DESCRIPTIONS OF AUSTRALIAN ^SCHNIN^. 69 



July 28th, 1910, in very fresh but mature condition. Both sexes may be 

 seen careering about on warm days in August ahnost anywhere in the bush 

 near Sydney. In August 1905 they were especially common along the beach 

 at Manly. Pairing takes place from August to November, and the male 

 nearly always accompanies the female ivhile ovipositing, standing up vertically 

 out of the water with rapidly vibrating wings and supporting her as she lays 

 her eggs. These are of the usual elongate form, slightly larger than the eggs 

 of ^schna brevistyla, pale cream- or straw-colour ; and are placed carefully 

 by the female in the soft tissues of the leaves or stalks of water-plants. The 

 female often alights on the flat surface of a floating leaf, the male buoying 

 her up, and curves her abdomen completely round and under the leaf, 

 placing the eggs either in the stalk or in the under surface of the leaf itself. 

 This species, therefore, closely approaches many Agrionid?e in its method of 

 oviposition. Only very occasionally do females oviposit alone. 



Another important difference is that this species alone of all known 

 Australian JEschnince (except Gynacantha) lives in absolutely still water. 

 Its chief breeding-places are water-holes, lagoons, and the backwaters and 

 billabongs of rivers. It occurs also on sluggish creeks and rivers, when the 

 larvae inhabit the deepest parts of large still pools, never being found round 

 the edges, but only in the thick masses of reeds or water-weed nearer the 

 middle. 



The larva lives naturally in water-weed, and not on stems or sticks. It 

 preys on Agrionid larvse, and also on younger individuals of its own species. 

 It is most voracious, and sometimes occurs in immense numbers in small 

 pools. In August 1906, when a small pond near where I was living dried 

 Up, the damp water-weed was simply alive with nearly full-fed nymphs of 

 this species, which I picked up by the score. They were quite unable to 

 withstand drought, and within a few days were all dead. This drought 

 caused the species to become quite rare around Sydney for two years ; but in 

 1908 it was fairly connnon again. This fact, and the fact that half-grown 

 larvse can often be found in September, causes me to fix tivo years as the 

 normal time for the larva to reach maturity. 



The beautiful semi transparent green colouring of this larva is quite unique 

 amongst Australian ^schnince, and causes it to be recognisable at a glance 

 when dredged up. Through the integument the contractions of the rectum 

 and the pulsations of the dorsal vessel can be distinctly seen. (Juriously 

 enough, very young larvse are quite differently coloured, being either nearly 

 black or black with broad white bands running transversely, or, in fact, in 

 any stage of piebalduess ; some may be dull brown very much like young 

 larvae of ^scJina brevistyla. Piebald larvse are seldom found more than 

 12 mm. long.- 



Habitat. The whole continent of Australia ; Southern New Griiinea. Not 

 yet recorded from Tasmania. 



