1889. J 



233 



side. The mother insects were alive at the beginning of August last ; they have 

 produced their trains of wool, laid eggs, died, and some of the eggs have been 

 hatched some time since, but mostly quite recently ; they have been kept in a room 

 at ordinary atmospheric temperature until within the present week." 



The larva of both species.— On December 19th Mr. Lewis wrote : — 

 " I enclose herewith outline drawings of recently hatched young of both species, 

 Ortonia natalensis received in May, and Icerya Purchasi received in November. 

 They are taken from fresh specimens killed and satm-ated without previous drying, 

 so that their natural shapes and proportions are retained. I have examined many 

 specimens, and though there are slight variations, the chief characters are so well 

 marked in all, that it is impossible to confuse the one with the other. Both species 



are drawn to the same scale, 

 with the same objective and 

 instrument. They are ex- 

 actly alike in colour — bodies 

 bright coral -red, legs and 

 antennae deep purple-brown. 

 Ortonia is much larger than 

 Icerya. Antennae of both 

 are closely similar as to 

 number and shape of joints, 

 but Ortonia has the terminal 

 fringed with fine short hairs, 

 whilst Icerya has four very 

 long hairs. Eyes are simple 

 g " lg " and alike in form and posi- 



tion in both. Legs are very much alike in both, claws the same, with two small 

 knobbed hairs. Hairs round the body distinctly different ; Icerya having small 

 hairs all round and six very long ones at the tail (Fig. 1), whereas Ortonia has 

 one long hair near each eye, one between each pair of legs, three behind each 

 hind-leg, and. four very long ones at the tail, in addition to numerous short ones. 

 (Fig. 2). 



" On turning out the Iceryce from the box I had great difficulty in finding any 

 larvse alive ; at length I met with a living adult, the only one yet seen, and under 

 this were a number of live ones." 



The larvae of Icerya agree exactly with the descriptions of Maskell 

 and Riley. The characters afforded by the larva of the Ortonia are 

 not only interesting in themselves, but, considered in conjunction with 

 those of the adult female (pp. 86, 87, ante), are efficiently indicative 

 of the distinct specific value of the form, and (as genera are now 

 estimated) of its generic value separate from Icerya. It does not at all 

 agree with Signoret's description of I. sacchari, which feeds on sugar 

 canes in Mauritius. Whether or not it will prove to be a true Ortonia 

 remains to be seen, when we know its male and the male and larva 

 of Ortonia. 



u 



