LIFE-HISTOET OF A WOKOPIILECUS. 149 



I have alluded to the augarj excretion. This ia poured out 

 very copiously during the whole of the developing-period up to 

 the time of fertilization, soon after which the scales cease feeding. 

 This sticky sugary liquid, which rapidly dries in the hot sun, 

 covers leaves and twigs, clogging up the stomata, runs down the 

 branches, and drips to the ground below in enormous quantities 

 when the insects are plentiful. This feature will be referred to 

 later on as it is of some importance. 



The male larva has not yet been found. I was successful in dis- 

 covering what undoubtedly were pupal cases. In some instances 

 dead male insects, half emerged from the cases, were secured. 

 They were found in the interstices of the rough bark of a felled 

 S&l-tree, protected by being placed on the portion lying adjacent 

 to the ground. The male insect matures about the middle of 

 March in favourable seasons, and may be seen on the wing for 

 some weeks, possibly as long as a month, until the female scales 

 have all or almost all matured. It is by no means so abundant 

 as the female, and later it pairs with several of these. It is a 

 very active creature, flying about over the serried masses of the 

 coccids or walking over the backs of the thick clusters. Its 

 method of fertilizing the female is as follows : — The male 

 flies or walks lightly up to the female scale, which is probably 

 engaged in sucking up the sap of a twig, alights or climbs on 

 to her dorsal surface, and then forces itself under her between 

 her ventral surface and the twig. It then inserts its anal 

 appendages into the anal aperture of the female, thus becoming 

 attached to hei*, and remains so attached even if she moves 

 about. When in coitu the male may be facing in the opposite 

 direction to the female, lyiug upon its back so to speak, or it 

 may curve its body up and over the anal segment, clinging with 

 its anterior legs to the dorsal surface of the last segments of the 

 female scale. It remains attached usually for several minutes. 



After fertilization the female scales appear to cease feeding, 

 leave the twigs, and march down the trees in search of con- 

 venient places to oviposit. It is at this stage more especially 

 that badly-infested forests appear to be alive with the insects — 

 trees, undergrowth, soil, stones, and dead fallen leaves being 

 covered with the crawling coccids. A few days would appear 

 to suffice for the eggs to develop within the body of the female ; 

 the females oviposit during the latter part of March and on 

 through April, the actual period depending upon the favour- 



