SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



Latreille which lias been recorded from many 

 parts of Europe. The latter is ;i very slow-crawl- 

 ing mite, and lives a long time in confinement 



IAmmoclia/re& holosericea Latreille. 



Female. — Body about 3 mm. in length and 

 aboul '1 mm. broad. They vary much in size, even 

 in the adults, but the measures given are mean. 

 I have taken females extended with ova, as much 

 as 4 mm. long. Colour scarlet, legs inclined to 

 yellow at the joints, but the same colour as body in 



Eyes. — Close together in two pairs, on each side 

 of small chitinous dorsal plates (fig. 3) which are 

 situated (fig. I) near the anterior dorsal margin. 



Fin. 2. L. holosericea. Dorsal surface. 



other parts. I can compare the shape of the body 

 to nothing better than a miniature sack, or bag of 

 the softest material, which is more striking still 

 when the mouth organs are well thrust forward. 

 The skin is full of folds which are constantly 

 changing their position, as the little creature 

 moves. The cuticle of the body is very soft, and 

 covered with small round papillae. 



Legs. — First pair about 1.20 mm. Fourth leg 

 about 1.76 mm. They are covered with a great 

 number of simple hairs. A few hairs on the joints 

 are plumose, but the limbs are quite without the 

 long swimming hairs we find on some other mites. 

 This species does not swim, but contents itself 



L. holosericea. Ventral surface of female. 



with sluggishly crawling among the. dehris at the 

 bottom of the tank. 



Epimera. — Chitinous with a border of thicker 

 skin round each epimeral plate, which is fringed 

 ■with a quantity of fine hairs. 



Fig. i. /.. holosericea. 



Eyes and dorsal plate. 



Pig. 5. /.. holo. Ha a. 

 .Mouth Organs and palpi. 



Mouth ORGANS. — (Fig. 5) Are suctorial, with a 

 short palpus which reaches no further forward 

 than the sucker-like mouth. 



Localities.— Not very common. I have taken 

 it at Woking, Sunningdale, Folkestone, Red Hill. 

 and in N. Wales. Dr. George has taken them in 

 Lincolnshire. 



GENUS MIDEA BRUZELIUS. 



Body hard-skinned, with a finely granulated 

 surface ; a depressed line on the dorsal surface 

 close to margin. Swimming hairs. Epimera in 

 one group. At present I only know of one species 

 in this genus. 



Midea elliptica Miiller, 1781. 



Body. — Female nearly round, being about 0.64 

 mm. long and 0.58 mm. in breadth. In colour 

 this is, I ithink, the most brightly tinted mite we 

 have in this country, when found at its best in 



Fit;. 6. M. elliptica. Dorsal surface of female. 



the adult stage. The colouring is due to two 

 causes : first, to the pigment in the skin ; secondly, 

 the contents of the body. On the dorsal surface 

 is a depressed line, which runs a little way in. 

 round the whole surface. Outside of this depressed 

 line the colouring is green and yellow. The eyes, 

 which come in the yellow portion, are a deep red. 

 Inside the depressed line, towards the anterior 

 portion, is a small oval patch, which is white. 

 The remaining part on which are situated most 

 of the dermal glands is blue, which varies much 



