248 Transactions of the Academy of Science of St. Louis 
few hours to a day. At the close of the second phase, the 
copulatory organs are disengaged and the behavior is completed. 
The behavior of several individuals of C reophilus villosus 
(Grav.) is recorded by Rau (22:47-48). The pairs while mating 
walked around and even attempted to climb a string. Some- 
times individuals above ground tried to mate with those almost 
covered with earth. An account of copulation in Aleochara 
curtula Goeze is given by Kemner (26:137). The male pushes 
the fore part of his body under the abdomen of the female and 
with his own abdomen curved over his back the copulatory 
organs of the two are brought into contact. Kemner not only 
calls attention to this exceptional behavior but to this ability 
of the male to curve his abdomen enough to allow copulation. 
A very similar behavior is recorded by Donisthorpe (13:320) 
for Lomechusa strumosa F., “The male faces the back of the 
female, and pushing his head under her body, he raises himself 
on the tips of the front legs, nearly standing on his head. He 
bends the body right over his back, to reach the end of the 
female’s body, when she puts her body up to meet his. The 
posterior part of the male’s body opens and clasps that of the 
female, and coition takes place.” 
In the laboratory, in my own observations of Philonthus 
politus (L.), the male grasped the female with his mandibles 
and before he attempted to mount, the penis was extended 
posteriorly until it was entirely out of the body cavity, then it 
was bent ventrally thru an angle of almost 160°. As soon a3 
the copulatory organs were in place, the male fell to the side 
of the female while she struggled to escape. The entire process 
lasted only a few minutes but was probably disturbed by the 
light condition of the culture and the presence of an observer. 
In Staphylinus maculosus Grav., the behavior was very similar 
to that of Philonthus politus (L.), except that the process 
covered a longer period of time. I have taken species of the 
genus Stenus in copula in the field a number of times but have 
never seen the beginning of the a When found they 
were always end to end struggling to escape. Occasionally the 
reproductive organs were so firmly fcteaed that they were killed 
in cyanide before they became disengage 
Oviposition 
Xambeu (07:115) has probably based his general account 
of oviposition on his observations of Philonthus laminatus 
Creutry (reported by Xambeu 98:25 acc. Xambeu 07 :129) and 
Philonthus speldens Fabricius (reported by Xambeu 94:1 acc. 
to Xambeu 07:145). Oviposition (acc. Xambeu) occurs under 
or in decaying plant or animal material, which is apparently 
