ON INSECTS AND VERMES. 377 



tossing their heads, and rubbing their noses on each 

 other, regardless of the driver ; so that accidents 

 often ensue. In the heat of the day, men are 

 often obliged to desist from ploughing. Saddle- 

 horses are also very troublesome at such seasons. 

 Country people call this insect the nose fly. 



WHITE. 



Is not this insect the oestrus nasalis of Linnaeus, 

 so well described by Mr. Clark in the third volume 

 of the Linncean Transactions, under the name of oestrus 

 veterinus ? M ARK w i c K . 



ICHNEUMON FLY. I saw lately a small ichneumon 

 fly attack a spider much larger than itself on a grass 

 walk. When the spider made any resistance, the 

 ichneumon applied her tail to him, and stung him 

 with great vehemence, so that he soon became dead 

 and motionless. The ichneumon then running back- 

 wards, drew her prey very nimbly over the walk 

 into the standing grass. This spider would be de- 

 posited in some hole where the ichneumon would 

 lay some eggs ; and as soon as the eggs were 

 hatched, the carcase would afford ready food for the 

 maggots. 



Perhaps some eggs might be injected into the 

 body of the spider, in the act of stinging. Some 

 ichneumons deposit their eggs in the aurelia of moths 

 and butterflies. WHITE. 



In my Naturalist's Calendar for 1795, July 21st, 

 I find the following note : 



It is not uncommon for some of the species of 

 ichneumon flies to deposit their eggs in the chry- 

 salis of a butterfly. Some time ago, I put two of 

 the chrysalis of a butterfly into a box, and covered 

 it with gauze, to discover what species of butterfly 



