46 NEW ZEALAND ENTOMOLOGY. 



(Fig. 4) being a male ; the female is slightly larger, and 

 much more stoutly built ; her antennae are filiform 1 , and 

 the limbs generally shorter. Both are equally common, 

 but the male is more often noticed, owing to his greater 

 activity. 



Family TIPULID,E. 

 Psychoda conspicillata (Plate IV., fig. 6). 



A common species, occurring plentifully on window 

 panes during August, and bearing a great superficial 

 resemblance to a small moth of the Tineina group, often 

 deceiving the novice in consequence. It is a beautiful 

 object for the microscope, the figure being a careful draw- 

 ing of the insect, seen with a power of about ten diameters. 

 I regret to say that its transformations are at present un- 

 known. 



Family TIPULID^:. 



Mycelophila antarctica, n.s. (Plate IV., fig. 5, 5 a larva, 

 5b pupa). 



Tolerably common in the vicinity of forest during the v 

 major part of the year. The larva (Fig. 5 a), is a small 

 elongate maggot of a pinkish colour ; it is a social insect, 

 inhabiting rotten pine logs, which it perforates with nume- 

 rous cylindrical burrows. These larvae, entirely confine their 

 attention to damp wood of a " pappy " consistency, leaving 

 the harder logs for the wood-boring Coleoptera, which are 

 provided with much stronger jaws. They consequently 

 do not injure the rafters and boards of houses, or other 

 valuable timbers. The pupa (Fig. 5b) is very elongate, 

 reposing in one of the burrows, previously constructed by 

 the larva. It probably breathes by means of its spiracles, 

 as no special organs of respiration are visible. The perfect 

 insect appears in a short time, flying sluggishly in the sun- 

 shine, the female possessing an enormous abdomen, which 



* Thread-like. 



