APTEROCOCCUS FEAXINI. 213 



Cheltenham and Stroud. I also discovered a few 

 females on an old isolated tree trunk at Saxthorpe, in 

 Norfolk ; but after diligent search for it in several 

 other places between the last-named locality and 

 Aylsham I failed to discover it. I have also seen a 

 few examples at Tring, King's Langley, and St. 

 Albans, in which localities it appears to be rare ; but I 

 had not the opportunity of making long and extended 

 search for it. 



Distribution. Dr. Karel Sulc has found this species 

 in Bohemia. But I am not aware that it has been 

 found elsewhere on the continent of Europe ; and, 

 seeing that Signoret did not meet with the insect, it is 

 probably extremely local. 



Habits. In 1896 I found that the females had com- 

 pleted egg-laying by the 21st of May, and on the 10th 

 of June following the larvse were swarming. Pupation 

 takes place in September, and the males appear early 

 in October, and continue to emerge throughout the 

 month and during the early part of November. At 

 the period of fecundation the females are ovate in 

 form, but at the period of parturition they become 

 very tumid and almost globose. The males, which 

 were discovered in the year 1895, are very hardy, 

 and become active with the first gleam of sunshine. 

 I have seen them at the end of October, after four 

 degrees of frost, running over the sunlit bark in search 

 of their partners as early as 8.30 a.m. ; while those in 

 shadow on the opposite side of the tree were to all 

 appearance quite torpid. In 1895-6, when I gave 

 particular attention to this interesting species, I found 

 the males extremely abundant and in about equal 

 numbers to the females. 



EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. 



PI. C, fig. 2, Vol. I. Photograph of the insects natural 

 size in situ on bark of the ash. 



