tarsi shorter than the 

 middle pair, subtrigonate, and very broad at the apex, 

 obliquely truncate, and armed with several stout spines ; 

 the claws rather larger than those of the intermediate 

 tarsi, and internally dilated. 



I propose to designate this very remarkable genus and 

 species by the name of Eupristina masoni, as distinguished 

 from all others by the wing-veins, and by the duplex 

 character of the serrate mandibular appendages in the 

 female, as well as by the peculiar structure of the fore 

 legs in the male. The practical application of the 

 additional lobe attached to the base of the serrate 

 spatulas, furnished with a collateral series of long teeth, 

 may seem scarcely intelligible, although the action of 

 the former is sufficiently obvious while the females are 

 seen working their way out of the pericarps, swaying 

 their heads to and fro to effect their emancipation. When, 

 however, the fig is laid open, the seed-vessels, deprived 

 of their usual moisture, soon assume a pergameneous 

 consistency, retaining the hapless inmates by the 

 thoracical region unless fresh moisture be freely applied. 

 This difficulty may not unfrequently occur in a warm 

 temperature, when the lateral lobe may be available as 

 an additional aid to prevent the sides of the aperture 

 •from prematurely closing, and enable the serrate process 

 to operate more freely and efficaciously by such double 

 action. 



