DRAGON-FLIES. 89 



than the palpi, and the eyes are not prolonged backwards. Several 

 species of this sub-family are very familiar insects, such as Libel- 

 Ma Depressa, Linn., a broad flattish insect, the female yellow, and 

 the male with the abdomen dusted with blue ; the wings expand 

 about two inches and a half. L. Quadrimaculata, Linn., is about 

 the same size, but more slender; it is yellow, and there are 

 two dark spots on the costa of each fore wing ; this latter species 

 is also found in North America. Several other yellow species, 

 about half the size of these (Diplax Scotica, Leach, and D. Flaveola, 

 Linn., etc.), are very common. Several handsome species of this 

 sub-family are natives of North America, two of which may 

 here be mentioned. Tramea Carolina, Linn., is a large blue 

 dragon-fly, measuring nearly four inches across the expanded 

 wings, which are transparent, except that the very broad hind 

 wings are brown at the base for almost a fifth of their length. 

 Libellula Pulchella, Drury, is a rather smaller species. The body is 

 brown, dusted with blue in the male, and with a yellow stripe on 

 each side, and each of the wings has a long brown spot at the 

 base, another large spot in the middle of the wing, extending 

 nearly across, and a third at the tip. 



Libellula Variegata, Linn., is a handsome East Indian species of 

 about the same size, but with rather short fore wings, and very 

 broad hind wings. The body is blue, and rather short and slender, 

 and the wings are dark yellow, varied with large reddish-brown 

 markings ; the extreme tip of the hind wings and the apical third 

 of the fore wings are transparent. A number of small species 

 with partially opaque wings are very common in West Africa ; one 

 of these is Libellula Portia, Drury. It is a blue dragon-fly, with 

 a rather broad body, and expands about an inch and a half across 

 the wings, which are blackish-brown on the front half, and trans- 

 parent below ; the dark portion is considerably excavated on its 

 lower edge, both towards the tip, in the middle, and (very slightly) 

 at the base. This, and several other species of similar shape, but 

 of different colours, are common in most collections of insects 

 received from tropical Africa. 



The Corduliince differ from the Libellulince in having the eyes 

 slightly prolonged hindwards. The genus Cordulia includes several 

 beautiful bronzy-green species with yellow markings, expanding 

 from two and a half to three inches ; the abdomen is rather slender, 

 but thickened towards the extremity. 



In the Gompliince the lower lip is larger than the palpi, and the 



