NOTE ON THE 0VIP08ITI0N OF RHYSSA. 



21 



corner in the rough bark with its long antennae. After a minute 

 or two of this it stopped, and drew up its long body, doubling the 

 long black ovipositor underneath itself; it had to hitch itself up 

 several times before it got the long needle into position under- 

 neath, with the tip in a crevice. Then it gripped the bark with 

 its claws and gradually thrust the ovipositor about half an inch 

 into the bark, then suddenly flew away, perhaps because it 

 had completed laying the eggs, perhaps because I had gone too 



close " 



Immediately after, I made the rough sketches of the beast 

 which accompany this note. These are probably a little larger 

 than life, although the insect was a very large one. I noted 

 that the abdomen was black and white, the legs pale, and the 

 antennas black. 



U.M.A.n.Mt> 



Explanation of Figures (diagrammatic). — 1. The insect reconnoitring 

 the bark with its antennae. 2. Getting the ovipositor into position. 3. The 

 insect just before flying away ; the ovipositor thrust home in a crevice. 

 (Sketched from hfe.) 



At the time I was unaware of the insect's identity, but on 

 seeing the specimens of Rhyssa exhibited at the Natural History 

 Museum this year, I at once recognised my old acquaintance, 

 and comparison of the other species of the genus in the cabinet 

 collections there leaves little, if any, doubt that this was 

 R. persuasoria. 



The figures will help to indicate the manner in which the 

 insect succeeded in bringing its unwieldy ovipositor to bear on 

 the log. As mentioned above, these were drawn before I left the 

 spot (with the exception of the second, which I have added now 

 to make the action clearer), and they are reproduced without 

 any change from my original rough drawings. As the insect 



