696 JOURNAL, BOM HAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXI. 



have dropped dow n iu the course of three days. The oviposition was made 

 in the fixed end of the leaf which had shrivelled up into a few pouches, the 

 ootheca being deposited into one of such pouches. 



The soil in and about the gooseberry plot was moderately hard, very dry 

 and somewhat sandy. Digging showed absolutely no trace of any sub- 

 terranean insects that the newly hatched-out larvse might be expected to 

 feed upon nor any crannies or fissures through which they could easily 

 make their way deep into the earth. The place was not at all shady nor 

 well-protected from wind and rain, though the plant was in the midst of 

 numerous other similar plants. The season Avas just after the harvesting 

 of the fruits. 



Movement of the fly just prior to oviposition : — 



The Asilid was observed darting from place to i)lace apparently very 

 restlessly. It first perched on a green leaf, but left it at once and went 

 to another which was also discarded ; the next one was also rejected 

 and so also the fourth and so on for five times till it came across the 

 suitable leaf. 

 Manner of oviposition and posture of the fly while ovipositing : — 



The leaf was not quite horizontal with the ground but at some in- 

 clination and the Asilid sat at once parallel to the leaf, her face point- 

 ing down towards the ground and tail upwards to the plant. The 

 first position in which she happened to sit seemed quite convenient for 

 her, and she did not move about on the leaf to accommodate herself 

 more comfortably. 

 While ovipositing the tail was slightly curved all along pointing to a 

 fixed spot on the leaf ; probably the semi-fluid looking substance graduaUy 

 iiowed out to occupj'- the entire jiortion of the pouch. 



She was in that position for nearly ten minutes. Her wings rested in 

 repose, all the parts of her body remaining stationary save the tail which 

 was noticed moving in and out like the retractile sting of an aculeate 

 hymenoteron. With each moA-ement a very small quantity of white stuft" 

 could be faintly discerned to be coming out, but the fear of scaring away 

 the fly stood in the way of knowing then the exact nature of the substance 

 or the order in which the different constituents of the stuff were coming 

 out, though subsequent examination cleared both the difliculties. After 

 about ten minutes the fly suddenly flew away 

 The Ootheca : — 



It was very irregularly shaped, pretty firmly lodged iu the pouch of 

 the leaf the greater portion being concealed from view. At the first 

 sight it would give one the impression of white excreta of some birds 

 not infrequently seen on leaves and branches and a superficial exami- 

 nation did not reveal the existence of any eggs ; all that could be seen 

 was a very finely porous, frothlike white mass havirtg the consistency 



