578 MR. H. N. MOSELEY ON THE IKSECTS OP KERGUELEn's LAND. 



streams which have alpine sources. No doubt fine fish of this 

 species are captured in the Nerbudda, Kistna, Grodaverj, and 

 other rivers of the plains ; but the largest supply exista in the 

 Granges and Jumna, or those descending from the Himalayas. The 

 rivers which have their origin in the Himalayas have, exclusive of 

 springs, two great sources of replenishment : — fiirst (during the 

 hot months), from the melting of the ice and snow near their 

 sources ; secondly, by the rains which during the monsoon-time 

 assist in and increase this melting. 



The breediug-season is during the moonsoon-months, when the 

 rains occasion sudden floods in the hill-streams, at whicli period 

 their subsidence is often as rapid as their rise ; consequently 

 fishes ascending to breed have to complete that operation as 

 quickly as practicable, or a sudden subsidence of the river may cut 

 off their return to the plains. Whether due to some deleterious 

 action of snow-water, or more probably to the force of these snow- 

 fed currents, Indian Carps, as a riile, do not deposit their ova in 

 the main stream, but in the side affluents. Having effected 

 this, the parent fish rapidly descends to the main river, and 

 that of course before the appearance of the fry. The young 

 fish are rarely hatched out in sufficient time to be able to de- 

 scend to the rivers of the plains, and are consequently detained 

 until the next floods, when they are stronger and more able to 

 avoid their persecutors than they would be if they entered the 

 main stream immediately they were hatched. Their growth is 

 a,t first slow, probably from want of sufficient nourishment ; but 

 on the return of the rains they rapidly increase in size, and then 

 descend to the main rivers. 



Kemarks on the Insects of Kerguelen's Land *. 

 By H. N. MosELET, M.A., Naturalist to H.M.S. ' Challenger.' 



" The insects we found at Kerguelen were two apterous flies, 

 one as large as a house-fly, the other almost as big as a blow-fly, 

 an apterovis gnat (Cules) and a winged gnat, a small apterous (or 

 rather very short-winged) moth, two or three beetles (Cu7^cuUo 

 and Stapliylinid(s) , and three or four spiders {SciUici and a Trom- 

 hidiurn) . 



" The moth I found crawling upon the beds of the little Juneus. 

 The gnats are to be found about the dead seaweed &c. on the sea- 

 shore. The larger fly nestles at the base of the leaves oiPringlea, 



* This commiinication is an extract from a letter addressed to Dr. Hooker, 

 chiefly concerning the Plants of Kerguelen, and already published by the Society 

 in their Journal, Botany, No. 82, vol. xv. p. 53. Its zoological bearings, 

 however, may there be lost sight of; hence its present reprodviction. — Ed. 



