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XVIII. On the Cynips Caricae of Hasselquist and other 

 Fig-Insects allied thereto ; with description of a new 

 species from Australia. By Sir Sidney Saunders, 

 O.M.G. 



[Bead September 5th, 1883.] 



Plate XVIII. 



In the 'Proceedings ' of this Society (1881, pp. xli — xlv) a 

 discussion is recorded respecting the Fig-Insects collected 

 by Hasselquist in the Levant about the middle of last 

 century, as described in his ' Iter Palaestinum,' edited 

 posthumously by Linnaeus in 1757. One of his species, 

 the Cynips Caricce, could never have been seen by 

 Linnaeus, who, misled by the equivocal description 

 thereof, subsequently united this species with Hassel- 

 quist's C. Ficus under the conjoint denomination of 

 C. Psenes ; the two being essentially distinct in many 

 respects, though found in the same fig ; the former 

 (inter alia) having a very long ovipositor — described as 

 " coryore duplo longior " — and the latter a very short one, 

 as exemplified by his specimens still extant in the 

 Linnean collection, the comparative length of which 

 organ had been omitted in the original diagnosis. In 

 fact these two insects must be referred to different 

 families, as Dr. Paul Meyer has already suggested in his 

 Treatise ' Zur Naturgeschichte der Feigeninsecten,' pub- 

 lished in 1882 (p. 583) ; the first belonging to the para- 

 sitic races, and the second being a genuine fig- seed 

 feeder (Blastophaga, Grav.) 



I have lately received from an intelligent correspondent 

 at Smyrna, Mr. C. D. Van Lennep, Swedish Consul 

 there, whose attention had been directed to the subject, 

 several specimens, now exhibited, apparently coinciding 

 with this long-lost Cynips Caricce. They were found, 

 like those of Hasselquist, in the wild Caprificus figs of 

 the autumnal crop which remain on the tree throughout 

 the winter, their insect occupants hybernating therein 

 in the larval state and being matured in the early 

 spring. But Mr. Van Lennep, who has been un- 

 remitting in his researches to this effect, has also 



TRANS. ENT. SOC. 1883. PART IV. (NOV.) 



