240 Mr. E. E. Austen on Necrophagous Diptera. 



Insects during the Flowering of Aram crinitum. Ait."*, 

 states that the spathe of this flower " diffuses so strong an 

 odour of putrid flesh that tlie insects which deposit their eggs 

 upon decomposing animal matters are attracted by it." 

 Lucilia casar, L., visits the flower in numbers and oviposits 

 among the viscous liairs lining the interior of the spathe. All 

 the flies found by M. Schnetzler at the bottom of the spathe 

 were dead, and the author gives reasons for considering that 

 the insects may furnish nitrogenous nutriment to the plant 

 through the medium of fluid contained in certain hairs which 

 clothe a great part of the inner surface of the spathe. Other 

 flies, however, less pressed to oviposit may not penetrate 

 further than the stamens, and may thence convey the pollen 

 to the stigmas or fly away to lay their eggs in the spathe of 

 another plant, on the stigmas of which they deposit the 

 pollen which they have carried away from the stamens of the 

 former one. Doubtless the Trinidad flies perform a similar 

 office for Aristolochia. 



Dr. Ch. Coquerel, in discussing the reason why Compsomyia 

 macellarm, Fabr., sometimes attacks man, mentions that the 

 blow-fly [Calliphora vomitoria^ L.) f oviposits on Arum 

 dracunculus, L. {= Draciinculus vulgaris, Schott), being 

 deceived by the corpse-like odour of the plant \. 



Mr. H. O. Forbes, in recording the discovery of "a fine 

 new species of that curious family the E,afflesiacege," which 

 he found growing on the side of the volcano called Dempo, 

 in Sumatra, writes : — " It smelt powerfully of putrid flesh, 

 and was infested with a crowd of flies, which followed me 

 all the way as I carried it home " §. 



Lastly, I am informed by Lieut.-Col. C. T. Bingham that 

 Amor phojjh alius campanulatus, Hoxb., an arum which has 

 been introduced into S. Tenasserim by the Malays and is 

 now very conimon in that district, gives off a most over- 

 powering and fetid odour of carrion from its livid purple 

 spadix, and is most attractive to flies. 



• Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist. ser. 5, vol. iv. pp. 399-400 (' Uomptes 

 Rendus,' Sept. 8, 1879, p. 5U8). 



t ? C. eryihrocephala, Mg. 



t Coquerel, Ann. Soc. Ent. Fr. s^r. 3, t. vi. (1858) p. 176. 



§ Heury O. Forbes, * A Naturalist's Wanderings in the Eastern Archi- 

 pelago ' (1885), p. 206. 



