378 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



with a large acute tooth just before the middle, projecting- 

 straight out ; beyond this the mandible is much slenderer. 



Tlie prothorax is remarkably long, being a third longer than 

 broad, and widest very near the hinder edge. The succeeding 

 segment is trapezoidal in form, as wide as long, and the third 

 segment is shorter than broad. The basal segment of the abdo- 

 men is very short, being three times as broad as long ; the re- 

 maining segments gradually increase in length. From the ninth 

 al)dominal ring arises a pair of remarkably long, four-jointed, 

 filamentary appendages as long as the whole body, except the 

 head ; the basal joint is as long as the succeeding ones, and the 

 fourth is half as long as the basal joint. A single long fine hair 

 arises from each joint, and three similar ones radiate from the 

 end of the last joint. The two last joints and base of the first 

 one are whitish, the remainder brown ; the bases of the first 

 joints are so dilated on the inside that they touch each other. 

 Between the anal stylets is the tenth segment of the abdomen ; 

 it is one-half as wide as the next segment, and is a little longer 

 than broad ; and terminated by two short, conical, contiguous 

 appendages, slightly separated at their base, however. The dor- 

 sal thickened plates extend far down the sides of each segment 

 of the abdomen ; below, is an oblong longitudinal brown plate. 

 The legs are long, and whitish at the base ; the hip joint (tro- 

 chanter) about as long as the tibia} ; tarsi longer than the tibiiij. 

 Tlie hind legs are nearly as long as the thorax and abdomen 

 together. The legs are covered thickly with stout hairs. The 

 body is .38 of an inch long, and the stylets .32 in addition. 



Dragon Flies. — These animals do great service, both in the 

 larval state when they live in ponds, and in the adult winged 

 stage, when they consume immense quantities of mosquitoes, 

 gall flics, midges and other noxious and troublesome insects. 

 In the young stages these insects live at bottom of ponds or 

 quiet brooks, and have the form figured on plate 1, figs. 10, 11. 

 Their ha!)its and structure are interesting, as ihey are very car- 

 uiverous and wily in their mode of attack. The labium, or 

 under lip, covers the face like a mask, concealing their jaws. 

 The pupa only differs from the larva in having rudiments of 

 wings. 



At a field meeting of the Essex Institute, held at Wakefield 

 in June, 18G9, Mr. F. W. Putnam, Director of the Peabody 



