Maskell. — On New Zealand Coccidas. 135 



partly because it has, he says, seven -jointed antennas. I am unable to 

 agree with hirn : at least, after examination of many specimens I can only 

 detect six, though certainly one of them sometimes appears double. In 

 Eriococcus hoheri®, mihi, there is no room for doubt. But this character of 

 the antennae is, as Mr. Comstock admits, most uncertain. It will be seen 

 below that the two insects which J propose to place under Rhizococcus have 

 less than seven joints in the antennae. 



Genus Rhizococcus, Signoret. 



M. Signoret and Mr. Comstock agree in attributing to this genus the 

 distinctions of— 1st, seven-jointed antenna? ; and 2nd, absence of cottony 

 sac, at least until gestation. I am doubtful how far either of these may be 

 really sufficient : but probably the second may be admitted : the first is of 

 no value. I think, with Mr. Comstock himself (Ann. Eeport of the Dep. 

 of Agric, 1830, p. 339, note), that it would be best to include all under 

 Eriococcus. 



1. Rhizococcus celmisia, sp.nov. 

 Figs. 33-35. 



Female (fig. 33) deep red in colour, of oval outline, convex above and 

 flattened below ; length about T * r inch. The segments of the body are not 

 very distinct. The abdomen ends in two large and conspicuous anal 

 tubercles, each of which bears one strong and fairly long terminal seta and 

 three other spines (fig. 34). The anal ring has eight hairs. Antennas 

 (fig. 35) of six joints, sometimes looking .like seven. Mentum doubtfully 

 di-merous. The four digitules of the foot are long fine hairs. The tibia is 

 a little shorter than the tarsus (a character exceptional in an adult insect, 

 occurring only in this genus and Acanthococcus). The trochanter bears one 

 long hair and two short ones. A few large conical spines (spinnerets) are 

 scattered over the body, and a row of smaller ones, like hairs with tuber- 

 cular bases, runs transversely on each segment : also some circular spinne- 

 rets. At the edge of the body, all round, is a row of the large conical 

 spines, which are set in groups of three on the posterior segments, of four 

 or five on the median segments, and almost continuous on the head. When 

 the insect is alive these spines are often agglutinated with cottony secretion 

 so as to give the appearance of a short fringe. The four spiracles are 

 somewhat large and circular. 



On Celmisia, sp., from the Southern Alps. 



I have only one stage of this insect, the adult female before gestation, 

 and cannot say precisely what sort of sac, if any, it forms. But this would 

 be probably normal. The insect differs from the European R. gnidii in 

 size, colour, and habitat, in the digitules of the foot, and in the grouping of 

 the conical spines of the edge, which are only in pairs in R. gnidii, 



