113 



UPON MATERNAL SOLICITUDE IN RHYNCHOTA AND 

 OTHER NON-SOCIAL INSECTS. 



By G. W. Kirkaldy. 



Since my brief note on this subject (Entom. 1902, vol. xxxv. 

 pp. 319-20) I have seen a lengthy paper by the celebrated J. H. 

 Fabre [5]* on " Pentatomas," in which he ridicules De Geer's 

 account, and consigns the whole recital to the limbo of fairy 

 tales. 



I have therefore looked up the literature of the subject, and 

 have now summarized it, in the hope that some of the readers of 

 * The Entomologist ' may be disposed to give the phenomena their 

 attention during the ensuing months. 



(a) Orders other than Rhynchota. 



The earliest reference to parental care in non- social insects 

 appears to be that of Goedaert [9], who states that the mole- 

 crickets {Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa (Linn.) ) take particular care of 

 their eggs, raising up the nests in a hot and dry season so that 

 the young almost touch the surface of the earth, and are thereby 

 cherished by the sun's heat ; contrariwise they sink the nests 

 down when the air is cold and moist. They also act as unceasing 

 sentinels round the nest. Rosel [22] cites the above account, 

 and gives a coloured sectional drawing of the nest and eggs. 

 Audouin [1] states that all authors agree in saying that the 

 mole-cricket takes the greatest care of its young, but Goedaert 

 is the only author I can trace who relates his personal observa- 

 tions. 



The discovery of the maternal solicitude of the earwig {For- 

 ficula auricularia, Linne) by Frisch [6], confirmed and extended 

 byDeGeer [8], Rennie [21], Kirby and Spence [14], Camerano 

 [4] , &c., is so well known and authentically established by recent 

 observati(ms, that it is not necessary to dwell upon it. Sharp 

 [23] states that Lahidura riparia " is said to move its eggs from 

 place to place, so as to keep them in situations favourable for 

 their development," but I have not been able to trace the original 

 source of this statement. Burr [3] also notes that " a certain 

 entomologist" (Col. Bingham) "once told me that in Burmah, 

 while sitting round the camp fire one night, they disturbed a 

 large earwig who was guarding a little batch of eggs. Her first 

 care was not for herself, but for her eggs. She showed great 

 concern for their safety." 



In the Hymenoptera, I do not refer to the well- authenticated 

 instances of maternal providence in the Sphegidae and other 

 families, this notice being confined to actual personal and con- 



* These numbers refer to the bibliography at the close of the paper. 



