1876.] 3. ^oodiM.!iiiOxi— Femoral BntsJies of t1ieM.2ini\([i£. 123 



Talchir. This specimen was f oiind on the surface near Hurichandpur. 

 It is the best formed of the series. The material is a vitreous quartzite not 

 inij)robahly derived from a vein. 



Smnbalpur. This specimen was found near Bursapali to the north of 

 the locality well known village of Kudderbuga. It has a pointed wedge- 

 shape. The material is a vitreous quartzite. 



6. On the femoral Brushes of the Mantidse and their Function. — 

 By J. Wood-Mason, Esq. 



(Abstract) . 



The author states that, while recently examining a specimen of a spe- 

 cies of Sierodulco from the Nicobars, his attention was arrested by two 

 brightish oblong spots, situated one near the distal end of each of the fore 

 femora and nearer to the lower dentate than to the upper entire edge of 

 the joint ; and that on examining these spots more closely by the aid of a 

 lens he had found that they were brushes of stiff hairs, all of which were 

 directed away from the upper edge of the femur, some of which, namely, 

 those forming the upper half of the brushes, were closely appressed to the 

 surface and threw back the light strongly, and the rest of which projected 

 almost straight out from it and were the stiffest of all. He had been un- 

 able to find any account of these structiu'es in any entomological work to 

 which he had access ; and neither M. de Saussure, who had recently pub- 

 lished an admirable account of the external anatomy and habits of the whole 

 family, nor Dr. Fischer, the author of the learned Latin work on the 

 Orthoptera of Europe, had made any mention of them. These brushes 

 occurred in a large number of Asiatic, Euro^jean, African, and Australian 

 forms, and probably universally throughout the whole group, although he 

 had examined none of the American species, which, however, were hardly 

 likely to prove an exception to the rule. 



He finally discusses the probable fimction of the brushes, and con- 

 cludes that they are used for cleaning the parts of the mouth after feeding, 

 just as the pollen-brushes of bees are used by them for freeing their bodies 

 from the pollen grains with which they have been powdered dm-ing theu- 

 quest after honey. 



The paper will be published in the Journal, Part II. 



7. On the Geographical Bistrihution of Schizocephala, a Genus of Man- 

 tidaj. — Bi/ J. Wood-Mason, Esq. 



(Abstract). 

 The author states that so far from being a peculiarly African form, as 

 it is considered to be by M. do Saussure in his recent monograph of the 



