120 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



certainly three and probably four broods in the year, the first 

 appearing in April and early May, the second in June and July, 

 the third in August, and the fourth during September and Octo- 

 ber ; the individuals of this fourth brood no doubt deposit their 

 ova in larvse which hibernate, such as that of A. (L.) strigida, 

 which I have known to produce the parasite larva so early in the 

 year as the second week in March. 



The cocoon is brown, shining, and pensile (fig. 5). 



Bred on very many occasions from March 31st to May 15th, 

 from larvae of Agrotis (Lycophotia) strigula, and from June 12th 

 to July 4th from larvae of Cheimatobia hrumata ; also from larvte of 

 Thecla qiiercus, June 30th, 1909 ; Thecla betula, June 17th, 1912 ; 

 Poecilocampa populi, June 24th, 1910 ; Cilex glaucata, July 20th, 

 1911 ; Nola ciiculatella, June 29th, 1911 and July 5th, 1911 ) 

 Eupithecia abbreviata, July 5th, 1911 ; E. nanata, August 15th, 

 1913 ; Hybernia leucophcBaiia, July 3rd, 1913 ; Phibalocera quer- 

 cana, July 26th, 1911, and Cerostoma radiatella, July 9th, 1913. 



On July 27th, 1911, I bred a female specimen of the Ichneu- 

 monid Panargyroys csreus, and on July 7th, 1909 and July 4th, 

 1911, examples of Mesochorus crassimanus (Holmg.) from cocoons 

 of this species, the host in these cases being Cheimatobia brumata. 

 I have also obtained Mesochorus tetricus as a hyperparasite (April 

 13th, 1911), the host being A. (L.) strigula and a Chalchid {Peri- 

 lampus), rather commonly from cocoons of the second brood ; 

 the last-named remains within the cocoon through the winter as 

 a fully-formed imago, and emerges in the following spring. All 

 these hyperparasites gnaw irregular jagged holes when leaving 

 the cocoons (fig. 5). 



M. niger (Lyle). (Figs. 2 & 3). — This species was brought 

 forward by me as new in the ' Entomologist ' * for August, 1913, 

 and further notes appeared in the number for the following 

 month. It is a common solitary parasite of the larva of Hygro- 

 chroa {Pericallia) syringaria. I have recently discovered in my 

 collection a female which was bred from a larva of Ennomos 

 quercinaria, June 17th, 1911. This insect is lighter than any of 

 those bred from H. (P.) syringaria, the disc of the thorax and 

 stigma being fuscous, the second abdominal segment piceous, 

 and the antennae basally fulvous ; in all other respects it agrees 

 with the description. 



In both sexes the antennae are 25-27-jointed. 



M. melanostictus (Capron). — In Trans. Entom. Soc. 1887, 

 p. 115, Marshall describes this as a new species from five males, 

 and mentions that the description of the other sex which he 

 gives was communicated to him by Capron. 



Although my specimens agree with these descriptions in 

 most particulars, they differ in that the wings are distinctly 



* Vol. xlvi. pp. 244, 266. 



