THE CANADIAIJ ENTOMOLOGIST. d 



The chief point of interest in this case is the luminosity of a Larva. 

 Everyone in this country is well acquainted with the light-giving powers of 

 our eommoa winged "Fire-flies," and most of us have seen specimens of the 

 female apterous *' Glow-worm " found in England ; but that a larva should 

 possess this singular property is a novelty to us all. On looking up various 

 authorities I find that Westwood mentions that the males, pupas, larvae, and 

 even the eggs of the English Glow-worm are slightly luminous ; and Kirby 

 and Spence refer to a few similar instances. The last mentioned authors 

 (Letter xxv.) also give an account of the various theories respecting the origin 

 of this light, to which we would refer our readers. Professor Croft, who 

 examined my specimen at London, has since written to me as follows : — 

 "Burmeister found the larva of Lampyris splendidvla phosporescent — he 

 does not say how. Treviranus seems to have found that the light-giving 

 substance (whatever it is) is diffused throughout the whole body of the insect, 

 and that the appearance of the light in the thorax of Elater noctilucus, and 

 in the abdomen of the different species of Lampyris is due to these special 

 portions being composed of a fatty matter which allows the light to pass 

 through. It is generally believed that the light-giving substance is Phosphorus 

 or some compound thereof, the light being caused by the air supplied by the 

 breathing apparatus. Now, if we allow this to be true, i.e. that the whole 

 of the body of the insect becomes luminous under peculiar conditions, then, 

 as your larva was composed of dark brown segments separated by lighter 

 partitions, which apparently expanded as the heart moved, we can account for 

 the very beautiful appearance it exhibited — the light shining through the 

 paler or fatty-covered portions. It may perhaps be the larvas of a Lampyris." 



Should any of our readers have met with similar larvae, or be able to afford 

 us any information on this interesting subject, we shall be very glad indeed 

 to hear from them. 



ENTOMOLOGICAL NOTES. [/ 



PAPER No. 1. 



BY W. SAUNDERS, LONDON, ONTARIO. 



On the morning of the 12th May, while rambling about on the edge of a 

 wood near London, I happened to observe some chips from a newly felled 

 tree strewing the ground. While turning them over in search of insects, the 

 sight of an object I had never seen before excited my curiosity. It was the 

 full grown larva of a butterfly — a Polyommatus or Thecla — I was not sure 

 which. It had just stretched a silken thread across its body to aid in secur- 

 ing it to the spot selected in which to pass the chrysalis stage of its existence. 



