142 Zoological Society. 



black bars, abbreviated ia front and behind, the two central ones being 

 longest in front, and the two lateral ones longest behind ; the two 

 former are united in front by a black streak from the front margin. 

 The scutellnm is dirty buff, with two dark dots at its extremity, from 

 which, as well as from various dark dots at the sides, arise long black 

 setse ; the halteres are nearly white. The wings are slightly stained 

 with dusky ; the veins black, except at the base of the wing, where 

 they are dirty-buflp. The legs are dirty-buff, with the outside of the 

 thighs stained with dark brown. The last two joints of the tarsi are 

 black, with large pulvilli. The abdomen is flat, oval in outline, and 

 dirty fulvous buff in colour, clothed above with numerous minute 

 black setse, which are greatly elongated at the base of the abdomen 

 and the extremity and sides of each segment ; the first segment is 

 marked at each side close to the anterior angle with a round black 

 spot, and each of the four following segments has a broad basal fascia 

 of dark brown, interrupted in the middle. The sides and under sur- 

 face of the thorax are varied with black patches ; the abdomen is 

 pale-coloured beneath, with a large terminal oval plate, down the 

 middle of which runs a pale longitudinal line, preceded by two small 

 oblique oval patches, thickly clothed with minute black setse. 



The peculiarities of the genus Glossina, whereby it is at once distin- 

 guished fromStomoxys, to which it is nearly allied, consist in the dilata- 

 tion of the extremity of the discoidal cell, the rounded horny bulbous 

 base of the proboscis, which is not angulated at its base, and the long 

 and slender flattened palpi, which together form a sheath protecting 

 the proboscis. Wiedemann's typical species (which has remained 

 unique to the present time), Glossina longipalpis, (subsequently de- 

 scribed by Robineau Desvoidy under the name of Nemorhina pal- 

 palis,) is a native of Sierra Leone, where it was collected by Afzelius. 

 M. Macquart, judging from the structure of the mouth, considers it 

 probable that it does not live upon the blood of animals, like Sto- 

 moxys, but upon the nectar of flowers ; the two setse which are en- 

 closed in the proboscis and compose the sucker being so slender, that 

 it is difficult to conceive that they can pierce the skin, the palpi being 

 also elongated so as to form a protection to it, and thus further indi- 

 cating its weakness. There is however so great a difference between 

 the structure of the proboscis in these insects and Stomoxys, that I do 

 not doubt that they are able to pierce the skin of ahorse, the proboscis 

 of Glossina being a long, straight, horny, needle-like instrument, and 

 not elbowed, with fleshy lips, as is that of Stomoxys. Moreover, the 

 bulbous dilated base of the proboscis must evidently play an import- 

 ant part in the economy of the insect, either by giving additional 

 support to the proboscis when in the act of piercing the skin, or by 

 containing powerful muscles for the action of the enclosed setae ; or, 

 as suggested to me by Prof. Owen, this dilated base may be analogous 

 to the dilated base of the sting of the Scorpion, and like it contain a 

 reservoir of some powerfully poisonous liquid. 



The account of the irritating powers of the Glossina given by Cap- 

 tain Vardon is, it is true, not so detailed as could have been desired, 

 but we learn sufficient to arrive at the conclusion that its effects are. 



