Culicinae. 31 



17. GRABHAMIA PYGMAEA. Theobald.* 

 (Mono. Culicid. HI., p. 245, 1903.) 



General appearance. Somewhat like the former, but much 

 smaller, and the thorax creamy scaled, with two dark median 

 spots and a median dark line in front and a zigzag line around 

 the two spots in front and on the inner side. The metatarsi 

 show no trace of median banding, and there is no trace of a spot 

 at the base of the third long vein, and the wing scales are shorter 

 and rather broader than in Q. jamaicensis. The abdomen and 

 remainder very similar to the former species. The apical 

 abdominal bands are not divided except on the hindermost 

 segments. Thoracic ornamentation very variable ; one specimen 

 had pronounced dark-scaled areas. 



Geographical distribution. Antigua and Jamaica. 



Life-history and habits. The following notes and figures were 

 sent me by Dr. Grabham : " Two gorged specimens, captured on 

 a horse and introduced into breeding jars. A few eggs were laid 

 about thirty-six hours afterwards. The insects were then killed 

 and pinned. The eggs were deposited like those of the type, 

 separately on the surface of the water. They were comparatively 

 large, about |- mm. long, and somewhat narrow and covered with 

 hollow papillae curved at their apices towards the narrow end of 

 the ovum. The air chambers are quite different to those in 

 Stegomyia fasciata ova. The larvae hatched out two days after- 

 wards and were fully grown in eight days. The appearance of 

 the last three abdominal segments of the adult larva as in 

 the figure. Anal papillae, lanceolate, acuminate, as long as 

 the longest posterior hairs. A short chitinous collar around 

 the posterior half of the ninth segment strengthened on the 

 under surface by transverse bars. A pair of tufts of hairs 

 spring from the upper surface and eight to nine pairs from the 

 ventral surface. Respiratory siphon a little more than twice as 

 long as broad. At each of the postero-lateral margins a row of 

 four short, two to four branched, bristles. A pair of compound 

 plumose hairs at the upper border of the eighth segment, each 

 hair with six to seven trichae. A row of compound bristles at 

 the postero-lateral margin of the eighth segment, composed of 



* Colonel Giles, late I.M.S., has recently described this very marked 

 Grabliamia as a, new Taeniorliynchus T. antiguae in the Journal of 

 Tropical Medicine. The type is in the British Museum, and I have had 

 it placed in its true position. 



