5$ K. P. Stebbing — Alar appendages of Ohermes abietis-picpfe. [No. 2, 



taining a number of the immature aphids. It differs, however, from the 

 European one in the fact that it never has long portions of needles growing 

 out of the centre of the diamond-shaped external portion of the covering 

 of each chamber. It would appear as if the gall arising from the attacks 

 of the larvae of the Chermes abielis-picese was almost a stem growth and 

 not a leaf one. And yet this is in all probability not the case. In the 

 European form the formation of the gall is attributed to the young 

 larvae feeding at the bases of the young needles causing them to swell 

 up at this point and coalesce, the upper part of the needle still continu- 

 ing its growth. Thus the external covering of each chamber has the 

 upper portion of a spruce needle, perhaps half an inch or more in 

 length, growing out of its centre. No such long upper growth of 

 needle is found in the Himalaya gall ; but at times the centre of each 

 diamond-shaped cover bears a tiny green spike which appears undoubt- 

 edly to be the upper extremity of the needle and thus proves that the 

 gall arises in a similar manner to the European one. This point will be 

 dealt with more fully in a subsequent paper. In fig. d a branch is 

 shown bearing a typical set of the pseudo-cones containing nearly mature 

 larvae as they are invariably found in the N.-W. Himalayas. Fig./, 

 shows an old last year's cone from which all the insects have escaped. 



The year 1902 was a dry warm one up in the Himalayan region and 

 therefore favourable to insect growth and development. Galls in sunny 

 warm spots were found to be opening on the 10th July. The gall or 

 false cone, in the process of what may perhaps be termed ' ripening,' 

 changes from green to pale crimson ; this takes place first on one side, 

 after the manner of a ripening apple, and then all over, the cone often 

 becoming bright crimson for a time, finally turning, when the insects are 

 ready to emerge, a dull purple with the exception of a small patch or 

 poiutinthe centre of each of the diamond-shaped covers (where the 

 needle would arise from in the European Spruce gall) which remains 

 bright green. 



The cone does not necessarily commence opening at the top : the 

 small chambers may open anywhere all over it. The portions more ex- 

 posed to the sun and in direct contact with warm air currents ripen 

 first. An examination of the insects within the galls, just before the lat- 

 ter begin to open, will show them to be little thickish, puffy, wingless 

 aphids, dull purple in colour and much ridged dorsally with greatly en- 

 larged globose anterior coxae. Beneath the skin at each side of the 

 mesothorax a small dull yellow excrescence can be seen and posterior 

 to this, on the metathorax, also at either side, a dark longish, flatter 

 protuberance. Legs and antennae are yellowish-green. Antennae are 

 six- jointed. Length 235 mm. Fig. b, shows this fully grown larva. 



