The Growth and Habits of Carausius morosus. 359 



producer ; when hatched out in order to free her hind-legs 

 from the shell I asphyxiated her temporarily and accident- 

 ally cut off one foot, which was not regenerated. No. 41 

 developed a constriction like that of No. 22, and an external 

 blood clot like that of No. 18. No. 100, which dropped 

 the most eggs of any, was deformed by interpolated 

 abdominal plates (see illustration), which evidently in 

 no wise affected her productive powers. I had other 

 insects similarly deformed and likewise good egg-bearers. 

 No. 43 lived 30 days longer in the First Period than any 

 others except the deformed No. 41. No. 65 abstained 

 from food for 29 days before succumbing. 



Egg-production. 



In Diagram I, the egg-production has been arranged in 

 spells of 15 consecutive days each, ignoring the quantity 

 dropped during the first spell of 15 days, during which the 

 daily average is only '5 eggs. The curves all seem to follow 

 a general plan, viz. the greatest maximum per spell of 

 15 days occurs almost immediately after the commencement 

 of egg-dropping, each succeeding maximum being lower 

 than the last, and ending usually in a sudden drop with an 

 occasional final rise. 



There are, however, many deviations from this plan, 

 some due probably to the individual peculiarities already 

 referred to. 



The average egg-production is 480 per insect, the highest 

 total reached by any one insect, No. 100, amounting to 

 712 eggs. 



The largest number of eggs laid in one day by one insect 

 (No. A) was 11, which happened to be her start off with egg- 

 dropping. Quantities of 10 and 9 are rare, but 8 and 7 

 eggs dropped in 24 hours by one insect are not rare, while 

 6 in a day are common enough. The highest total recorded 

 for 3 consecutive days is 20 (by No. 97), equal to 6'6 per 

 day, and for 15 consecutive days 63 (by No. 77), equal to 

 4'2 eggs per day. The average number of eggs dropped by 

 all the insects under observation as per Table VI is T8 per 

 day, but if we eliminate the imperfect or weak parents we 

 get a more normal average of 2 - 2 per insect per day. The 

 average record is affected in two ways : (1) by the interval 

 elapsing between the last ecdysis and first egg-dropping, 

 and (2) by the number of days lived after the last egg has 

 been dropped. As regards the first interval, it is present 



